Absolutely, this is what Iowa can and needs to do in order to get ahead of
the curve on the next energy revolution. The great thing about wind or
solar produced hydrogen is that the system helps resolve so many problems
at once.

1. Economically we stop exporting billions of Iowa's dollars each year,
enhancing our local economy.
2. We don't have to import oil from volatile regions of the world, making
us less dependant and less likely to go to war over this resource.
3. We reduce the use of fossil fuels and thus reduce our greenhouse gas
emissions and other pollutants.
4. Our energy production will become distributed geographically, making it
more robust in the face of mechanical or natural disasters and more
difficult to target by terrorists.

I'm sure others could add to this list. President Geoffroy at Iowa State is
looking for big projects to focus on, especially ones that cross
disciplines. Two interrelated ones that  make sense to me are:

1. Moving toward a hydrogen economy as Tom argues below
2. Developing a fossil fuel free agricultural system

Are there any great proposal writers out there who could put something
together and approach President Geoffroy?

Eric G. Hurley

At 03:14 AM 1/16/2002 -0500, you wrote:
>Our conservation chair, Jane Clark, forwarded the message below. I have not
>gone to the website yet, but find the concept intriguing.
>
>Just think about it.
>
>Iceland, an island nation, limited in fossil fuel resources, in the middle of
>the North Atlantic--the first nation to create a hydrogen economy.
>
>Iowa, a state, limited in usable fossil fuel resources, in the middle of
>North America--the first state in the U.S. to create a hydrogen economy.
>
>Just a vision, of course, but what a vision! Now here's a project to set our
>Governor, on whom we pinned so much hope back in '98, to work on--promoting
>the vision of, and implementing the reality of, a hydrogen economy for Iowa.
>
>What's a hydrogen economy? Well, it means using hydrogen in the ways we now
>use fossil fuels--coal, oil, and natural gas--for transportation, electric
>power generation, heating, cooling and cooking. And it means using hydrogen
>in something very new on earth, but tested for over three decades in space:
>fuel cells for totally pollution-free electricity generation.
>
>Where do we get all this hydrogen? By using electricity to split water
>molecules into what they're made of, hydrogen and oxygen.
>
>And where do we get the electricity to do all this water molecule splitting?
> From Iowa's abundant renewable energy resources: mainly wind, biomass, and,
>probably to a lesser extent, solar through photovoltaic cells. The
>environmental effects of harnessing renewable energy, though not negligible,
>are far less dire than the effects of using fossil fuels or nuclear fission
>energy.
>
>Hydrogen can be transported in our natural gas pipeline system, with suitable
>modifications to that system.
>
>And a hydrogen economy means independence from foreign oil.
>
>The vision of Iowa leading the nation in building a hydrogen economy. Let's
>get to work on it!
>
>Tom Mathews
>--------------------------------------------

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