"The Use of Energy" by Wendell Berry

Wendell Berry, who wrote “The Use of Energy,” spoke of an energy source guaranteed to last for as long as we know; he preaches that biological energy--energy from plants, animals, and humans—is the most practical method for obtaining energy. Berry states that, “The difficulty with mechanically extractable energy is that so far we have been unable to make it available without serious geological damages, or to effectively restrain its use, or to use or even neutralize its wastes…we are carrying the physical and the moral poisons produced by our crude and ignorant use of this sort of energy.” (Berry). Like Berry described our usage of fossil fuels to create energy is polluting our environment and wasting energy that we do not know how to recycle or reuse—as of yet. Berry says that, “This mechanically rendered infinitude of energy is an ambition surrounded by terrific problems. Such energy cannot be used constructively without at the same time being used destructively.” Though the use of energy does cause destruction, it also creates a massive amount of construction throughout the globe. Without using energy and technology we wouldn’t be capable of producing higher levels of intelligence, and though we haven’t discovered a completely renewable energy source that is energy efficient, advancements have been made and the waste of energy could potentially become manageable. In particular energy from biomass. Like Berry says, “we cannot create biological energy any more than we can create atomic or fossil fuel energy. But we can preserve it in use…we cannot do this with machine-derived energy.” By generating energy from biomass we can preserve energy in a controlled setting; in this way we respect the energy economy, and the environment. Berry states that, “the use of biological energy, all bodies, plant and animal and human, are joined in a kind of energy community.” And the use of biomass energy in combination with plant and animal and human adds another link to the energy community without severely damaging the environment. Berry claims that, “By farming we enact our fundamental connection with energy.” And by farming natural energy we enact our fundamental connection with the environment adding another spoke to the “Wheel of Life” that rises out of the soil. “The soil is the great connector of lives…without proper care for it we have no life.” If biomass energy production is practiced properly we will be able to obtain self-sufficient and sustainable energy systems that are adapted to their own needs.