[ElSapo]

It's really not as simple as simple calculations make it seem.

The biggest problems with solar and wind farms are economics, intermittent power, and the fact that no one wants them. All of which ultimately relate back to economics.

In a nutshell, you get power when the sun shines and when the wind blows. Power generators contract their power out under long-term contracts, largely, which means not supplying what they promised carries significant penalties. Failing to supply that intermittent renewable power can get expensive in a hurry.

I've seen interesting stats that a greater reliance on solar and wind will actually increase our peak usage of natural gas, because when it comes to quick response times NG is the choice fuel.

The you have the problem that building 10,000 acres of wind farms is great in the middle of nowehere, but also missing is thousands of miles of transmission line to carry the power.

And the fact that local municipalities fight to keep out wind farms, or LNG import terminals, or really anything that disturbs the status quo. While the certification of the infrastructure mostly resides at the federal level, and the feds well certificate just about anything, local governments usually control land use permits and can delaye the process significantly.

While I love a good renewable-v-big-fossil-fuel debate as much as anyone, the intricacies involved really make broad debates pointless.

The real solutions will probably come by way of diversified enegry portfolios and an extremely gradual shift towards alternative sources. Carbon sequestration, the implementation of a cap and trade market for carbon credits, a global LNG market and greater on-site generation for industrial and large commercial consumers.

And blah blah blah.