How Do We Power Utopia?
In 1863, English industrialist Lord William Armstrong predicted that his homeland would stop its coal production within two centuries. He observed that coal “was used wastefully and extravagantly in all its applications,” and advocated instead for generating energy from renewables like hydroelectricity and solar—making him likely the earliest campaigner against fossil fuels.*
Armstrong also happened to be the inventor of the world’s first power station. In 1870—12 years before Thomas Edison began installing public power plants in London and New York — Armstrong constructed a hydroelectric power plant near his country home, Cragside, that used water from a man-made lake to drive dynamos. The resulting electricity was used in an arc lamp installed in the home’s gallery, illuminating his collection of paintings. Cragside was the first house in the world to be lit with hydroelectric power.
Armstrong was also a supporter of solar power, stating in a speech the same year that “the solar heat operating on one acre in the tropics would exert the amazing power of 4,000 horses acting for nearly nine hours every day.”
Today, large swathes of society worldwide champion Armstrong’s thoughts on fossil fuels and renewable energy sources—but at the time, they were utterly ignored. British coal production rose from about 75 million tonnes [165 billion pounds] annually in 1863 to almost 300 million tonnes [660 billion pounds] in 1913. It is not an exaggeration to say that the Industrial Revolution wouldn’t have been possible without coal.
And yet Armstrong’s prediction is looking like it’ll prove accurate. British coal production has been in decline for decades and now sits at just 12 million tonnes [26.5 billion pounds]. The government’s energy secretary has pledged to shutter the U.K.’s remaining coal-fired power plants within 10 years, far in advance of Armstrong’s 2063 deadline. On a global scale, coal is still in use as a fuel source, but that use is declining fast as well — falling to below five percent of the global energy mix for the first time in 2015.
I remember the first time I became aware of the vast infrastructure that provides power to the world around us. I was 11 years old and playing SimCity 2000. I’ve chronicled elsewhere exactly how huge an influence that game had on me, but the necessity of supplying power to my virtual cities opened my eyes to the idea that the electricity in our wall sockets comes from somewhere. It also gave me my first glimpse into concepts like renewable energy (which didn’t explode every half-century, in the game, like the coal plants did) and air pollution. The subject has fascinated me ever since.
That’s why I’m pretty pumped to be curating this month’s theme on How We Get To Next. It’s called Power Up, and it deals with the future of energy and power. The questions swirling around the issue of how to provide clean, safe energy to billions of people around the world have many answers, and we’ll explore as many of them as possible — from renewables, to nuclear, to as-yet-undiscovered innovations. We’ll also look at key trends like the global, fossil fuel divestment campaign; the vital importance of batteries in our daily lives; and the positive impact of electrification on vulnerable communities globally.
But this is a two-way conversation, and we want to hear from you. You can pitch us stories about any energy-related topics, respond to what we post on Medium by clicking the little speech bubble button at the bottom of the page, or highlight and share anything that catches your eye. We’ll also be using our Twitter and Facebook pages to begin a dialogue on some of the thornier issues that come up, so keep an eye on those.
So, without further ado, let’s begin. You can get started by taking a look at our bibliography of the best long reads on power and energy. Meanwhile, I’ll get cracking on the first batch of articles we’re planning to publish. And if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to ask.
* Another candidate for the world’s earliest renewable energy advocate is Augustin Mouchot, a French inventor who built the first parabolic trough solar collector in 1866. In 1880, during a demonstration of his technology, he said: “Eventually industry will no longer find in Europe the resources to satisfy its prodigious expansion … Coal will undoubtedly be used up. What will industry do then?”
