Simple Abundance Learning Series

Renewable Energy

About Wintergreen

• Wilderness retreat and environmental learning centre

• Wide range of off-site and on-site sustainability

programs

• We partner with a variety of community organizations

and educational institutions

• Registered charity funded by grants, donors, and

program revenue

Simple Abundance Learning SeriesThis workshop is part of a series provided by Wintergreen Studios to promote local sustainable living:

Simple Abundance Get Energy Smart Sustainable Food Renewable Energy Natural Building and Renovating

For more information or to book a workshop contact:info@wintergreenstudios.ca

Thanks to our partners & funders

This workshop was funded in part by the Ontario Trillium Foundation.

Thanks to our partners & funders

We work in collaboration with several community partners:

Sustainability“Meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs.” - Bruntland Commission

“In every deliberation, we must consider the impact of our decisions on the seventh generation... even if it requires having skin as thick as the bark of a pine.”

- From the Great Law of the Iroquois Confederacy

Why Live Sustainably?• Fossil fuels are a non-renewable

resource– Oil discovery peaked in 1960’s

• We use 4 barrels of oil for every 1 we find– Our generation is consuming more than our

share of oil• Fossil Fuels damage the environment

– Extraction and use pollutes air, land & water• Fossil Fuels cause Climate Change

– Need to reduce GHGs by 80% by 2050• To keep increase to less than 2 degrees Celsius

• Peak Oil Theory– Production of oil cannot keep up with

demand, especially from China and India – More demand than supply will cause oil price

spike and impact economy• Save money

– Reducing your energy usage protects you from rising prices

We need to live within our means

Sustainable Energy• Solar• Wind• Hydro• Geothermal• Biomass

Solar: Electricity

• Generated through photovoltaic (PV) cells

• microFIT program makes small-scale (1-10 kw) generation financially feasible

• Ottawa Renewable Energy Coop allows anyone to invest in small-scale solar.

Solar: Electricity

• Small-scale solar devices can offset energy used around the home.

• Battery chargers, solar patio lights, solar ovens, cell phone charging stations, are all commercially available.

Solar: Hot Water

• A typical SHW system has:– Collectors– Heat Transfer Medium (Glycol)– Storage Tank– Heat Exchanger– … and pays for itself in about 5

years

12

Solar: Hot Water

13

Solar: Hot Water

• SHW can be a cheaper and easier project than solar PV

• The sun’s energy pre-heats water going into a water heater

• Can also be used to heat swimming pools.

• Hot water can also be used for space heating

Passive Solar

• Passive solar design means orienting houses, windows, etc. in an intelligent way to take advantage of the sun’s heat during winter, while avoiding it during summer.

Sometimes whole houses are built this way.

Sometimes it means making simple changes.

Wind

• Wind energy is usually captured by large freestanding turbines.

• Compared to conventional power plants, wind turbines are quick to install, have a small footprint, and produce virtually no pollution.

Wind

• Wind is reliable – it’s always windy somewhere, and the turbines themselves are very reliable.

• Wind farms have the potential to provide 20% of Canada’s electricity.

• Wind complements hydro

Wind Power: Myths

• Wind turbines are noisy

• Wind turbines kill birds

• Wind turbines take more energy to manufacture than they produce

Wind Power At Home

• The microFIT program pays for wind energy, but because of bylaws & expense, most homeowners cannot install turbines.

Some small turbines for off-grid use are commercially available.

www.canwea.ca has a cost-benefit estimator for small-scale wind projects

Wind Power At Home

• Bullfrog Power: the easiest way to power your home with renewable energy.

• For every unit of energy you use, they source an equivalent amount from solar, WIND, and low-impact hydro, and feed it into the grid.

• Bullfrog is an opt-in on your hydro bill – anyone who pays their own bill can get it.

• Average cost is ~$30/month

www.bullfrogpower.com

Hydro power

• Ontario gets about 20 % of its electricity from hydro stations, mostly large dams with reservoirs.

• Large hydro dams produce no emissions, but the ecological footprint can be high because dams disrupt the ecosystem.

• Run-of-the-river systems are less disruptive, and can be installed on smaller waterways.

Hydro At Home

• Obviously hydro is not practical for most home owners because it requires a river or stream.

• Construction and environmental assessments can be very involved and time-consuming.

• The community of Burritt’s Rapids is working on a community-owned hydro project.

Geothermal

• In this region, geothermal is primarily a heating/cooling system.

• It is basically a heat pump that moves heat out of your house in the summer, and into it in the winter.

• Reduce heating and cooling costs by up to 70%.

Geothermal

• The heat pump unit requires energy to run – ideal if it can be run on solar or Bullfrog Power.

• High installation costs but good ROI in the long run

• Can also store atmospheric heat in the summer.

Passive Geothermal• Earth-sheltered buildings

make use of the Earth’s temperature regulation passively, taking less energy to heat in the winter or cool in the summer.

• Cold cellars make use of passive cooling to preserve food.

Biomass Energy

• Biomass is energy derived from biological sources like wood, agricultural waste, and landfill.

• Biomass can be ethanol blend fuel, biogas from landfills, wood pellets, etc.

Biomass

• It is important that biomass be truly ‘green’;– Harvested

sustainably– Makes use of wastes– Non-polluting– Not reliant on fossil

fuels for production

Biomass at Home

• Bullfrog Power offers ‘green natural gas’ that is derived from methane from landfills.

• Wood stoves, pellet stoves, can be efficient ways of heating your home and can be sustainable.

• Most biomass is used for heat or fuel, though that fuel can be burned to generate electricity as well.

Recap

• Solar panels, hot water, and passive solar features can be incorporated into your home in various ways.

• Wind power is hard to do at home on a large scale, but there are still ways you can take advantage of it.

• We already use a lot of hydro power, and some communities can start generating their own.

• Geothermal is used primarily for heating or cooling.

• Biomass energy can take the form of ethanol fuel, green natural gas, or wood burning stoves.

A word about nuclear…..

• Nuclear power is sometimes called ‘green’ – but is it really?

• A smoothly running nuclear station generates little CO2, but what about mining, construction, etc?

• Waste disposal and safety are also important issues – not just carbon emissions.

What will you do differently?… this week ... this month … this year?

Write yourself a letter.Put it in the envelope provided.

Address it to yourself.Give it to a friend to mail it to you a year from now.

Note to self

Conclusion

• A diverse mix of renewable energy sources can supply our energy needs.

• Conservation is an important piece of the puzzle – the greenest energy is the energy you don’t use!

• “Nega-watts” vs “Mega-watts”

Thanks once again …