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American solar farms

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Re: American solar farms

#301

Post by sagarm »

thelastgallon wrote: post #285
adabyron wrote: post #230

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This gets proposed a lot. The reason it isn't more frequent is due to the cost of the structure to hold the panels & risks of people running into them. It would be great if these costs could come down. Parking lots, animal pastures & other areas could be protected & create energy at the same time.

> risks of people running into them Curious how people run into solar panels. I wonder how many ER visits say "I ran into a solar panel"

Drivers hit structures all the time.

Re: American solar farms

#302

Post by robotresearcher »

ahmeneeroe-v2 wrote: post #252
whatisthiseven wrote: post #213

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think every engineer knows that all things come with trade-offs. A great engineer, however, is able to readily admit when one option among others has a far, far greater set of costs than another, for the exact same benefit. And if said engineer can't decide (for claim of ignorance), they mature to learn that the experience and knowledge of others is the best source for understanding the trade-offs involved to make…

People in cities are voting that rural people should bear the cost of getting power to the cities.

People in cities pay money to compensate the rural areas for providing these things. Like we do with food.

Re: American solar farms

#303

Post by robotresearcher »

Nasrudith wrote: post #281
IAmBroom wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Having farmers in the family, I can confirm they are unhappy about living next to anything other than what they grew up next to. Also, the rainfall. Some farmers go from morning to night never saying a word that isn't a complaint about the rainfall being wrong.

It is something I have noticed about the definition of 'eyesore' and it isn't just farmers. If it is something which is useful and new it is considered an eyesore. Like, say wind turbines. Yet older practical things which are no longer of use are considered pretty. Like say windmills. They also don't complain nearly as much about things which are 'established and ugly' like powerlines or coal power plants, the latter…

“I've come up with a set of rules that describe our reactions to technologies:

1. Anything that is in the world when you’re born is normal and ordinary and is just a natural part of the way the world works.

2. Anything that's invented between when you’re fifteen and thirty-five is new and exciting and revolutionary and you can probably get a career in it.

3. Anything invented after you're thirty-five is against the natural order of things.”

― Douglas Adams, The Salmon of Doubt: Hitchhiking the Galaxy One Last Time

Re: American solar farms

#304

Post by robotresearcher »

bluGill wrote: post #63
jstanley wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Of all the kinds of power plant, a solar farm has to be the least intrusive.

Nuclear is a good candidate - they take up a lot less land mass for the amount of power generated. I used to leave near one, and when my neighbors where asked where it was most pointed instead to a coal power plant many miles away.

"Fifty thousand people used to live here..."

I'm pro nuclear power, but I couldn't resist the pop culture reference. And it's good to remember what can go wrong when people's fallibility interacts with a powerful technology.

(Dialog from a memorable Call of Duty level based on Pripyat, Ukraine, near Chernobyl)

Re: American solar farms

#305

Post by michael1999 »

justin66 wrote: post #273
RALaBarge wrote: post #224

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I come from rural Michigan and everyone in the areas where the turbines are complain about it. Its the view or its the sound. The former sure, the latter I haven't heard it myself but I don't go home anymore. It is also the only new investments made in the area in 50 years in any which way shape or form. When they first started, they had to build the infrastructure and stations to collect the power to transport it fr…

I wonder if the noise becomes a lesser concern once the turbines reach a certain size? I was in Iowa a couple of years ago and the sight of the turbines near the freeway was truly something, but I don't think I could hear them when I stopped to take a look.

The big ones can be really loud. As the blades get longer, tip speed becomes truly impressive.

Re: American solar farms

#306

Post by kingstnap »

thelastgallon wrote: post #285
adabyron wrote: post #230

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This gets proposed a lot. The reason it isn't more frequent is due to the cost of the structure to hold the panels & risks of people running into them. It would be great if these costs could come down. Parking lots, animal pastures & other areas could be protected & create energy at the same time.

> risks of people running into them Curious how people run into solar panels. I wonder how many ER visits say "I ran into a solar panel"

People drive into buildings all the time. Like it's actually like over a hundred per day sort of thing in the US. Happens really frequently here in Canada as well.

If you include stuff like stop signs, light poles, mailboxes, and fences its probably in the several thousands. Fixed object collisions are super common.

Re: American solar farms

#307

Post by thelastgallon »

kingstnap wrote: post #306
thelastgallon wrote: post #285

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> risks of people running into them Curious how people run into solar panels. I wonder how many ER visits say "I ran into a solar panel"

People drive into buildings all the time. Like it's actually like over a hundred per day sort of thing in the US. Happens really frequently here in Canada as well. If you include stuff like stop signs, light poles, mailboxes, and fences its probably in the several thousands. Fixed object collisions are super common.

Even animals (with significantly smaller brains) know how to avoid stationary structures (and even moving things that are trying to eat them!).

Where are ya'll from that people are running into stationary structures all the time? If people have an epidemic of running into stationary things, wouldn't there be a 100x problem of them running into moving things - like cars, trucks, trains, airplanes?

Regardless, why is it okay for people to run into any stationary structure but not okay for people to run into structures that hold solar panels? Or is there some effort to remove ALL stationary structures because of this problem?

Re: American solar farms

#308

Post by thelastgallon »

sagarm wrote: post #301
thelastgallon wrote: post #285

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> risks of people running into them Curious how people run into solar panels. I wonder how many ER visits say "I ran into a solar panel"

Drivers hit structures all the time.

and? Why is it a problem with solar panels?

Re: American solar farms

#309

Post by thelastgallon »

kingstnap wrote: post #306
thelastgallon wrote: post #285

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> risks of people running into them Curious how people run into solar panels. I wonder how many ER visits say "I ran into a solar panel"

People drive into buildings all the time. Like it's actually like over a hundred per day sort of thing in the US. Happens really frequently here in Canada as well. If you include stuff like stop signs, light poles, mailboxes, and fences its probably in the several thousands. Fixed object collisions are super common.

Probably ya'll need to update the driver's license exam. First, in the written exam, include rules against hitting stationary structures, and quiz them on it before issuing the learner's permit. Then also test for it during the road test. If they can't avoid a stationary structure, perhaps fail them?

In the US, this is not a problem unless you are drunk. When you are driving drunk, you are violating the law anyway.

Re: American solar farms

#310

Post by fragmede »

thelastgallon wrote: post #309
kingstnap wrote: post #306

Earlier quoted context omitted.

People drive into buildings all the time. Like it's actually like over a hundred per day sort of thing in the US. Happens really frequently here in Canada as well. If you include stuff like stop signs, light poles, mailboxes, and fences its probably in the several thousands. Fixed object collisions are super common.

Probably ya'll need to update the driver's license exam. First, in the written exam, include rules against hitting stationary structures, and quiz them on it before issuing the learner's permit. Then also test for it during the road test. If they can't avoid a stationary structure, perhaps fail them? In the US, this is not a problem unless you are drunk. When you are driving drunk, you are violating the law anyway.

We don't know the state of the multiple drivers to cause these posts, or for the drivers to run into the corresponding posts, but they're a) in the US (Atlanta, Oakland, and Brookfield, CT) and b) it sounds like it's happened more than a few times.

https://old.reddit.com/r/cars/comments/myfroy/today_the_14th...

https://old.reddit.com/r/HomeImprovement/comments/5da1w1/bes...

https://i95rock.com/how-to-avoid-a-car-crash-as-you-approach...

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