Wind Energy – A Viable Source

Wind power is one of the most efficient alternative energy sources to combine with solar, especially out in the middle of a total self-sustainability project. Because when there is sun; there isn’t always wind, but when there is wind, there isn’t always sun, so the two systems (solar/wind) seem to be compliment with each other. Wind energy is now attractive for many reasons – it is renewable, clean and scalable.

A bright future for wind energy

The economics of wind energy are already strong, despite the relative youth of the industry. The downward trend in costs is predicted to continue. The strongest influence will be exerted by the downward trend in wind turbine prices. As the world market in wind turbines continues to boom, wind turbine prices will continue to fall.

The global wind energy market is expanding rapidly, creating opportunities for employment through the export of wind energy goods and services.

For additional information please refer to DoE’s excellent resource on Wind Energy: http://www1.eere.energy.gov/windandhydro/

Solar Energy

Sun is the source of almost all forms of energy including fossil, hydro-electric, wind and solar energy. Although we are currently dependant on fossil fuels, sunlight itself is a tremendous source of energy which is untapped. There is enough potential energy in just one hour of sunlight to power the electrical needs of the entire world for a full year. Now imagine if we could harness this inexhaustible source of energy. Solar energy is also a clean source with no emissions. One solar water heater can reduce global warming gas emissions equivalent of one car.

With the recent developments in technology, solar energy systems are scalable for large and small uses, require no maintenance. Most importantly, with government tax incentives and rebates, solar energy is financially viable.

Energy is a necessity and clean renewable energy is an obligation to our earth and our future. Solar energy is currently available, cost effective and clean. Hence it is time to adopt solar energy systems.

Biomass

What is it and how can it be used?

Biomass is the organic matter produced by plants. Also it refers to other organic wastes like animal waste, food-processing by-products etc. Everything that is biodegradable is biomass. The solar energy trapped by these plants can be converted to electricity or fuel.

Renewed Interest in Biomass

Three main factors are responsible for the renewed interest in biomass - economics, environmental concerns and national security.

First, economics is the strongest driver in renewed interest in biomass fuels and chemicals. New advances in biotechnology and bioprocesses, such as those demonstrated at BECON, can dramatically reduce the costs of producing biochemicals.

Second, biomass fuels generally have less impact on the environment than fossil fuels, such as coal and oil.

Producing fuels and chemicals from biomass is not a new concept. Cellulose, ethanol, methanol, vegetable oils and a host of other biomass-based chemicals have been in use since the 1800's to make products like paint, glue, adhesives, synthetic cloth and solvents. It was not until the 1930's and 40's that petrochemicals began to dominate the market and displace chemicals and products derived from biomass.

BIO - GAS

The National Project on Bio - Gas Development (NPBD) which caters to the setting up of family type Bio - Gas plants is a central sector scheme and is point number 19(d) of the 20 Point Programme. It has the following objectives :

• To provide fuel for cooking purposes and organic manure to rural households.
  
  
• To mitigate the drudgery of rural women, reduce pressure on forests and accentuate social benefits.
  
  
• To improve sanitation in villages by linking sanitary toilets with Bio-Gas plants.

The Rate of subsidy is given below:

Capacity of the Plant	Subsidy for SC/ST, SF/MF Western Ghats notified hilly areas.	Subsidy for others
1 Cu.m. to 10 Cu.m.	2300	1800

Additional subsidy for the linking Bio-Gas plants with sanitary toilets is Rs. 500/- per plant.

source:

District Rural Development Agency (DRDA)

Celeb speak in india on green.ndtv.com

Abhishek Bachchan, actor We must save our environment for the future of our children. I care, do you? Join the NDTV Campaign. Leander Paes, tennis player Our Children are the next generation, and it's our responsibilty to keep the planet clean and give our children a better environment to grow up in, please join me and NDTV in this Go Green Campaign, the largest environment campaign in India. Kapil Sibal, Union Minister When you build your next house, conserve the water that nature provides you. Join the NDTV Toyota Campaign. I care...do you? Baichung Bhutia, football player I have scored many crucial goals in my life but the most important goal right now is to save our environment. Join the NDTV Toyota environment campaign for a greener tomorrow. Harman Baweja, actor Cut down the electricity in your house and save the environment and join the NDTV campaign. Lisa Ray, actor I want to ask you all to refill your plastic bottles. Don't keep buying them, we don't have any place to put them and as a result they only end up mucking up our environment. God knows we need more space and clean air to breathe. Join the NDTV-Toyota campaign for a greener, fresher and plastic free tomorrow. Shobhaa De, author I prefer candles to electricity. So switch off today for a better tomorrow. Join the NDTV-Toyota Environment Campaign. John Abraham, actor On World Environment Day, I pledge to use my car less and my bike more, so I can save petrol and reduce carbon emissions. So let us all make a difference. Join the NDTV Campaign to save the environment. Narain Karthikeyan, Sportsman Let us start taking care of our earth today. Join the NDTV green movement for a better tomorrow. Zila Khan, Singer Please join NDTV save the environment campaign for a greener future. Jeffrey Archer, Author Let us not kill ourselves. What we do to the environment today will impact generations to come. I’m delighted to support NDTV in this amazing adventure. Wishing you the very best of luck. Amaan and Ayaan Ali Bangash- Sarod players You do not need to go far away to do something for the environment. You can do it right here in your neighbourhood park. Plant a tree today, for a greener tomorrow.

The ECO facts

		Ice caps are white, and reflect sunlight, much of which is reflected back into space, in turn cooling Earth; but with the ice caps melting, the only reflector is the ocean. Darker colors absorb sunlight, further warming the Earth.
		Scientists blame global warming for the declining penguin population, as warmer waters and smaller ice floes force the birds to travel further to find food.
		Stressed by cyanide fishing, harbor dredging, coral mining, deforestation, coastal development, agricultural runoff, careless divers, and now global warming, there is a devastating loss of coral across the world.
		With accelerated global warming, and the ice covering melting, the earth would be absorbing more sunlight, and is on its way to becoming hotter than before.
		Due to global warming the polar ice cap in the Arctic region is shrinking and rupturing; if this continues, summers in the Arctic would become ice-free by the end of this century.
		Everytime we burn oil, coal and gas to generate electricity and power, we produce the heat trapping gases that cause global warming.
		Deforestation is one of the main causes of atmospheric carbon dioxide; burning and cutting millions of acres of trees each year, it is responsible for 20-25 per cent of all carbon emissions.
		Water vapor is the most prevalent and most powerful greenhouse gas on the planet; it holds onto two-thirds of the heat trapped by all the greenhouse gases.
		Every week about 20 species of plants and animals become extinct!
		Rainforests are being cut down at the rate of 100 acres per minute!
		One-third of the water used in most homes is flushed down the toilet.
		A single quart of motor oil, if disposed of improperly, can contaminate up to 2,000,000 gallons of fresh water.
		Plastic bags and other plastic garbage thrown into the ocean kill as many as 1,000,000 sea creatures every year.
		A modern glass bottle would take 4000 years or more to decompose -- and even longer if it's in the landfill.
		Recycling one glass bottle saves enough energy to light a 100-watt bulb for four hours
		Energy-saving lightbulbs last around ten times longer than ordinary lightbulbs- over 10,000 hours.
		A laptop is more environment friendly than a desktop. It consumes five times less electricity.
		An aluminum can that is thrown away will still be a can 500 years from now!
		A single tree will absorb one ton of carbon dioxide over its lifetime. Shade provided by trees can also reduce your air conditioning bill by 10 to 15 per cent.
		Tissue paper is a major source of waste. It takes 60,00,000 trees to make 1 year's worth of tissues for the world.
		A ton of recycled paper equals or saves 17 trees in paper production.
		A plant on your desk acts as a natural filter, absorbing airborne pollutants and computer radiation while replenishing oxygen levels.
		Lawns only need watering once a week, post rain only after two weeks. Do watering early morning for minimal evaporation and water conservation.
		Crawling traffic contributes eight times as much air pollution as traffic moving at regular highway speed.
		Avoiding just 10 miles of driving every week would eliminate about 500 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions a year!
		Turn off the tap when brushing your teeth and soaping your hands. This can save around 16 litres a day. That's 11,000 litre of water per person per year.
		A dripping tap can waste over 20,000 litres of water every year. source : http://green.ndtv.com