The recent reports that renewable energy has overtaken nuclear power as a source of primary energy for the nation have created the mistaken impression that all the windmill and solar panel construction is having a decisive impact. In fact, as the Energy Information Administration's December Monthly Report reveals, 80 percent of "renewable energy" is still supplied by hydroelectricity, wood and biofuels. Twelve percent comes from wind and 1.2 percent from solar. An additional 6 percent comes from burning waste - which not everyone regards as "renewable" - and 2.5 percent comes from geothermal energy.

Hydroelectricity has long been the largest component of "renewables," although few new facilities are being built and large dams are generally excluded from "renewable mandates."  Wood has always been burned for household heat but larger quantities are now being substituted for coal in power plants on the premise that wood is renewable while coal is not. Wood and garbage actually release more carbon emissions than coal but are forgiven on the grounds that they represent "young carbon" while coal is "old carbon."  Biomass is consumed mainly as ethanol in automobile engines, although small amounts of biodiesel are now being combusted as well. Both are also considered "young" carbon.

Under this set of definitions, the consumption of renewables actually exceeded nuclear power before 1987, until nuclear gained ground as more reactors were completed. Renewables declined after 2000 while nuclear continued to expand from improved performance by existing reactors, even though no new reactors have been built. The slight ascent in renewables over the last few years has come from the expansion of wood, biomass and wind.