This
special contains five reports on energy issues, and
a list for further reading: Turning The Tide
- Scotland, The River Runs Through It - Peru, Freiburg
Solar Energy - Germany, The Cepheus Complex - Austria,
and Glowstar - Kenya
Turning
The Tide - Scotland
Fossil fuels such as coal and oil are not renewable
over the span of human generations, and their use
may be increasingly limited by environmental concerns
over global warming and acid rain. To meet the energy
needs of a growing world population, engineers in
coming decades will be challenged to generate power
economically from renewable energy sources. Despite
the fact that nearly 75% of the Earth's surface is
covered with water, waves are a largely unexplored
source of energy, compared with the progress that
has been made in harnessing the sun and wind.
The
River Runs Through It - Peru
At present, in Peru, the energy supply to the rural
areas of the jungle is almost negligible. Most of
the rural population (about 1,500,000 people) in the
jungle areas of Peru are settled along the banks of
the largest rivers, such as the Amazon, Mara?on, Ucayali
and Napo, etc. because the rivers are the natural
means of transport and communication, as well as a
source of food. In fact in the Peruvian jungle there
are hundreds of small communities who live mainly
settled in the river banks, where the river is one
of the most important means of life for them. They
fish in the rivers, move through the rivers etc.
Freiburg
Solar Energy - Germany
The sun is the source of the vast majority of the
energy we use on earth. Most of the energy we use
has undergone various transformations before it is
finally utilised, but it is also possible to tap this
source of solar energy as it arrives on the earth's
surface.
Solar energy offers a large number of advantages
and it is set to become the energy of the future because
it is available in unlimited quantities; it can be
used without the emission of pollutants; and it can
be deployed flexibly in a whole variety of ways.
The
Cepheus Complex - Austria
A Passive House is a building with an extremely low
heating energy demand. The term "Passive House" refers
to a construction standard. The standard can be met
using a variety of technologies, designs and materials.
It is a refinement of the low-energy house (LEH) standard.
The Passive House standard offers high comfort,
minimal energy consumption and negligible heating
costs.
Cepheus (Cost Efficient Passive Houses as European
Standards) is a five year project which started in
1997 and is funded by the European Commission. It
has been implemented in five European countries to
encourage architects and designers to build affordable,
energy efficient houses. The Cepheus project demonstrates
that low energy demand can be achieved at different
European sites, by different constructions at the
same cost as for conventional buildings.
Glowstar
- Kenya
In many parts of the developing world people who live
in rural areas have no access to electricity (around
two billion people). As a result, most families are
forced to rely on candles or kerosene lamps to provide
basic lighting in their homes. In Kenya, for example,
96% of householders rely upon kerosene lighting lamps,
and 70% supplement this lighting with battery powered
torches. Kerosene lamps are potentially hazardous
and the running costs are high, with rural households
spending about £5 per month on fuel and batteries.
This recurrent cost every month eats up valuable financial
resources that could otherwise be directed towards
children's education or family health. For many people,
the provision of light in their homes can compete
directly with other household essentials.
Energy from the sun is freely available and many
countries in the developing world have it in plentiful
supply. As a result there has been a growing interest
in the use of Photo-Voltaics (the technology used
to convert the sun's energy into electricity) as a
renewable and environmentally friendly source with
which to provide low cost light and power in rural
communities. Unfortunately, the cost of installing
even a modest Solar Home System puts it out of the
reach of most rural families in the developing world.
Further
Reading
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