LETTER: Technology will solve green energy problems
Bjorn Lomborg admits climate change is real, but he is not giving credit where credit is due for those seeking solutions and implementing them as soon as possible (“The true cost of wind and solar,” May 26 Review-Journal). Instead he focuses only on the challenges and limitations of technology to meet the moment.
For example, he cites inadequate battery storage as the biggest obstacle to reliable renewables such as solar and wind, but innovation in all types of battery storage for the grid or in transportation is well underway.
VW, Nissan and Toyota all report that within three or four years they will start using solid state batteries, which have the capacity to use much less lithium. These new batteries also have a range of more than 620-700 miles and a charge time in as little as 10 minutes.
Battery storage is not the only answer to solving the problem of the intermittent power of solar and wind. Innovators of all types of energy storage are at work to solve this. Bloomberg reports that global transition investment reached $1.8 trillion in 2023 and the International Monetary Fund reported that global subsidies reached $7 trillion in 2022. Is clean energy worth the costs of developing it? You bet. The sky’s the limit when you consider the alternative of an unlivable climate.
The cost of loss and damages from extreme climate events is going off the charts. Giving credit to all the scientific, technological and business innovators who are meeting the challenges of our times is a good way to help expedite solutions. There’s no time for delays.