Untapped Renewable Energy – Preppers Power Source

The U.S. has a lot of untapped renewable energy, from wind in the Midwest to solar in the Southwest. These maps show where we could maximize our clean power resources.

Take a look at these maps: They show the renewable energy potential of every state in the country. The good news is that everywhere has resources to exploit, whether it’s solar in the Southwest, onshore wind in the Midwest, or offshore wind on the East coast.

The data was compiled by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, part of the U.S. Department of Energy. In total, the U.S. has 481,800 terawatt-hours of annual generating potential, or 212,224 gigawatts of capacity across wind, solar, biopower, geothermal, and hydropower. If you don’t know your gigawatts, that’s more than enough to go around, in other words, though questions about transmission mean that solar power in the Southwest may not help people who need more power in the Midwest.

U.S. Photovoltaic Solar Resource

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A few states stand out. Hawaii has the highest offshore wind potential (17% of the national total). Alaska and the Northwest enjoy 27% of the realizable hydropower. Texas has the greatest opportunities in plant-scale photovoltaics, with California not far behind. The Rocky Mountain states have the best geothermal potential.

U.S. Wind Resource (80m)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It’s important to note that the NREL uses a broad definition of “potential,” though. The maps are based on what is technically available, given assumptions about technology, land use, and environmental constraints. They don’t consider future economics and market conditions, which are obvious big caveats. We may not be able to afford a wind turbine in a few years.

U.S. Biomass Resource

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

NREL also had to normalize a lot of data from different sources, inevitably drawing arbitrary lines here and there. Still, as co-author Anthony Lopez says, the maps give “a sense of scale regarding the potential for renewables, and which technologies are worth examining.” Seems like every state has something to work with.

Geothermal Resource of the United States

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

source: Maps Show The Incredible Potential Of Renewable Energy

 

 

 

Some Common Prepper Terms and Definitions

72 hour kit – see Bug Out Bag

AR-15 – Is the civilian version of the military M-16 and M-4 rifle.

Bugging Out – leaving your current position and moving to a designated area or suitable location for your safety.

Bug Out Bag (aka BOB) – A bag used for moving from one place to another in an emergency that carries bare essentials to last you at least 72 hours. Mainly the bag focuses on grabbing it and going without having to “pack”. You have no time to pack, you just grab it and go. Common items include food bars, fire starters, first aid kit, water, maps, cash, firearms, emergency medicine, solar blanket, and copies of personal identification (photos of passports, drivers licenses, social security card etc).

BOL – Bug out Location, a preplanned position to retreat to (other than your home) if you had the need to escape danger or disaster.

BOV – Bug out Vehicle

EDC – Everyday carry, what a person caries on their person on a daily basis.

EMP – An electromagnetic pulse is a burst of electromagnetic radiation. The abrupt pulse of electromagnetic radiation usually results from certain types of high energy explosions, especially a nuclear explosion, or from a suddenly fluctuating magnetic field. The resulting rapidly-changing electric fields and magnetic fields may couple with electrical/electronic systems to produce damaging current and voltage surges, destroying the majority of electronic devices.

CME – Coronal Mass Ejection. (Solar flares.) See EMP.

GO bag – see Bug Out Bag

JIC – Just In Case

“Junk” Silver – 1964 or earlier mint date circulated U.S. silver dimes, quarters, or half dollars with little or no numismatic value. These coin have a silver content of 90%.

M.A.G – Mutual Aid Group,  made up of individuals in a specific geographic area. These individuals meet for the purpose of discussing, sharing ideas and planning for emergencies in their area. Think of it as neighbors banning together to help each other out in a time of need.

MBR – Main Battle Rifle

Multi-tool – This is a combination survival knife, pliers and will usually have a wide assortment of tools built in. One example is theMulti-tool.

MRE 
– Meal Ready To Eat. This is a military ration. Its normal shelf life is several years. The contents are sealed in a tough plastic coating.

OPSEC = Operational Security

Peak Oil – the point in time when the maximum rate of petroleum extraction is reached, after which the rate of production is expected to enter terminal decline, causing huge ripple effects in societies transportation, energy and manufacturing systems.

P.E.R.K – (Personal Emergency Relocation Kit) see Bug Out Bag

PSK – Personal Survival Kit

SHTF – Sh*t hits the Fan. – This means that some kind of event has happened. This is a term used in relation to your location. A SHTF situation is not normally world wide.

TEOTWAWKI – The End of the World as We Know it – a global shift in society. An Apocalyptic event.

WROL – (Without Rule of Law) A time when government bodies (police, military, etc) have either lost control, or no longer exist causing civil unrest and instability.

 

Quick Tip | Add These To Your Bugout Bag

Travel much?

If you do, then why not take advantage of the additional shampoo, soap, lotion, mouthwash, shower cap, sewing kit, etc… and save them. They make excellent short term cleaning solutions to add to your bugout bag.

They are light-weight, small and easy to carry. Plus, they don’t take up much room and best of all they are FREE! (or, if you don’t travel, you can just buy trial size products at your local drug store)

outdoor bathing

 

I like to put them into small sandwich size ziplock bags and keep them in my various bugout bags and car kits.