while i sit here, 6 months pregnant, winter quickly moving in, i am forced to realize i will likely not be able to work much on my project until sometime near the middle of next year.
i do have a few coal fired plants in mind, that id like to visit.
particularly meigs county, ohio. where they currently sit under the stacks of 4 coal plants, with another proposed. not to mention the countless other environmental tragedies theyre forced to deal with.
over this period, i will continue to research, learn, and spread the word. as thats what i likely do best.
id like to share a speech jason howard gave at the lexington forum recently, regarding "the true costs of coal"
while were searching for a better way, lets at least conserve what we have.
it pains me, to know, that children born in southeastern cities (such as the one i live in) face higher rates for sids, asthma, allergies, etc. etc. etc. all because of the impurities my air is forced to take on due to the power company, and those plugged into its excessive use.
Showing posts with label electricity. Show all posts
Showing posts with label electricity. Show all posts
11/9/09
10/4/09
need a movie to watch?
recently, we watched kilowatt ours (NOTE: the previous link will allow you to watch the complete film.) at the recommendation of a cousin whom i was discussing my documentary goals with.
pretty good film. the first half discuss' a good part of what im trying to cover (though i think the toxicity, use, and misuse of coal ash needs to be covered as well)
so, following that i finished up somethings rising and was duely impressed.
what better way to learn about the history, in addition to current events, in appalachia, than from those who live it? numerous stories, from those best equipped to tell them.
such rich history, makes me jealous that i didnt grow up with that. but alas, i have found my.... "calling"? if you will.
and then, last night, thanks to our local library and someone leaving the search field of "dvd" up without my realizing it, we checked out and began watching harlan county, usa .
which just reinforces the damage coals been doing to this area since long before i was born.
knowledge is power, eventhough ignorance is bliss. i think, that regardless of what you may think or feel, its important to know where your electricity comes from, and what it really costs. your bill puts a monetary value on it, and there is so much more to it than that. coal may very well be cheap. for the power companies that burn it, but so are clothes and toys made in china. everything has its price, even if its not represented in a dollar amount.
pretty good film. the first half discuss' a good part of what im trying to cover (though i think the toxicity, use, and misuse of coal ash needs to be covered as well)
so, following that i finished up somethings rising and was duely impressed.
what better way to learn about the history, in addition to current events, in appalachia, than from those who live it? numerous stories, from those best equipped to tell them.
such rich history, makes me jealous that i didnt grow up with that. but alas, i have found my.... "calling"? if you will.
and then, last night, thanks to our local library and someone leaving the search field of "dvd" up without my realizing it, we checked out and began watching harlan county, usa .
which just reinforces the damage coals been doing to this area since long before i was born.
knowledge is power, eventhough ignorance is bliss. i think, that regardless of what you may think or feel, its important to know where your electricity comes from, and what it really costs. your bill puts a monetary value on it, and there is so much more to it than that. coal may very well be cheap. for the power companies that burn it, but so are clothes and toys made in china. everything has its price, even if its not represented in a dollar amount.
5/31/09
electric cars are all the rage.
my family just invested in the 2010 honda insight for the sake of being "greener". (honestly, we really just want to save money. saving the earth is always a perk though.)
now im aware of the...not so goodness that is hybrid cars, batteries are a yucky yucky thing, as with coal, the metals that make up said batteries must be mined, exposing the environment to all kinds of things that it wasnt meant to be exposed to, in addition to the people employed to mine said metals. then comes the disposal, which is inevitable at some point in time.
the car we traded in wasnt even old, nor was it anything remotely close to a "gas guzzler". but yet, this felt like a good idea, despite my feelings of feeling somewhat selfish.
so where am i going with this? well, weve (americans, and the world) have been going on and on about electric vehicles (ev's) for years and years now. currenty there tons of talk about "plug in hybrids" as well as ev's. i have to ask myself, are these really a better option than the gasoline powered vehicles currently on the market?
and my educated answer is no.
gasoline is dirty, thats no secret. while im sure i could expose a few secrets (as well as enlighten myself a little) on petroleum production, im going to focus solely on the environmental cost after use.
i dont have the energy this evening to find and share statistics, but its a fact that coal fired power plants emit MANY more emissions than gasoline powered cars for the same amount of energy. (i hope that makes sense) smokestack to exhaust pipe, coal is far worse. this alone tells me that petroleum is the more conscious option.
i did a brief search for this topic, to see what others had to say. and it makes me sad to see that the most talked about issue is cost. because coal (and the power it generates) is so much cheaper than petroleum, they expect less than a us dollars worth of energy to equate to a gallon of gasoline. if price represented environmental impact than clearly, that would be the better option. but it doesnt. yes, gasoline is expensive, and it seems like the cost only rises. yes, at the rate of consumption its likely that not so distant future generations will only read about petroleum in history books. but lets face it, coal is a NONrenewable resource as well (as are our mountains). until we come up with a better source for electricity, i will scoff at the thought of production ev's.
now im aware of the...not so goodness that is hybrid cars, batteries are a yucky yucky thing, as with coal, the metals that make up said batteries must be mined, exposing the environment to all kinds of things that it wasnt meant to be exposed to, in addition to the people employed to mine said metals. then comes the disposal, which is inevitable at some point in time.
the car we traded in wasnt even old, nor was it anything remotely close to a "gas guzzler". but yet, this felt like a good idea, despite my feelings of feeling somewhat selfish.
so where am i going with this? well, weve (americans, and the world) have been going on and on about electric vehicles (ev's) for years and years now. currenty there tons of talk about "plug in hybrids" as well as ev's. i have to ask myself, are these really a better option than the gasoline powered vehicles currently on the market?
and my educated answer is no.
gasoline is dirty, thats no secret. while im sure i could expose a few secrets (as well as enlighten myself a little) on petroleum production, im going to focus solely on the environmental cost after use.
i dont have the energy this evening to find and share statistics, but its a fact that coal fired power plants emit MANY more emissions than gasoline powered cars for the same amount of energy. (i hope that makes sense) smokestack to exhaust pipe, coal is far worse. this alone tells me that petroleum is the more conscious option.
i did a brief search for this topic, to see what others had to say. and it makes me sad to see that the most talked about issue is cost. because coal (and the power it generates) is so much cheaper than petroleum, they expect less than a us dollars worth of energy to equate to a gallon of gasoline. if price represented environmental impact than clearly, that would be the better option. but it doesnt. yes, gasoline is expensive, and it seems like the cost only rises. yes, at the rate of consumption its likely that not so distant future generations will only read about petroleum in history books. but lets face it, coal is a NONrenewable resource as well (as are our mountains). until we come up with a better source for electricity, i will scoff at the thought of production ev's.
4/23/09
a letter
here i will attempt to write something profound. ok. maybe not. but this is what i will soon forward to every person and organization that i think may be able to assist me, in some way shape or form.
is it too wordy? if anyone would like to edit or critique it before i start to send it out. feel free.
"to whom it may concern,
my name is jessica deis, i am a 27 year old mother of two. i homeschool my oldest, who is almost 8, and in doing so, this has forced me to open my eyes and mind in a new way.
more important that all of that (for this letter anyway) is that i am a professional photographer. i do mostly freelance portrait work, but ive long had an affinity for documentary photography, i guess its just that nothings pulled at me hard enough to motivate me to dedicate the time, money, effort, skills, etc. neccessary... until now.
in august of 2008 me and my family relocated to louisville, ky, and my eyes were opened to the reality that is mountain top removal. i now spend much of my time thinking about and researching this subject, and it tears at me. so ive decided to do a photo documentary on coal. from its source, the mountains, to its destination, the power plants, and everything in between.
i hope to work with residents in appalachia who have experienced the devistation first hand, right on to those affected by power company "ash spills".
not being able to devote every hour to this will no doubt make it a bit more challenging, but im ready to accept that challenge. if you have any sources, information, advice, etc. to offer me, i would be greatly appreciative, and would gladly give credit anywhere i share my work.
thank you for your time,
-jessica"
is it too wordy? if anyone would like to edit or critique it before i start to send it out. feel free.
"to whom it may concern,
my name is jessica deis, i am a 27 year old mother of two. i homeschool my oldest, who is almost 8, and in doing so, this has forced me to open my eyes and mind in a new way.
more important that all of that (for this letter anyway) is that i am a professional photographer. i do mostly freelance portrait work, but ive long had an affinity for documentary photography, i guess its just that nothings pulled at me hard enough to motivate me to dedicate the time, money, effort, skills, etc. neccessary... until now.
in august of 2008 me and my family relocated to louisville, ky, and my eyes were opened to the reality that is mountain top removal. i now spend much of my time thinking about and researching this subject, and it tears at me. so ive decided to do a photo documentary on coal. from its source, the mountains, to its destination, the power plants, and everything in between.
i hope to work with residents in appalachia who have experienced the devistation first hand, right on to those affected by power company "ash spills".
not being able to devote every hour to this will no doubt make it a bit more challenging, but im ready to accept that challenge. if you have any sources, information, advice, etc. to offer me, i would be greatly appreciative, and would gladly give credit anywhere i share my work.
thank you for your time,
-jessica"
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