Eco-Blog
Sharp volunteers enjoy talking with students around the country and learning about your ideas to help the planet. On the Eco-Blog, Sharp Solar Academy volunteers share students' ideas and their own observations about climate change and the environment. Together we can make a difference.
How to Turn Your Energy Green: Purchasing Renewable Energy
This month we just moved into a new house and needed to sign up for electricity. While signing up I found out that only 7% of our country’s energy comes from renewable energy sources. That means 93% of our energy comes from non-renewable sources, such as coal, which contributes to global warming*!
But our family has an option to turn our energy green. With many utilities, families can pay a small premium in exchange for electricity generated by clean energy sources. I signed up for green power with the LA Department of Water and Power! http://www.ladwp.com/ladwp/cms/ladwp000851.jsp
Not every family has the option to buy green energy from their utility. So my friend told me that she buys carbon offsets, to replace traditional polluting sources of electricity with clean, secure, and renewable. Carbon offsets can be bought through a number of groups, including Bonneville Environmental Foundation http://www.b-e-f.org/offsets/ and Terrapass http://www.terrapass.com/buy-carbon-offsets/.
* Energy Information Administration, Official Energy Statistic from the US Government http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/energy_in_brief/renewable_energy.cfm