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susatainable energy is a poo stain
Sustainable energy is the provision of
energy such that it meets the needs of the present
without compromising the ability of future generations to meet
their needs. A broader interpretation may allow inclusion of
fossil fuels and
nuclear fission as transitional sources
while technology develops, as long as new sources are developed for
future generations to use. A narrower interpretation includes only
energy sources which are not expected to be depleted in a time
frame relevant to the human race.
Sustainable energy sources are most
often regarded as including all
renewable sources, such as
biofuels,
solar power,
wind power,
wave
power,
geothermal power and
tidal power. It usually also includes
technologies that improve
energy
efficiency. Conventional
fission
power is sometimes referred to as sustainable, but this is
controversial politically due to concerns about
peak uranium,
radioactive waste disposal and the risks
of disaster due to accident, terrorism, or natural disaster.
Distinction from other terms
Energy efficiency and renewable energy are said to be the
twin
pillars of sustainable energy. Some ways in which
sustainable energy has been defined are:
- "Effectively, the provision of energy such that it meets the
needs of the future without compromising the ability of future
generations to meet their own needs. ...Sustainable Energy has two
key components: renewable energy and energy efficiency." –
Renewable Energy and Efficiency Partnership (British)
- "Dynamic harmony between equitable availability of
energy-intensive goods and services to all people and the
preservation of the earth for future generations." And, "the
solution will lie in finding sustainable energy sources and more
efficient means of converting and utilizing energy." –
Sustainable energy by J. W. Tester, et. al, from MIT
Press.
- "Any energy generation, efficiency & conservation source
where: Resources are available to enable massive scaling to become
a significant portion of energy generation, long term, preferably
100 years.." – Invest, a green technology non-profit
organization.
- "Energy which is replenishable within a human lifetime and
causes no long-term damage to the environment." – Jamaica
Sustainable Development Network
This sets
sustainable energy apart from other
renewable energy terminology such as
alternative energy and
green energy, by focusing on
the ability of an energy source to continue providing energy.
Sustainable energy can produce some pollution of the environment,
as long as it is not sufficient to prohibit heavy use of the source
for an indefinite amount of time. Sustainable energy is also
distinct from
Low-carbon energy,
which is only sustainable only in the sense that it does not add to
the CO2 in the atmosphere.
Renewable energy technologies
Renewable energy technologies are
essential contributors to sustainable energy as they generally
contribute to world
energy security,
reducing dependence on
fossil fuel
resources, and providing opportunities for mitigating
greenhouse gases. The
International Energy Agency
states that:
First- and second-generation technologies have entered the markets,
and third-generation technologies heavily depend on long term
research and development commitments, where the public sector has a
role to play.
A 2008 comprehensive
cost-benefit
analysis review of energy solutions in the context of global
warming and other issues ranked
wind
power combined with
battery
electric vehicles (BEV) as the most efficient, followed by
concentrated solar power,
geothermal power,
tidal power,
photovoltaic,
wave
power,
coal capture and
storage,
nuclear energy, and
finally
biofuels.
First-generation technologies
West Ford Flat Geothermal Cooling
Tower.JPG
West Ford Flat Geothermal Cooling Tower.JPG
Among sources of renewable energy, hydroelectric plants have the advantages of being long-lived -- many existing plants have operated for more than 100 years. Also, hydroelectric plants are clean and have few emissions. Criticisms directed at large-scale hydroelectric plants include: dislocation of people living where the reservoirs are planned, and release of significant amounts of carbon dioxide during construction and flooding of the reservoir.
However, it has been found that high emissions are associated only
with shallow reservoirs in warm (tropical) locales. Generally
speaking, hydroelectric plants produce much lower life-cycle
emissions than other types of generation. Hydroelectric power,
which underwent extensive development during growth of
electrification in the 19th and 20th centuries, is experiencing
resurgence of development in the 21st century. The areas of
greatest hydroelectric growth are the booming economies of Asia.
China is the development leader; however, other Asian nations are
installing hydropower at a rapid pace. This growth is driven by
much increased energy costs -- especially for imported energy --
and widespread desires for more domestically-produced, clean,
renewable, and economical generation.
Hydroelectric dam in cross
section
Geothermal power plants can operate
24 hours per day, providing base-load capacity, and the world
potential capacity for geothermal power generation is estimated at
85 GW over the next 30 years. However, geothermal power is
accessible only in limited areas of the world, including the United
States, Central America, Indonesia, East Africa and the
Philippines. The costs of geothermal energy have dropped
substantially from the systems built in the 1970s.
Geothermal heat generation can be
competitive in many countries producing geothermal power, or in
other regions where the resource is of a lower temperature.
Second-generation technologies
Worldwide installed wind power
capacity 1996-2008
Solar heating systems are a well known
second-generation technology and generally consist of solar thermal
collectors, a fluid system to move the heat from the collector to
its point of usage, and a reservoir or tank for heat storage and
subsequent use. The systems may be used to heat domestic hot water,
swimming pool water, or for space heating. The heat can also be
used for industrial applications or as an energy input for other
uses such as cooling equipment. In many climates, a solar heating
system can provide a very high percentage (50 to 75%) of domestic
hot water energy.Energy received from the sun by the earth is that
of electromagnetic radiation. Light ranges of visible, infrared,
ultraviolet, x-rays, and radio waves received by the earth through
solar energy. The highest power of radiation comes from visible
light. Solar power is complicated due to changes in seasons and
from day to night. Cloud cover can also add to complications of
solar energy, and not all radiation from the sun reaches earth
because it is absorbed and dispersed due to clouds and gases within
the earth's atmospheres.
11 MW solar power plant near Serpa,
Portugal
In the 1980s and early 1990s, most photovoltaic modules provided
Remote Area Power Supply,
but from around 1995, industry efforts have focused increasingly on
developing
building
integrated photovoltaics and power plants for grid connected
applications (see
photovoltaic power stations
article for details).
Currently the largest photovoltaic power
plant in North America is the Nellis Solar Power Plant
(15 MW). There is a proposal to build a
Solar power station in
Victoria, Australia, which would be the world's largest PV
power station, at 154 MW.
Other large photovoltaic power stations
include the Girassol solar
power plant (62 MW), and the Waldpolenz Solar Park
(40 MW).
Sketch of a Parabolic Trough
Collector
Some of the second-generation renewables, such as wind power, have
high potential and have already realised relatively low production
costs. At the end of 2008, worldwide
wind
farm capacity was 120,791
megawatts
(MW), representing an increase of 28.8 percent during the year, and
wind power produced some 1.3% of global
electricity consumption. Wind power accounts for approximately 20%
of electricity use in
Denmark,
9% in
Spain, and 7% in
Germany. However, it may be difficult
to site wind turbines in some areas for aesthetic or environmental
reasons, and it may be difficult to integrate wind power into
electricity grids in some cases.
Solar
thermal power stations have been successfully operating in California
commercially since the late 1980s, including the
largest solar power plant of any kind, the 350 MW Solar Energy Generating
Systems. Nevada Solar One
is another 64MW plant which has recently
opened. Other parabolic trough power plants being
proposed are two 50MW plants in Spain
, and a 100MW
plant in Israel
.
Information on pump, California.
Brazil
has one of
the largest renewable energy programs in the world, involving
production of ethanol fuel from
sugar cane, and ethanol now provides 18 percent of the country's
automotive fuel. As a result of this, together with the
exploitation of domestic deep water oil sources, Brazil, which
years ago had to import a large share of the petroleum needed for
domestic consumption, recently reached complete self-sufficiency in
oil.
Most cars on the road today in the U.S. can run on blends of up to
10% ethanol, and motor vehicle manufacturers already produce
vehicles designed to run on much higher ethanol blends.
Ford,
DaimlerChrysler, and
GM are among the automobile
companies that sell “flexible-fuel” cars, trucks, and minivans that
can use gasoline and ethanol blends ranging from pure gasoline up
to 85% ethanol (E85). By mid-2006, there were approximately six
million E85-compatible vehicles on U.S. roads.
Third-generation technologies
According to the International Energy Agency, new bioenergy
(biofuel) technologies being developed today, notably cellulosic
ethanol biorefineries, could allow biofuels to play a much bigger
role in the future than previously thought. Cellulosic ethanol can
be made from plant matter composed primarily of inedible cellulose
fibers that form the stems and branches of most plants. Crop
residues (such as corn stalks, wheat straw and rice straw), wood
waste, and municipal solid waste are potential sources of
cellulosic biomass. Dedicated energy crops, such as switchgrass,
are also promising cellulose sources that can be
sustainably produced in many regions of the
United States.
In terms
of Ocean energy, another
third-generation technology, Portugal
has the
world's first commercial wave farm, the
Aguçadora Wave Park, under
construction in 2007. The farm will initially use three
Pelmis P-750 machines
generating 2.25 MW. and costs are put at 8.5 million
euro. Subject to successful operation, a further 70
million euro is likely to be invested before 2009 on a further 28
machines to generate 525 MW.
Funding for a wave farm in Scotland
was
announced in February, 2007 by the Scottish Executive, at a cost of over 4
million pounds, as part of a £13
million funding packages for ocean power in
Scotland. The farm will be the world's largest with a
capacity of 3 MW generated by four Pelamis machines. (see also
Wave farm).
In 2007,
the world's first turbine to create commercial amounts of energy
using tidal power was installed in the
narrows of Strangford
Lough
in Ireland. The 1.2 MW underwater tidal
electricity generator takes advantage of the fast tidal flow in the
lough which can be up to 4
m/s. Although the
generator is powerful enough to power up to a thousand homes, the
turbine has a minimal
environmental impact, as it is
almost entirely submerged, and the rotors turn slowly enough that
they pose no danger to
wildlife.
Solar power panels that use
nanotechnology, which can create circuits out
of individual silicon molecules, may cost half as much as
traditional photovoltaic cells, according to executives and
investors involved in developing the products.
Nanosolar has secured more than $100 million from
investors to build a factory for nanotechnology thin-film solar
panels. The company's plant has a planned production capacity of
430 megawatts peak power of solar cells per year. Commercial
production started and first panels have been shipped to customers
in late 2007.
Most current solar power plants are made from an array of similar
units where each unit is continuously adjusted, e.g., with some
step motors, so that the light converter stays in focus of the sun
light. The cost of focusing light on converters such as high-power
solar panels, Stirling motors, etc. can be dramatically decreased
with a simple and efficient rope mechanics. In this technique many
units are connected with a network of ropes so that pulling two or
three ropes is sufficient to keep all light converters
simultaneously in focus as the direction of the sun changes.
Energy efficiency
Moving towards energy sustainability will require changes not only
in the way energy is supplied, but in the way it is used, and
reducing the amount of energy required to deliver various goods or
services is essential. Opportunities for improvement on the demand
side of the energy equation are as rich and diverse as those on the
supply side, and often offer significant economic benefits.
Renewable energy and
energy
efficiency are sometimes said to be the “twin pillars” of
sustainable energy policy. Both resources must be developed in
order to stabilize and reduce carbon dioxide emissions. Efficiency
slows down energy demand growth so that rising clean energy
supplies can make deep cuts in fossil fuel use. If energy use grows
too fast, renewable energy development will chase a receding
target. Likewise, unless clean energy supplies come online rapidly,
slowing demand growth will only begin to reduce total emissions;
reducing the carbon content of energy sources is also needed. Any
serious vision of a sustainable energy economy thus requires
commitments to both renewables and efficiency.
Renewable energy (and energy efficiency) are no longer niche
sectors that are promoted only by governments and
environmentalists. The increased levels of investment and the fact
that much of the capital is coming from more conventional financial
actors suggest that sustainable energy options are now becoming
mainstream.
Climate change concerns coupled with
high oil prices and
increasing government support are driving increasing rates of
investment in the sustainable energy industries, according to a
trend analysis from the
United Nations Environment
Programme. According to
UNEP, global
investment in sustainable energy in 2007 was higher than previous
levels, with $148 billion of new money raised in 2007, an increase
of 60% over 2006. Total financial transactions in sustainable
energy, including acquisition activity, was $204 billion.
Investment flows in 2007 broadened and diversified, making the
overall picture one of greater breadth and depth of sustainable
energy use. The mainstream capital markets are "now fully receptive
to sustainable energy companies, supported by a surge in funds
destined for clean energy investment".
Nuclear power
It is said that nuclear has the potential to be sustainable,
however, this is often qualified with the argument that there are
serious challenges that must be dealt with before it can
drastically increase its role.
There are potentially two sources of nuclear power.
Fission is used in all current nuclear power
plants.
Fusion is the reaction that
powers stars, including the sun, which remains impractical for use
on earth. Both types create radioactive waste in the form of
activated structural material,
which is one of the sustainability issues. Note that
Aneutronic fusion such as He3-D fusion or
Boron-Proton fusion produce far less or virtually zero
radioactivity but are more difficult to fuse.
Fission power's long-term sustainability depends on the amount of
uranium and thorium that are available to be mined, on the
operators' abilities safely to dispose of the waste and on the
continued prevention of major accidents. Estimates for fuel
reserves vary widely. Fusion power's long-term sustainability
depends on whether or not a practical, affordable technology can be
developed.
Technical sustainability of nuclear power
Proponents, such as
Christine
Todd Whitman and
Patrick Moore (both
co-chairs of the
Clean
and Safe Energy Coalition) also claim that nuclear power is at
least as environmentally friendly as traditional sources of
renewable energy, making it part of the solution to
global warming and the world's currently
growing demand for energy. They note that nuclear power plants,
once built and before decommissioning begins, produce little carbon
dioxide emissions and point out that the radioactive waste produced
is minimal and well-contained, especially compared to fossil fuels.
Fast breeder reactors generate
both energy and nuclear fuel. Some people object to this claim on
the grounds that the nuclear option is not price competitive
without heavy government subsidy and the use of government bodies
to store and protect such a hazardous waste component.
Green energy
Green energy is the term used to describe sources
of energy that are considered to be
environmentally friendly and
non-
polluting, such as
geothermal,
wind,
solar, and
hydro. Sometimes
nuclear
power is also considered a green energy source. Green energy
sources are often considered "
green" because they are perceived to lower
carbon emissions and create less
pollution.
Green energy is commonly thought of in the context of
electricity generation. A fuller
picture requires appreciation of
efficient energy use as well as
mechanical power,
heating and
cogeneration. Consumers, businesses, and
organizations may purchase green energy to support further
development, help reduce the environmental impacts of conventional
electricity generation, and increase their nation’s
energy independence. Renewable energy
certificates (
green certificates
or
green tags) have been one way for
consumers and businesses to support green energy.
Related terms
In the media, green energy is often used interchangeably with the
term
Renewable energy.
Alternative energy and
clean technologies are
other terms often used instead of renewable energy. The terms
suggest a non-polluting, non-fossil-fuel source.
Green
power is sometimes used in reference to electricity generated
from "green" sources.
Brown
energy has been used to contrast non-renewable or
polluting energy sources with green energy.
Sustainable energy is the provision of energy such that it
meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of
future generations to meet their needs. In practice, this is
equivalent to
green energy although the different terms
can imply a difference of emphasis. For example,
hydroelectricity can result in a
large-scale damage to local
ecosystems
and hence might not be considered green. The damage, in terms of
the global ecosystem (or
biosphere) would
be relatively minor and so hydroelectricity might be considered
sustainable if used to a limited
extent.
Green sources
Green energy includes natural energetic processes that can be
harnessed with little pollution.
Anaerobic digestion,
geothermal power,
wind power, small-scale
hydropower,
solar
energy,
biomass power,
tidal power, and
wave
power fall under such a category. Some definitions may also
include power derived from the
incineration of waste.
Some people, including
George Monbiot
and
James Lovelock have specifically
classified
nuclear power as green
energy.
Others, including Greenpeace disagree, claiming that the problems
associated with radioactive waste
and the risk of nuclear accidents (such as the Chernobyl
disaster
) pose an unacceptable risk to the environment and
to humanity.
No power source is entirely impact-free. All energy sources require
energy and give rise to some degree of pollution from manufacture
of the technology.
Comparison to non-green sources
The Swedish utility
Vattenfall did a
study of full life cycle emissions of Nuclear, Hydro, Coal, Gas,
Solar Cell, Peat and Wind which the utility uses to produce
electricity. The net result of the study was that nuclear power
produced 3.3 grams of carbon dioxide per KW-Hr of produced power.
This compares to 400 for
natural gas and
700 for
coal (according to this study). The
study also concluded that nuclear power produced the smallest
amount of CO
2 of any of their electricity sources.
Claims exist that the problems of nuclear waste do not come
anywhere close to approaching the problems of fossil fuel waste. A
2004 article from the BBC states: "The
World Health Organization (WHO)
says 3 million people are killed worldwide by outdoor air pollution
annually from vehicles and industrial emissions, and 1.6 million
indoors through using solid fuel." In the U.S. alone, fossil fuel
waste kills 20,000 people each year. A coal power plant releases
100 times as much radiation as a nuclear power plant of the same
wattage.
It is estimated that during 1982, US coal
burning released 155 times as much radioactivity into the
atmosphere as the Three Mile Island
incident. In addition, fossil fuel waste
causes
global warming, which leads to
increased deaths from hurricanes, flooding, and other weather
events. The
World Nuclear
Association provides a comparison of deaths due to accidents
among different forms of energy production. In their comparison,
deaths per TW-yr of electricity produced from 1970 to 1992 are
quoted as 885 for hydropower, 342 for coal, 85 for natural gas, and
8 for nuclear.
Purchasing green energy through the electrical grid
In several
countries with
common carrier arrangements,
electricity retailing arrangements
make it possible for consumers to purchase green electricity
(
renewable electricity) from
either their utility or a green power provider.
When energy is purchased from the electricity network, the power
reaching the consumer will not necessarily be generated from green
energy sources. The local
utility
company,
electric company, or
state power pool buys their electricity from
electricity producers who may be
generating from
fossil fuel,
nuclear or renewable energy sources. In many
countries green energy currently provides a very small amount of
electricity, generally contributing less than 2 to 5% to the
overall pool. In some U.S. states, local governments have formed
regional power purchasing pools using [Community Choice
Aggregation] and [Solar Bonds] to achieve a 51% renewable mix or
higher, such as in the City of San Francisco.
By participating in a green energy program a consumer may be having
an effect on the energy sources used and ultimately might be
helping to promote and expand the use of green energy. They are
also making a statement to policy makers that they are willing to
pay a price premium to support renewable energy. Green energy
consumers either obligate the utility companies to increase the
amount of green energy that they purchase from the pool (so
decreasing the amount of non-green energy they purchase), or
directly fund the green energy through a green power provider. If
insufficient green energy sources are available, the utility must
develop new ones or
contract with a third
party energy supplier to provide green energy, causing more to be
built. However, there is no way the consumer can check whether or
not the electricity bought is "green" or otherwise.
In some countries such as the Netherlands, electricity companies
guarantee to buy an equal amount of 'green power' as is being used
by their green power customers.
The Dutch
government
exempts green power from pollution taxes, which means green power
is hardly any more expensive than other power.
In the United States, one of the main problems with purchasing
green energy through the electrical grid is the current centralized
infrastructure that supplies the consumer’s electricity. This
infrastructure has lead to increasingly frequent brown outs and
black outs, high CO2 emissions, higher energy costs, and power
quality issues . An additional $450 billion will be invested to
expand this fledgling system over the next 20 years to meet
increasing demand . In addition, this centralized system is now
being further overtaxed with the incorporation of renewable
energies such as wind, solar, and geothermal energies. Renewable
resources, due to the amount of space they require, are often
located in remote areas where there is a lower energy demand. The
current infrastructure would make transporting this energy to high
demand areas, such as urban centers, highly inefficient and in some
cases impossible. In addition, despite the amount of renewable
energy produced or the economic viability of such technologies only
about 20 percent will be able to be incorporated into the grid. To
have a more sustainable energy profile, the United States must move
towards implementing changes to the electrical grid that will
accommodate a mixed-fuel economy .
However, several initiatives are being proposed to mitigate these
distribution problems. First and foremost, the most effective way
to reduce USA’s CO2 emissions and slow global warming is through
conservation efforts. Opponents of the current US electrical grid
have also advocated for decentralizing the grid. This system would
increase efficiency by reducing the amount of energy lost in
transmission. It would also be economically viable as it would
reduce the amount of power lines that will need to be constructed
in the future to keep up with demand. Merging heat and power in
this system would create added benefits and help to increase its
efficiency by up to 80-90%. This is a significant increase from the
current fossil fuel plants which only have an efficiency of 34%
.
A more recent concept for improving our electrical grid is to beam
microwaves from Earth-orbiting satellites or the moon to directly
when and where there is demand. The power would be generated from
solar energy captured on the lunar surface In this system, the
receivers would be “broad, translucent tent-like structures that
would receive microwaves and convert them to electricity”. NASA
said in 2000 that the technology was worth pursuing but it is still
too soon to say if the technology will be cost-effective .
Abuses
In countries where suppliers are legally obliged to purchase a
proportion of their electricity from renewable sources (for example
under the
Renewables
Obligation in the
United Kingdom), there
is a danger that energy suppliers may sell such green electricity
under a premium "green energy" tariff, rather than sourcing
additional green electricity supplies. Where a
Renewable Energy Certificate
or similar scheme is in operation it is also possible for the
energy supplier to sell the green electricity to the consumer, and
also sell the certificate to another supplier who has failed to
meet their quota, rather than "retiring" the certificate from the
marketplace. In other cases green energy tariffs may involve
carbon offsetting rather than
purchasing or investing in renewable energy.
Certification schemes to
minimise these and similar questionable practices are in place or
are being developed in a few countries.
International standards
The
World Wide Fund for
Nature and several green electricity labelling organizations
have created the
Eugene
Green Energy Standard under which the national green
electricity certification schemes can be accredited to ensure that
the purchase of green energy leads to the provision of additional
new green energy resources.
Purchasing green energy through the gas grid
The market for heating is mostly serviced by gas and oil rather
than electric power, due to the high cost per kilowatt of
electricity in many countries. Distribution of renewable electric
power via the electrical grid has made it possible in many
countries for consumers to choose renewable electric power, and in
the same manner
bionatural gas may in
the future be made available to the average consumer via the
existing natural gas grid.
Local green energy systems
Those not satisfied with the third-party grid approach to green
energy via the power grid can install their own locally-based
renewable energy system. Renewable energy electrical systems from
solar to wind to even local hydro-power in some cases, are some of
the many types of renewable energy systems available locally.
Additionally, for those interested in heating and cooling their
dwelling via renewable energy,
geothermal heat pump systems
that tap the constant
temperature of the
earth, which is around 7 to 15 degrees
Celsius a few feet underground, are an option and
save money over conventional
natural gas
and
petroleum-fueled heat
approaches.
United States
The advantage of this approach in the United States is that many
states offer incentives to offset the cost of installation of a
renewable energy system. In California, Massachusetts and several
other U.S. states, a new approach to community energy supply called
Community Choice
Aggregation has provided communities with the means to solicit
a competitive electricity supplier and use municipal revenue bonds
to finance development of local green energy resources. Individuals
are usually assured that the electricity they are using is actually
produced from a green energy source that they control. Once the
system is paid for, the owner of a renewable energy system will be
producing their own renewable electricity for essentially no cost
and can sell the excess to the local utility at a profit.
Small business
USDOE has announced on 2009-11-23 more than
$18 million in funding from the
American Recovery and
Reinvestment Act to support
small
business innovation
research, development and
deployment of clean energy technologies. In this first phase of
funding, 125
grants of up to $150,000 each
will be awarded to 107 small advanced technology firms
competitively selected from 950 applicants across the United
States. Companies that demonstrate successful results with their
new technologies and show potential to meet market needs will be
eligible for $60 million in a second round of grants in the summer
of 2010. Grants relating to
energy
efficiency and
renewable energy
include energy efficiency technologies for buildings and
industries, water and
solar power
technologies, and technologies relating to the
Smart Grid. Grants will also support technologies
to address water use in power plants, power plant cooling
technologies, materials and technologies for advanced gas turbines,
and technologies to reduce industrial greenhouse gases.
In terms of energy efficiency in buildings, the grants went to
technologies for advanced
air conditioning and
refrigeration;
thermal load
shifting, which uses thermal storage (such as ice) to shift
building cooling loads to
off-peak hours;
cool roofs, which are reflective, light-colored roofs that deflect
heat from buildings; and "smart building" technologies, which
employ sensors and advanced controls to minimize power use. For
industrial efficiency, the grants went to sensors and controls for
efficient industrial processes; technologies for improving
efficiency and environmental performance in the cement industry;
low-cost manufacturing processes for innovative nanomaterials;
novel approaches to recover heat from waste water streams;
technologies to mitigate heat losses, fouling, and scaling in
manufacturing operations; and technologies to reduce heat and
energy losses in energy-intensive manufacturing processes,
including distillation and dewatering systems.
For renewable energy systems, the grants went toward advances in
hydropower systems or subsystems; new approaches to wave and
current energy technologies and ocean thermal energy conversion
systems; advanced solar technologies; solar-powered systems that
produce fuels; and concentrating solar power systems for
distributed applications. Grants focused on the Smart Grid were
awarded for power-line sensor systems; smart controllers for
household appliances; and technologies to support electric vehicles
and customer-located energy generation systems, such as solar power
systems and wind turbines.
Using green energy
Renewable energy, after its generation, needs to be stored in a
medium for use with autonomous devices as well as vehicles. Also,
to provide household electricity in remote areas (that is areas
which are not connected to the
mains
electricity grid), energy storage is required for use with
renewable energy. Energy generation and consumption systems used in
the latter case are usually
stand-alone power systems.
Some examples are:
Usually however, renewable energy is derived from the mains
electricity grid. This means that energy storage is mostly not
used, as the mains electricity grid is organised to produce the
exact amount of energy being consumed at that particular moment.
Energy production on the mains electricity grid is always set up as
a combination of (large-scale) renewable energy plants, as well as
other power plants as
fossil-fuel power plants and
nuclear power. This combination
however, which is essential for this type of energy supply (as eg
wind turbines, solar power plants etc.) can only produce when the
wind blows and the sun shines. This is also one of the main
drawbacks of the system as fossil fuel powerplants are polluting
and are a main cause of
global
warming (nuclear power being an exception). Although fossil
fuel power plants too can made emissionless (through carbon capture
and storage), as well as renewable (if the plants are converted to
e.g. biomass) the best solution is still to phase out the latter
power plants over time. Nuclear power plants too can be more or
less eliminated from their problem of nuclear waste through the use
of
nuclear reprocessing and
newer plants as
fast breeder
and
nuclear fusion plants.
Renewable energy power plants do provide a steady flow of energy.
For example hydropower plants, ocean thermal plants, osmotic power
plants all provide power at a regulated pace, and are thus
available power sources at any given moment (even at night,
windstill moments etc.). At present however, the number of
steady-flow renewable energy plants alone is still too small to
meet energy demands at the times of the day when the irregular
producing renewable energy plants cannot produce power.
Besides the greening of fossil fuel and nuclear power plants,
another option is the distribution and immediate use of power from
solely renewable sources. In this set-up energy storage is again
not necessary. For example,
TREC has proposed
to distribute solar power from the Sahara to Europe. Europe can
distribute wind and ocean power to the Sahara and other countries.
In this way, power is produced at any given time as at any point of
the planet as the sun or the wind is up or ocean waves and currents
are stirring. This option however is probably not possible in the
short-term, as fossil fuel and nuclear power are still the main
sources of energy on the mains electricity net and replacing them
will not be possible overnight.
Several
large-scale energy storage
suggestions for the grid have been done. This improves
efficiency and decreases energy losses but a conversion to a energy
storing mains electricity grid is a very costly solution. Some
costs could potentially be reduced by making use of energy storage
equipment the consumer buys and not the state. An example is
car batteries in personal
vehicles that would double as an energy buffer for the electricity
grid. However besides the cost, setting-up such a system would
still be a very complicated and difficult procedure. Also, energy
storage apparatus' as car batteries are also built with materials
that pose a threat to the environment (eg sulphuric acid). The
combined production of batteries for such a large part of the
population would thus still not quite environmental. Besides car
batteries however, other
large-scale
energy storage suggestions for the grid have been done which
make use of less polluting energy carriers (eg compressed air tanks
and flywheel energy storage).
Green energy and labelling by region
European Union
Directive 2004/8/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council
of 11 February 2004 on the promotion of
cogeneration based on a useful heat demand in
the
internal energy market
includes the article 5 (
Guarantee of origin of
electricity from high-efficiency cogeneration).
United Kingdom
See Green
electricity in the United Kingdom for further
information.
France
[[Image:Electricity production in
France.PNG|thumb|right|350px|Nuclear power gives France the
cleanest air of any industrialized country in the world.
]]
Over 75% of french electricity comes from nuclear power plants.
France is the largest net exporter of electricity in the world.
Electricity exports generate over 3 billion euros of revenue a year
for France. French electricity costs are among the lowest in
Europe. A major factor in the low cost of electricity in France is
the use of a single reactor design, which allows for economies of
scale. French emissions are among the lowest in the developed
world, with 10 tons of equivalents per person per year. Danish
citizens emit an average of 14 tons of equivalents per person per
year. Even Iceland, with its abundance of geothermal energy for
heating, has higher per Capita emissions at 10.4 tons of
equivalents per Capita.
Spain
In
Spain green energy is regulated by the Orden
ITC/1522/2007.
Portugal
José Sócrates, the Portuguese
Prime-minister said that Portugal is to become one of the largest
producers and users of this type of energy in Europe by 2010, and that Portugal has a great potential to produce solar, water,
waves, geothermic and wind energies.
United States
The
United States
Department of Energy (DOE), the
Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA), and the Center for Resource Solutions
(CRS) recognizes the voluntary purchase of electricity from
renewable energy sources (also called renewable electricity or
green electricity) as green power.
DOE selected six companies for its 2007 Green Power Supplier
Awards, including
Constellation
NewEnergy;
3Degrees;
Sterling Planet;
SunEdison;
Pacific
Power and
Rocky Mountain
Power; and
Silicon Valley
Power. The combined green power provided by those six winners
equals more than 5 billion
kilowatt-hours per year, which is enough to
power nearly 465,000 average U.S. households.
The EPA
recognized the West Division of Macy's Inc.,
The Timberland Company, and
the City of
Chico
, California, for their on-site generation of solar
power, and also recognized New York University
and six companies for purchasing green
power. The EPA also named the city of Bellingham,
Washington
, and six more companies as their Green Power
Partners of the Year. Among all the companies,
PepsiCo stands out as a partner of the year, because
three of its bottling companies were also honored for buying green
power. In addition, CRS awarded its Market Development Awards to
the
Western
Washington Green Power Campaign,
Clif
Bar, and two individuals: John Schaeffer and Bill
Spratley.
Throughout the country, more than half of all U.S. electricity
customers now have an option to purchase some type of green power
product from a retail
electricity
provider. Roughly one-quarter of the nation's utilities offer
green power programs to customers, and voluntary retail sales of
renewable energy in the United States totaled more than 12 billion
kilowatt-hours in 2006, a 40% increase over the previous
year.
Oceania & Pacific
Australia
See Green electricity
in Australia for further information
See also
References
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New Scientist, 24 February 2005.
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pg.92
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20 February 2007.
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executives say
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The Twin Pillars of Sustainable Energy:
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Carcinogen Hazards of Coal
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- TransACT
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Business Line)
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Washington Post, April 16, 2006
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2004
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April 8, 2007
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July 7, 2005
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- [3]
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-
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Penguin, 2007. ISBN 978-0-141-02990-0
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http://www.greenpeace.org/raw/content/international/press/reports/briefing-nuclear-not-answer-apr07.pdf
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- Nuclear proliferation through coal burning —
Gordon J. Aubrecht, II, Ohio State University
- San Francisco Community Choice Program Design, Draft
Implementation Plan and H Bond Action Plan, Ordinance 447-07,
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Energy Reliability.[5]
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The
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Leonardo Energy, published 2007-01-15, accessed
2007-06-07
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Green Energy Standard, Eugene Network, accessed 2007-06-07
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Distribution System'
-
http://apps1.eere.energy.gov/news/news_detail.cfm/news_id=15643
-
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/site/en/oj/2004/l_052/l_05220040221en00500060.pdf
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Nuclear Energy
- Globalis - an interactive world map - France -
Greenhouse Gas Emissions per Capita
- Globalis - an interactive world map - Denmark -
Greenhouse Gas Emissions per Capita
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Greenhouse Gas Emissions per Capita
-
http://www.mityc.es/NR/rdonlyres/99574E07-7985-449D-BA30-390C743C8F0A/0/109.pdf
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External links
2008] - Free e-book from United Nations Energy Programme.
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