The Reality of Low Carbon Emissions

When the electricity bill lands at the home of the future, the envelope could well contain a pleasant surprise. Rather than showing how much the family owes, this could contain a cheque to cover the power it has generated for the national grid!

The government's recently published energy and planning white papers combine to sketch a rosy future for householders generating smaller amounts of electricity on-site, that is then used to power a home's Lighting, Heating and electrical appliances. Any excess power generated could be exported back to the grid.

The power white paper 'Meeting the Energy Challenge' ushers in a potentially bright future for electricity with detailed proposals pointing to how electric heating and warm water will be integral to reducing carbon emissions and improving energy security.

To meet up the government's target of reducing carbon emissions by 60% by 2050 (based on 1990 levels) requires a radical shift in energy policy, especially as power stations in the united kingdom are responsible for generating over half of them.

This is given even greater emphasis by the fact that by 2020, 80% of the UK's gas requirements should be imported and over half the world's gas reserves are concentrated in only three countries, Russia, Iran and Qatar.

The white paper pushes for investment in increasingly low carbon electricity, principally large-scale renewables, clean coal and nuclear power.

Illustration of a 'greener' home

Microgeneration

...by 2016 all new build will undoubtedly be zero carbon - achieved by a combination of improved air-tightness and thermal efficiency alongside the use of microgeneration technologies...
This is utilised by low carbon homes - by 2016 new build will be zero carbon - achieved by a variety of improved air-tightness and thermal efficiency alongside the usage of microgeneration technologies such as solar panels, wind turbines, biomass boilers and heat pumps as well as heat recovery ventilation systems.

技術士試験　頻出　カーボンニュートラル  or photovoltaic cells are accustomed to generate power from sunlight and changes to the look rules, due autumn 2007, imply that these should be much easier to install. According to the white paper, only one 1,300 eco-pioneers have installed panels on the homes while solar water heaters are a lot more widespread - the Department of Trade and Industry estimates there are about 80,000 in use - because they are much cheaper to set up.

Mini wind turbines also have taken off recently, with an increase of than 20,000 in use by householders or smaller businesses around the UK. They're only viable in some areas where average wind speeds are high enough and there is little wind turbulence from neighbouring buildings.

Ground and air source heat pumps are also set to see a massive growth in demand as on average for every 1 kW of electricity they consume they produce around 2 to 3 3 kW of heat.

Generating electricity locally avoids transmission losses and enables waste heat to be exploited for both cooling and heating. This applies as equally to commercial developments around individual homes.

In London, where 75% of the city's carbon emissions come from buildings, the London Climate Change Agency, that is championed by the Lord Mayor's office, is encouraging the growth of mixed-use developments which lend themselves to CHP (combined heat and power) systems, with residential and commercial property providing a balanced demand for energy around the clock.