Grunt,
I like the idea of home based wind turbines. The area we live can get pretty windy, and I understand some of the 1KW wind turbines available now are extremely quiet and they'll run 24X7. The only problem is that local councils would give me a hard time for installing them.
I too like the idea of not being reliant on the big end of town for the basics. Here in Australia, with the amount of sun we get, I really like the idea of solar panels on every home roof. I understand some of the new techs coming out are in fact roof tiles which act as PV units. If this can be manufactured cheaply enough, then we're looking at a great way to prevent having to build a large number of new power stations.
Murph,
I am assuming by 100% green and cheap you mean green from both a manufacturing perspective as well as a maintenance perspective. If there was such a thing, it would be fantastic, however, I think the best bet is finding the most efficient option to what is in use currently.
As for coal use, even though it's a controversial thing to say, Nuclear power has got to be a well considered option for replacing coal stations, IMHO.
I think you will find the oil companies would be some for the first to jump on board with a new tech like that - after all, all businesses must evolve right?
