Last week, we started looking at how the climate in our places is changing. For this week, let’s consider where you get your energy, an essential ingredient of everyday life. Energy comes in many forms and we convert energy into power to move and fuel our bodies and to operate our machines and tools.
In terms of a changing climate, we’ll focus on electrical energy this week because as the quote below states, we rely on it for many things in our everyday lives.
Electricity
“For much of the world, electricity powers the realities of daily life, and the electricity sector contributes 25 percent of total anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions.” ~ Project Drawdown
This year, a major wind storm went through our nation’s capital of Ottawa, knocking out electrical power widely. My sister-in-law and brother-in-law were without electricity for 9 days! It was interesting to hear how they managed. They were lucky to have a gas barbecue for cooking some of the food from their freezer. They read books and played old-fashioned board games and went to bed when the sun went down. It was good that it happened in early summer so they didn’t have to worry about heating or cooling and could be outside in the garden or go for walks. They checked in with their neighbours and helped each other out. Something like this does make one realize how dependent we are on electricity.
Electrical power has been around for around 140 years now and for most of that time it was created by burning fossil fuels - coal, oil, or gas. Today there is a push to “electrify everything,” including home heating and cooling and other appliances to cars, yet this doesn’t do much good if electricity is still generated from fossil fuels or the methods for producing batteries are problematic. How can we generate, transmit, store, and more efficiently create electricity without burning fossil fuels?
What is the history of electrical power in your place?
The place where I live was at the forefront of the generation of hydro-electric power from Niagara Falls. There is even a statue of Nicola Tesla here, since he introduced the concept of alternating current in the 1880’s, which transformed the energy industry. This year, a new museum opened in Niagara Falls called The Power Station, which is dedicated to this history. My family visited last week and it was fascinating. Water was first diverted from the Canadian side of the Niagara River for generating electricity in 1893. Today the river provides over 4 million gigawatts of power, enough to power 440 million LED light bulbs.
Practice
For this week, become more aware of energy in general. How do you recharge your energy? Bask in the sunshine, eat good food, or go for a walk in the woods.
Where does your electricity come from? How much comes from renewable sources (wind, solar, water, etc.) and how much from non-renewable sources (coal, oil, natural gas, etc.)? How is your place moving towards renewable sources?
As for my community, they’ve switched to LED lights in town. And, we are lucky to have a hydro-electric energy source.
What can you do to wean off fossil fuels or be more efficient with your use? Make one concrete action in that direction.
For example, in my family, we are slowly moving to electric in terms of our appliances. We went from two gas-powered cars to one (and we’re exploring the possibility of electric) and we try to walk or bike as much as possible in town rather than drive. We’ve divested from fossil fuel investments and support local businesses who make steps to protect the environment.
Resources
Electricity, Project Drawdown