Advantages and Disadvantages of alternate fuels.?

Everette Rovinsky: Advantages : Lessen dependence on fossil fuels ,esp foreign oil.Most produce less air pollution . Wind, solar, nuclear produce no air pollution,and do not contribute to global warming.They do not contribute to health problems. (except a nuclear accident)Solar especially can be decentralised ,that is small home sized installations are becoming practical.Home sized wind generators are available, too.Hydrogen fuel burns clean and has no waste but water vapor.Disadvantages:Nuclear is expensive, and presents a waste disposal problem,possible release of radiadtion into the air,and terrorist thefts of nuclear fuel for bombs.Wind power is site specific and requires areas where a lot of wind is present, like mountain tops and places in CA.. Some say wind mills present a hazard to wild birds. Home sized installations require maintenance.Solar requires an area with a lot of sunshine like the South or Southwest US.Alternative fuels like ethanol and wood still make ! pollution,although ethanol makes very little. If I were to choose, I would choose a combination of wind and solar for electricity production. When the sun is not shining, the wind is blowing, they suplement each other. For vehicles, the ideal would be electric, recharged by solar or wind generated power. Hydrogen can be safely burned in either internal combustion engines , or electric fuel cells,but a system of hydrogen service stations would have to be established. As far as the economy goes, all alternative fuels, could provide a lot of jobs in manufacturing,construction, distribution. There would be a loss in oil related jobs, but it would be spread over many years as oil based fuels are phased out. Oil would still be used for lubricants,plastics, chemicals, and even for some fuel applications for as long as oil was available....Show more