“I wonder if the court or a charity could provide Amy Pritchard (and other members of Extinction Rebellion) with a few books to quell her alarmism, one book being Alex Epstein’s Fossil Future: Why Global Human Flourishing Requires More Oil, Coal, and Natural Gas–Not Less.”

A UK judge has reinforced the law that has climate alarmists up in protest. His was a good decision. But on LinkedIn, Ben Tolhurst, a climate busy body, complained:

My friend Amy [Pritchard of Extinction Rebellion] was jailed for 10 months this morning by judge Silas Reid for cracking a window [no, three windows costing $350,000] of JPMorgan Chase & Co., the world’s biggest funder of fossil fuels. I had the privilege of hearing her summing up speech last week and was sure that even the most hard hearted would be moved by her account of why she took the action.

“[Hannah] Ritchie ends with suggestions for better results for wind’s avian mortality problem, including ‘Turn off wind turbines at very low speeds when bats are around … Don’t put wind farms in high-risk areas for birds and bats … Paint the turbines Black … Play alert noises to bats and birds to deter them.’ But … these things limit wind siting, increase costs, and/or annoy local neighbors.”

A social media post by Hannah Ritchie (sustainability researcher, University of Oxford) on industrial wind power is worth revisiting. She works within the climate alarm/forced energy transformation narrative (“Bird species are under threat from climate change”) but considers the question:

It would be worrying, then, if a move to low-carbon energy increased pressures on bird populations. That’s a common concern as countries move to wind power.

“It is entirely possible that the total costs to build, maintain and replace units every 20+ years (at end of service) would be prohibitive compared to other sources of energy. Beyond these cost considerations, sources indicate that the turbine blades cannot be recycled and are piling up in landfills. Fossil fuels will also still be needed to maintain the lubrication of these units, and what about potential for spillage?” (Jeff Wyles, below)

The old joke comes to mind: Q: When is an environmentalist not an environmentalist? A: When it comes to wind power.

Make that double for offshore wind, and wild-eyed California politicians are having trouble hiding the problems. Consider a recent op-ed, Rethink Floating Wind Turbine Power Off Our California Coastline?,” an environmental feature of California newspaper MendoFever (February 12, 2024).…

Ed. Note: This post excerpts energy and climate material from the Media Balance Newsletter, a free fortnightly published by physicist John Droz Jr., founder of the Alliance for Wise Energy Decisions. The complete Newsletter for this post can be found here.

Greed Energy Economics:
*** Bloomberg: Wind and solar will need subsidies indefinitely
US revises tax credit rule to help offshore wind projects

Unreliables (General):
*** “I Was Wrong About Renewables,” Says Former Green Energy Executive
*** Renewables will destroy America’s lifestyle back to the pre-1800’s – this is the Biden energy plan
*** The Coming Electricity Crisis
It’s Hailing on the Climate Crisis Green Energy Parade
Polish Farmers Stage 600 Protests in a Day Against EU Crippling Green Policies

Wind Energy — Offshore:
*** Conservative groups sue to stop Dominion VA offshore wind project
     Wind Project Sued Over Claimed Threat to Whales
*** Dominion Energy’s absurd reply to CFACT’s whale protection lawsuit

Wind Energy — Other:
*** Taking the Wind Out of Climate Change (referencing 60± studies)
*** Doctor: Infrasound From Wind Turbines Could Be ‘A Huge Threat to the Entire Biodiversity’
Can Wind Turbines Cause Developmental Deformities in Horses?…