Unpacking the A-Z of green energy

The more we get to be conscious of our environment, the more we would understand how beneficial it is to switch from our burning of fossil fuels to green or renewable energy. In this article, you will find out what green energy is and how important it is to humans.

It is no longer news that human-related activities have over time polluted our atmosphere thereby causing global warming and other related climate change effects. As such, the adoption of green energy is good news. For a source of energy to be termed green, that means that it does not pollute the environment like fossil fuels do.

Green energy is entirely replenishable.

This kind of energy owes its existence to natural resources like sunlight, wind, geothermal, or water. Green energy sources can easily be replenished because it is coming from a natural source with no mechanized or man-made cause or effect.

This kind of energy is providing solutions to the challenges of sustainability in our power grid. With green energy, we are assured that our environment will not be harmed. Remember, factors that cause harm to our atmosphere are the constant release of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere but, with green energy, those effects are mitigated.

In our modern world, green energy has provided us with a source of energy that will not harm our world. One major technology trend that is leveraging the green energy project is the use of solar energy to generate clean energy through electricity.

Over the years, people have been able to come up with mind-blowing ideas on how to employ this source of energy to make the lives of people better. For example; the use of solar energy is expanding in developing countries and it is gradually becoming a reliable source of getting power. Investments centered around clean energy rose to 36% in nations like Brazil, India, and some countries in the African continent.

One thing we need to know is; the more we switch to using green energy, the better we are at protecting mother earth. The world keeps recording numerous health complications that arose as a result of using other forms of energy that harm; for example, heart attacks, cholera, breathing problems, cancer, chronic cough, and more. With adequate research and substantial investments, green energy will be our go-to energy source.

Types of green energy

There are various types of green energy coming from varying sources. Some of these sources are fitted for some specific regions, that’s why there is so much renewable energy that gets into the energy grid.

• Solar energy

Solar energy is a clean source of energy that is derived directly from the sun.  This energy is collected through solar radiation, after which we collect and then convert it into usable electricity.

We can only get solar energy by using Solar panels because perhaps, they are the only way with which we can tap energies emitted by the sun. These panels are configured with elements called photovoltaic cells.

This is how it works, when sunlight hits these cells,  they create a photoelectric effect that causes an electric current.  The inverter then enables the current to go through it while turning it to an alternating current. After which it can be used to power your home or eventually added to the national power grid.

• Wind energy

Wind energy simply put is the kind of energy that is created through wind turbines. Instead of using electricity to make wind through the electrical fan, these wind turbines use the wind to make electricity. The wind turns the blades of the turbine to rotate, and such rotation spins the generator that creates electricity.

• Hydroelectric/water energy

This kind of energy is derived or produced by extracting the energy that flowing water emits. To practically see how this energy is produced, just force a large body of water to flow through a narrowed path.

Hydroelectric energy is achieved commonly by storing water in a dam and open an intake selectively. By holding water up in the dam forces the water to flow at unbelievable speed therefore causing or generating electricity. Hydroelectricity has proven to be the most popular form of green energy.

Why is green energy important?

Over time, we have relied on materials such as oil, coal, fuel, and even kerosene to provide us with the level or kind of energy that we need, however, these fuels are cannot be renewed and they pollute our environment. These materials may in the long run fall short of supply, thereby causing shortages but with green energy, the reverse is the case because they are natural and will always exist.

Oil extraction alone has damaged the waters of the Niger-delta region of Nigeria, crops have been destroyed, lives in water are constantly threatened and life expectancies of humans are reduced.

With green energy, the negative effects of fossil fuels can be heavily replaced with other environmentally friendly alternatives. Because it is derived from natural sources, it is often clean and renewable because they emit little or no greenhouse gases into our atmosphere.

Also, the importance of this kind of energy cannot be overemphasized; with it, we can record low levels of air and water pollution in our environment. There are loads of diseases people can contract by just living close to a polluted area, we can reduce or totally stop the anomaly caused by other forms of energy that are not green by adopting the use of green energy to aid us in our daily activities.

With green energy, there will be stability in the prices of energy products as it is produced naturally and locally. Producing these energy products is not affected by price spikes, distribution chain disruptions, or even geographical crises.

Another importance of this form of energy is that with this kind of energy, jobs will be created, therefore, having a positive effect on our economy. The solution that it brings requires a low cost of operation in many parts of the world.