Renewable energy is anything that can be used to generate heat or electricity but without using unsustainable fuels and without releasing carbon dioxide into the earth’s atmosphere.

The reason renewable energy is becoming more prevalent is because other non-renewable resources such as fossil fuels are finite and the supply will eventually run out. Non-renewable fuels are also more harmful to the environment due to the levels of carbon dioxide emitted through extraction and use.

Carbon dioxide levels play a central role in global warming. As carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere the temperature of the earth increases and this causes climate change and alters the long-term weather patterns that plants and animals are currently accustomed to.

Changes to the climate come with potentially damaging consequences. Ice caps are starting to melt at the Poles, which could cause sea levels to rise, leaving long lasting damage to various aspects of marine and coastal life. Higher temperatures and less rainfall are being recorded in already arid areas, making it more difficult for crops to grow.

Carbon dioxide is the biggest contributor to global warming and one of the main sources is the burning of fossil fuels for energy, typically used to heat homes and run vehicles. This has led to research and development into renewable energy sources, many of which are becoming available for widespread use.

Great Britain is committed to producing 15% of its energy from renewable sources by 2020 which is equivalent to around 35% of overall electricity.

Renewable energy sources include wind, solar and wave power amongst a few others. The United Kingdom has huge resources in wind and wave power due to the weather conditions and positioning of the country itself.

As well as the guarantee of a secure and never ending supply, renewable energy has several other advantages. Low carbon emissions hold great benefits for the earth overall and the less emissions the better. Job opportunities and spin-off economic benefits for local companies and communities are a common result of renewable energy projects around the country.

Wind power is a large-scale, reliable source of power that is already having a major positive impact on the British Isles. Wind power already provides enough electricity to supply 1.2 million UK homes every year and there is plenty of room for growth.

Wave and tidal ocean power is a clean and abundant energy source and is achievable throughout Great Britain due to the vast amount of ocean surrounding the country.

The waves crashing onto the western shores carry the power of the Atlantic behind them and the many inlets, firths and channels around the United Kingdom have some of the highest tidal ranges and strongest currents in the world.

Solar power makes use of the sun’s energy and can be used in a similar way to electricity and gas to heat your home and water.

Green Renewable Energy is all about creating a stockpile for the future. While we seem to have depleted most of our sources for energy, Renewable Energy Suppliers seem to have stepped in and saved the day. Nations all over the world are investing in doing their bit to preserve the planet. Just how does all of this work? Here’s a quick overview to help you understand the concept better.

<b>A broad definition</b>

To begin with the definition of Green Renewable Energy in itself is a very broad definition. It is very difficult to pin point one aspect and say that it completely defines what this type of energy is all about. In a nut shell, green energy is any energy that is produced from a source that can be renewed and does not get depleted every time it is used as a source.

<b>The sun as a source</b>

Solar power is most popular form of Green Renewable Energy that there is. It is very common in residential areas where solar panels provide electricity not only to heaters but to all electrical appliances in the house as well. Another form of solar energy is wind energy. Wind is created when the sun heats up portions of the earth. The wind created as a result is harnessed by a Renewable Energy Plant and converted into wind energy.

<b>Water as a source</b>

Water too is a common source of Green Renewable Energy. The energy that comes from water can be harnessed in two ways, through rain water, glacier water etc or through tides. The energy generated from this source is known as hydroelectricity. Energy through water is generated with the help of turbines. The energy that is derived from the tides and waves is known as tidal or wave power.

Sustainable Energy sources are most often regarded as including all renewable sources, such as biofuels, solar power, wind power, wave power, geothermal power and tidal power. It usually also includes technologies that improve energy efficiency. Sustainable energy is the provision of energy such that it meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs. With modern day concern that global warming is for real there is an increasing demand by business and householders for information on the renewable energy options that are available.

Renewable energy can be described as a form of sustainable energy that is a product of the earth’s natural environment. Any source of energy that can provide an ongoing flow and/or be replaced by nature falls into the category of renewable energy. They are those that are naturally available and replenished. Renewable energy sources include solar, wind, hydro (water), geothermal, Tidal power or ocean wave energy, and biomass. Use of renewable energy sources reduces dependence on fossil fuels, diversifies energy resources, and reduces the emission of greenhouse gases and other pollutants associated with fossil fuels. These technologies are clean sources of energy that have a much lower environmental impact than conventional energy technologies.

A non-renewable resource is a natural resource which cannot be produced, re-grown, regenerated, or reused on a scale which can sustain its consumption rate. These resources often exist in a fixed amount, or are consumed much faster than nature can recreate them. Reliance on non-renewable resources such as oil, gas and coal is unsustainable since they will run out one day. If we run out of fossil fuels, we will have to use some sort of alternative energy produced from the wind, the sun or from water power. These energy sources can easily be replenished in a short amount of time. Alternate sources such as solar and wind power, are infinite and have the added advantage of being non-polluting. Climate change and the need to manage diminishing fossil fuel reserves are today two of the biggest challenges facing the planet. In order to secure the future for ourselves and generations to follow, we must act now to reduce energy consumption and substantially cut greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide.

Unfortunately, the cost of some of the renewable energy sources is currently above those of the non-renewable sources. However, increased use of the non-renewables increases demand and lowers unit cost, so we are approaching the time where the old, non-renewable sources will be less competitive. There is no shortage of solar-derived energy on Earth. Indeed the storages and flows of energy on the planet are very large relative to human needs.

One of the Earth’s great renewable energy sources is actually the energy that can be found in all the waves of the ocean. Let’s look at this further.

If you have ever been to the ocean, you were probably fascinated by the phenomena of the waves crashing against the shorelines as the tides came in. The ocean’s tides are the product of gravitational pull of the sun and the moon, as well as, the Earth’s rotation. It causes the ocean waters to be raised and lowered from time to time. The tides have cycles of twelve and one half hours, twice per day, and are easily predictable.

The use of tidal power is seen as early as the twelfth century where tidal mills used the force of the tides to grind grain and corn. The eighteenth century brought competition from windmills and waterwheels. Tidal mills pretty much became extinct with the invention of cheap steam engines. In 1967, France became the first to be able to put tidal wave power to work on a large scale to produce electricity.

The generation of electricity from tidal waves is similar to that of hydroelectric power generation. Bigger dams, known as barrages, are built on the bottom of a tidal basin. Gates on the barrage allow the tidal basin to fill during incoming high tides. Likewise, the basin will empty through a turbine during the outgoing tide. This would turn an electric generator for the production of electricity. There are also systems that generate electricity from incoming and outgoing tides. This system can have a negative effect on plants and animals in the area.

Tidal fences are also used to generate electricity. Vertical axis turbines are mounted on fences. Passing water is forced through the turbines. Ideal locations for these are channels between two landmasses. Tidal fences are cheaper than tidal barrages and cause less of an environmental impact on large marine life.

Tidal turbines are a new technology used for tidal energy. They are similar to wind turbines and are arranged underwater in rows. They work best in areas with strong tides. Although they are heavier and costlier to build, they also are capable of capturing more energy. They are also the least environmentally damaging of all the tidal power technologies, since they do not interfere with migration paths.

In order for tidal power to work successfully it requires a tide difference of at least sixteen feet. Unfortunately there are only a few places where this occurs. This means tidal power plants cannot just be constructed anywhere. There are only a handful of sites on Earth with this type of tidal range. At present, France is the only country that has been successful in using tidal power. It is hoped developments in technology, through research, will be made to allow better use of this, what is now, wasted energy. The future of tidal energy seems hopeful. Tidal power has great potential and hopefully we can make better use of it in the future in our quest to find a replacement for fossil fuels.

Green energy refers to the use of power that is not only more efficient than fossil fuel but that is friendly to the environment as well. Green energy is generally defined as energy sources that dont pollute and are renewable.

There are several categories of green energy. They are anaerobic digestion, wind power, geothermal power, hydropower on a small scale, biomass power, solar power and wave power. Waste incineration can even be a source of green energy.

Nuclear power plants claim that they produce green energy as well, though this source is fraught with controversy, as we all know. While nuclear energy may be sustainable, may be considered renewable and does not pollute the atmosphere while it is producing energy, its waste does pollute the biosphere as it is released.

The transport, mining and phases before and after production of nuclear energy does produce and release carbon dioxide and similar destructive greenhouse gases. When we read of green energy, therefore, we rarely see nuclear power included.

Those who support nuclear energy say that nuclear waste is not, in fact, released into our earths biosphere during its normal production cycle. They stress as well that the carbon dioxide that nuclear energy production releases is comparable, in terms of each kilowatt hour of electricity, to such sources of green energy as wind power.

As an example of the green energy production the average wind turbine, such as the one in Reading England, can produce enough energy daily to be the only energy source for 1000 households.

Many countries now offer household and commercial consumers to opt for total use of green energy. They do this one of two ways. Consumers can buy their electricity from a company that only uses renewable green energy technology, or they can buy from their general supplies such as the local utility company who then buys from green energy resources only as much of a supply as consumers pay for.

The latter is generally a more cost – efficient way of supplying a home or office with green energy, as the supplier can reap the economic benefits of a mass purchase. Green energy generally costs more per kilowatt hour than standard fossil fuel energy.

Consumers can also purchase green energy certificates, which are alternately referred to as green tags or green certificates. These are available in both Europe and the United States, and are the most convenient method for the average consumer to support green energy. More than 35 million European households and one million American households now buy these green energy certificates.

While green energy is a great step in the direction of keeping our environment healthy and our air as pollutant free as possible, it must be noted that no matter what the energy, it will negatively impact the environment to some extent.

Every energy source, green or otherwise, requires energy. The production of this energy will create pollution during its manufacture. Green energys impact is minimal, however.

The green movement has created a plethora of buzzwords. One of the more popular phrases is renewable energy. And for good reason. Businesses, traditional and emerging, will soon be affected by how they will respond to the reality of renewable energy depending on where they fall in the supply chain.

Renewable energy is a term that refers to those potential sources of energy that are naturally replenished, which means that using them does not decrease the amount available in the future. This contrasts with nonrenewable sources (fossil-based fuels) that have a limited supply and will eventually be used up. Renewable energy sources include sunlight, hydrosphere/water cycle, geothermal and some types of biomass and biofuels. Think of energy as a source and electricity as an application.

The mechanisms used to generate electricity from these sources vary considerably. For sunlight, there are photovoltaic technologies that generate electricity directly from sunlight. But there are also systems that use the sunlight to heat an intermediate fluid, which is used to turn turbines to generate electricity. There are multiple ways that water can be used to provide electricity, of which the most commonly used is the hydroelectric dam.

Other systems that produce electricity from water include wave power systems that convert the kinetic energy of waves into electricity, tidal power systems that use the kinetic energy of tidal flows in a similar fashion, and systems that take advantage of the temperature differences between surface waters and deeper waters in the ocean to generate electricity. Geothermal systems rely on the heat of the earth’s interior to generate electricity in various ways, depending on the specific nature of the site. Biomass and biofuels consist of fuels derived from plant and other organic matter, which are renewable depending on the sustainability of the agricultural practices that provide the biomass. Examples include ethanol and biodiesel liquid fuels for transportation, and solid biomass from unused portions of other crops for electricity generation.

Presently, renewable energy sources provide only a small fraction of global energy production, and the majority of this is from biomass burning such a wood (which while renewable in the strictest sense is not environmentally friendly) in undeveloped regions of the world. Renewable energy provides less than 1% of the world’s energy production even though its use is expected to grow rapidly amid rising concerns about global warming and the rising price of oil.

The biggest impediment to the widespread use of renewable energy sources in the past has been its price compared to the price of coal, natural gas, and petroleum. At present, wind energy costs $0.04-$0.08 per kWh, while coal costs $0.04 per kWh. Other renewable energy sources are even more expensive, such as solar thermal at $0.12-$0.34 per kWh and solar photovoltaic at $0.25-$1.60 per kWh. Water sources vary in cost from being cheaper than coal to costing three times as much. This cost differential, however, is narrowing as the price of oil rises and new technological innovations are bringing down the prices of renewables.

Looking forward, the increasing likelihood of carbon taxes or emissions trading schemes being implemented in much of the developed world means that the cost of generating electricity from coal, natural gas, and petroleum will rise even more precipitously, which will make renewable energy even more attractive for future development.

The future of renewable energy depends on how government energy policy will develop over the course of the next presidential administration and congress. Will carbon taxes or emissions trading schemes be enacted to limit greenhouse gas emissions? Will green grid technologies become widespread? Will the development of new oil supplies be allowed? All of these possible scenarios will affect the future deployment of renewable energy technologies.

As an example, consider the application of rooftop solar photovoltaic systems. Not only will these systems provide electricity to homes and businesses, but they can even be used to sell energy back to the power utility. Farmers and ranchers can plant wind turbines on land unsuitable for growing crops. The widespread use of smart grid technologies can become a major method of decentralizing power generation.

Similarly, if emissions trading schemes are enacted, then the rising cost of carbon-producing energy sources will force a shift to renewable energy technologies for large portions of our energy needs. This is deemed so likely that many believe that renewable energy technologies will be the next major industrial boom, similar to the computer technology revolution of the 1980s and the internet revolution of the late 1990s. Increasingly, large quantities of venture capital are pouring into renewable energy companies in expectation of just such an outcome.

How you position your firm to take advantage of the probable boom in renewable energy depends on your business’s energy needs and usage. If green grid technology becomes widespread, the opportunity presents itself to businesses to become both an electricity consumer and a supplier. If carbon taxes or emissions trading systems drive the move away from petroleum transport fuels to biomass transport fuels, it is important to be prepared for that as well.

As the renewable energy debate gains momentum, NOW is the time to prepare for its eventual inevitability to help protect your business from rising energy and transportation costs.