ALTERNATIVE ENERGY SOLAR,WIND AND

Consider the Alternatives

Technically, there’s enough wind power in the U.S. to meet our electricity needs four times over.
BACKGROUND
Have you ever watched a pinwheel spinning in the breeze? That’s “alternative” energy. Felt the heat of the sun on your face? That’s alternative energy. Watched a stream carry a stick out of sight? That’s alternative energy, too. It’s funny that people call it alternative energy when it’s really about as basic as you can get. And it’s amazing we haven’t done more with it. After all, it’s natural, clean, safe, accessible, and virtually unlimited. So let’s call it “clean, renewable energy” instead. It’s time to stop thinking of it as an alternative…and start thinking of it as a necessity.
DID YOU KNOW
• Our current power system is unsustainable. More than 70% of our electricity comes from fossil fuels (coal, gas, oil), which are finite and heavy polluters. Coal-fired power plants, which produce about 50% of our electricity, are the single greatest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S.
• The use of wind power is increasing 25–40% per year worldwide. Denmark currently gets a full 25% of its electricity from wind.
• Geothermal energy uses heat from Earth’s crust to produce electricity. In Iceland, geothermal-heated soil is used to grow bananas.
• Hydrokinetics is a developing technology that produces electricity using the natural kinetic (moving) energy in rivers, waves, and ocean currents.
• Bio-energy comes from organic plant matter—from crops to native plants to agricultural waste—and can be burned directly or “gasified” to produce power.
• Solar power (see p. 24): The sunlight that shines on the Earth in one hour could meet world energy demand for an entire year.

WHAT YOU CAN DO
Your Partner: The Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), a leading science-based nonprofit working for a healthy environment and a safer world. UCS is a leading voice for renewable energy policy and technology. Check them out: ucsusa.org
Your Goals: Learn about clean, renewable energy, get other people excited about it, and work in your community to support it.
START SIMPLE
• Buy green energy. Many utilities already offer clean energy at a small premium. Pacific Power, for instance, calls their program “Blue Sky”; Tennessee Valley Authority’s is “Green Switch.” You may be able to sign up simply by checking a box on your utility bill. Contact your power company to find out more.
• Even if your utility doesn’t offer green power, you can still purchase it in the form of renewable energy certificates (RECs). Most homes can offset their electricity use with RECs for as little as $10 to $20 a month. See 50simplethings.com/renewables
STEPS FOR SUCCESS
Step 1. Learn more about renewable energy. Since you’re reading this book, chances are that learning about renewable energy will be pretty exciting to you. You may be amazed to find out how many renewable energy projects are already under way in your area. Find them on the U.S. Department of Energy’s Web site at http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/state
Step 2. Be demanding. If your utility doesn’t offer renewable energy, ask for it. If your town, city, or state is considering a renewable energy facility, attend public meetings and show your support. It makes a difference.
Step 3. Support a renewable electricity standard. Another way to get utilities to commit to renewables: make them do it. Pass a renewable electricity standard in your state and in the federal government. This law gives utilities a deadline by which they must increase renewable energy to a certain level. In Oregon, for example, it’s 20% of electricity by 2025. At the moment, only 25 states have this law. And there’s no national standard.