Define "green".

Hundreds of thousands of dead birds (maybe we're in the millions by now, I am not certain). Green?

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How does Danny Hart sit down with balls that big?

A large amount of energy production is Southern Ontario is hydro-electric from Niagara Falls. I suppose that is green. As for the fields of windmills, well, what BLeP said.

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A false humanity is used to impose its opposite, by people whose cruelty is equalled only by their arrogance

We were in Hawaii and they said the cats all hang out under the windmills. Free meals. I still don't quite get how so many birds get messed up by windmills but it does seem to happen

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They constantly try to escape from the darkness outside and within
Dreaming of systems so perfect that no one will need to be good T.S. Eliot

I didn't ask if there might be some green energy production near you. I asked if you can choose a green only plan.

Birds fly into all sorts of buildings. I have a 6 x 8 window right next to my desk. I have had 3 die on that window alone this summer 2 came on consecutive days while I was sitting at mu desk which was weird. Not sure what the lure is or I'd change it, maybe they just don't like the look of me.

Has there been any numbers run on the rates of birds flying into big building in rural areas vs. windmills?

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I'm beginning to think that we are much more fucked than I thought.

My city allows me to buy into a community solar garden. Basically you can buy a number of panels in one of the cities solar gardens and you will get the Kwh's produced reduced off your bill. I'd assume if you were willing to buy a lot of panels you could get to 100%. I did the math since my wife was interested, it would take me 7 years to make up the cost of a panel.

So your asking if I can choose to pay more for energy that may or may not be "green" then the answer is yes I can, even there is no way to determine where that particular electron originates.

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A false humanity is used to impose its opposite, by people whose cruelty is equalled only by their arrogance

I have no idea. I am really not all that upset about the stupid birds, I just want a definition of "green".

Duffy will chime in shortly and tell us of the horrors of solar fields. Green? I have no idea.

So, what makes an energy type "green"?

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How does Danny Hart sit down with balls that big?

+1

These plans just seem like a great way for utilities to charge people who want to feel better about themselves, more.

Do the utilities that do this, cap the number of people who can sign up by the amount of "green" energy produced?

A fool and his money....

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Civilize the mind, but make savage the body.

- Chinese proverb

You ask too many questions. Now, just follow along and be a good conformist...

All the electrons are the same. It's the financial accounting that matters.

What is hamburger? Chopped ham?

While the inspiration for the hamburger did come from Hamburg, the sandwich concept was invented much later. In the 19th century, beef from German Hamburg cows was minced and combined with garlic, onions, salt and pepper, then formed into patties (without bread or a bun) to make Hamburg steaks

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A false humanity is used to impose its opposite, by people whose cruelty is equalled only by their arrogance

It does not consume a finite resource, therefore infinitely renewable.

So if we assume the sun and planetary weather patterns are constants, then photovoltaic, wind and hydro are green. Most people consider biofuels green as well, but that assumes no future competition for arable land for other needs, like, mmmm, food.

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Brian

Gonna buy a fast car, put on my lead boots, take a long, long drive
I may end up spending all my money, but I'll still be alive

We can do this through our service provider. In effect they are letting you give them an incentive to generate or purchase more renewable energy than they would have otherwise. Enough people must do it at a high enough premium to make it worth it to offer the program.

There should be no cap on number of people who can sign up. Any provider can purchase whatever electricity they want through a Regional Transmission Office. The blocks of electricity that are offered and sold are identified by source, so you would know what to buy to match up to your green demand. There are almost no electricity providers in the US who generate all of what they sell, so they're all routinely buying at the market. It can happen that at times a provider generates more electricity than their own customers will use, but the markets make it very simple to just offer up the excess to another provider that needs it.

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Brian

Gonna buy a fast car, put on my lead boots, take a long, long drive
I may end up spending all my money, but I'll still be alive

in AZ i don't have any option to choose 'green' energy.
i am looking into putting solar on our house though. when we first came here the payout was too far off, didn't think we'd keep the house that long. still not a fan of phoenix but like the proximity to stuff so will prob keep it as a base camp and just travel to places we like to hang out.

my sister lives in plano. i left north texas back in 2010. she was excited about signing up for a 'green' company years ago. i did a little research into the company and, if my memory serves me correct, it was owned by BP Petro. i think they, BP, have sold it since then, but i don't know if the company is even still in business.

in vegas the solar farms cook the birds in mid-flight, they're called 'streamers' cuz they let out a puff of smoke when the pop from cooking internally. about a year after the farm opened they asked for an increase in their usage of...natural gas? propane?. i don't remember, again, it's been a couple of years since i was based there. don't remember why they needed the gas/propane, but it was an increase that was the equivalent of putting 16'000 cars/yr on the road.

i know your question was is it avail, but in the LR we gotta address the question...and all 1 million and 1 tangents.
:-)

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ΜΟΛΩΝ-ΛΑΒΕ
we're doomed

Not that I'm aware of.

So birds be damned, wind is "green". Birds are infinitely renewable.

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How does Danny Hart sit down with balls that big?

Damn the salmon also! Build more dams. It would be cool if they put a dam on the LA river that flooded out the area.

I think the term is collateral damage

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Brian

Gonna buy a fast car, put on my lead boots, take a long, long drive
I may end up spending all my money, but I'll still be alive