Renewable energy accounts for 12.2% of total primary energy consumption and 14.94% of domestically produced electricity in the United States by 2016. Hydroelectric power is currently the largest producer of renewable electricity in the country, generating about 6.5% of the total national electricity in 2016 as well as 45.71% of total renewable power plants. The United States is the fourth largest hydroelectric producer in the world after China, Canada and Brazil. The Grand Coulee Dam is the 5th largest hydro power plant in the world.
The next largest portion of renewable power is provided by wind power of 5.55% of total electricity production, amounting to 226.5 terawatt-hours during 2016. In January 2017, the US nameplate generating capacity for wind power was 82,183 megawatts (MW). Texas remains firmly a leader in wind power, followed by Iowa and Oklahoma by the end of 2016.
Solar power also provides a significant electrical passage in the country. By 2016, more than 260,000 people work in the solar industry and 43 countries are deploying net measurements, in which energy utilities buy back excess power generated by the array of solar panels. Major photovoltaic power plants in the United States include Solar Star (579 MW), near Rosamond, California, Desert Sunlight Solar Farm, 550 MW solar power plant in Riverside County, California and Topaz Solar Farm, 550 MW photovoltaic power station in San Luis Obispo County, California. Since the United States pioneered solar thermal technology in the 1980s with Solar One, several other power plants have been built. The largest of the solar thermal power plants is the Ivanpah Solar Power Facility (392 MW), southwest of Las Vegas, and the SEGS plant group in the Mojave Desert, with a total generating capacity of 354 MW.
Other renewable energy sources include geothermal, with The Geyser in Northern California the largest geothermal complex in the world.
The development of renewable energy and energy efficiency marks the "new era of energy exploration" in the United States, according to former President Barack Obama. In a joint speech to Congress on February 24, 2009, President Obama called for doubling renewable energy in the next three years. Renewable energy reached a major milestone in the first quarter of 2011, while contributing 11.7% of the total national energy production (2,245 quadrillion BTU energy), surpassing energy production from nuclear power (2.125 quadrillion BTU) for the first time since 1997. In his State speech of the Union in 2012, President Barack Obama reiterated his commitment to renewable energy and cited the longstanding commitment of the Interior Ministry to allow 10,000 MW of renewable energy projects on public land by 2012.
Video Renewable energy in the United States
Rationale for renewable energy
Renewable energy technologies cover a wide range of technologies, including solar photovoltaic, solar thermal power and heating/cooling systems, wind farms, hydroelectric power plants, geothermal power plants and ocean power systems and biomass usage.
The Outlook On Renewable Energy In America report explains that America needs renewable energy, for various reasons:
America needs safe, reliable energy, improves public health, protects the environment, tackles climate change, creates jobs, and provides technology leadership. America needs renewable energy. If renewable energy is to be fully developed, America will need a coordinated and sustainable federal and state policy that expands the renewable energy market; promote and disseminate new technologies; and provide the right opportunity to encourage the use of renewable energy in all sectors of important energy markets: wholesale and distribution of power generation, heat energy applications, and transportation.
Other benefits of some renewable energy technologies, such as wind and solar photovoltaics (PV) are that they require little or no water to generate electricity while fossil fuel-based power plants (fossil-fueled) require large amounts of water for operation.
In 2009, President Barack Obama in his inaugural speech called for an expansion of the use of renewable energy to meet the dual challenges of energy security and climate change. It is the first reference ever used for the nation's energy, renewable resources, and climate change in the inaugural address of a president of the United States. President Obama looks to the future, saying that as a nation, the United States will "harness the sun and wind and the land to refuel our cars and run our factories."
The President's Plan for New Energy For America calls for federal investment of $ 150 billion over the next decade to catalyze private efforts to build a clean energy future. In particular, the plan calls for renewable energy to supply 10% of the nation's electricity by 2012, rising to 25% by 2025.
In his joint speech to Congress in 2009, Obama stated that: "We know a country that harnesses clean power, renewable energy will lead the 21st century.... Thanks to our recovery plan, we will double the supply of this country, renewable energy in three years in the future... It's time for America to lead again ".
According to Clean Edge, there is little doubt that the future of energy will be cleaner. The transition from carbon-intensive energy sources such as timber, coal, and oil to natural gas and renewable energy, goes well. For most developed countries, and for developing countries, "the future looks more and more like it will be built from a mix of energy efficiency, renewable energy, transportation electrification, and low-carbon fuels like natural gas."
In 2011, new evidence has emerged that there are major risks associated with traditional energy sources, and that major changes to the mix of energy technologies are needed:
Some of the tragedies of mining globally have underscored human sacrifices from the coal supply chain. The new EPA initiatives targeting air tobacco, coal ash, and waste disposal highlight the environmental impact of coal and the costs of dealing with control technologies. The use of fracking in natural gas exploration is being scrutinized, with evidence of groundwater contamination and greenhouse gas emissions. Concerns are mounting about the large amount of water used in coal and nuclear power plants, especially in areas of the country facing water shortages. The events at the Fukushima nuclear plant have renewed doubts about the ability to operate large numbers of nuclear plants safely in the long term. Further, cost estimates for "next generation" nuclear units continue to increase, and lenders do not want to finance these factories without taxpayer guarantees.
Maps Renewable energy in the United States
Current trends
Renewable energy accounts for 14.94% of domestically produced electricity by 2016 in the United States. This proportion has grown from only 7.7% in 2001, although this trend is sometimes obscured by large annual variations in hydropower generation. Much of the growth since 2001 can be seen in wind power expansion, and more recently, in the growth of solar power generated. California is a leading country with approximately 29% of electricity coming from renewable sources that qualify for RPS (including hydro power).
The United States has some of the best renewable energy sources in the world, with the potential to meet an increasing and significant share of the national energy demand. A quarter of the country's land area has strong winds to generate electricity at the same price as natural gas and coal.
Many new technologies that utilize renewable energy - including wind, solar, geothermal, and biofuels - are, or will soon be, economically competitive with fossil fuels that meet 85% of the energy needs of the United States. Dynamic growth rates drive costs and spur rapid advances in technology. Wind power and solar power are becoming increasingly important compared to older and more established hydroelectric resources. By 2016 wind power accounts for 37.23% of total renewable electricity production compared to 43.62% for hydroelectric power. The remaining portion of power is generated by biomass of 10.27%, solar power by 6.03% and geothermal by 2.86% of total renewable generation.
By 2015, Georgetown, Texas became one of the first American cities to be fully supported by renewable energy, opting to do so for financial stability reasons.
The United States consumes about 4,000 TWh of electricity by 2012, and about 98 quadrillion BTU (30,000 TWh) of primary energy. Improved efficiency is expected to reduce the use of up to 15,000 TWh by 2050.
Forward projection
Using data from Annual Power of 2014, expected changes in yielding capability for different fuel sources are shown in annual projections of Annual Power-Graphics-2015-2019. Just looking at renewable fuel sources, a total of 206.2 Gigawatts renewable will be available by 2019. This is up 36 Gigawatts (21.1%) from 2014. Using this generating capability and capacity factor from 2014 data will generate a total of 627.7 hours of terawatt-hours (TWh) of renewable electric energy by 2019. It will rise 89.4 TWh (16.7%) from 2014.
Renewable power source
Hydroelectric
Hydroelectric power is currently the largest renewable energy producer in the United States. This generates about 6.52% of the total national electricity in 2016 which represents 43.62% of the total renewable power in the country. The United States is the fourth largest hydroelectric producer in the world after China, Canada and Brazil. The Grand Coulee Dam is the 5th largest hydro power plant in the world and six more US hydro power plants are the 50th largest in the world. The amount of hydroelectric power generated is strongly influenced by changes in rainfall and surface runoff. Hydropower projects such as the Hoover Dam, Grand Coulee Dam, and the Tennessee Valley Authority have become an iconic big construction project.
Wind power
Wind power capacity in the United States tripled from 2008 to 2016, and supplies more than 5% of the country's total power generation by 2016. Wind and solar accounted for two-thirds of new energy installations in the United States by 2015. United States Wind power The installed capacity exceeds 81 GW per 2017. This capacity is only surpassed by China. Alta Wind Energy Center 1.320MW is the largest wind farm in the world. Shepherds Flat Wind Farm in Oregon is the second largest wind farm in the world, completed in 2012, with an installed capacity of 845 MW.
There are 90,000 wind operations in the United States by 2015. The wind industry in the United States generates tens of thousands of jobs and billions of dollars of economic activity. Wind projects increase the local tax base, and revitalize the economy of rural communities by providing a stable income stream for farmers with wind turbines on their soil. GE Energy is the largest domestic wind turbine manufacturer.
In 2013 wind power received $ 5.936 billion in federal funding, which is 37% of all federal funding for power generation.
The United States has the potential to install 10 terawatt (TW) of terrestrial and 4 TW offshore wind power. The US Department of Energy's 20% Wind Energy report by 2030 imagines that wind power can supply 20% of all state electricity, which includes a contribution of 4% of offshore wind power. Additional transmission lines need to be added, to bring electricity from windy countries to all countries. In August 2011, a coalition of 24 governors called on the Obama administration to provide a better business climate for wind power development.
Solar power
The United States is one of the largest solar power producers in the world. The country pioneered solar farming and many key developments in concentrated solar and photovoltaics came out of national research.
In 2016, the solar utility scale accounted for 36.76 TWh to the grid, with 33.336 TWh of photovoltaics and 3.39 TWh of thermal systems. In 2014, 2015, and 2016, the EIA estimates that distributed solar generates 11,233 TWh, 14,139 TWh and 19,467 TWh. While utility-level systems have well-documented generation, the contribution of distributed systems to the user's electrical power requirements is not measured or controlled. Therefore, the quantitative evaluation of diesel is distributed to the power sector of the country has been lacking. More recently, the Energy Information Administration has begun to estimate the contribution.
Before 2008, most of the solar-generated electrical energy comes from the thermal system, but in 2011 photovoltaics has taken over the heat.
Photovoltaics
By the end of 2016, the United States has 19.77 gigawatts (GW) of installed utility-scale photovoltaic capacity. The United States has some of the largest solar farms in the world. Solar Star is a 579 megawatt (MW AC ) farm near Rosamond, California. Completed in June 2015, using 1.7 million solar panels, spread over 13 square kilometers (5.0Ã, sqÃ, mi). The Desert Sunlight Solar Farm is a 550 MW solar power plant in Riverside County, California, which uses thin film solar photovoltaic modules made by First Solar. The Topaz Solar Farm is a 550 MW photovoltaic powerhouse, in San Luis Obispo County, California. The Blythe Solar Power Project is a 485 MW photovoltaic station planned for Riverside County, California.
Many schools and businesses have photovoltaic solar panels integrated on its roof. Most are connected to the network and use a net measurement law to allow night-time use of electricity generated during the day. New Jersey leads the nation with the most stringent metering laws while California leads the total number of homes that have solar panels installed. Many are installed because of the initiatives of million sun roofs. California decided that it did not move forward fast enough on the photovoltaic generation and in 2008 imposed a feed-in rate. The state of Washington has a feed-in tariff of 15 Â ¢/kWh which increases to 54 Â ¢/kWh if components are produced in the state. By 2015, California, Hawaii, Arizona, and some other countries lower payments to distributed solar owners and institutionalize new fees for grid usage. Tesla and several other companies are promoting batteries that are tied to household networks while some power companies are investing in utility-scale energy grid storage including very large batteries.
Beginning with data year 2014, the Energy Information Administration has estimated distributed solar photovoltaic generation and distributed solar photovoltaic capacity. The non-utility scale estimates that the United States, generating the following additional electrical energy from the distributed solar PV system.
Solar power is concentrated
By the end of 2016 there is 1.76 GW of installed total solar thermal power capacity across the United States. Solar thermal power is generally utility scale. Prior to 2012, in six southwestern states (Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico and Utah), the US Land Management Bureau has nearly 98 million hectares (400,000 km 2 ) (an area over large from the state of Montana) are open to proposals for solar power installations. To streamline application considerations, BLM produces the Programatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS). With the next Record of Decision in October 2012, BLM draws 78% of its land from possible solar development, leaving 19 million hectares (77,000 km 2 ) still open for applications for solar installations, an area almost as big as the Carolina South. From the area left open to solar proposals, BLM has identified 285 thousand hectares in 17 highly profitable areas called the Solar Energy Zone.
Solar thermal power plants designed for solar-only generation are best suited for daytime peak loads in affluent areas with significant cooling demands, such as the southwestern United States. Using a thermal energy storage system, the solar thermal operating period can even be extended to meet basic load requirements.
A 2013 study by the US National Renewable Energy Laboratory concluded that utility-scale solar power plants directly disrupt an average of 2.7 to 2.9 hectares per gigawatt-hour/year, and use 3.5-3.8 hectares per gW -jam/year for the entire site. According to a 2009 study, the intensity of land use is less than the average power station of a country using coal mined on the surface. Some land in the eastern Mojave Desert must be preserved, but the solar industry is more interested in the western desert area, "where the sun burns hotter and there is easier access to transmission lines."
Some of the largest solar thermal power plants in the United States are located in the southwest of the country, especially in the Mojave Desert. The Solar Energy Generation System (SEGS) is the name given to nine solar power plants in the Mojave Desert assigned between 1984 and 1991. This installation uses solar parabolic thermal technology along with natural gas to generate electricity. The facility has a total of 400,000 mirrors and includes 1,000 acres (4Ã, kmÃ,²). The plant has a total generating capacity of 354 MW.
Nevada Solar One generates 64MW of power and in Boulder City, Nevada, and is built by the US Department of Energy (DOE), National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), and Solargenix Energy. Nevada Solar One began producing electricity in June 2007. Nevada Solar One uses a parabolic trough as a thermal solar concentrator, a liquid heating tube that acts as a solar receiver. The solar receiver is specially coated with tubes made of glass and steel. About 19,300 of these 4 meter long tubes are used in newly built power plants. Nevada Solar One also uses technology that collects extra heat by putting it into a phase-change liquid salt. This energy can then be withdrawn at night.
The Ivanpah Solar Power Facility is a 392 megawatt (MW) solar power facility located in south-east California. The facility officially opened on February 13, 2014. Solana Generating Station is a 280 MW solar power plant near Gila Bend, Arizona, about 70 miles (110 km) southwest of Phoenix. The Mojave 250MW Sun Project is located near Barstow, California. The Crescent Dunes Solar Energy Project is a solar power project of 110 megawatts (MW) near Tonopah, about 190 miles (310 km) northwest of Las Vegas.
Geothermal power
The United States is a world leader in online capacity and power generation of geothermal energy. According to 2014 state energy data, geothermal energy provides about 16 terawatt-hours (TWh) of electricity, or 0.31% of the total electricity consumed in the country. As of May 2007, geothermal power is generated in five states: Alaska, California, Hawaii, Nevada, and Utah. According to the latest Geothermal Energy Association report, there are 75 new ongoing geothermal power projects in 12 countries in May 2007. This is an increase of 14 projects in three additional states compared to a survey completed in November 2006.
The most significant catalyst behind this new industry activity is the Energy Policy Act of 2005 . The law makes new geothermal plants qualified for full federal production tax credits, previously only available for wind power projects. It also empowers and directs increased funding for research by the Department of Energy, and provides new Legal Counsel for the Land Management Bureau and safe funding to address the backlog of geothermal permits and licenses.
Contributions over the last thirteen years of geothermal power to renewable power plants and total US power plants are shown below along with the annual profile of geothermal power generation for 2016 where 2.51 GW of capacity produces 17.42 TWh of Energy.
Biomass
By 2015, biomass produces 63.63 terawatt-hours (TWh) of electricity, or 1.56% of the country's total electricity production. Biomass is the largest primary renewable energy source in the US, and the third largest source of renewable electricity in the US, after hydro and wind power.
Biomass power generation data combines two basic categories:
- Wood and wood derived from fuels including solid wood/wood (including paper pellets, rail connections, power poles, wood chips, bark and wood waste solids), wood waste (red liquid, mud wood , spent liquor sulfites, and other wood-based liquids), and black liquor;
- Other biomass fuels include municipal solid waste, landfill gas, sludge agricultural waste byproducts, other biomass solids, other biomass liquids, and other biomass gases (including gas digester, methane and other biomass gases)
The contribution of these two categories over the last thirteen years of biomass power to renewable power plants and total US power generation is shown below along with the annual power generation profile for 2016. It shows a distinctive variation over the months of the year due to availability and material requirements burn.
Wave strength
The power of waves in the United States is in development at several locations off the east and west coasts and Hawaii. It has moved beyond the research phase and generates reliable energy. Its use to date is for situations where other forms of energy production are not economically feasible and thus, the current power output is modest. But large installations are planned to be on-line in the next few years.
Solar water heating
The US Department of Energy stated (in 2006) that more than 1.5 million homes and businesses currently use solar water heaters in the United States, representing a capacity of more than 1,000 megawatts (MW) of thermal energy generation. It is estimated that another 400 MW will likely be installed over the next 3-5 years.
Assuming that 40 percent of existing homes in the United States have sufficient access to sunlight, 29 million solar water heaters can be installed.
Solar water heaters can operate in all climates. Performance varies depending on how much solar energy is available on the site, as well as how cold water enters the system. The cooler the water, the more efficiently the system operates.
Solar water heaters reduce the need for conventional water heating by about two-thirds and pay for installation within 4 to 8 years with electricity or natural gas savings. Compared to those who have electric water heaters, Florida homeowners with solar water heaters save 50 to 85 percent on their water heater bills, according to Florida Solar Energy Center.
Biofuels
Most cars on the road today in the United States can run on a mixture of up to 10% ethanol, and motor vehicle manufacturers are already producing vehicles designed to run on a much higher ethanol blend. Ford, DaimlerChrysler and GM are among the car companies that sell "fuel-flexible" cars, trucks, and minivans that can use gasoline and ethanol blends ranging from pure gasoline to 85% ethanol (E85). By mid 2006, there were about 6 million vehicles compatible with the E85 on the road.
The challenge is to expand the market for biofuels outside the agricultural countries where they are most popular to date. Flexible fuel vehicles help in this transition because they allow drivers to choose different fuels based on price and availability. The Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 , which calls for 15.2 billion billion US (58,000,000 m 3 ) biofuels to be used annually in 2012, will also help to expand the market.
The widespread ethanol and biodiesel industry provides jobs in plant construction, operations, and maintenance, mostly in rural communities. According to the Renewable Fuel Association, the ethanol industry created nearly 154,000 jobs in 2005 alone, increasing household income by $ 5.7 billion. It also contributes about $ 3.5 billion in tax revenues at the local, state, and federal levels. On the other hand, in 2010, the biofuel industry received $ 6.64 billion in federal government support.
Renewable energy research
There are many organizations in the academic, federal, and commercial sectors that conduct large scale advanced research in renewable energy fields. This study covers several focus areas across the entire spectrum of renewable energy. Much of the research is targeted to improve efficiency and improve overall energy output. Several research organizations supported by the federation have focused on renewable energy in recent years. Two of the most prominent of these laboratories are the Sandia National Laboratory and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), both funded by the US Department of Energy and supported by various corporate partners. Sandia has a total budget of $ 2.4 billion while NREL has a budget of $ 375 million.
Both the Sandia National Laboratory and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), have funded many solar research programs. British Petroleum also invested heavily in solar research programs until 2008 when the company began to reduce its solar power operations. The company ended up shutting down the solar business forty years after executives decided the production of solar power was not economically competitive. The NREL solar program has a budget of approximately $ 75 million and is developing research projects in the areas of photovoltaic (PV) technology, solar thermal energy, and solar radiation. The budget for Sandia's solar division is unknown, but it accounts for a significant percentage of the $ 2.4 billion labor budget. Some academic programs have focused on solar research in recent years. The Solar Energy Research Center (SERC) at the University of North Carolina (UNC) has the sole purpose of developing cost-effective solar technologies. In 2008, researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) developed a method to store solar energy by using it to produce hydrogen fuel from water. Such research is targeted to overcome the constraints that solar development faces energy storage for use in the evening hours when the sun does not shine. In February 2012, Semprius Inc. based in North Carolina, a solar power company backed by the German company Siemens, announced that it has developed the world's most efficient solar panels. The company claims that the prototype converts 33.9% of the sunlight it bumps into electricity, more than double the previous high-end conversion rate.
Wind energy research began a few decades ago until the 1970s when NASA developed an analytical model to predict wind power generation during high winds. Today, both the Sandia National Laboratory and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory have programs dedicated to wind research. Sandia's laboratory focuses on material progress, aerodynamics, and sensors. The NREL wind project is centered on increasing the production of wind power, reducing their capital costs, and making wind energy more cost-effective overall. The Field Laboratory for Optimized Wind Energy (FLOWE) at Caltech was established to examine a renewable approach to wind farm energy technology practices that have the potential to reduce the cost, size, and environmental impact of wind energy production.
As a major source of biofuels in North America, many organizations are conducting research in the field of ethanol production. At the Federal level, the USDA does a large amount of research on ethanol production in the United States. Much of this research is targeted towards the effects of ethanol production on the domestic food market. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory has undertaken numerous ethanol research projects, primarily in the field of cellulosic ethanol. Cellulosic ethanol has many benefits compared to traditional corn-based ethanol. It does not take or directly contradict the supply of food because it is produced from wood, grass, or parts of the plant that can not be eaten. In addition, several studies have shown cellulosic ethanol to be more cost-effective and economically sustainable than corn-based ethanol. Sandia National Laboratories conducts in-house cellulosic ethanol research and is also a member of the Joint BioEnergy Institute (JBEI), a research institute founded by the US Department of Energy with the goal of developing cellulosic biofuels.
More than $ 1 billion of federal money has been spent on research and development of hydrogen fuel in the United States. Both the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and Sandia National Laboratories have departments dedicated to hydrogen research.
Public opinion
A 2010 survey conducted by Applied Materials showed that two-thirds of Americans believe solar technology should play a greater role in meeting the country's energy needs. In addition, "three quarters of Americans feel that the increase in renewable energy and a decrease in US dependence on foreign oil is the country's top energy priority." According to the survey, "67 percent of Americans will be willing to pay more for their monthly utility bill if their utility companies increase the use of renewable energy".
In a British Council 2010 public opinion survey of Global Affairs, 91 percent believe that "investment in renewable energy" is important for the United States to remain economically competitive with other countries, with 62 percent assuming this is critical. The same poll found strong support for tax incentives to encourage the development of renewable energy sources in particular as a way to reduce foreign energy imports. Eight out of ten (80 percent) tax incentives are favored, 47 percent strong, and only 17 percent are opposed.
The Chicago Council on Global Affairs (2010) in a public opinion survey also found that about 65% of Americans support the increased fuel efficiency of automobile products, regardless of price escalation. related to implementation.
The Public Survey conducted by WPO in 2008 also revealed that 79% of Americans think that a major shift to alternative energy sources is economically profitable in the long run.
Policies and promotions
Energy technology receives government subsidies. In 2013, the federal government's specific energy subsidies and support for renewable energy, fossil fuels, and nuclear power were $ 15.043 billion, $ 3.431 billion and $ 1.66 billion. Subsidies and special support for electricity production totaled $ 11,678 billion, $ 1,591 billion and $ 1.66 billion. All but a few US states now have an incentive to promote renewable energy, while over a dozen have enacted new renewable energy legislation in recent years. Renewable energy suffered a political setback in the United States in September 2011 with the bankruptcy of Solyndra, a company that has received federal loan guarantees of $ 535 million.
The 2005 Energy Policy Act requires all public utility utilities to facilitate net measurement. This allows homes and businesses to conduct a distributed generation to pay only the net cost of electricity from the power grid: the electricity used is reduced locally produced electricity and sent back to the power grid. For these intermittent renewable energy sources effectively use the grid as a battery to smooth the lulls and fill the production gap.
Some jurisdictions go further and have implemented feed-in tariffs, allowing every electric customer to actually make money by producing more renewable energy than is consumed locally.
From 2006-14, US households received more than $ 18 billion in federal income tax credits for weathering their homes, installing solar panels, buying hybrid and electric vehicles, and other "clean energy" investments. These tax expenditures are mostly aimed at high-income Americans. Three lower income quintiles receive about 10% of all credits, while the top quintile receives about 60%. The most extreme is the program aimed at electric vehicles, where the top income quintiles receive about 90% of all credits. Market mechanisms have fewer distribution effects.
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 includes more than $ 70 billion in direct expenditure and tax credits for clean energy and related transportation programs. This policy-stimulus combination is the largest federal commitment in US history to renewable energy, advanced transportation, and energy conservation initiatives. This new initiative is expected to encourage more utilities to strengthen their clean energy programs. While the Department of Energy has come under fire for providing loan guarantees to Solyndra, its SunShot initiative has funded successful companies like EnergySage and Zep Solar.
On January 24, 2012, State of the Union's speech, President Barack Obama reiterated his commitment to renewable energy, stating that he "will not turn away from the promise of clean energy." Obama called for a commitment by the Department of Defense to buy 1,000 MW of renewable energy. He also mentioned the longstanding commitment of the Ministry of Home Affairs to allow 10,000 MW of renewable energy projects on public land by 2012.
Some facilities of the Environmental Protection Agency in the United States use renewable energy for all or part of their supply at the following facilities.
Initiative
SunShot
In February 2011, the US Department of Energy (DOE) launched the SunShot initiative, a collaborative national effort to trim the total cost of photovoltaic solar energy systems by 75% by 2020. Achieving this goal will make the cost of non-subsidized solar energy competitive with other forms of electricity and get grid parity. The SunShot initiative includes a crowdsourced innovation program run in partnership with Topcoder, where 17 different solar energy application solutions are developed in 60 days. In 2011, the price is $ 4/W, and the SunShot goal of $ 1/W in 2020 is reached in 2017.
Wind Powering America
Wind Powering America (WPA) is another DOE initiative aimed at increasing the use of wind energy. WPA works with state and regional stakeholders, including farmers, breeders, Native Americans, rural electric cooperatives, utilities and schools owned by consumers.
WPA has focused on countries with strong potential for wind energy generation but with several operational projects. WPA provides information on the challenges, benefits, and impacts of wind technology implementation.
Solar America Initiative
The Solar America Initiative (SAI) is part of the Federal Advanced Energy Initiative to accelerate the development of advanced photovoltaic materials with the goal of making it cost-competitive with other forms of renewable electricity by 2015.
The DOE Solar Energy Technology Program (SETP) is intended to achieve SAI goals through strategic partnerships and alliances by focusing primarily on four areas:
- Market Transformation - activity that overcomes market barriers
- Devices and Process Evidence Concepts - R & D activities that address new devices or processes with significant performance or cost advantages
- Prototype of Components and Scale-Pilot Production - R & D activities that emphasize the development of photovoltaic (PV) component or system prototype at the pilot scale with the advantages, reliability, or performance shown
- System and Manufacturing Development - R & D activities collaboration among industry partners and universities
California California Solar Initiative
As part of the former Million Solar Roofs Program Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, California set a goal to create 3,000 megawatts of new electricity produced by solar power by 2017, with funding of $ 2.8 billion.
The California Solar Initiative offers cash incentives on solar PV systems up to $ 2.50 watts. This incentive, combined with federal tax incentives, can cover up to 50% of the total cost of a solar panel system. Financial incentives to support renewable energy are available in several other US states.
Green Power Partnership
EPA names the top 20 partners in its Green Power Partnership that produces their own renewable energy in place. If combined, they generate over 736 million kilowatt-hours of renewable energy on the site each year, enough to empower more than 61,000 average US homes.
Updated portfolio standards
The Renewable Portfolio Standard refers to laws that create a market in renewable or renewable renewable electricity certificates. Electrical distributors or wholesale electrical buyers are required to determine a certain percentage of their electricity (portfolio) from renewable power sources. The responsible entity failing to fulfill its quota may purchase a certificate from an accredited supplier that has generated renewable electricity and obtained as well as a registered certificate for sale in that market.
Organization of renewable energy
American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE), is a nonprofit organization with headquarters in Washington DC. It was founded in 2001 as a unifying forum to bring renewable energy into the mainstream of American economy and lifestyle. In 2010, ACORE has more than 700 member organizations. In 2007, ACORE published Outlook On Renewable Energy In America, a two-volume report on the future of renewable energy in the United States. It is said that this report describes "a new reality for renewable energy in America."
The Institute for Environmental and Energy Studies (EESI) is a non-profit organization promoting an environmentally friendly society. Founded in 1984 by a group of Members of Congress, EESI strives to be the catalyst that drives people from fossil fuels that damage the environment and lead to a clean energy future. EESI presents policy solutions that will lead to decreased global warming and air pollution; improving public health, energy security and rural economic development opportunities; increased use of renewable energy sources and increased energy efficiency.
An important part of the mission of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) is the transfer of technology developed by NREL to the renewable energy market. NREL's Technology Transfer Office supports laboratory scientists and engineers in the successful and practical application of their expertise and the technologies they develop. R & D staff and facilities are recognized and valued by the industry, as demonstrated through many collaborative research projects and licensed technologies with public and private partners. NREL's innovative technology has also been recognized with 39 R & amp; D 100 Awards.
The Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) is an organization dedicated to research, publication, consulting, and teaching in the general field of sustainability, with a particular focus on profitable innovations for energy and resource efficiency. RMI is headquartered in Snowmass, Colorado, and also has offices in Boulder, Colorado. RMI is the book publisher Winning Oil Suffers .
Potential resources
The United States has the potential to install 11 terawatt (TW) of terrestrial wind power and 4 TW of offshore wind power, capable of producing more than 47,000 TWh. The potential of concentrated solar power in the southwest is estimated to be 10-20 TW, capable of generating more than 10,000 TWh.
The 2012 report by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory evaluates potential energy resources for each state of the United States.
In 2010, the United States used 3,754 TWh of electricity. Total energy used in 2010 was 98.16 BTU quadrillion (28,800 TWh, but more than 30% was thermal loss).
Note: The total usage is increased to create oil equality.
Historical data
See also
- American Council on Renewable Energy
- Americas Energy and Climate Symposium
- Capture the Sun (movie)
- Energy conservation in the United States
- Efficient energy use
- United States energy policy
- List of renewable energy
- List of wind farms in the United States
- List of US states by electricity production from renewable sources
- Renewable energy by country
- Commercialization of renewable energy
- Small Box Challenges
References
Further reading
- GA Mansoori, N Enayati, LB Agyarko (2016), Energy: Source, Utilization, Legislation, Sustainability, Illinois as Model Country, World Sci. Pub. Co., ISBNÃ, 978-981-4704-00-7
- Clean Tech Nation: How the US Can Lead in a New Global Economy (2012) by Ron Pernick and Clint Wilder
- Spread Renewable Energy 2011 (2011) by the International Energy Agency
- Reinventing Fire: A Thick Business Solution for a New Energy Era (2011) by Amory Lovins
- Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Efficiency: Federal Program Summary (December 14, 2016) by the Congressional Research Service
- Renewable Energy Sources and Climate Change Mitigation (2011) by IPCC
- The Solar Energy Perspective (2011) by the International Energy Agency
External links
- US. Fact Sheet Renewable Energy Fact Sheet by University of Michigan Sustainable Center System
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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