Today started with an early breakfast at the hotel and a 3 hour trip to our first company visit. We stopped for a quick lunch before heading to Tractebel Energia. This company surprised me, actually. I was anticipating a progressive power company, which Tractebel is, but I wasn't expecting their view on fossil fuels. The representative explained that their situation is different than that of the United States. We heavily rely on fossil fuels and are constantly pushing towards research and technology improvements that would not only be capable of handling our growth in energy demands, but also ween us off of our fossil fuel reliance. In contrast, Brazil heavily relies on hydro electric power but is pushing towards increasing their use of fossil fuels as their energy demands increase. I found this prospective interesting since the United States is such a strong advocate in the eradication of fossil fuels. But as Brazil views it, they use so little and it's the fastest and most efficient energy source that the benefits outweigh the negative environmental effects.
I don't necessarily agree with this view, although I can understand it. They want the same opportunities the United States was presented with because they utilized such a concentrated and plentiful energy source. I think the US could learn from the diversity in power sources that help power the Brazilian grid. But I also believe hat Brazils solution should be thought of as temporary. Coal in Brazil isn't as energy intensive as that extracted in the states. I think that eventually a more sustainable energy source needs to completely eliminate the use of fossil fuels.
After our visit to Tractebel, we drove another 4 hours to Rio Grande do Sol. It's much colder here than I expected. A hot shower and a good nights sleep will do me some good.
Until tomorrow,
Jess
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