Power Hungry
| Company type | Book |
|---|---|
| Industry | Energy, Environment, Non-fiction |
| Founded | 2010 |
| Founder | Robert Bryce |
| Products | Book |
Power Hungry: The Myths of "Green" Energy and the Real Fuels of the Future is a 2010 publication by Robert Bryce that examines energy topics with a primary focus on the United States. Released by PublicAffairs, Bryce also contributed an accompanying opinion piece to The Washington Post.
Synopsis
Expanding on ideas presented in his previous book Gusher of Lies, Bryce contends that the U.S. must maintain significant reliance on fossil fuels, including imported petroleum, while seeking methods to lessen this dependence through:
- Energy efficiency: He points to the U.S. as a leader among industrialized countries in enhancing efficiency and attributes elevated per capita energy consumption to economic prosperity rather than addiction to oil.
- The role of nuclear energy as an essential power source.
Bryce challenges the environmental credentials of some renewables such as wind farms, labeling them as not genuinely green, and criticizes carbon capture and storage technology as both costly and ineffective.
Reception
Trevor Butterworth of the Wall Street Journal characterized Power Hungry as a "brutal, brilliant exploration" into the difficulties facing green energy initiatives.
William Tucker, writing for The American Spectator, highlighted the book’s compelling observations, including historical changes in U.S. energy use between coal and natural gas.
Roger A. Pielke, Jr. commended the book for its clear writing and summarized its approach: an examination of increasing energy demand followed by the refutation of 13 common green energy "myths."
See also
- Gusher of Lies: The Dangerous Delusions of Energy Independence
- Pipe Dreams: Greed, Ego, and the Death of Enron