The North American Renewable and Neutral Energy Alliance (NARNEA) (2014)

Undergraduates: Maritza Mendoza, Karl Edinger, Molly Fisher

Faculty Advisor: Jose Rial
Department: Environmental Science

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The North American Renewable and Neutral Energy Alliance (NARNEA) is a network of renewable energy power plants aimed at generating 400GW of electric power, thus eventually eliminating coal-powered electricity generation in North America at a cost of less than one trillion dollars over 15 years. We have researched the current renewable infrastructure to create a loose budget for the costs of this network. Our research indicates that this initial goal can be met using primarily thermal solar and geothermal energies. Biofuel from algae, hydropower, wind, and tidal resources complete our vision of the project. We expect that the public¿s support will decidedly weigh on the governments of North America to fund the project in the near future. We believe that North America is the perfect place to apply such a grid because we have seen the United States, Mexico and Canada sign international agreements in the past, such as NAFTA. When this project starts to become a reality, it will create a huge job market for the construction of the new power plants as well as the long-term operating positions. NARNEA will help to stimulate the economy, mitigate negative public and environmental health issues, and help strengthen national security by promoting energy independence for North America. Those are the goals that have motivated us to do this research and fight for this idea, now we just need support.