Are You Using Green Electricity?

Green electricity, as used in appliances and the like is a very clean form of energy, as it does a lot of work and produces no emissions.  Contrast the pollution produced by, say, a coal-fired steam-train with an electric tram.  Electricity is even found in nature in things like lightning, electric eels and even the workings of our nervous system.

However, electricity doesn’t come from nowhere.  Thanks to the laws of thermodynamics, electrical energy has to be converted from another form of energy. While electricity itself is clean and green, the means of getting electricity may not be all that good for the environment. 

The following are not examples of green electricity, as they create pollution and/or use up non-renewable resources:

• coal-fired power plants (use fossil fuels, emit polluting smoke and greenhouse gases),
• gas-fired power plants (as above, with the exception of those that use landfill gas, which changes a greenhouse gas (methane) to a less polluting form.  If this is the case, this is an example of green electricity),
• nuclear power plants (whilst not as bad as most people think, just ask the people near Chernobyl),
• non-rechargeable batteries (often contain toxic metals that just get chucked into landfills and create nasty leachates).

Green electricity uses renewable sources of energy to turn the turbines or otherwise generate electricity, and doesn’t give off many pollutants as part of this generation process. These are examples of green electricity production:

• hydro electricity (uses moving water),
• geothermal energy (uses the internal heat of the planet to create steam to power a turbine),
• tidal (uses moving water),
• wind electricity,
• solar electricity (uses the photovoltaic effect in solar panels to generate electricity),
• biomass and biofuel (uses plants to generate oils or sugars).

Some forms of green electricity are suited for large scale (main grid) electrical providers.  The chief ones used here are hydro electricity, geothermal electricity, tidal electricity and wind electricity.  These forms of green electricity usually need large-scale infrastructure.  In the quest to become more sustainable, many mainstream electrical providers are looking to these green electricity production methods.

Solar and wind energy are the green electricity generation methods that are best suited for individual households.  In fact, small-scale use is, for the most part, the main way that solar electricity is used.  Solar panels and wind turbines can often be set up on households by those wishing to live “off the grid” and be their own electricity providers. 

Hydro electricity, while a form of green electricity that may appeal to many, is not really suited to small-scale users.  Not many properties are lucky enough to have a stream that is swift year round in a location that a generator can be placed.  Self-sufficiency guru John Seymour suggests that even if you do have a property with a reliable stream, hitching it up to a generator may not be the most efficient means of using the hydro power.