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What is renewable energy?

What is renewable energy?. Presented by Chelan County PUD January 9, 2006. What is renewable energy?. Renewable energy refers to sources of energy that nature replenishes after they are used

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What is renewable energy?

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  1. What is renewable energy? Presented by Chelan County PUD January 9, 2006

  2. What isrenewable energy? • Renewable energy refers to sources of energy that nature replenishes after they are used • For instance, renewable hydroelectric power comes from the flow of water down rivers, lakes and streams. Every year the flow of water is replenished by snow and rain that fall in the mountains. Rocky Reach Dam on the Columbia River

  3. Renewable energy • Wind turbines use the air to turn electric generators • Solar panels are another form of renewable energy because they convert sunlight directly into electricity Wind turbine near Peshastin

  4. Renewable energy • Only 7 percent of all the energy used in the United States comes from renewable sources • The other 93 percent comes from coal, oil, natural gas or nuclear fuel that has been mined, pumped, or extracted from beneath the ground Coal-fired plantPhoto by USGS

  5. Hydropower • In Washington, dams along the Columbia River and at other locations provide inexpensive electricity – with no pollution • Approximately 70 percent of the electricity used in Washington is produced by hydropower Rocky Reach Dam

  6. Hydropower • Hydropower is a good complement to other renewable energy sources because it is always “on” – whether the sun is shining or the wind is blowing Rock Island Dam Pioneer Middle School Wyoming wind project Photo BPA

  7. Electricity in your home • Most of the electricity used in homes in Chelan County comes from hydropower • 1% comes from wind and a very small fraction comes from solar power. But use of solar and wind power is growing Leavenworth home

  8. Ten 100-watt light bulbs use 1,000 watts, which is 1 kilowatt (kW) One blow dryer uses about 1 kilowatt 1,000 blow dryers would use 1 million watts, or 1 megawatt A blow dryer running for 1 hour uses 1 kilowatt hour (kWh) A blow dryer running for 2 hours uses 2 kilowatt hours Think of kilowatt hours as the number of times the disk on the electric meter spins around Chelan County avg. home uses 20,300 kWh a year Measuring electricity PUD electric meter

  9. In the schools • Solar stations at Chelan County schools each generate 1.3 kilowatts • Each produces about as much as is needed to run classroom lights and computers • By comparison, Rocky Reach Dam generates a million times more power Solar panels at Washington Elementary

  10. Solar power • Solar technologies use the sun’s energy and light to provide heat, light, hot water, electricity, and even cooling for homes, businesses, and industry. • Photovoltaic (PV) cells directly convert sunlight into electricity

  11. Solar power • The simplest solar cells power watches and calculators (and go-karts) • More complex systems light houses and provide power to the electric grid 4th grade teacher Terry Gillespie helps student

  12. Wind power • A wind energy system transforms the kinetic energy of the wind into mechanical or electrical energy that can be harnessed for practical use • The electricity generated by a wind turbine is collected and fed into utility power lines, where it is mixed with electricity from other power plants and delivered to utility customers • Wind energy is the world’s fastest-growing energy source

  13. Wind power • Four large-scale wind farms are operating in Washington state, with four more in the planning stages • Chelan County PUD is a partner in the Nine Canyon wind project southeast of the Tri-Cities Nine Canyon wind project

  14. Why use renewable energy? • Coal, oil, and natural gas supplies are limited • Burning fossil fuels pollutes our air and produces greenhouse gases which contribute to global warming • Nuclear power brings safety concerns and waste disposal problems

  15. Why use renewable energy? • Renewable energy is “clean and green” • The nation’s energy needs are expected to grow by 33 percent over the next 20 years • Renewable energy can help fill the gap Beaver Valley School at Plain Chelan County PUD January 9, 2006

  16. Sources for teachers • www.chelanpud.org/snap • HYDROwww.chelanpud.orgwww.fwee.org • SOLARhttp://users.applecapital.net/~jim/solardragrace.htmwww.rnp.org/RenewTech/tech_solar.htmlwww.solarwashington.org/www.solarwashington.org/Tour/ongoing/OngoingTour.htmwww.eere.energy.gov/kids/solar.htmlwww.eere.energy.gov/RE/solar.htmlwww.energy.wsu.edu/projects/renewables/solar.cfm • WINDwww.energy-northwest.com/gen/ninecanyon/index.htmlwww.nwseed.org/www.awea.org/projects/washington.html

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