Hydropower's great, but it depends on whose ox is gored. Is it fair or appropriate for eminent domain to take from you and give to a private company? Does it matter if its for the climate?
Yep, hydropower as a way to store the excess production from renewable energy sources is great ... that is, unless it's your land or would hit your wallet.
The gentleman who wrote the op ed below is right. Hydropower as a way to store renewable energy is in many ways a good option. I agree with what he notes: it runs on existing technology, doesn't degrade with storage and draw-down like chemical batteries do, and doesn't require us to somehow magically get a bunch of rare earth materials in a hurry.
Thing is, it requires dams and puts land out of use.
A fine thing if you live in the Front Range where you know there isn't a snowball's chance in hell your land will get taken in order to do this.** Do you honestly think they'll take land from Boulderites to do this? We all know it wouldn't even get past the "twinkle in the eye" stage, even if the absolute perfect site existed in the foothills outside the city.
So, yes, hydropower is a good option. Let's just remember who's going to ultimately end up paying the check.
**p.s. I have said before, and I'll say again, the same applies here to actual placement of renewables like solar arrays and wind turbines.
https://www.coloradopolitics.com/opinion/a-better-way-to-store-energy-for-the-west-s-power-grid-podium/article_bdb1f166-204b-11ee-8ae1-1b66d6a4ccff.html
And if you say you don't want renewables or environmental things running across or through your land, well, the government may just end up telling you that you've not got a choice.
I find the story linked below (related to the day's earlier post), disturbing. Eminent domain is one of those powers that I believe should be highly, highly restricted.
If the government is going to start using the pretext of climate change or environmental concerns to justify the use of its eminent domain powers, I am not at all in favor. That should not be a valid use for it.**
This is made all the worse by the fact that the entity seeking to condemn some land from the farmers and ranchers up near Summit County is a private company. A for profit company that stands to benefit economically by using the government to force landowners to deal with them.
Let me repeat that.
This land is not being used for a road.
This land is not being used for national defense (for example, a missile silo).
This land is not being sought by the government.
This land, with the blessing of the government will be given to someone to make a profit. The government is taking from one so another can have it.
Is that fair? Is that the proper role of our government?
This is concerning enough to me that I'm going to get ahold of some people and ask about what the laws look like in Colorado and what can be done about this.
I'll update more when I know.
**Let me be perfectly clear in saying that someone who CHOOSES to use their land for purposes like these has every right to. I am not commenting at all about someone's choices with their own property.
https://www.thefencepost.com/news/landowners-say-no-to-summit-carbon-solutions-easements-eminent-domain-may-be-enforced/