Guide To Purchasing Green Power

"This guide can be downloaded from: www.eere.energy.gov/femp/technologies/renewable%5Fpurchasepower.cfm, www.epa.gov/greenpower/buygreenpower.htm, www.thegreenpowergroup.org/publications.html, www.resource-solutions.org."--Verso. t.p.

Today, the energy sources used to create electricity differ in many ways, including in their environmental impacts. In the United States, electricity is most often generated using fossil or nuclear fuels--forms of power generation that can have detrimental effects on human health and the environment through air emissions and other problems. Despite advances in pollution controls over the last 30 years, this conventional power generation is still the nation's single largest source of industrial air pollution and is a major contributor to greenhouse gas emissions. Electricity markets now offer cleaner ways of producing power, however, and give many consumers the ability to choose how their power is generated. One of these choices is power from renewable sources, or "green power." This book is a guide to purchasing green power and a summary of federal renewable energy and energy efficiency programs.

Today, the energy sources used to create electricity differ in many ways, including in their environmental impacts. In the United States, electricity is most often generated using fossil or nuclear fuels -- forms of power generation that can have detrimental effects on human health and the environment through air emissions and other problems. Despite advances in pollution controls over the last 30 years, this conventional power generation is still the nation's single largest source of industrial air pollution and is a major contributor to greenhouse gas emissions. Electricity markets now offer cleaner ways of producing power, however, and give many consumers the ability to choose how their power is generated. One of these choices is power from renewable sources, or "green power". This book is a guide to purchasing green power and a summary of federal renewable energy and energy efficiency programs.

A green tag represents the environmental and other non-power attributes associated with one megawatt-hour (MWh) of electricity generated from renewable resources and can be sold separately from electricity. This text defines green tags and shows how they differ from other renewable energy products.

Today the energy sources used to create electricity differ in many ways, including in their environmental impacts. In the United States, conventional means of electricity generation use fossil or nuclear fuels - forms of power generation that impact human health and the environment through air emissions and other effects. Despite advances in pollution controls over the last 30 years, conventional power generation is still the nation's single largest source of industrial air pollution. Electricity markets are changing, however, offering cleaner ways of producing power and giving many consumers the ability to choose how their power is generated. One of these choices is power from renewable sources that is marketed as green power. Innovative organisations are encouraging the use of these new sources of green power and, at the same time, are reducing their own impact on the environment. In some parts of the United States, the deregulation of electricity has enabled consumers to choose the provider of their electric power and thus to buy green power from their chosen supplier. In regulated markets, too, hundreds of utilities now offer their customers the opportunity to purchase green power through green-pricing' programs. Even in areas where consumers cannot buy green power directly, renewable energy certificates (RECs) are available in every state to allow consumers to support green power. While no form of electric power generation is completely benign, electricity generated from renewable resources such as solar, wind, geothermal, small and low-impact hydro power, and biomass has proved to be environmentally preferable to electricity generated from conventional energy sources such as coal, oil, nuclear, and natural gas. "The Guide to Purchasing Green Power" focuses on electricity generated from renewable energy resources, both delivered through the grid and generated on-site.

From the publishers of the highly respected authority on ethical shopping - The Good Shopping Guide, comes this 24 page in-depth guide to the renewable energy market. It is designed to help readers choose the best green electricity from the various offers available. Although any green electricity is better than dirty old brown, it shows that some suppliers are better and greener than others - there is a full analysis of the corporate-level activities of the ultimate holding companies behind the green energy offers available (ie. has the company been involved in pollution? Have they donated money to political parties?), plus it looks at the 'greenness' of the electricity on offer. It also offers practical energy saving tips for the home and office - from heating and lighting through to appliances and insulation. The Renewable Energy guide is full colour throughout and includes striking images of the power industry.

In recent years, socio-political trends toward environmental responsibility and the pressing need to reduce Run-the-Engine (RTE) costs have resulted in the concept of Green IT. Although a significant amount of energy is used to operate routing, switching, and transmission equipment, comparatively less attention has been paid to Green Networking. A