photo credit: David Masters
I must admit I am not some paragon of green virtue, but like many people (I’m sure) I am trying to limit my own negative impact on the environment, especially the greenhouse gas emission. So when I heard about the renewable sources of energy, I was quite excited. And the newest thing in being green is converting to green energy. This means that anyone (and I mean absolutely anyone!) can purchase the electricity generated from regional wind and hydropower sources.
According to some more then 50% of all American consumers now have an opportunity to buy green electricity directly from their suppliers. By doing so, we can reduce the burning of fossil fuels, such as oil, coal or natural gas and, more importantly, support the development of renewable energy sources. However, some of the states are not implementing the so-called electricity market competition, but (luckily for those “green frogs” living there) they at least give the opportunity to purchase green power through regulated utility. By paying a premium on the electric bill, consumers are supporting a higher level of investment in renewable energy sources, and the premium itself covers any above-market costs of obtaining such energy.
And for those that happen to live in a state that does not offer either way of acquiring green power, there are renewable energy certificates (also known as green tags or green energy certificates). These certificates stand for power generated from renewable electric plants and a number of organizations offer these green tags separate from electricity service so changing your present electricity supplier in order to purchase the certificates is not required.
So, if you’re still trying to decide whether it is all worth the effort, imagine this: a 2 bedroom apartment that uses about 925 kilowatts per month, after converting to green power reduces its CO2 emission by about 795 pounds a month! Now, imagine what a house can do…
