Biomass as preferred renewable energy option?Not because of carbon-neutral label

Solar, hydro, wind, geothermal, biomass - these are all renewable energy sources. Every renewable energy source has its pros and cons but this time let us focus on biomass this time, and discuss whether or not  biomass should become one of the most preferred renewable energy options.

The main advantage that biomass has over all other renewable energy sources is that it is locally sources and sustainable source of renewable energy. That is something I completely agree upon.

The proponents of biomass industry often claim that biomass is carbon neutral. In a world where climate change and greenhouse gases have become talk on almost any political agenda being labeled as carbon-neutral would give biomass significant advantage over many other renewable energy sources. But is this really the case here?

I personally do not look at biomass as carbon-neutral no matter how you're looking at it. Is it better than sticking with coal and oil, generally speaking yes, but is it carbon neutral, no.

Why is that? Cutting trees and using them as source of energy we prevent these trees from sinking carbon dioxide in a process called carbon sequestration. To put it as simply as possible the less trees there are the less forests are able to sink CO2 from the atmosphere.

Some would say let us use dead trees. They will do the trick and biomass can be labeled as carbon-neutral. Sadly not, because science has showed that even deed trees contribute to carbon sequestration by adding organic matter to the soil.

Many scientists prefer other renewable energy options and claim that biomass harvesting contributes to CO2 rise in the atmosphere. Thus when discussing advantages of biomass we should avoid carbon-neutral labeling.

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Obama focuses primarily on solar energy

There are plenty of different renewable energy sources to choose from such as wind and hydropower but for U.S. president Obama solar seems to be the biggest thing of them all.

This was clearly seen at the National Clean Energy Summit, where Obama couldn't stress enough the importance of solar energy. Among other things Obama noted that "solar industry now employs twice as many Americans as mining coal."

This shouldn't come as surprise because his administration already announced series of measures to increase solar power construction, such as additional $1 billion in loan guarantee authority available in a federal program for innovative versions of residential rooftop solar systems.

The biggest effect on making better use of solar power should however come from the Clean Power Plan, which requires states to cut carbon emissions by an average of 32 percent. This recently announced plan should provide incentives for much of those reductions to come from renewable energy projects, and with solar energy industry booming, it is expected to take a frontrunner seat.

Despite the rapid growth of solar energy industry, solar power still provides less than 1 percent of the electricity generated in the United States. In 2014, renewable energy sources provided just 13 percent of the nation’s electricity, meaning that the nation is still heavily dependent upon fossil fuels.

Despite the rapid growth, solar energy industry still has to be wary of inadequate planning. The last thing solar energy industry needs is another failure like Solyndra.

Solar energy offers potential solution against climate change as well as clean electricity.  Solar can certainly make a big difference on national as well as global energy market and having president that understands this is big plus for the entire nation.

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United States starts 2014 with renewables

The latest US government report claims that renewable energy sources accounted for almost all of the new utility-scale generating capacity installed in the country in the first month of 2014, with solar energy projects leading the way with the total capacity of 287 MW being added in the January, followed by geothermal energy projects with the total capacity of 30 MW.

The majority of new solar energy projects in United States were developed in Southwest, where there were several big solar energy projects, with the largest of them all being the Exelon Corp’s 130-megawatt Antelope Valley Solar Phase II expansion project in Los Angeles County.

It has been reported that in 2013 renewable energy projects accounted for 37% of total utility scale generating capacity installed in the country, and this could turn out to be even bigger percentage this year, if things continue to move in the similar direction for the next couple of months.

It also has to be mentioned here that this latest governmental report only includes utility-scale development meaning that it excludes the rooftop solar on homes and businesses, which is a fast developing sector said to be averaging over 100 megawatts of new capacity every month.

The renewable energy sector is certainly off to a good start in United States. Many energy analysts expect that this trend will continue for months to come particularly because wind energy industry is expected to recover significantly this year, in comparison to 2013.

Fossil fuels will still likely rule US energy market for foreseeable future but renewable energy industry is constantly developing into bigger and bigger player on the market, attracting more and more investments. It will be very interesting to see the final numbers once this year ends, and whether renewables could finally account for the majority of new utility-scale generating capacity beating the mighty fossil fuel industry.

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Renewable energy sources in Minnesota – Quick outlook

Minnesota has made rapid renewable energy development in the last couple of years and is today one of the nation's clean energy leaders. The most important renewable energy source in the state is wind power, that currently provides satisfies than 10% of state's energy demand.

Minnesota’s currently installed wind power capacity is bigger than 2,500 MW. If wind power capacity will continue to grow at current pace the state will have no problems in achieving its goal of obtaining 25% of energy coming from renewable energy sources by 2025.

Wind energy is not all about clean, emission-free energy because wind energy industry is also major job creator. According to American Wind Energy Association (AWEA), Minnesota's wind energy industry supports around 3,000 jobs annually.

Wind power still remains the best clean energy option for Minnesota but the state also looks anxious to add more solar power to the grid. There is still an ongoing debate whether Minnesota should focus on solar power or not because while some consider solar power as an excellent renewable energy option for Minnesota the others say that solar power is not an economically viable energy option for Minnesota due to state's rather average solar insolation values. Solar energy still accounts for only around 0.1% of Minnesota’s energy supply.

The rather interesting 2012 study by the Institute for Energy and Environmental Research concluded that Minnesota could become 100% renewable with a combination of wind and solar energy, given that these two renewable energy sources are combined with big energy storage and serious grid improvements.

It also has to be mentioned that Minnesota is currently the fourth largest ethanol producer in United States by producing more than 1.1 billion gallons of ethanol per year and biofuels are expected to play a very important role in Minnesota's renewable energy industry in years to come.

The future renewable energy outlook for Minnesota remains very positive, and Minnesota should remain one of nation’s clean energy leaders for foreseeable future.

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Renewable energy development in Canada

Given the size of Canada's territory it is really no surprise that Canada has abundant renewable energy sources at its disposal, meaning it has significant edge over other countries in terms of renewable energy development. However, just having plenty of resources to choose from is not enough, and Canada still has plenty of work ahead before being able to competitively enter clean energy race.

The most important renewable energy source in Canada is hydropower. Canada is today the second largest producer of hydroelectricity in the world, trailing only China. In fact, Canada generates approximately 60% of its electricity from hydropower. Quebec leads the way with 59 hydroelectric dams that have a combined capacity of 34,118 megawatts, almost half of the Canadian total. The good news about hydropower in Canada is also the fact that Canada still has plenty hydro resources untapped. This means that hydropower sector should look forward to a very bright future in Canada.

Canada still has plenty of untapped hydropower potential.

Canada is experiencing rapid growth in wind power capacity. In 2011, Canada installed more than 1000 MW of new wind power capacity. At the end of 2011, wind power capacity in Canada grew to a total of 5,265 megawatts. The supportive government policy was one of the main reasons for the rapid growth of wind energy in Canada. Quebec and Ontario lead the way in wind energy development. Offshore wind energy also represents a very interesting option.

Solar energy isn't exactly a priority for Canadian renewable energy sector. This is no surprise since Canada isn’t exactly blessed with the enormous amount of sunlight throughout the year. However, there are some parts of the Canada that have excellent solar energy resources at their disposal such as southern Ontario that was estimated to have potential to produce approximately 100 gigawatts of solar power. Solar energy is currently the most popular renewable energy source in the world, and Canada is also making plenty of it with many Canadian companies already involved into making solar modules, controls, specialized water pumps, high efficiency refrigerators and solar lighting systems.

Canada has enormous potential for the biomass production, given the massive forests across much of the Canada. Even despite the excellent biomass potential, Canada isn't making much of its wood resources, even despite the fact that the demand for bioproducts is rapidly growing on global level.

The harnessing of geothermal energy in Canada is still primarily related to geothermal heating. The latest estimates say that there are more than 30,000 geothermal heating systems installed across the country. British Columbia, Yukon and Alberta have significant geothermal energy resources at their disposal but the country still hasn’t done much to boost its domestic geothermal production.

Canada also has good tidal and wave power potential, though these technologies are yet to be given real chance on global scale, so they are not exactly being much talked about in Canada.

To conclude, Canada needs to combine its wealth in renewable energy resources with the proper investment and the right clean energy policy. If Canada manages to achieve this it could soon become one of the most prominent countries in global clean energy map.

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Renewable energy sources in United States – Full overview

Fossil fuels still dominate primary energy consumption in United States but the popularity of renewable energy sources continues to grow. According to a latest report from Worldwatch Institute U.S. invested more than $50 billion in renewable energy sources in 2011.

There are various reasons behind this huge investment. Renewable energy sources do not only ensure diversified energy portfolio that can reduce nation's heavy dependence on foreign fuel import but they also provide us with an environmentally acceptable energy option, one that can be quite helpful against climate change. 

Fossil fuels, when burn, release harmful greenhouse gas emissions, which leads to global warming and rapidly growing climate change impact. Using more renewable energy sources instead of solely relying on fossil fuels therefore means improving environmental condition of our planet, and reducing the negative effects of climate change. 

Sadly, if we look at global energy consumption we can see that renewable energy sources are way behind fossil fuels, with many energy experts estimating that fossil fuels will likely remain dominant energy sources for the foreseeable future.

At the end of 2010 renewable energy sources accounted for 11.1 percent of energy produced in United States. The list of most important renewable energy sources in United States includes: hydropower, wind power, solar power, geothermal power and biomass.

Hydropower is renewable energy source that has long tradition in United States. It is currently the most important renewable energy source in the country, with around 7 percent of nation's total power being produced by hydroelectric power plants. Hydroelectric plants aren't necessarily connected with a large dam as in recent times we can see some hydroelectric power plants that just use a small canal to channel the river water through a turbine. Hydropower is not 100% environmentally friendly source of energy but when compared with environmental damage done by fossil fuels, its environmental impact is minimal, especially in correlation with current regulations and new environmental policies Hydropower, beside being reliable and one of the most cost-competitive renewable energy sources, can also provide some other important services beside generating electricity like irrigation, recreation, water supply, etc.

Wind power was for many years the fastest growing renewable energy source in the country, and has only recently being left behind solar power in terms of growth. U.S. was also for many years, global wind energy leader in terms of capacity, but in the last two years it trails China, as it cannot follow China's rapid pace. The U.S. states which lead the way in wind energy development are Texas, Iowa and California. Texas is also the home to the world's largest wind farm, namely the Roscoe Wind Farm with the capacity of 780 MW. At the end of the 2011 wind power in the U.S. provided enough electricity to satisfy the need of almost ten million U.S. homes. The insecurity about the renewal of wind energy tax credit is hurting U.S. wind energy industry but regardless of this wind energy should still remain one of the top renewable energy sources in the country.

Solar power industry is the fastest growing industry in the country with many states offering significant incentives for solar energy systems. The prices of solar panels have fell by more than 40% in the last few years and solar power is more popular than ever before. However, even despite this strong growth, solar power still satisfies less than 1% of total U.S. energy needs. The sunny state of California is the leading U.S. state in installed solar power capacity with the capacity of over 500 megawatts. U.S. is still not the largest photovoltaic market in the world as it trails the leader Germany.

U.S. is the world leader in both installed capacity of geothermal energy as well as in the generation of electricity from geothermal energy. Geothermal power has half of century old history in United States with the first geothermal power plant opened at The Geysers in California, back in 1960. Geothermal power plants are concentrated in the West, and most geothermal power is generated using steam or hot water from underground. Geothermal energy currently meets less than 1% of U.S. power needs though some studies have showed that just western states have the potential to provide over 20 percent of national electricity needs. California leads the way in geothermal capacity, followed by Nevada.

The use of biomass is growing in United States, and currently provides about 4% of the total energy used in the country. Biomass does not only play the important role as a renewable energy source that generates electricity but can be also considered as a vital part of U.S. waste management infrastructure. The largest biomass energy resource in U.S. is still wood, followed by waste. Biomass power has great potential because it has origin in plant sources meaning that it can potentially be produced almost anywhere in the United States (plants can be re-grown time and time again on the same piece of land).

Renewable energy is still to achieve full renaissance in United States. The clean energy industry is still in need of government and state incentives in order to remain competitive with fossil fuels. The clean energy future still looks many years away but it's definitely a reachable goal. However, U.S. will have to significantly improve its renewable energy policy with federal renewable energy standard as the preferred thing to start with.

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