Energy Solution To UN Sustainability Issues
Currently in southern France a power reactor is under construction. Named ITER, with the combined contributions of 35 countries, this power plant may be the first fabled fusion power plant. If this power plant works as anticipated, the dream of producing a net energy power plant will realized. What this boils down to is incredibly cheap, essentially free energy. With net energy technology, we’re looking at a lot more than just reducing the power bill. With free energy we can start to look at a lot of very real, impacting problems in global communities today.
Problems concerning hunger, water, and health, potentially have a new shining light. There are plenty of communities, even within the United States, that fight for water. Cities such as Miami and Los Angeles have a constant threat of water related issues, despite easy access to what is essentially the world’s water supply. More global communities exist with easy access to ocean water and difficult access to clean water for drinking or crops. Water desalination is the process in which salt is separated from ocean water through reverse osmosis or thermal desalination. Previously, the energy cost and environmental impact of energy really tied this type or project up. See this interesting DW article regarding desalination.
Essentially free, unlimited energy, has potential to impact every part of the world. The biggest negative impact of desalination was always the immense energy cost; with this hurdle out of the way we can start to address a lot of serious issues. In the most challenged communities, a constant supply of clean drinking water could just be the start of the energy revolution. Sewage, potable water, and crops can all be transformed with a constant supply of clean water. This energy solution can mean lighted streets, refrigeration, air conditioning, and IT networking; luxuries that we may unintentionally take for granted.
Let’s hope for a great show of international team work and successful trials of this potential globally impacting technology. Links to more information follow.