Rely on renewable energy sources

Agree with Lobachevsky and Sam that we can't solely rely on renewables. Yes renewables are a very important opportunity and part of the solution. But deliverying significant supplies of energy to offset the ongoing depletion of existing resources will take investment in renewables, very significant investment in traditional energy sources, and development of new technology that makes coal and other resources acceptable from a environmental standpoint. On top of that efficiency improvements and conservation initiatives from all of us will be key to meeting our energy needs, addressing climate change and providing the economic growth and standards of living throughout the world that people aspire to.

I agree with Sam, renewable energy cannot and should not be relied upon right now. For one thing, it would do terrible things to the economy. Renewable energy costs a lot more than most people understand. It is another one of those things that sounds great, but has many drawbacks. For example, solar and wind power are both extremely innefecient, ethanol and "corn oil" require so much essential energy to produce that the net gain is minimal and the cost is through the roof. Don't get me wrong, I believe that we must make the change from expendable energy sources, but it cannot all be done at once. To me it is simple economics - we have known about these alternative sources of energy for years, and if it were economically advantageous to rely on them we would have already made the switch.

We can't RELY on the renewable energy sources we currently have. They should certainly be worked into an energy portfolio, but until new technologies improve beyond their current state, attempting to RELY solely on these forms of energy would be disastrous for our economy.