A recent article in the New York Times points out that while most people are aware of continuing debates over energy sources, some of the most controversial energy issues involve how we transport our energy, regardless of the source. Whether it’s traditional fossil fuels like coal and oil, cleaner fuels like natural gas, or “green” fuels like wind and solar power, the resources for large-scale energy producing projects are typically located in remote locations and have to be transported to the populated areas that use the most energy.
While the recently nixed Keystone XL pipeline brought issues with natural gas transmission to national awareness, transmitting wind or solar energy from production facilities offshore, the middle of the plains states, or the middle of the desert can pose its own set of controversies. The article cites green power projects in Texas, California, and New York that have all hit significant delays over constructing new transmission lines to connect renewable power resources with urban centers. It points out that no matter what the energy source, in an increasingly power hungry world we may all have to accept the possibility of an energy highway traversing our backyard.
