Comments on: Hawaii is going where Houston should be http://www.neohouston.com/2009/09/hawaii-is-going-where-houston-should-be/ advocating urbanism in the opportunity city Mon, 16 Jan 2012 11:06:13 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3 By: Stop Drilling Here, Baby. | BlueRoots Campaigns http://www.neohouston.com/2009/09/hawaii-is-going-where-houston-should-be/#comment-457 Stop Drilling Here, Baby. | BlueRoots Campaigns Thu, 17 Sep 2009 02:02:16 +0000 http://www.neohouston.com/?p=1389#comment-457 [...] neoHouston offers some praise for Hawaii as well … and wonders why we don’t see more like this in [...] [...] neoHouston offers some praise for Hawaii as well … and wonders why we don’t see more like this in [...]

]]> By: august http://www.neohouston.com/2009/09/hawaii-is-going-where-houston-should-be/#comment-456 august Wed, 16 Sep 2009 17:05:18 +0000 http://www.neohouston.com/?p=1389#comment-456 Reducing the cost of the technology and inducing consumers to invest in the upgrade is one half of the coin. The other side is getting them installed. Homeowner associations can be a big roadblock to this. There were proposals in the Texas Legislature this last session to prevent HOAs from blocking solar panel installations. Did that ever pass? Reducing the cost of the technology and inducing consumers to invest in the upgrade is one half of the coin. The other side is getting them installed. Homeowner associations can be a big roadblock to this. There were proposals in the Texas Legislature this last session to prevent HOAs from blocking solar panel installations. Did that ever pass?

]]> By: Andrew http://www.neohouston.com/2009/09/hawaii-is-going-where-houston-should-be/#comment-455 Andrew Wed, 16 Sep 2009 13:29:24 +0000 http://www.neohouston.com/?p=1389#comment-455 August: That's exactly the kind of thing that I'm talking about. I think Paul and RWBoyd have good points (you can't just buy a role as an economic center for an industry), however, public support for experimentation and development of new, cutting-edge systems can't hurt. I completely agree with you about the value of a distributed solar power system, especially on the hottest days of summer (highest peak demand). It seems to me the chicken / egg issue is the cost of solar technology. Anything that stimulates demand will increase production, and increased production will lead to greater efficiency of production and lower costs. However, at the current prices, demand just isn't high enough for the market to be pushing the technology mainstream very rapidly. I think that like any technology, solar will get there on its own in time. But if we could speed it up by making some early investments in the public sector, then maybe we should. August:

That’s exactly the kind of thing that I’m talking about.

I think Paul and RWBoyd have good points (you can’t just buy a role as an economic center for an industry), however, public support for experimentation and development of new, cutting-edge systems can’t hurt.

I completely agree with you about the value of a distributed solar power system, especially on the hottest days of summer (highest peak demand).

It seems to me the chicken / egg issue is the cost of solar technology. Anything that stimulates demand will increase production, and increased production will lead to greater efficiency of production and lower costs. However, at the current prices, demand just isn’t high enough for the market to be pushing the technology mainstream very rapidly.

I think that like any technology, solar will get there on its own in time. But if we could speed it up by making some early investments in the public sector, then maybe we should.

]]> By: august http://www.neohouston.com/2009/09/hawaii-is-going-where-houston-should-be/#comment-454 august Wed, 16 Sep 2009 00:54:18 +0000 http://www.neohouston.com/?p=1389#comment-454 I don't know about becoming the renewable energy capitol of the world, but we could go a long way by having programs and policies that make it cheaper and easier to install solar panels at residences. If most or all houses had solar panels, much of our aggregate residential power usage could be supplied. An additional benefit would be that the grid itself would serve as a power plant with those who don't use all their solar generated power putting it back into the grid. In the long run it would save us money, make the grid more reliable and help the environment by reducing the need for coal generating plants. I don’t know about becoming the renewable energy capitol of the world, but we could go a long way by having programs and policies that make it cheaper and easier to install solar panels at residences. If most or all houses had solar panels, much of our aggregate residential power usage could be supplied. An additional benefit would be that the grid itself would serve as a power plant with those who don’t use all their solar generated power putting it back into the grid. In the long run it would save us money, make the grid more reliable and help the environment by reducing the need for coal generating plants.

]]> By: RWBoyd http://www.neohouston.com/2009/09/hawaii-is-going-where-houston-should-be/#comment-453 RWBoyd Tue, 15 Sep 2009 21:28:15 +0000 http://www.neohouston.com/?p=1389#comment-453 I think the expertise for alternative and renewable energy is simply not the same as the expertise for oil and gas (of which Houston is the world leader). So even though we are an energy city and headquarters for the energy industry, we can't necessarily turn on a dime and become an alternative energy city. I mean, you have loads of geologists and geophysicists and drilling engineers etc here. None of them are particularly useful if you want to build a wind farm. I don't think there is a magic bullet for incubating this kind of industry. Silicon Valley was the result of a lot of things, policies that existed in California for decades without anyone knowing that Silicon Valley would be the result. These policies included a major state commitment to education (I just don't see that in Texas, frankly) and a huge government investment in technology in California (defense spending). No one knew that these would help incubate a bunch of high-tech entrepreneurial enterprises whose customers would primarily be businesses and individual consumers. But they did. So I tend to be a bit skeptical of big plans for [name a city or region] to be the [name a sexy new industry] capital of the U.S. Basically because I think it is next to impossible to plan this kind of thing. I think the expertise for alternative and renewable energy is simply not the same as the expertise for oil and gas (of which Houston is the world leader). So even though we are an energy city and headquarters for the energy industry, we can’t necessarily turn on a dime and become an alternative energy city. I mean, you have loads of geologists and geophysicists and drilling engineers etc here. None of them are particularly useful if you want to build a wind farm.

I don’t think there is a magic bullet for incubating this kind of industry. Silicon Valley was the result of a lot of things, policies that existed in California for decades without anyone knowing that Silicon Valley would be the result. These policies included a major state commitment to education (I just don’t see that in Texas, frankly) and a huge government investment in technology in California (defense spending). No one knew that these would help incubate a bunch of high-tech entrepreneurial enterprises whose customers would primarily be businesses and individual consumers. But they did. So I tend to be a bit skeptical of big plans for [name a city or region] to be the [name a sexy new industry] capital of the U.S. Basically because I think it is next to impossible to plan this kind of thing.

]]> By: Paul http://www.neohouston.com/2009/09/hawaii-is-going-where-houston-should-be/#comment-452 Paul Tue, 15 Sep 2009 21:21:47 +0000 http://www.neohouston.com/?p=1389#comment-452 Truth be told, I've heard a lot of rhetoric on keeping Houston the energy capital (renewable and not), but who knows what that looks like? Oil, while not infinite may not be leaving anytime soon, and no renewable technologies have proven themselves as good bets yet. Plenty of research is conducted through Houston (be it at UH, Rice, or Shell), but it isn't economical to founding companies off of it quite yet. No one is looking at the Medical Center and scratching their heads as to why companies are sprouting up to take advantage of health care reform for the same reason. The outlook is fuzzy. The companies here have the most to gain by grabbing up renewables business (or lose if they don't), and I trust a lot of them will try very hard to stay on top. Truth be told, I’ve heard a lot of rhetoric on keeping Houston the energy capital (renewable and not), but who knows what that looks like? Oil, while not infinite may not be leaving anytime soon, and no renewable technologies have proven themselves as good bets yet. Plenty of research is conducted through Houston (be it at UH, Rice, or Shell), but it isn’t economical to founding companies off of it quite yet.

No one is looking at the Medical Center and scratching their heads as to why companies are sprouting up to take advantage of health care reform for the same reason. The outlook is fuzzy. The companies here have the most to gain by grabbing up renewables business (or lose if they don’t), and I trust a lot of them will try very hard to stay on top.

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