There is a lot of talk going around about clean energy and dirty energy. Isn’t any kind of energy good for people to use? Why are people so concerned about whether the energy they use is clean or dirty? Here are the differences between clean energy and dirty energy.
Clean Energy
Clean energy gets its name because the byproduct that it creates does not harm the environment. Clean energy can meet the needs of people today and not have a negative impact on future generations to come. Clean energy also uses sources that can be replenished in a relatively short amount of time. Clean energy can be called renewable energy or sustainable energy too. Here are the major sources of clean energy:
- Biomass Energy – Biomass energy uses organic matter like wood and yard waste to make heat.
- Hydro-power – Hydro-power uses a turbine to capture flowing or falling water to create electricity.
- Solar Electricity – Solar panels capture sunlight and convert it to electricity by using solar photovoltaics. The electricity gets sent to an electrical system or electrical grid.
- Wind Energy – Wind gets captured by the wind turbines. The wind turbines convert the wind into electricity.
- Organics-to-Energy – Organic waste, such as animal, food, or yard waste gets converted to heat or electricity.
- Solar Hot Water – The heat from the sunlight gets captured by the solar hot water system and circulates the heat to make hot water.
Dirty Energy
Dirty Energy gets its name because the byproduct it puts out into the air is harmful to the environment. Dirty energy uses fossil fuel that is burned to create its energy source. Any fossil fuel that is burned is bad for the climate. When the fossil fuel is burned, it creates carbon emissions that goes into the air and damages the climate. Here are the sources of dirty energy:
- Coal – Out of all the fossil fuels, coal is the most polluting. Currently, coal is being produced and used for about 40 percent of the world’s power. Unfortunately, coal causes irreparable damage to the environment, the world’s communities, and people’s health.
- Oil – The rapid growth of personal transportation means that there is a rapid growth in oil consumption. The problem with the rapid growth of oil consumption is that the carbon emission that is created from automobiles is damaging the climate. The carbon emission problem is responsible for a quarter of the climate carbon emissions that are being put out into the air.
