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Wednesday, July 21, 2010

AIESEC Project on Sustainable Energy (Renewable Energy)
Introduction to Sustainable Energy.







WHAT IS RENEWABLE ENERGY?

A natural resource is called an energy resource if it can be converted to a usable form of energy. An energy resource is known as an ‘indigenous energy resource’ when it originates within the country. It is known as non-indigenous if it originates outside the country. Renewable Energy is a form of energy resource that is replaced by a natural process at a rate that is equal to or faster than the rate at which that resource is being consumed.

RENEWABLE ENERGY RESOURCES IN SRI LANKA

Due to the geo-climatic conditions, Sri Lanka is blessed with several forms of energy resources.Some of these RE resources are widely used and developed to supply the energy requirements of the country. Others have the potential for development when the technologies become mature and economically feasible for use. Following are the main RE resources available in Sri Lanka.
- Biomass
- Hydro Power
- Solar
- Wind

Hydro Power



The geo-climatic settings in Sri Lanka are particularly conducive to harnessing hydro resources.

Sri Lanka is characterized by a highland mass situated in the south-centre, surrounded by an intermediate zone of upland ridges and valleys lying at lower elevation. The climate of Sri Lanka is largely determined by the meteorological conditions caused in the Indian sub continent due to the tropical circulation. A major phenomenon caused by these conditions is the formation of two contrasting wind regimes, the Asian Monsoons. They are referred to as the southwest (SW) monsoon – prevailing from May to October – and the northeast (NE) monsoon – prevailing from December to February. These are responsible for distinct seasonal rains in Sri Lanka. Given the humid conditions and the hilly terrain, the highlands of Sri Lanka offer excellent opportunities to harness hydropower to generate electricity.




Wind Power

Sri Lanka is an island nation with substantial wind energy resources.Conventionally, wind as an energy resource was used only in power generation, and agricultural water pumping, that too in small quantities. Activities concerning the development of wind energy resources were first initiated by the CEB on small scale technologies, primarily, for water pumping and electrification of remote areas.





Solar Power



Sri Lanka is situated close to the equator, therefore receives an abundant supply solar radiation year around. Solar radiation over the island does not show a marked seasonal variation, though significant spatial differentiation could be observed between the lowlands and mountain regions. As estimated in the solar resource map developed by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) of the USA, over most parts of the flat dry zone, which accounts for two-thirds of the land area, solar radiation varies from 4.0 – 4.5 kWh/m2/day. Solar radiation levels remain as low as 2.0 – 3.5 kWh/m2/day over the high plains of Nuwara Eliya due to the significant cloud cover over most parts of the day. Thus, a substantial potential exists in the dry zone of Sri Lanka for harnessing solar energy.

Bio-Mass




Biomass is the most common source of energy supply in the country, with the majority usage coming from the domestic sector for cooking purposes. Due to the abundant availability, only a limited portion of the total biomass usage is channelled through a market and hence the value of the energy sourced by biomass is not properly accounted. Biomass comes in different forms. The most common forms in Sri Lanka are, fuel wood, municipal waste, industrial waste and agricultural waste.
Posted by Pansilu pitigalaarachchi,APES committee,AIESEC in Colombo south at 3:55 AM
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Environmental sustainability - An introduction

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Living in the present????How to have a better life.The environmental concerns on our planet have expanded dramatically in recent decades and are now among the most serious challenges affecting people’s well- being around the globe. All nations are affected, but often the poorest countries and the least privileged populations bear the greatest burden. They are hit hardest by environmental destruction and climate change and have the fewest resources available to adapt to changing situations.
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What exactly is the meaning of SUSTAINABILITY ?

• • Meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs. ...
  • • Creating a life-sustaining Earth, a future in which prosperity and opportunity increase while life flourishes and pressures on the oceans, Earth and atmosphere diminish.
  • • Improving the quality of human life while living within the carrying capacity of supporting eco-systems.
  • • The "long-term, cultural, economic and environmental health and vitality" with emphasis on long-term, "together with the importance of linking our social, financial, and environmental well-being.
  • • Using, developing and protecting resources at a rate and in a manner that enables people to meet their current needs and also provides that future generations can meet their own needs.
  • • The using of products of nature in a way that will not permanently destroy them for future use.
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It is time for us to pay attention towards..

  • • human life.
  • • the capabilities that the natural environment has to maintain the living conditions for people and other species (eg. clean water and air, a suitable climate).
  • • the aspects of the environment that produce renewable resources such as water, timber, fish, solar energy.
  • • the functioning of society, despite non-renewable resource depletion.
  • • the quality of life for all people, the livability and beauty of the environment.
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Threats to these aspects of the environment mean that there is a risk that these things For example, the large-scale extraction of non-renewable resources (such as minerals, coal and oil) or damage done to the natural environment can create threats of serious decline in quality or destruction or extinction. Traditionally, when environmental problems arise environmental managers work out how to reduce the damage or wastage. But it is not always easy to work out exactly when and where threats will have their effects and often the impacts are hard to reverse. So increasingly environmental managers adopt strategies aimed to prevent damage being done in the first place. A full sustainability program needs to include actions to prevent threats and impacts from arising, actions to protect the environment from threats and damage, and restoration to reverse damage already done.
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Sustainability issues arise wherever there is a risk of difficult or irreversible loss of the things or qualities of the environment that people value. And whenever there are such risks there is a degree of urgency to take action. Environmental sustainability programs include actions to reduce the use of physical resources, the adoption of a ‘recycle everything/buy recycled’ approach, the use of renewable rather than depletable resources, the redesign of production processes and products to eliminate the production of toxic materials, and the protection and restoration of natural habitats and environments valued for their livability or beauty. These sustainability programs need to operate on an adequate scale and need tocontinue operating reliably for as long as the threats continue.
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Some of the issues that pose major environmental sustainability problems include:

  • • destruction of the living environments (habitats) of native species
  • • discharge of polluting chemicals and other materials into the environment
  • • emission of greenhouses gases into the atmosphere than can cause climate change
  • • depletion of low cost oil and other fossil fuels
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Some environmental issues are largely of local significance while others have regional or even global relevance. At the personal or household level, there are a host of actions that people can take to contribute to environmental sustainability at home, when travelling or accessing services or goods, at work, or when acting as a community member or citizen or as an investor of personal funds. Some useful examples are include living close to work where possible and walking,using a bike or using public transport. These are good options to save energy and reduce greenhouse gases. If these options are not possible then using an ultra efficient hybrid petrol/electric vehicle can cut greenhouse gases and petrol consumption by about 50% and cut other toxic pollutants by about 90%. Buying products made of recycled materials will generally save materials and energy, cut greenhouse gases and toxic pollution, and reduce impacts on living things in the wild. Installing a water tank and low flow shower can save water.
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Using food in season or from local sources and organically grown can cut impacts from chemicals, save energy and reduce greenhouse gases.Involvement in or donations to community environmental groups can help with practical projects like revegetation or by building support for effective government policies. And investing savings in ethical investments can help accelerate the creation of an environmentally sustainable economy.
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