When it comes to renewable fuel sources the Germans have become one of the major players in the alternative energy game. With their nation’s electricity feed laws, the German government set a world record in 2006 by investing over $10 billion (US) in alternative energy research, development, and implementation. This included investment in wind turbines, biogas power plants, and solar collection cells. Germany’s electricity feed laws permit the German homeowners to connect to an electrical grid with some source of renewable energy they are generating. They then can sell back to the power company any excess energy produced at retail prices. (This is now available in parts of Canada, Us and other countries.) This economic incentive has moved Germany into the number-one position among all nations when it come to the number of operational solar arrays, biogas plants, and wind turbines. There was/is 50-terawatt hours of electricity produced by these renewable energy sources. This amounts to 10% of all of Germany’s energy production per year. In 2006 alone, Germany installed 100,000 solar energy collection systems.

In the US there are also moves towards finding and using alternative energy. One such initiative is by the BP Corporation. It has established an Energy Biosciences Institute (EBI) located at the University of Illinois, to establish extensive new research and development efforts into clean burning renewable energy sources. Most prominently this means biofuels for cars and trucks. Their investment will be $50 million (US) per year over the next decade. The University has established a partnership with BP, and it will be responsible for research and development of new biofuel crops. They will also be researching the biofuel-delivering agricultural systems, and machines that will produce renewable fuels in liquid form for automobile consumption. The University will specifically concentrate on efforts in the field of genetic engineering related to creating the more advanced biofuel crops. This institute will also focus on technological innovations for converting heavy hydrocarbons into pollution-free and highly efficient fuels.

There is also a battle raging in the US, between Congress and the Geothermal Energy Association (GEA) on geothermal energy, its potential, and the role of federal research. The GEA’s concern is Congress’ irrational insistence on terminating the geothermal research program. The GEA says that recent studies by the National Research Council, the Western Governors’ Association Clean Energy Task Force and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology all support expanding geothermal research funding. This is necessary in order to develop the technology necessary to utilize this vast, untapped domestic renewable energy resource. Supporters of geothermal energy are amazed at the small amount of awareness people have about the huge benefits this research could have to the US, both practically and economically. Did you know that geothermal energy is already less expensive to produce in terms of kilowatt-hours than the coal that the US keeps mining? Geothermal energy is readily available, sitting just a few miles below our feet and is easily accessible through drilling. Some companies are already producing geothermal energy in the US and around the world. Geothermal energy is certainly economically viable and is already a billion dollar per year business.

It is important that we support these alternative energy sources whenever and however possible.

Be Sociable, Share!

• 

2 Responses to “Alternative Energy on a Larger Scale”