Wednesday, September 23, 2009

The Types of Green Energy?


By Jerry Dyess

What do you picture in your mind when someone mentions "green energy"? Miles and miles of windmills on rolling green hills or in a frozen wasteland in the Arctic or the solar panels occasionally seen on the roofs of houses? You may think of green energy as undeveloped and expensive to obtain and not a viable option to consider. The truth is green is not a new concept and does not have to cost a lot of money.

A renewable energy source that is safe for the environment and does not emit harmful emissions is considered green energy. These energy sources include more than just wind or solar energy; they also include hydroelectric and geothermal power. Let us look at these sources of energy and why they are considered green energy.

Solar energy is still being developed; it is probably the most talked about form of green power. In the future, many believe we will be producing solar power with plastic wrap; the fact is they have developed a form of plastic wrap that will collect solar rays for producing power. Solar power is still not ready for widespread use and is considered too expensive and difficult to take care by the average person. In years to come solar power will prove to be a good option for alternative energy.

Wind power is one of the oldest forms of green energy. When we think of energy today, we normally think of electric power. The fact is any type of force that creates energy to move something is considered an energy force; it does not necessarily have to produce electric. Windmills were used years ago to pump water from wells and other uses. These early windmills are quite crude when prepared to the modern wind turbines in use today. If you live in an area with a lot of wind a wind turbine is an effective way to produce electricity. Texas has a huge wind farm; it is the biggest in the country and effectively produces green power for people in Texas.

Geothermal energy is a little more complicated. While places like Iceland and Wyoming have volcanic activity below their surface to provide steam and pressure, passive geothermal energy can actually be used on a worldwide level. How much energy do we use each year heating and cooling buildings? The temperature below the ground is a constant 65 degrees F and by tapping into that with thermal rods, we can keep our buildings at that same temperature, never having to heat or cool from a greater extreme than that.

Hydroelectric power may or may not be green depending on the circumstances. A small hydro plant is considered green, as it will not disturb the balance of nature, as they do not need to make changes to the water or the landscape to operate. A large plant on the other hand needs to create a large body of water by flooding an area in order to run the hydro plant. These are not considered green as they change the face of the land for years to come.

There are different forms of energy that are green and not used, as they were never developed. You will not need to pay as much money to the electric company if you have your own source of green power operating in your home. You can still stay connected to the light company and if your green power fails for any reason, you will still have power. This will help the earth stay cleaner in years to come.

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