Quillette Podcast The Green Delusion
May 16, 2025
In this discussion, engineer Paul Brown shares his insights on the hidden costs of renewable energy and how current policies may lead to unsustainable practices. He highlights the challenges of transitioning to solar energy, detailing required infrastructure and environmental impacts. Brown critiques the inequities in solar subsidies, showing how they disproportionately benefit the wealthy while hurting the less affluent. He also questions the reliance on government support for renewables, arguing for a reevaluation of energy strategies, including nuclear energy.
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Limits of Solar Energy
- Solar energy is limited by the fixed amount of energy received per square meter from the sun.
- Its efficiency is capped around 20%, requiring large areas of panels and storage to meet energy demands.
True Cost of Solar Power
- The apparent low cost of solar electricity ignores the need for energy storage and system overbuild.
- Factoring these losses, actual costs are two to three times higher than claimed.
Solar Subsidy Inequities
- Rooftop solar panels are less efficient than those optimally placed in deserts.
- Subsidizing rooftop solar often shifts costs unfairly from poor to wealthier property owners.