Ecotech Response 3 – Cullen S, Tate Y, Alex M, Tyler R
https://www.treehugger.com/wind-technology/accio-energy-wind-panel.html
For our piece to respond to, we decided to discuss the article on Treehugger.com by Megan Treacy, “Offshore wind energy system combines sea water and wind to create electricity.” This article, written on November 16, 2016, describes the company’s ambitions to combine offshore wind turbines and sea turbines. This invention was thought up by Accio Energy, a company based in Michigan, and hopes to provide clean, renewable electricity.
Key Issues:
The issues being addressed are that our current energy sources are bad for the environment and not renewable, with the constant threat of it running out looming above us. The main focus would be to remove or reduce our current dependency on fossil fuels. Fossil fuels burning releases an excess of CO2 into the environment which greatly damages our environment. This technology would be able to provide a clean, renewable energy source without adding CO2 into the environment.
Which ecological issues does this raise or solve?
Most ecologists are against wind turbines and hydroelectric power sources do to the dangers they pose to wildlife. Many would argue that wind turbines disrupt bird populations, and hydro affects the ecosystem of fish. This energy source tackles both of those problems as there are no moving parts to the design. These structures simply sit on the ocean and seperate the positive and negative charges of sea water droplets, thus converting mist to energy.
How does the projects address the questions/issues? In their words, what does the project add to human culture? How does it contribute to human meaning? community? Ecosystems?
The current issues with today’s energy sources is that they are limited and require us to pollute the world with excess carbon. This project contributes to solving these problems by creating a valid way of generating renewable and sustainable clean energy. Humans today are aware that clean energy is possible and can be achieved. The implementation of these energy sources is the next step for humans to evolve from dirty to clean energy. If the world was run with sully sustainable energy it would be a step forward for human consciousness.
What design decisions were used to support the intent? Does the design fit the concept?
The design of Accio Energy’s wind power systems provide a new way of capturing energy from the environment up to a 40 percent increase in capacity while also cutting traditional offshore wind turbine costs by 50 percent by utilizing the sea as well as the wind. This both addresses the issue of cost as well as the lack of efficiency that wind turbines typically have. The trick for the lower cost is the fact that there are no moving parts and instead the wind blows right through, capturing the charged water droplets as well as the wind’s energy.
How does the project respond to the issues?
This project responds to a current sustainable energy problem deeply. They state the problem of current sustainable energy practices and have created a project that faces those problems head on in an efficient manner. This project went beyond just responding superficially to the issue of finding alternatives to fossil fuels. Accio was designing a product that could dramatically offset our need for non-renewable energy, however unfortunately due to lack of funding they were unable to continue designing their product. So although they were addressing this issue by actually creating a product to change how we gather energy, ultimately their mission failed due to funding, which in a way, says something about our interests in fossil fuels. Our fossil fuel industry is dramatically subsidized, but we cannot afford to further the design of a product to gather energy from renewable energy resources, such as wind and sea energy. So even though initially this project was responding in a manner that had a tangible outcome, now this project serves as an example of how we are not only facing the challenges of designing a product to efficiently gather energy from wind and the ocean, but our society is up against the powerful fossil fuel industry. Because of this power, it makes it harder for us to come up with safer, more efficient, and cleaner energy alternatives, and we must continue to support companies like Accio to further the development of products to harness the vast amounts of renewable energy sources.
Tate’s quote:
A future that is sustainable and sustaining of the best of human life – [is] one that is lived in partnership not domination.
Cullen’s quote:
The first rule of making any place is that it should not impair some other place.
–https://www.ecoliteracy.org/article/hippocratic-oath-designers
Alex’s quote:
The design revolution they will see and perhaps take for granted will grow from disciplines that we call biomimicry, industrial ecology, natural-systems agriculture, and ecological engineering.
Tyler’s quote:
The imperative is simply that we ought to pay full and close attention the the ecological conditions that sustain life, it is utter foolishness to assert otherwise.
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