Energy, a gentle breeze, a roaring river, the remnants of a world long disappeared, the force which drives life on earth. When humans were added to the soup of life on our planet, we coexisted with the natural world for many thousands of years. Now our impact has been increased to the point of system collapse. Society has perpetually followed an intangible transcendentalist goal, driving us further from the equilibrium we once had with the environment. Our energy comes from many different sources, the most prominent of which is coal. Our attachment to coal is best described in the statement by Sengupta Somini, "[...] coal is a powerful incumbent. It’s there by the millions of tons under the ground. Powerful companies, backed by powerful governments, often in the form of subsidies, are in a rush to grow their markets before it is too late". Whether it be politicians, banks, or trillions of dollars invested over time into the grid specifically designed for coal-fired power plants. The influence and financial appeal coal has not dwindled this makes for an industry that will not go quietly.
The entrepreneurial spirit of the world throughout history has served the purpose of solving short term issues. However, I think we have never stopped to ask ourselves to what end? In the present-day, the world has developed to the point where we can ask the question. Where should society invest its efforts for the best outcome? The definition of what the best outcome for society is changing significantly, and the subsistence goal is no longer relevant in our modern world. We have the opportunity to find the point where we do not promote excess or deficiency in our energy-consumptive lives. To truly find the best way forward society needs to recognize that we all act upon biological requirements and external forces. In order to respect future individuals and their humanity, we need to find an equilibrium not based on selfish tendencies. A point exists that balances respecting humanity as an end and avoiding short term biological biases.
Our society has focused on self-betterment for a long time, trying to distance ourselves from the day to day subsistence existence that we once had. To change the habits which society has maintained over hundreds of years will take a major societal shift. Despite the major shift needed, signs of this shift are already showing in the Southwest United States. In the article by Peters Adele it states, “There’s all this propaganda that’s been created saying that the Navajo are going to be devastated, the Hopis are going to be devastated,” says Percy Deal, a local activist. “We’ve already been devastated”. Percy Deal is not only referring to the oppression that the Southwest Native American tribes have experienced over the last several hundred years. He is referring to the coal mines and how they have polluted their community and deprived them of necessary resources. This view from local activists is often contrary to the perspectives of the many of the corporate owners of coal energy plants. The reason being that they are often disconnected from these communities and the impacts that their industry creates. This tendency is mainly due to the pressure created by the external bias of having a high monetary investment in the industry.
This however might change in the near future in some parts of the world. As stated by the article Coal Mining in Navajo Nation, "The utility that operates the Navajo Generating Station announced at the start of 2017 that it would turn off the plant by December 2019". This is great news for supporting the navajo community from a health perspective. However, shutting down the plant this December would also mean putting the Kayenta coal mine out of business as well, which is a financial staple for many Navajo families. The transition away from coal may cause many Navajo people to lose their current coal energy related jobs. However in the article by Peters Adele it paints a much brighter financial future for the Navajo Nation. The current owners of the Navajo Generating Station the "Salt River Project", now are seeing the benefits of moving away from coal, and prior to the predicted plant closing in 2019 they bought the new Kayenta Solar Farm. The solar farm consists of 120,000 sun tracking solar panels or 27.3 megawatts of available power. This amount of power is a drop in the bucket compared with the 2,250 megawatts made available by the Navajo Generating Station. However despite its small size the Kayenta Solar Farm's location will be extremely beneficial for many rural Navajo families, helping boost the local economy. Another benefit of the Generating Station's closing will be the 500-megawatt transmission line inherited by the Navajo Nation allowing a small profit for their government if they decide to sell it.
Our hopelessly intertwined fate with energy and our growing consumption of it will bring many future challenges. Many of these challenges will be centered around the shift in methods of procuring this valuable resource. I do hope that we can respect each other's humanity and our capacity for reason in the future. Through finding respect for one another's humanity, I believe we can once again find an equilibrium with our environment. Removing attachment with broken outdated systems in the energy industry, to once again find the era of energy development as we one had in the mid 20th century. If this is done we can once again find some semblance of a life with the potential to grow to a world of transcendental self betterment.
The entrepreneurial spirit of the world throughout history has served the purpose of solving short term issues. However, I think we have never stopped to ask ourselves to what end? In the present-day, the world has developed to the point where we can ask the question. Where should society invest its efforts for the best outcome? The definition of what the best outcome for society is changing significantly, and the subsistence goal is no longer relevant in our modern world. We have the opportunity to find the point where we do not promote excess or deficiency in our energy-consumptive lives. To truly find the best way forward society needs to recognize that we all act upon biological requirements and external forces. In order to respect future individuals and their humanity, we need to find an equilibrium not based on selfish tendencies. A point exists that balances respecting humanity as an end and avoiding short term biological biases.
Our society has focused on self-betterment for a long time, trying to distance ourselves from the day to day subsistence existence that we once had. To change the habits which society has maintained over hundreds of years will take a major societal shift. Despite the major shift needed, signs of this shift are already showing in the Southwest United States. In the article by Peters Adele it states, “There’s all this propaganda that’s been created saying that the Navajo are going to be devastated, the Hopis are going to be devastated,” says Percy Deal, a local activist. “We’ve already been devastated”. Percy Deal is not only referring to the oppression that the Southwest Native American tribes have experienced over the last several hundred years. He is referring to the coal mines and how they have polluted their community and deprived them of necessary resources. This view from local activists is often contrary to the perspectives of the many of the corporate owners of coal energy plants. The reason being that they are often disconnected from these communities and the impacts that their industry creates. This tendency is mainly due to the pressure created by the external bias of having a high monetary investment in the industry.
This however might change in the near future in some parts of the world. As stated by the article Coal Mining in Navajo Nation, "The utility that operates the Navajo Generating Station announced at the start of 2017 that it would turn off the plant by December 2019". This is great news for supporting the navajo community from a health perspective. However, shutting down the plant this December would also mean putting the Kayenta coal mine out of business as well, which is a financial staple for many Navajo families. The transition away from coal may cause many Navajo people to lose their current coal energy related jobs. However in the article by Peters Adele it paints a much brighter financial future for the Navajo Nation. The current owners of the Navajo Generating Station the "Salt River Project", now are seeing the benefits of moving away from coal, and prior to the predicted plant closing in 2019 they bought the new Kayenta Solar Farm. The solar farm consists of 120,000 sun tracking solar panels or 27.3 megawatts of available power. This amount of power is a drop in the bucket compared with the 2,250 megawatts made available by the Navajo Generating Station. However despite its small size the Kayenta Solar Farm's location will be extremely beneficial for many rural Navajo families, helping boost the local economy. Another benefit of the Generating Station's closing will be the 500-megawatt transmission line inherited by the Navajo Nation allowing a small profit for their government if they decide to sell it.
Our hopelessly intertwined fate with energy and our growing consumption of it will bring many future challenges. Many of these challenges will be centered around the shift in methods of procuring this valuable resource. I do hope that we can respect each other's humanity and our capacity for reason in the future. Through finding respect for one another's humanity, I believe we can once again find an equilibrium with our environment. Removing attachment with broken outdated systems in the energy industry, to once again find the era of energy development as we one had in the mid 20th century. If this is done we can once again find some semblance of a life with the potential to grow to a world of transcendental self betterment.
Works Cited
“Coal Mining in Navajo Nation: Are the Consequences Worth It?” NBCNews.com, NBCUniversal News Group, www.nbcnews.com/specials/navajo-coal.
Goodell, Jeff. Big Coal: the Dirty Secret behind America's Energy Future. Mariner Book, Houghton Mifflin Co, 2007.
Peters, Adele. “Solar Is Starting to Replace the Largest Coal Plant in the Western U.S.” Fast Company, Fast Company, 30 May 2018, www.fastcompany.com/40577931/solar-is-starting-to-replace-the-largest-coal-plant-in-the-western-u-s.
Sengupta, Somini. “The World Needs to Quit Coal. Why Is It So Hard?” The New York Times, The New York Times, 24 Nov. 2018, www.nytimes.com/2018/11/24/climate/coal-global-warming.html.
“Why Coal Is Still Strong in the Southwest.” InsideSources, 11 Apr. 2017, www.insidesources.com/navajo-generation-station-shows-coal-strong-southwest/.
“The Global Impact of Coal Power.” ScienceDaily, ScienceDaily, 19 Feb. 2019, www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/02/190219111718.htm.
Goodell, Jeff. Big Coal: the Dirty Secret behind America's Energy Future. Mariner Book, Houghton Mifflin Co, 2007.
Peters, Adele. “Solar Is Starting to Replace the Largest Coal Plant in the Western U.S.” Fast Company, Fast Company, 30 May 2018, www.fastcompany.com/40577931/solar-is-starting-to-replace-the-largest-coal-plant-in-the-western-u-s.
Sengupta, Somini. “The World Needs to Quit Coal. Why Is It So Hard?” The New York Times, The New York Times, 24 Nov. 2018, www.nytimes.com/2018/11/24/climate/coal-global-warming.html.
“Why Coal Is Still Strong in the Southwest.” InsideSources, 11 Apr. 2017, www.insidesources.com/navajo-generation-station-shows-coal-strong-southwest/.
“The Global Impact of Coal Power.” ScienceDaily, ScienceDaily, 19 Feb. 2019, www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/02/190219111718.htm.