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Green Illusions

Ozzie Zehner (Goodreads Author)

3.98 · Rating details · 694 ratings · 87 reviews

We don’t have an energy crisis. We have a consumption crisis. And this book, which takes aim at cherished assumptions regarding energy, offers refreshingly straight talk about what’s wrong with the way we think and talk about the problem. Though we generally believe we can solve environmental problems with more energy—more solar cells, wind turbines, and biofuels—alternati ...more

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Paperback, 456 pages

Published June 1st 2012 by University of Nebraska Press

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Oct 01, 2012 Mike rated it did not like it

Shelves: sociology

I picked this book up at the library hoping it would provide an accurate critique of green technologies and was sorely disappointed. It is very weak on the science and economics of each technology and very biased toward the model of everyone living in dense urban areas and using mass transit - complete with personal references to glorious periods of time lived abroad in energy paradise and fear mongering anecdotes to scare everyone away from each technology.

The errors begin no later than page 7 ...more

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May 23, 2012 Aaron rated it it was amazing

This is a book both devastatingly honest and realistic about the challenges we face, but also full of reasons to be hopeful. Personally, I think it is the only environmental book that really addresses the inter-connectedness of the many challenges we're confronting as a society, and Zehner does so with searing intelligence and quite a bit of humour. His critiques are forceful without being pedantic or accusatory. And his writing is extremely accessible and engaging. What's particularly impressiv ...more

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Jul 07, 2013 Amber rated it liked it

Shelves: library-vegas, book-club

I want to divide this book into two sections - the first section is awesome. He explains the reality of alternative energies extremely well. I appreciated his point of view and the fact that finally someone is putting into print the realities of the situation. I should have stopped reading there because I would have given it a strong 5 star rating.

My love for this book started to wane with the second half of the book where the author connected everything to our piggish use of energy. Everything ...more

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Dec 06, 2015 Randall Wallace rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

On December 9th, 1949, our US Air Force deliberately secretly contaminated the civilian area around Hanford with radioactive iodine to dispassionately study it’s tragic effects on the local populace and plant life. Wow… Would it surprise you to know that our government didn’t do this criminal act once to it’s own citizens but “has sponsored at least several hundred secret releases of radiation throughout the United States”? Double wow… This amazing book is filled with energy/sustainability relat On December 9th, 1949, our US Air Force deliberately secretly contaminated the civilian area around Hanford with radioactive iodine to dispassionately study it’s tragic effects on the local populace and plant life. Wow… Would it surprise you to know that our government didn’t do this criminal act once to it’s own citizens but “has sponsored at least several hundred secret releases of radiation throughout the United States”? Double wow… This amazing book is filled with energy/sustainability related facts that are rarely told in order to keep Americans in the dark: Only 10-15% of the nitrogen in synthetic fertilizer gets into the food we eat, the rest goes into the water systems and creates dead zones like in the Gulf of Mexico. Sure, synthetic fertilizer dramatically increased agricultural yields, but who ever tells you that one must always factor in the resultant whopping 810% increase in energy inputs required against the much smaller 346% Green Revolution increase in production? In the US we built our towns and cities on the best soil (located near waterways) which is now trapped thoughtlessly under asphalt. Most Americans don’t know that the Clean Water Act doesn’t limit coal related pollutants such as arsenic and lead on purpose (thank you lobbyists). The best example of what deregulation in practice looks like is the Niger Delta today. Ozzie exposes the scam behind LEED certification and smartly posits that our energy crisis is cultural rather than technological. What’s our energy future? Years ago, our great-great-grandparents thought petroleum would save the day because now the whales didn’t have to disappear due to demand for whale oil. Today, once again we believe we think we have solved the problem – this time with our false green celebrities: Solar and Wind Power. But beyond the fact that they alone won’t cut it, you just can’t have a sustainable economy without a 90% reduction in energy use and a huge increase in women’s rights, community, re-localization, simplicity, humility, and service. Why not expect solar, wind or technology to save us? Read this great book and find out… ...more

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Nov 10, 2012 Sonali Daneil rated it it was amazing

Zehner is like us - he does not know the answers, but this book lays out the bigger questions we should be asking and thinking about. The first part of the book exposes a lot of the dirty secrets about clean energy. The latter parts deal with how to move forward. And, the ideas seem a lot more convincing and realistic than a lot of the other ideas floating around out there in green tech la la land.

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Nov 09, 2012 Cassie Bennett rated it it was amazing

This has given me insight into how easily we humans are fooled into believing what we want. Going green has become a religion - a notion I have considered but never followed through with research.

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Jul 16, 2013 Henri Hämäläinen rated it it was amazing

Latest book I read was Green Illusions by Ozzie Zehner. For once it was a book I have no preconceptions and I didn't really have a clue what was coming. I don't even know how I actually picked it up and ordered it, but I'm glad I did.

Green Illusions is a book explaining what current green initiatives there are ongoing in the world and why many of those will never solve the actual problem of us ruining the globe. It goes through in very detail solar power, wind power and all other electricity bas ...more

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Jan 11, 2013 Mac Gray rated it really liked it

If this were just some conservative oil loving blowhard's diatribe about how alternative energy sucks I would have never bothered picking up the book. It isn't though. Instead this book demonstrates how we fail to see the amount of production and consumption of energy as the problem and we instead fantasize about a future with all the energy we need powered by wind turbines, solar panels, and hydrogen fuel cells.
If you are a liberal who loves solar cells you may hate the first seven chapters wh ...more

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May 05, 2013 Andrew rated it it was amazing

This is a much needed slap in the face to our mainstream environmental movement. The central premise of the book argues that we are focusing far too much on clean energy production to the exclusion of a reduction in energy consumption. For example, we should be promoting more walkable and bikeable urban communities instead of fantasizing about furnishing our suburban McMansion with the latest and greatest electric car, the latter of which is still incredibly resource-intensive and wasteful in it ...more

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May 27, 2012 Charlie rated it it was amazing

This is an amazing book that everyone interested in alternative energies should read. In fact I think ALL of our policy makers should have this book as mandatory reading. The book is easily read, fast paced and full of good anecdotes and straight forward thinking on the 'business' of alternative energy sources. Mr. Zehner offers so many practical solutions to our growing energy crisis. Green Illusions will turn your Alternative Energy thinking on it's head. As I said, Green Illusions is a must r ...more

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Jan 03, 2015 Nyna rated it it was amazing

Shelves: non-fiction-science

Everyone should read this book. At first, it seems to have been written by some oil company, as it points out the shortcomings of green alternative sources of energy. It does present some real eye-opening revelations. The second half of the book covers the social engineering that would help to alleviate our over-consumption of energy. Many of those changes, though admittedly something I would like to see implemented, are too pie-in-the-sky grand to accomplish. It's a book that is very provocativ ...more

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Nov 09, 2012 Patrick Johnson rated it it was amazing

I bet this book will change your opinion of putting solar cells on buildings for environmental and health benefits. I definitely thought solar energy through photovoltaic cells was great for the environment. I had overlooked other possibilities. Highly recommend for other environmentally-minded people.

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Jan 27, 2015 Frank Berg rated it it was amazing

Zehner, albeit with a confronting voice, attacks pillars of the "Green Revolution" bringing needed scrutiny to a movement that has been politicized and undeveloped in the minds of the general public for some time. Most of it surprised me, some didn't. This is a great lens to look at if you're in the Sustainability or Conservation fields. ...more

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Nov 09, 2012 Julia P. rated it it was amazing

This isn't a big oil book. It is a Deep Green book. Prof. Zehner tells some great stories and shows the real facts that are hidden by corporate influences (even those you thought were green). ...more

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Sep 13, 2018 Raghu rated it it was amazing

There are many holy cows in the environmental debate. The imminent dangers of climate change is one. The imperative to completely switch to renewable energy sources as a solution to global warming is another. The debate, however, is highly polarized. In general, if one is politically conservative or to the Right, he develops a confirmation bias against the alarmist prognosis of climate change and the position that renewable energy solutions are a panacea. On the other hand, if one is on the Left There are many holy cows in the environmental debate. The imminent dangers of climate change is one. The imperative to completely switch to renewable energy sources as a solution to global warming is another. The debate, however, is highly polarized. In general, if one is politically conservative or to the Right, he develops a confirmation bias against the alarmist prognosis of climate change and the position that renewable energy solutions are a panacea. On the other hand, if one is on the Left or a liberal, then that person develops a confirmation bias towards the dire consequences of Global warming and opts totally for renewable energy solutions. As things stand, Western governments, mainstream environmental movements, establishment scientists and mainstream media have successfully sold us the ideal of total adoption of renewable energy as the way forward. Ozzie Zehner, in this book, takes a critical and refreshing look at this question. He does not question the arguments on climate change or its consequences. Instead, he questions the simplistic notion that all solutions for the problems of climate change begin and end with our total embrace of renewable energy systems like solar power, wind energy, biofuels, hydrogen, geo-thermal, hydropower etc..

To start with, the book argues that none of the above-mentioned alternative energy sources are as environmentally beneficial or carbon-negative or even carbon-neutral. Over seven substantial chapters, he takes each one of these renewable sources and exposes what he calls ‘their dirty little secrets’. He shows that the life cycle of bio-fuels eventually results in accelerated climate change due to destruction of rainforests, as per the experience in Brazil; manufacture of solar cells result in large emission of toxic greenhouse gases like hexafluoroethane C2F6, Nitrogen trifluoride NF3 and sulphur hexafluoride SF6 , which are twelve to seventeen thousand times more potent than CO2. ; the life cycle of wind turbines, their production, transport, maintenance and final disposal result in wind power becoming carbon negative. As for hydrogen fuel cells, the production of hydrogen requires more energy than the cell eventually provides. One can use solar power to produce hydrogen but an experiment in California in 1994 showed that it took ten hours to produce one kg of hydrogen, which is equivalet to just a gallon of gasoline. What about other ideas like ‘it takes only 2.6% of the area of the Sahara desert to produce all the power the world needs using solar cells’? With today’s solar cell technology, the author says that it is possible if only we can find $123 trillion to make it happen as well as provide for another $694 billion annually for its maintenance.

With all these dampeners on renewable energy solutions, is Zehner saying that we must simply burn coal as usual? No, he says that environmentalists have got it wrong by looking at solutions for ‘clean energy’. He points out that more and more energy availability will only lower costs of energy, thereby generating even more demand for energy. Instead, we need to curb our rampant consumerism without asking the scientists and engineers to solve the problem for us,. To do this, Zehner says it is important that taxation in society must shift focus away from income to consumption. The pricing of goods and services must be recalibrated to reflect their negative effects on the environment in their production. The other thing is to take a good look at packaging in the US as one-third of all garbage generated in the US is packaging material. Other suggestions include moving away from living in the suburbs to cities, which can make communities more walkable and friendly to public transit and allow use of more bicycles and so on.

There may be many critiques of Zehner’s position on renewable energy. It is not easily possible for the average person to conclusively determine as to which side is telling the truth. However, when I read about past and present experience in Europe and on proposed plans in California, I am inclined to give credence to many of Zehner’s statements of caution on clean energy. Let us look at some of them.

European countries have decades-long experience on Green energy expansion through subsidies. But, recent reports in this decade have concluded that Spain, Germany, UK and France are rolling back subsidies for clean energy because they are unaffordable and unsustainable. Denmark, a clean-energy giant, with more than two decades’ pursuit of wind power, has not seen any reduction in half its energy output still coming from coal. Development of wind power is said to cause loss of jobs in the economy, grid stability problems, high subsidization, higher retail electricity rates, and usage issues. Consumers feel zapped because they have to pay twice for power, once for the renewable power and then again for the back-up system. The subsidies seem to have been too good to last long and make renewable energy viable on this model. All this has happened in spite of wind and solar-generated electricity enjoying subsidies nearly 50 times higher per unit of energy output than ordinary coal and 100 times higher than natural gas.

What about our own experience in California? In 2015, a group of scientists, activists and celebrities, led by Mark Jacobson, the director of the Atmosphere and Energy Program at Stanford, released a report called ‘50 States 50 Plans’ in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, that lays out individual plans for all 50 states to reach 100 percent renewable energy for all purposes: electricity, transportation, heating and cooling, and industry. It has political support from people like Bernie Sanders. The state of CA seems to be considering a 100% shift to renewable energy by 2045. However, there are others who have questioned the viability of the proposal. In 2017, a rebuttal appeared from a team of prominent researchers in the same journal, saying that the ‘50 states 50 plans’ paper used invalid modeling tools, contained modeling errors, and made implausible and inadequately supported assumptions. Naturally, Mark Jacobson et al defended their paper and accused the critics of allegiance to fossil fuels or nuclear power lobbies. The rebuttal researchers are affiliated with prominent institutions like Carnegie Mellon, the Carnegie Institution for Science, the Brookings Institution, and Stanford University. Their rebuttal includes data on conflict of interest. They caution that incorrect assumptions or miscalculations can lead to spending public resources on the wrong technologies, underestimating the research and development still required, or abandoning sources that might ultimately be necessary to reach the stated goals. As an example, Georgia, which has a coastline of about 100 miles long and a total area of more than 59,000 square miles, is proposed to get 35 percent of its energy from offshore wind—none of which has been developed to date. Alaska, which has a fragmented power system due to its immensity and the remoteness of many communities, is slated to get 70 percent of its energy from wind, both offshore and onshore. These projections are deemed eyebrow-raising and in an era of political gridlock and bitter arguments over climate change, the political barriers also need to be considered as formidable.

The other issue which often crops up is battery storage technology. High profile efforts by Elon Musk on his Tesla Gigafactory in Nevada and a 100-MW battery array in South Australia have raised hopes of lithium ion batteries as the solution to balance fluctuating wind and solar energy on the grid. California is mulling four giant lithium-ion storage facilities of 300 MW each, starting by 2020. California is already slated to get 50 percent of its electricity from clean sources by 2020, and the legislature is considering a bill that would require it to reach 100 percent by 2045. A detailed article in a reputed MIT journal by James Temple analyses these issues and says that batteries as backup is likely an unaffordable solution. CA currently has 150,000 megawatt-hours of energy storage in total, mainly pumped hydroelectric storage, with a small share of batteries. Assuming lithium-ion batteries will cost only a third of what they do now, building the level of renewable generation and storage necessary to reach the state’s goals would drive up costs exponentially, from $49 per megawatt-hour of generation at 50 percent to $1,612 at 100 percent. Extending it further, meeting 80 percent of US electricity demand with wind and solar would require either a nationwide high-speed transmission system, which can balance renewable generation over hundreds of miles or 12 hours of electricity storage for the whole system. At current prices, the cost would be above $2.5 trillion. In addition, experts say that it takes anywhere from six to ten years to bring a battery technology that works in the lab to the marketplace. These are cautionary notes in the head-long rush towards renewable sources.

Given the polarized atmosphere of the debate, it is likely that all of Zehner’s arguments on renewable sources may be dismissed as polemic. But the book asks us to keep an open mind above all the hype and look at cheaper, simpler alternatives through lifestyles. Even if substantial lifestyle changes don’t happen, as has always been the case, it is important for Californians to consider the lessons from the European experience in moving to a 100% renewable future by 2045. The same should be the case before buying into Elon Musk’s vision of batteries as a storage solution for our states and cities. ...more

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Jul 14, 2013 Andrew rated it really liked it

Shelves: political-science, favorites

I was surprised by how much I liked this. Just scanning some reviews I was prepared for a very polemical and contentious take on alternative energy, possibly from a conservative-in-disguise standpoint, and while it may arguably have been that (except for the conservative part) I also found myself pretty easily agreeing with everything Zehner wrote.

The subject is too broad to go over every point here, but the main gist of the book is Zehner's assertion that focusing on alternative methods of ener ...more

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Feb 11, 2013 Larry rated it really liked it

Shelves: environment

This is a book directed towards Americans about their energy usage and how best to obtain it and use it. As such, it accomplishes its task, but it does so in a very uneven way. The beginning chapters are about the alternatives to fossil fuels. Clearly, it is aimed at the "soft" environmentalists who think that being an environmentalist is as simple as just opposing what the Republicans want. (No diehard Republican would be caught dead reading this book.) In short, the book quite effectively tear ...more

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Jan 30, 2016 Ravi Warrier rated it liked it

Shelves: ecology, non-fiction

Before reading the book, I, like many others, was under the impression that alternative energy solutions was the answer to our growing environmental problems. This book is the proverbial other-side-of-the-coin.

As an uneducated (at least in the field of alternative energy) the arguments presented make a lot of sense and plausible, though a sceptic might find it to be an anti-greenwash campaign - my mind just cannot fathom that green technologies are not that green, perhaps in my naivety and optim ...more

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Mar 25, 2013 Rohan rated it really liked it

Shelves: economics, urbanism

The alternative energy movement/industry has been co-opted by Big Oil and is a massive ruse to get subsidies. Solar power is inefficient. Wind power suffers from unpredictable supply issues and adverse environmental side effects. The risk of nuclear(fission) power is too high. Fusion is unfeasible. Hybrid cars are a red herring and a PR gimmick by the oil and car industries. So where do we go from here?

The author's basic premise is that technology is not a panacea and we need to completely revis ...more

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Jan 04, 2015 Brendan Holly rated it really liked it

Recommended to Brendan by: Emma Anderson

Shelves: environmental-studies, leftist-politics

This book is important. For anyone with any interest in the planet, our society, and sustainability, Green Illusions is a must. Anyone lacking an interest in the aforementioned topics should quickly read up on climate change and environmental degradation. These "phenomena" are continually being worsened by our ridiculously excessive consumption.
This book shattered the "alternative energy" dream that most environmentalists are clinging to for the much less sexy strategy of conservation. Zehner m ...more

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Mar 14, 2013 DavidO rated it really liked it

Shelves: 4-or-5-stars

Let me summarize this book for you and save you a great deal of time.

The beginning of the book (7 chapters) is about how alternative sources of energy won't produce much energy and how all sources of energy create pollution of one kind or another.

The second half of the book is about how we can reduce energy usage, both through using less energy without significantly reducing quality of life and reducing the population. He does offer clear specific (and ethical) examples of how to do these things ...more

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Nov 09, 2012 Jason Smith rated it it was amazing

We had to read this for class and write a response paper. I wrote about the section on carbon taxes vs energy taxes. The author argues that carbon taxes allow other side effects of energy production like radiation, groundwater pollution, and deforestation to go ahead without the same tax penalty. So, energy production would shift to those technologies and leave us with different problems. He argues for ENERGY tax instead, which brings down all energy consumption, not just the carbon based types.

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Jul 10, 2014 Mark Donovan rated it it was amazing

I'm not sure if it's confirmation bias, but this book echoes many of the concerns I have with going green. The first half was excellent factually describing the shortfalls of existing energy sources. The second half was thought provoking presenting many energy conservation solutions and wins I had never considered.

I would recommend to anyone who thinks they care about the environment. ...more

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Jun 17, 2012 Greg Allan Holcomb rated it really liked it

I like that the varying sides of arguments for or against a type of energy weren't the same ones that we're beaten over the head with. ...more

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Sep 10, 2012 Annea rated it it was amazing

Shelves: environment-economy-energy

Wow - an eyeopener. A great realistic look at the limitations of renewables, and strong answers - we must simply use less energy! Practical and clear eyed.

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Sep 26, 2012 Brigitte Fortin added it

I found this book to be an interesting, academic and critical evaluation of the current state of environmentalism. It includes a frank discussion on natural gas as an "alternative fuel." ...more

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Oct 28, 2012 Anita rated it liked it

Very informative, should have been a 4 but it took me 2 months to finish it!!!!

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Nov 10, 2012 Nadeeka Danthanarayana rated it it was amazing

My favourite book on environmentalism. I read for a class at University.

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Sep 09, 2012 Sheree rated it liked it

INteresting evaluation of the pro & cons of green energy

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Jan 26, 2013 Janet rated it really liked it

Recommends it for: Those who want to be happier and who want to make a better world

Recommended to Janet by: Pat

I had assumed that options such as solar and wind power were great alternatives to oil and coal. This books sheds light on the fact that all options have downsides (whether it's having to anchor wind turbines 80 feet down into huge concrete slabs (1,700 cubic yards) or how unrecyclable solar panels are at the end of their relatively short lives).

Really this is about our learning to do more, with less [energy].Not only did he evaluate these popular green energy alternatives, but he discusses step ...more

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About Ozzie Zehner

Ozzie Zehner

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Ozzie Zehner is a visiting scholar at the University of California, Berkeley STSC and author of Green Illusions (GreenIllusions.org).

He has spoken about energy and environmental issues on CNN, MSNBC, PBS, Science News Radio, New York Public Radio, Wisconsin Public Radio, and numerous college campuses. He has written for a variety of academic texts and magazines including Christian Science Monitor ...more