Renewable Energy Alternatives

October 3-6, 2008

The Renewable Energy Challenge

In order to stabilize atmospheric CONCENTRATIONS of CO2 at non-catastrophic levels (under 550 ppm) we need to achieve an 80% reduction in CO2 EMISSIONS in the next few decades. In comparison, the Kyoto Protocol (which the US recently abandoned) was limited to achieving only 5-10% reductions in CO2 emissions. Our energy choices in the years ahead will be increasingly carbon-constrained. The first priority is to focus on and develop energy sources that are NO-REGRETS or win-win-win in terms of saving money, reducing local/regional air pollution problems, AND addressing the challenge of climate change.

Energy Efficiency
Energy efficiency is the fifth fuel after coal, natural gas, nuclear, and renewable energy. The most efficient and environmentally responsible power plant you can build is the one that you dont build. Energy efficiency is the most immediate and the least cost means for reducing greenhouse gas emissions from energy use. Rather than focus on the supply side of our energy needs by increasing energy production, energy efficiency represents a focus on the demand side. For example, a 36% increase in vehicle fuel efficiency (from 27.5 mpg to 37.5 mpg average) by 2025 would save 1.61 million barrels of oil a day. Drilling for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) would produce 870,000 barrels per day by then. Energy efficiency does not imply reduced comfort. Energy efficiency means that you get the same end-use service, such as comfortable lighting or a television picture, using less energy. Simply put, energy efficiency means doing more with less.

Energy efficiency is especially effective when combined with renewable energy sources

A zero-energy home project in Florida demonstrated how energy efficiency could reduce energy use almost 70%, with most of the remaining energy needs met by solar power.

Renewable Energy Sources

Solar, hydro, biomass and wind energy are all called renewable energy sources because they are endlessly replenished by nature While all energy use affects the environment in some way, the environmental benefits of a shift from nonrenewable to renewable energy include:
Renewable energy sources do not produce emissions of carbon dioxide. Renewable energy sources generally do not produce other criteria air pollutants like sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, ozone, particulate matter, and lead, all of which contribute to local and regional air pollution and health problems. Renewable energy sources generally have far less of an impact on land, water, and wildlife resources since mining, drilling, and long-distance transport (as with oil) is not required.

Renewable Energy Sources (cont)

In addition to environmental benefits, there are other reasons to encourage a transition to renewable energy sources:
Renewable energy sources can help reduce our dependence on imported oil supplies from volatile regions of the world and also reduce trade deficits. Recent modeling studies (e.g. The Innovation Modeling Comparison Project, Nature, 5/18/06) indicate that an aggressive investment in energy efficiency and renewable energy will actually benefit the economy. The environment vs. economy myth appears to be just that. Renewable energy sources are generally more labor intensive and create more jobs than non-renewable energy sources. For example, solar photovoltaic systems create between 1000-2000 person-years of work per megawatt-hour, wind between 100-1000, and coal and natural gas between 100-200 per megawatt-hour.

Although currently small, the renewable energy sector is the fastest growing sector of the energy economy. Production of wind power has tripled since 2000, production of photovoltaic solar panels grew 45% in 2005 to six times the level of 2000, and production of fuel ethanol from crops more than doubled from 2000 to 2005.

Article in YESTERDAYS News

RENEWABLE ENERGY: Millions of 'green' jobs possible -- report (10/02/2008)
Shifting to renewable energy is expected to produce 4.2 million environmentally friendly jobs over the next 30 years, according to a report released today. Scientists and engineers researching renewable energy products and alternatives fuels and people making wind turbines and energy-efficient products are considered to have "green" jobs. The study, released by the U.S. Conference of Mayors, says that 750,000 people work in the "green" sector now, but that is less than half of 1 percent of employment. By 2038, another 4.2 million green jobs are expected to be added, accounting for 10 percent of new job growth. But that is only if there is an aggressive shift away from traditional fossil fuels toward alternative energy, the study says. Both presidential candidates have acknowledged that embracing renewable energy would create new jobs (H. Josef Hebert, AP/Miami Herald, Oct. 2) -- HDM

I. Hydroelectric Power
Hydro power currently provides about 20% of the worlds electricity and close to 10% of U.S. power needs. With the exception of traditional biomass, this is the largest share of any renewable resource. Canada is the largest producer of hydro power in the world, followed by Brazil, the U.S., China, and Russia. In the U.S., Washington State, California, and Oregon are the largest producers of hydro power.

II. Wind Power

Wind power actually a form of solar energy. When earths surface is heated unevenly, surrounding air masses are set in motion creating wind. A wind turbine is a mechanical assembly that captures the kinetic energy of wind and converts it to electricity. Wind turbines are mounted on tall towers to take advantage of faster and less turbulent winds. For utility-scale production of wind power, a large number of wind turbines are built close together to form a wind farm. For example, the Horse Hollow wind farm in west-central Texas has 420 turbines. Wind power is the fastest growing electricity generating technology in the world today. In the past ten years, global installations of wind power systems have grown at least tenfold. In the U.S., wind power installations have tripled in the past five years. Denmark meets over 20% of its electricity needs from wind power, and plans to rely on wind for over half of their electricity supply by 2030. Germany meets over 10% of its electricity needs from wind power. The U.S. currently meets less than 1% of its electricity needs from wind, but this is projected to increase to over 6% by 2020.

III. Solar Energy

Solar energy refers to two major categories of energy collection and use: the conversion of solar energy into electricity (i.e. solar power), and the conversion of solar energy into heat and light. Solar energy is converted into electricity through solar photovoltaic (PV) technology, as well as through concentrating solar power (CSP) systems. PV cells are made primarily of silicon. When sunlight hits a PV cell, the energy knocks electrons free of their atoms, allowing them to flow through the material and create an electrical current. Concentrating solar power systems are large-scale projects that use different types of mirror configurations to concentrate the suns heat on a tower or a series of pipes that hold water or another fluid to generate steam. The steam is used in the same way it would be in a conventional power plant, to spin a turbine and generate electricity. Solar energy can also be used directly to heat and light homes and buildings. The most common forms of solar heating are solar hot water heaters, solar space heating, and solar pool heaters. Sunlight can be used for interior lighting through the use of lens collectors, reflective light pipes, and hybrid solar lighting.

Concentrating solar power (CSP) plants can generate electricity on the scale of large coal or nuclear power plants.

New CSP designs can even generate electricity at night through energy storage devices.

Even Wal-Mart is Getting In On the Act!

IV. Biomass Energy

Biomass energy is derived from plants and plant materials. Because plants are produced by solar energy through photosynthesis, biomass energy is a form of renewable, solar energy. Biomass energy refers to the use of plant material to either create heat, generate electricity, or create liquid or gaseous fuels. Traditional biomass energy refers to direct combustion of wood and plant residues for heat, light, and cooking. This accounts for 10% of world primary energy use, mainly in developing countries where firewood, charcoal, and plant residues are still widely used. Modern biomass energy is the use of biomass for process heat (e.g. generating heat to dry wood in a sawmill / kiln operation), electric power generation, and the production of liquid / gaseous fuels. This makes up less than 2% of world primary energy use.

Biomass Energy (cont)

The fastest growing form of modern biomass energy is fuel ethanol, produced by fermenting carbohydrate-rich crops like sugar cane and corn. Brazil is a world leader in ethanol production from sugar cane, producing enough to fuel 50% of its automobile fleet. The U.S. produces close to 5 billion gallons of ethanol a year from corn (about 3% of automobile fuel use in the U.S.), most of which is blended with gasoline in a product called E10, 10% ethanol and 90% gasoline, sold in major metropolitan areas to improve air quality. A different kind of biomass fuel is known as biodiesel. Biodiesel is produced from vegetable oil, with soybeans the most common crop used. Most diesel engines can run on fuel blends that include up to 20% biodiesel with no modifications to the engine, and 100% biodiesel with minor modifications. Biodiesel is used on a far smaller scale than ethanol, with production in the U.S. at about 75 million gallons but growing rapidly.

Biomass Energy (cont)

There is a lot of controversy over the net energy gains from using ethanol. In other words, does it take more energy (mainly in the form of fossil fuels) to grow and produce ethanol than the actual energy available in the finished product? Even though biofuels like ethanol are theoretically carbon-neutral, looking at the full life-cycle process of biofuel production shows otherwise. Significant quantities of greenhouse-gas producing fossil fuels are consumed growing, shipping, and processing crops for ethanol production. Various studies estimate that substituting corn-based ethanol for gasoline could either reduce greenhouse gas emissions by as much as 36%, or increase them by as much as 50%, depending on a variety of assumptions made. A third concern is that using crops to produce biofuels competes directly with food production, and that growing crops like corn to produce ethanol can lead to increased demand for water, increased soil erosion, pesticide use, and conversion of forests to farms.

Biomass Energy (cont)

The most promising future for biofuels is cellulosic ethanol. Currently, ethanol production is based mainly on corn kernels (starch ethanol). Cellulosic ethanol is instead made from a variety of plant materials like cornstalks and agricultural residues, wood pulp, and grasses. Substituting cellulosic ethanol for gasoline can reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 90%. In addition, producing ethanol from agricultural residues and grasses avoids the land use and environmental problems of intensive crop farming. The production of cellulosic ethanol depends on the availability of enzymes that convert plant cellulose into ethanol. Research on enzymes that break down the cellulose in plants is a high priority in the biomass energy field and is nearing commercial production. From a net energy, greenhouse gas emission, and environmental standpoint, cellulosic ethanol offers numerous advantages over corn-based ethanol.

Other Forms of Renewable Energy

Geothermal energy Tidal energy Wave energy