I have 66 PV panels installed on the roof of my house that generates enough electricity to power everything in my home. Since our seasons do not change as drastically as in other parts of the United States, our energy consumption remains relatively consistent. During the summer months, when heat is a factor an increase in energy consumption may occur as air conditioners and fans are more frequently used. Another spike in electricity use is during the holiday season, when decorations and Christmas lights are displayed. Hawaii is an ideal location for renewable energy resources.
You may have to pay more upfront for an LED light bulb, but did you know that the average homeowner could save a total of $238 a year in energy costs alone by switching to LEDs (Howard, B. n.d.)? Traditional incandescent bulbs create light by heating up a wire, called a filament, white hot. Up to 98% of the energy used by incandescent bulbs is lost as heat leaving just 2% being turned into light. LED’s light up by the movement of electrons in a semiconductor material (Howard), using much less energy to create light, and giving off much less heat, so much less, that you can leave an LED bulb on all day, and the globe will only be warm to the touch. The average bulb life of an incandescent bulb is 750-1000 hours, while the average bulb life of an LED bulb is anywhere from 25,000-50,000 hours (n.d. staticbrain.com).
Building energy use is simulated and a bottom-up LCA is conducted assuming a 50 year building life. The key property of a green roof is its low solar absorptance, which causes lower surface temperature, thereby reducing the heat flux through the roof. Savings in annual energy use are just over 1%, but summer cooling load is reduced by over 6% and reductions in peak hour cooling load in the upper floors reach 25%. By replacing the common flat roof with a green roof, environmental impacts are reduced by between 1.0 and 5.3%. Similar reductions might be achieved by using a white roof with additional insulation for winter, but more substantial reductions are achieved if common use of green roofs leads to reductions in the urban heat island.
bfly_recent.gifFrom the research, sunspots do not appear at random over the surface of the sun but are concentrated in two latitude bands on either side of the equator. The sunspots are greatly related to our climate. While the solar cycle has been nearly regular during the last 300 years, there was a period of 70 years during the 17th and 18th centuries when very few sunspots were seen (even though telescopes were widely used). This drop in sunspot number coincided with the timing of the little ice age in Europe, implying a Sun- to-climate connection. limb_flare_sm.jpg (5710 bytes)Solar flares are tremendous explosions on the surface of the Sun.
The Parklands has waterfalls, boardwalks, lookouts, shady places. The Parklands promotes the sustainability, a natural and social environment. The park uses rubbish collection and also uses recycled water to keep the plants alive; the re-use of the gray water is good for the drought in Brisbane. The Parklands is very accessible with numerous forms of transport and is also a great way to have a pleasant walk through to the city. (See appendix
With ecological sustainable houses the aim is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, water, waste, dwellings, staff engagement and community greening. Many countries have taken on different building methods and materials to build houses that are ecologically sustainable. (Wikipedia, 2011) Earthen buildings can be made out of a vast variety of materials such as fired clay, compressed dirt and a mixture of clay, sand, straw and water. In many places houses are built under ground or in hills this is due to dirt being a good and natural insulator. Other places use dirt bags for the same effect.
“We will be a world leader in delivering outstanding quality pulp and paper products that make our customers successful. We will excel in quality, employee safety, productivity, and environmental protection” – Howe Sound Pulp and Paper Ltd. Howe Sound Pulp and Paper Ltd. (HSPP) is a pulp and paper mill that also produces green energy. The mill was built in 1909 and has been making pulp and paper for over 100 years. We have become the industry leader in the quality of our products and environmental protection by having the lowest emissions in the country. See appendix 1 for a more detailed overview of HSPP.
Renewable energy sources are hydropower energy, biomass energy, geothermal energy, wind energy and solar energy. Renewable sources of energy can be used over and over again and also they generate much less pollution, both in gathering and production. But they are not as popular as the nonrenewable sources as can be seen in Figure-1. Figure-1: Renewable Energy Sources vs Total Energy Sources Solar Energy As you can see in Figure-1, the sun is probably the most important source of renewable energy available recently years. We are able to harness the sun’s energy and use it to help heat our buildings, our water, and also to produce electricity.
The enormous frame was set into limestone footings and followed a 24'-0" x 24'-0" structural bay, which determined the layout of the 13,000 exhibition spaces. The site for the World's Fair in Hyde Park included a grand elm tree that could not be removed or damaged, and Paxton, whose structures until this point had been exclusively for hothouse plants, gladly created an envelope with a central barrel-vaulted transept to include the tree in the project. Being comprised of completely glass, the Crystal Palace was exposed to copious amounts of direct solar heat gain, and thus Paxton had to add canvas tarps top
The oceans play an important role in determining the atmospheric concentration of CO2. Changes in ocean circulation may affect the climate through the movement of CO2 into or out of the atmosphere. Earth orbital changes - The earth makes one full orbit around the sun each year. It is tilted at an angle of 23.5° to the perpendicular plane of its orbital path. Changes in the tilt of the earth can lead to small but climatically important changes in the strength of the seasons, more tilt means warmer summers