Daniel Esty, commissioner of the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, is on record pontificating that the country and state's "dependence on oil carries a great cost" and that "what we really need is to address the full set of energy-related problems with a focus on spurring clean energy innovation" and with imposition of "an emissions charge of $5 per ton of greenhouse gases."

Such approaches will not solve the energy problem because the energy, which must be invested to obtain the energy produced, is high compared to fossil fuels. In addition, such a tax won't significantly curtail energy sinning as population grows and the public believes that sufficient natural resources exist to support perpetual economic growth for society's desired conveniences and comforts.

Commissioner Esty possesses a misunderstanding of the prominent energy issues, misleading the public by proposing simplistic solutions.

In a finite world, fossil-fuel demand and production will peak or plateau and then decline at a variable rate dependent on many factors. Globally, the most dominant factors are population growth and per-capita consumption.

The main issue facing Connecticut, with less than 1 percent of the world's population and energy consumption, is extending the time to full depletion so that sufficient fuel remains for at least one and, perhaps, two more generations.

In reality, clean energy is not clean considering the greenhouse gases produced during the life cycle processes requiring fossil fuels for generating electricity and producing heat and hot water. Even increasing energy efficiency requires energy and leads to increased consumption because of "Jevons's Paradox."

This paradox, named for 19th century English economist William Stanley Jevons, claims that technological advances that increase efficiency tend to increase (rather than decrease) the rate of consumption of resources.

In 1957 former Rear Admiral Hyman G. Rickover, father of the nuclear navy, told the Minnesota State Medical Association that "Five-sixths of all (fossil fuels) consumed since the beginning of the Fossil Fuel Age has been burned up in the last 55 years."

Rickover said that since man's muscle power is rated at about 5 percent of one horsepower, "Machines therefore furnish every American industrial worker with energy equivalent to that of 244 men, while at least 2,000 men push his automobile along the road, and his family is supplied with 33 faithful household helpers. Each locomotive engineer controls energy equivalent to that of 100,000 men; each jet pilot of 700,000 men. Truly, the humblest American enjoys the services of more slaves than were once owned by the richest nobles, and lives better than most ancient kings . . . Our civilization rests upon a technological base, which requires enormous quantities of fossil fuels."

Connecticut comprises a state where enormous energy waste is its most important and prolific product resulting from an exceptionally abusive standard of living. For example, when dining at a restaurant, the wait staff will invariably ask, "What would you like to drink?"

I always reply, "A glass of water, a piece of lemon and no straw." The staff will invariably ask, "Sure you don't want a straw?" My invariable reply is, "I already have a straw; it's called my mouth." The straw is made from oil, takes oil to make and is disposed in a landfill.

To minimize energy consumption and the production of greenhouse gases, this means establishing an acceptable quality of life and living. It would discourage population growth through tax disincentives, halt all immigration and create a master conservation plan, which integrates all state and municipal planning under energy planning, since all human processes consume energy.

Commissioner Esty's suggestion is unscientific considering the realities of peaking natural resources.

Robert Fromer is an environmental consultant. He lives in Windsor.