By James P. Economos DDS, Opinion Contributor
In San Pedro Sula, Honduras, the power frequently goes off because they are not generating enough electricity to keep the lights on. This is especially true during the warm summer months as Honduras is a tropical country where the sun is directly overhead. San Pedro Sula has an elevation of about 100 feet above sea level, is surrounded by mountains with calm wind temperatures that reach 100+ degrees with excessive humidity. This of course creates a huge demand for air conditioning which of course means more electricity is needed – but there’s not enough to go around – so POOF, off goes the juice!
On any given day, the lights will simply go off, sometimes for more than a few hours. At times they will announce the various sectors where the juice will be cut, but again, sometimes not. Rolling blackouts anyone? It wreaks havoc on electrical appliances as well.
A major source of electricity in Honduras comes from a hydroelectric dam constructed years ago called El Cajon. At one time, it produced enough electricity to sell to other countries, but over the years, some of the turbines have fallen into disrepair so the output’s declined. And now they are not even able to serve the local area well.
You may ask why would I know about this issue? This is because I have a small 1,300 sq ft house there where we pay $400/month for electricity. Since many things are so corrupt, there’s no way to determine if the power company’s stealing from the people or not.
Here in the US, we hear the moronic whining about “carbon, Net 0, Green Energy.” Let’s not forget Democrat US Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’ rants about we only have 12 years left. That was 6 years ago – so enjoy life while you can for the next 6 years!
All kidding aside, the result of these misguided energy policies are resulting in the decline of energy production. Many common sense people are warning of these misguided policies. They need to be listened to too. One example is the massive power outage in Texas on February 10, 2021 that resulted in large part, to reliance on some green energy policies.
It’s no secret China and India are continuing to build coal and nuclear power plants to meet their increasing energy needs. While some countries like Germany are starting to reverse their energy policies in a positive manner, more needs to be done.
Nuclear power is the answer. Today there are modular units available and they produce no emissions; have a very small land footprint and can generate electricity very economically.
We need to reverse the energy policies some would have us take, but then if we do, we surely will have the same problems Honduras has.
Let’s not go there.
Since 1980, James P. Economos, DDS, has been helping patients create artistic, beautiful, and aesthetic smiles. Dr. Economos is an opinion contributor with Illinois Review and he can be heard on Chicagoland radio shows each week providing insight and commentary on local and national issues.
