3FOOD

Third Industrial Revolution Consulting Group
Table: Monthly annual precipitation amount (mm) as well as anomalies (mm) relative to the WMO normal period
from 1961-1990 at Luxembourg / Findel in 2015. Observational days for precipitation are based on daily sums
between 06 UTC and 06 UTC of the following day.
Source: MeteoLux
On the other hand, the cumulative rain in the spring was exceptionnally high (over 300 l/m2) in
2016. This had a very negative effect on the grain and wine harvest, with a loss of yield of up to
30% and bad quality parameters.
Conservative U.S. farmers and ranchers in Kansas and other Great Plains States, who have
suffered severe droughts and floods for more than a decade, now refer to wind and solar farms
as their most resilient cash crops that keep on generating revenues long after crops have wilted
and cattle collapsed. Solar panels and wind turbines have become the new harvesting
equipment.
More importantly, solar and wind energy are generated at near zero marginal cost of
production. The zero marginal cost of solar and wind energy is in stark contrast to the volatile
and unpredictable price of importing fossil fuels. Moreover, solar and wind energy use nearly
100 times less water to generate electricity than fossil-fueled thermal power plants. In addition,
unlike fossil fuels, solar and wind energy are non-polluting, and do not emit CO 2 and other
greenhouse gas emissions, or discharge hazardous or toxic wastes during generation.
Moreover, the actual land footprints of wind turbines and solar panels are modest. More than
90% of the land area surrounding a wind turbine remains available for ongoing farming and
ranching. Solar panels can be installed sufficiently high up from the ground to grow crops
underneath (see photos below). It is also worth noting that compared to the land area required
for wind or solar power for battery electric vehicles, the bioenergy to fuel internal combustion
engine vehicles would require 30 to 60 times more area, respectively. The exergetic gains
made in the solar and wind powered electrification of thermal combustion processes are
significant, while also preventing the many environmental challenges and risks associated with
large-scale bioenergy production, as well as the emissions and pollution resulting from fuel
combustion.
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