Will Barack Obama help to make his native state the first 100% free of fossil fuels?
Hawaii, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands and the US Virgin Islands collectively use over 183 million barrels of oil per year. At the current rate, this one state and five territories will have consumed over 5 billion barrels of oil by the year 2028. Why is that significant? If we choose to drill for oil in ANWR (the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge) today, it is expected that the peak production from this source will occur in the year 2028. Government estimates indicate that there may be no more than 5 billion barrels of oil total in ANWR but perhaps as many as 15 billion barrels. Converting the one state of Hawaii and territory islands of the United States to a 100% renewable energy economy could over the next generation more than offset all of the oil that could be produced in ANWR. The oil currently being shipped to these islands could be diverted to other locations. About 40% of Hawaii’s oil (21 million barrels) is shipped from Alaska annually. If Hawaii converted to renewable energy, this oil could instead be shipped to Washington, Oregon, California, and the other lower 48 states without a drop coming from ANWR. By converting these remote islands to renewable energy the technologies will become more mature and economically attractive on the mainland.
These islands share a number of similar energy challenges. Hawaii is the most oil dependant state in the nation. 95% of Hawaii’s electricity comes from burning fossil fuels – none of which can be found on the island. As islands, they all lack interconnection to larger electrical grids that would provide emergency backup power or economies of scale. Lacking indigenous sources of fossil fuels, they are almost entirely dependent on imported oil or refined petroleum products for electricity generation. This dependence causes electricity prices to track with petroleum prices, contributing to electricity rates that are higher than anywhere else in the United States. Yet each of these islands has enormous renewable energy resources which are not being used to the fullest extent.
The fact that these islands are so distant from fossil fuel resources makes them some of the most attractive places to build renewable energy infrastructure in the United States. Is it possible for a small island to become energy independent? Iceland already has. Iceland, with about as many people as American Samoa and Guam combined, was once almost entirely dependent upon imported fossil fuels for its economy just like the major islands of the United States. Icelanders took it upon themselves to exploit the vast natural energy of their island to produce heat and electricity from geothermal and hydroelectric sources. Today as it converts all of its vehicles over to electric and hydrogen fuel cells, it will soon become the first nation on Earth completely free of dependence on fossil fuels.
These islands have resources which surpass those available in Iceland. Not unlike Iceland, the islands of Hawaii, Samoa, and the Northern Mariana Islands have enormous geothermal production potential. Hawaii has had a proof-of-concept geothermal power station with a capacity of 30 MW in use for many years. But these islands have many renewable energy resources which Iceland does not. These tropical islands also have solar energy potential Iceland does not have. They have the potential for biofuels such as ethanol from sugarcane and biodiesel from coconut trees which Iceland will never have. Puerto Rico's prime agricultural product through the middle of the 20th century was sugarcane - a far more efficient source of ethanol. Puerto Rico could produce nearly 200 million gallons more of ethanol per year from its trash and reduce its landfills.
These islands can produce electricity from ocean thermal energy conversion which is only possible in tropical climates where a large temperature differential exists. They have the potential to create floating wind farms in the open ocean away from the sight of beaches. They can produce electricity from tidal currents. Conversion of the fleets of cars and trucks to local renewable resources such as electric cars, biofuel vehicles, and hydrogen fuel cells especially make sense on small remote islands.
Because of their remoteness, geography, and tropical climates, these islands offer ideal locations to build renewable energy economies. The high costs of shipping fossil fuels make local renewable resources more attractive economically. Energy independence will benefit the local economies of the islands by producing jobs and cutting foreign imports. The rest of the United States would benefit by conserving more oil than could be pumped out of ANWR even while the renewable technologies mature and become more economically attractive on the mainland.
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