Pennsylvania Energy Independence

Currently the state of Pennsylvania is investing $665.9 million to spur the development of alternative and renewable energy sources in order to help families and small business conserve energy and use it more efficiently.

According to http://www.depweb.state.pa.us/energindependent/site/default.asp: The $650 million Alternative Energy Investment Fund and the nearly $16 million Alternative Fuels Investment Fund include $237.5 million specifically targeted toward helping consumers conserve electricity and manage higher energy prices, and $428.4 million to spur the development of alternative energy resources and create good-paying, skilled jobs for Pennsylvania’s hard-working men and women.

This package includes incentives to help households and small businesses in our state  take advantage of solar energy technology (see my Using the Sun post)- a key resource for reducing electricity demand during times of peak demand when rates are most expensive and make improvements to their homes or buildings that conserve energy.

What this means is that we will be seeing more and more alternative energy being used in our state thanks to Governor Rendell and the Pennsylvania energy independence strategy.  This creates more jobs for our citizens of the state and also will help save us money in the long run. We should expect to start seeing more of these alternative forms of energy in the next few years as they working on a plan to develop guidelines for these new energy programs. The plans should be finished in the next few months according to the governors website on the Pennsylvania Energy Independence strategy (linked in 2nd paragraph).

We all waste energy in some form and if we could just save a little bit of the energy we waste we would be able to save more money. The more money we save, the happier we are.

We take all of our electronic comforts for granted as they all seem endless. The reality is not only are they not endless but also there is a price for us being so consumed in luxury and comfort. That price is the impacts we have on our environment with all of the energy resources we are wasting away each year.

As a state we must develop a mass transit system that works and move large amounts of people in an efficient manner.

As individuals, we need to be more aware of the ways we waste energy from the water we shower, drink, and leave running. We also need to be more aware of the electricity we take for granted.

Here are some tips on how to conserve energy:
- Turn your refrigerator down
- Set your clothes washer to warm or cold-water setting, not hot
- Turn down your water heater thermostat
- Be careful not to overhear or over cool rooms
- Clean or replace air filters
- Use low flow showerheads
- Turn off unused appliances
- Look for the Energy Star label when purchasing new appliances.

Using less energy needs to become a way of life for all of us. By using less energy and using less of our natural resources we will make the world a cleaner place for everyone to live on.

Having more efficient autos and appliances will go along way into all of using less energy daily, weekly, and yearly. Our country will be a better place.

Pennsylvania is working harder than any other state to obtain energy independence. At a time when conventional energy prices are at or near record highs, electricity consumers are facing double-digit increases in their rates and America’s national security is jeopardized by its growing dependence on foreign oil, Pennsylvania is investing $665.9 million to spur the development of alternative and renewable energy sources and help families and small business conserve energy and use it more efficiently.

These alternative energy sources are those I talked about in earlier posts such as wind, solar, and hydro power will help us spend less money on electricity and also save energy so that we can focus on obtaining oil independently. “This energy independence strategy will cut Pennsylvanians’ energy bills by $10 billion over the next 10 years,” said Governor Rendell.  “It will give us the ability to produce enough homegrown fuel to replace every gallon Pennsylvania currently imports from the Persian Gulf”

Americans are wasteful people whether its gas, food, or electricity people tend to waste important resources. Today, the world consumes over 80 million barrels of oil every day (over 30 billion barrels per year); the USA alone consumes over 20 million barrels per day (over 7 billion barrels per year). At $100 per barrel, the global petroleum industry is a three trillion dollar a year business.

So by saving money on our electricity here in Pennsylvania by switching to renewable energy and clean coal energy we will have more money to spend on homegrown fuel in Pennsylvania rather than the Middle East.

So now that I have talked about some of the options Pennsylvania has for producing energy by renewable or non renewable, I wanted to give a little update on what is going on in the news with our state’s energy plan.

On October 15th Governor Ed Rendell signed into law House Bill 2200, a measure that equips consumers with the tools they need to conserve electricity and make more informed decisions about their energy use. House Bill 2200 will save families and businesses that are facing double digit increases in electricity rates more than $500 million over the next 5 years.

Governor Rendell said, “This bill marks a great step forward in our efforts to help electricity consumers save on their energy bills by reducing consumption and its establishes Pennsylvania as a leader among states working to encourage conservation.”
This bill will help the average household in Pennsylvania more than 20% on their electricity bill by 2013.

House Bill 2200 will require that every home and business in the state to be equipped with “smart meters” within 15 years. A smart meter gives consumers the information they need to better control their energy consumption, such as the current cost of power or whether they are in a peak rate period. By having with this information at your home, consumers can choose to use energy when it is cheapest and cut back at times when it is most expensive. These “smart meters” will really help out our state in saving energy and money. This picture below helps show you just what a smart meter will look like.

I think by signing this new bill, the state is taking a good step forward to helping our state with cheaper electricity. We now will have technology at our homes that allow us to see when it is cheapest to use energy. Governor Rendell did a really good thing by signing this bill.

One form of energy, which is used to generate electricity successfully for the Pittsburgh area, is nuclear energy. When you hear nuclear energy you might just think Homer Simpson sleeping at his work, or a nuclear bomb, or even just a big cloud of smoke coming out of stacks. Nuclear energy is unique because it does not involve any fossil fuels to create energy.

One reason why it has been successful in not only Pennsylvania but in the whole world is that it is low cost. Although it appears that Nuclear energy causes pollution when you the smoke stacks, it actually is pretty clean.

Nuclear energy is used for the production of electricity in 31 countries of the world. In the United States alone nuclear powered electricity makes up 20% of the electricity produced in our country.

In order to turn nuclear fission into electrical energy, the first step is for the power plant to be able to control the energy given off by the enriched uranium and allow it to heat water into steam. The steam then drives a turbine, which spins a generator to produce power. In some nuclear power plants, the steam from the reactor goes through a secondary, intermediate heat exchanger to convert another loop of water to steam, which drives the turbine. This causes many advantage to this design such as the radioactive water/steam never contacts the turbine. Also, in some reactors, the coolant fluid in contact with the reactor core is gas (carbon dioxide) or liquid metal (sodium, potassium); these types of reactors allow the core to be operated at higher temperatures.

Nuclear energy can be very dangerous to the workers with all of the chemicals involved with it. Workers who work in the control room at the power plant can monitor the nuclear reactor and take action if something goes wrong. Nuclear power plants also usually have added securities to help protect sensitive materials.

I feel that nuclear energy is a very successful form of producing energy and is a logical choice for Pennsylvania. If we could use a combination of coal, renewable energy, and nuclear energy Pennsylvania will be in good shape

Most people think that the renewable form of energy that has the brightest future is hydropower. Hydropower is energy produced from the use of water. After all, the oceans do take up roughly 70% of the earth. In 2005 hydro electricity accounted for 7 % of total electricity generation and 73 % of renewable generation in the United States.

Currently Pennsylvania does not rely on hydropower to produce electricity, but it is possible that we can look for it in the near future. It is mostly used out west with the state of Washington having the largest hydroelectricity facility.

So wondering how you can use water to make electricity? Hydropower plants use the energy of falling water to generate electricity. Next, the plants use a turbine that converts the falling water’s kinetic energy into mechanical energy. Finally, a generator converts a mechanical energy from the turbine into electrical energy. This video shows how hydropower plants work.

There are many advantages and disadvantages to using the renewable energy sourc of hydroelectricity.
The advantages include: once the damn is built the energy is basically free, there is no pollution at all, hydropower is much more reliable than wind and solar energy, and electricity can be generated constantly.

Some of the disadvantages include: Dams are very expensive to build, finding the right place to build a dam can be extremely difficult, and water quality and quantity downstream can impact plant life.

I feel that hydropower energy could be a very good option for a renewable energy source in Pennsylvania based on the fact that there is plenty of water in this state, its very clean, although it is expensive many dams are build for irrigation as well so the costs can be split.

The next form of energy production I am talking about is energy created by using the sun. This form energy is also known as solar energy. This form of renewable energy can be converted to electricity in two different ways.

Now most of us have probably used a calculator that does not require batteries because it has solar panels located on it. These panels use the sun light and the light of the room to power the calculator. Well Solar energy can also be used to produce electricity in a very similar way.

The first is way of converting energy from the sun into electricity is by Photovoltaic  devices. Photovoltaic is another word for solar cells. Photo means light and voltaic means energy. These Photovoltaic devices are the panels that you see when you see something using solar energy. individual cells are packaged into modules, like the one shown at the below; groups of modules are called arrays.  Photovoltaic arrays act like a battery when the sun is shining, producing a stream of direct current (DC) electricity and sending it into the building or sharing it with the grid.

Basically, photovoltaic cause photons from sunlight to knock electrons into a higher state of energy, creating electricity. Photovoltaic production has been doubling every two years, increasing by an average of 48 percent each year since 2002, making it the world’s fastest-growing energy technology.

The other form of electricity that can be produced from solar energy is through concentrating solar systems. This can be accomplished using a trough system; by allowing direct sunlight to hit troughs, the solar collectors concentrate it into a single area that boils liquid in order to make steam, which in turn moves turbines to make electricity. This up-and-coming technology can be made even more efficient with the use of a solar tower, which is just what it sounds like: a tower that uses careful sun tracking to concentrate solar energy near its top.

Solar energy can be a little more expensive then most forms of producing electricity, but it is a safe renewable energy. One problem as to why this is never going to be a complete answer for forms of energy is that you can only use it at night. As a result storage or complementary power systems are required. Also, Pittsburgh only averages about 59 sunny days a year. This would not be reliable in our city and state.

If you would like to learn more on solar energy please visit. http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/03/how-solar-energy-works.php?page=2

A newer option for producing electricity in this area is Wind power. This is the process of using windmills or wind turbines to produce electricity without polluting at all.

A wind turbine is a rotating machine, which converts the kinetic energy in wind into mechanical energy. The mechanical energy is then converted to electricity. The machines are either called a wind generator, wind turbine, wind power unit (WPU) or wind energy converter. The wind turbines are usually located on large scaled wind farm, which are connected to electrical grids.

Say that you want to use wind power in order to cut the cost of your electricity bill from your supplier or just not pollute but there are no wind farms located near your residence. Well then you can purchase an individual turbine. These are usually called residential turbines. These residential wind turbines usually lower your electricity rate by 50 to 90%.

Wondering how a residential wind turbine works? A wind turbine, which is installed on top of a tall tower near your house instead of on a traditional farm, collects kinetic energy from the wind and converts it to electricity that is compatible with a home’s electrical system. The stronger the winds the more energy is created from the turbine. A problem with this system is that if winds are below 7-10 mph the turbine will not be able to create enough mechanical energy to produce electricity. Therefore you will have to rely fully on the electricity provided from you utility company. This would not be a good option for you if you live somewhere that doesn’t get much wind.

People who live in urban and suburban areas should only use very small turbines on small towers, because the turbines can be very large. Most turbines are used in rural areas because there is more land available. Pennsylvania is about the median for producing wind powered electricity. We are ranked the 22nd state for producing wind energy.

Wind turbines are expensive and can cost anywhere from $6,000 to $22,000 depending on the size of the turbine and the installers rates.

All in all wind power is a good option to help lower pollution in this country that is all about going green lately. If you want to check out some information on Pennsylvania’s policies on wind resources visit… http://www.awea.org/smallwind/pennsylvania_sw.html

In the next few weeks I am going to discuss the different options that we have at producing electricity throughout the state of Pennsylvania in order for us to be Energy Independent. This week’s topic is the clean coal option.

Now I know what most of you are thinking. Isn’t coal, the least environmental friendly choice of all the fossil fuels? Well you are correct in a way. But this isn’t the 1950’s. Coal produces over half of America’s electricity and is an important resource and economic factor in the state of Pennsylvania. In Pennsylvania currently 55% of the state’s electricity is produced through burning coal. Since Pennsylvania is one of the top electric providers in the nation coal is very important to us.

Burning coal today is cleaner than it has ever been. The biggest change from the past to present is the inclusion of an air quality system. Coal factories are able to use a system of bag filters and electronic filters to clean the emission that is released into the atmosphere after burning. Instead of dirty clouds of burnt coal emissions coming out of the stacks it is now a moist clean air. This video shows how burning coal can be clean for our environment.

Yes, green energy is an important for our state in the long-term picture, but shouldn’t we spend our money in improving existing low cost sources before we pay tons of money on new technologies that may not even be as reliable as we think. Coal is already cheap, reliable, and provides steady power to our state.

Currently Pennsylvania’s supply of coal could last 250 years. This gives us plenty of time to use coal and discover new green energy and most of that coal is anthracite coal, which burns cleanly with little soot. Our state produces nearly all of the anthracite coal in the nation.

Coal can not only help the environment but it can also help the economy. The obvious reason are because it is so cheap. But more importantly because it will add more the $1 trillion to the U.S. economy and 4 to 9 million additional jobs by the year 2015.
So next time you think that coal is not a good choice for producing energy, you should think again.

Above: Power lines in central PA. www.voicesweb.org/?g=node/1105

Energy Independence according to Robert Bryce (author of the book: Gusher of Lies, The Dangerous Delusions of “Energy Independence”), is “the notion that by turning to greener energy sources like ethanol and wind power, we can not only help the environment- and slow global warming- but create millions of new jobs and, most important, wall ourselves off from the murderous petro states of the Middle East”
Energy has been produced in Pennsylvania since early on in this great nations history. We have burned coal, used oil and natural gasses to produce electricity and generate heat for our homes (as we all know that winters in Pennsylvania can get ugly). Generating energy in our great state has produced many good jobs for citizens in our communities and has helped the U.S.A. build an economy unlike any other nation.
Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell has proposed a plan intended to “make Pennsylvania a leader in the renewable energy industry and strengthen its security by reducing our dependence on foreign oil” His plan would make a monthly charge to electric bills of residents and businesses throughout Pennsylvania in order to supply a fund for the plan.  Throughout my posts on this blog I will discuss his plan and different ways we can achieve safe, clean, and affordable ways to produce independent energy throughout the state.
Since the beginning of this decade prices in petroleum and natural gas have been on the rise. Currently our state drains billions of dollars on imported fuels. In 2005 the United States imported oil from 41 countries. I feel that there should be a way for the United States and more importantly Pennsylvania to be able to produce its own energy that is safe and clean.
Green energy such as solar and wind power have been receiving most of the headlines recently. They are both very important for obvious environmental reasons. Additionally, probably the most important form of producing electricity in Pennsylvania is clean coal technology. Our coal supply could last approximately 250 years. After all, it is America’s most abundant energy resource. According to Duquesne Light, The electric generation sector creates 16,000 jobs in PA and when you factor in mining for coal that add almost 84,000 more jobs in our state alone. All of these forms of producing energy could help make this state energy independent, greener, and produce more affordable energy instead of depending on other countries.