The
use of Renewable Energy can help the environment by offsetting our reliance
on fossil fuels. When fossil fuels are burnt they produce emissions which
contribute to acid rain and the greenhouse effect. Some of the alternative
ways of producing sustainable energy are ; The sun provides the energy for Solar Power. There are two main applications for solar power - these are:-
A typical solar water heater may provide around half of a households hot water requirements over a full year, thus reducing water heating bills. The technology can be incorporated either in new build or retrofit to existing housing.
The suns energy can be converted into electricity using
the photo voltaic effect. Photovoltaics (PV) panels can be installed on
new or existing buildings to provide electricity for household appliances.
Surplus electricity can be sold back to the grid during the daytime when
PV cells can produce more electricity than can be used.
Solar power can also be used in locations where mains electricity is unavailable.
In addition to the commercial wind farms that are springing up all over the UK - there is an increasing range of small scale wind generators coming onto the market that are suitable for use in the home, caravan and leisure craft industry.
Hydro
PowerHydro schemes are limited by the natural geography of the British Isles, however where there is sufficient potential energy available from a head of water - this can be used to generate electricity.
Electricity can be generated by the natural rhythm of the tides. This is achieved either by directly converting tidal energy or by tidal barrage - holding back the mass of water until electricity is required.
In the UK over 50,000,000 tonnes of combined waste are produced each year. The EU advises that we should manage waste in a hierarchy:-
1. Reduce
2. Re-use
3. Recover (re-cycle, compost & energy recovery)
4. Landfill
As long as we are producing waste it can be counted as a renewable form of energy, however this may not be strictly true as the waste may contain non-renewable material. In addition to biogas from landfill sites, the hot flue gases from waste incineration can be utilised for energy use. The waste ash and incombustibles may be used as sub-base by the construction industry.
Before fossil fuels became widely used, wood was commonly used as a fuel. Short Rotation Coppice (SRC) plans to maximise the yield of combustible matter for use to generate energy. At present three Electricity Generating companies use wood as a fuel under the Non Fossil Fuel Obligation. (NFFO).
E-mail: energy@dover.gov.uk
