Renewable energy is derived from natural processes that are replenished at a rate that is equal to or faster than the speed at which they are consumed.
There are various forms of renewable energy, deriving directly or indirectly from the sun, or from heat generated deep within the earth. They include power generated from solar, wind, biomass, geothermal, hydropower and ocean resources, solid biomass, biogas and liquid biofuels.
Renewable energy sources currently provide about 18% of Canada’s total primary energy supply. Wind and solar energy are the fastest growing sources of electricity in Canada.
In general, Renewable energy is any which comes from renewable natural resources, such as wind, rain, sunlight, geothermal heat, and tides. It is referred to as “renewable” because it doesn’t run out. You can always get more of it.
What is Clean(Green) Energy?
“Clean energy” is just any form of energy which we can create with clean, harmless, and non-polluting methods. Most renewable energy sources are also clean energy sources. But not all.
One such example is geothermal power. It may be a renewable energy source, but some geothermal energy processes can be harmful to the environment. Therefore, this is not always clean energy. However, there are also other forms of geothermal energy which are harmless and pure.
Clean energy makes the less impact on the environment than our current conventional energy sources do. It creates an insignificant amount of carbon dioxide, and its use can reduce the speed of global warming – or global pollution.
What is Sustainable Energy?
Sustainable is a general term used for energy sources whose continued usage does not cause reversible changes and rapidly replenishes. It could return to its original form or is unaffected by consistent usage. The number of solar voltaic panels or wind farms has no impact— what so ever— to the amount of Sunshine or climatic conditions that control wind speed or patterns. Wood-chips and stems, leaves ( called plant biomass by more refined colleagues ) are sustainable means of energy production because they can regrow over and over; replenishable.
What is Alternative Energy?
When we speak of alternative energy, we refer to sources of usable energy that can replace conventional energy sources (usually, without undesirable side effects). The term “alternative energy” is typically used to refer to sources of energy other than nuclear power or fossil fuels.
A form of “alternative energy” might also be renewable energy, or clean energy, or both. The terms are often interchangeable, but not the same.
As you can see, alternative energy, renewable energy, and clean energy are very similar. However, it is essential to know that there are differences.
Sources:
Natural Resources Canada (NRCan).
Internet article was written by "Kilanko Paul, Process engineer," Nov 15, 2016.
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