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WHAT IS RENEWABLE ENERGY?

Renewable energy

 is 

energy

 that is collected from 

renewable

resources

, sources that won’t run out such as sunlight, wind,

tides and  waves.

WHAT ABOUT FOSSIL FUELS?

Fossil fuels are 

coal

, fuel 

oil

 or 

natural gas

, formed from the

remains of dead plants and animals. They are not renewable.

At the moment we are still too reliant on fossil fuels.

Burning Fossil fuels is a big contributor to pollution.

 What is Solar Energy? Solar energy is when we use the sun’s light to create

electricity.

It is a renewable energy source that does not run out and does not pollute

the earth.

Solar powered vehicle

In 1839 a French physicist named Edmond Becquerel was

experimenting with a cell of metal electrodes. He noticed the cell

produced more electricity when exposed to light.

This discovery helped Russell Ohl to create the first silicon solar

cell in 1941.

Sunlight is energy from the sun. The solar cell converts radiation

energy into electrical energy that we can use at home, at work

and at school.

Edmond Becquerel

Russell Ohl

Hydro energy is when we use dams, the tides and the

waves the create electricity.

Hydro energy is also one of the oldest power sources on

the planet.  It was used by farmers as far back as ancient

Greece for mechanical tasks like grinding grain.

HOW DO WE USE HYDRO ENERGY?

Hydro energy works like this: a pipe brings

water to a water wheel. The water from the

pipe then pushes the wheel which spins a

generator that generates electricity.

Hydropower costs less than most power

sources right now.

Niagara Falls was the site of the USA’s first

hydroelectric generating facility, built in

1881, Charles Brush connected a generator

to turbines powered by the falls and used

the electricity to power night time lighting

for visiting tourists.

Wind energy is renewable and does not pollute

the earth in anyway.

Wind energy is a very old power source they were

used in Persia (Iran) as far back as 200 bc.

There are places around the world with a

dedicated space for lots of wind turbines, a wind

farm.

To create electricity using the wind, we use a huge device

called a wind turbine. Wind turbines are a pillar of metal

with 3 spinning blades that makes energy. Wind turns the

propellers which powers a generator that makes electricity.

In Ireland, we currently generate enough wind energy to

power about 2.2 million homes

Wind energy farm

A report from September 2019 revealed that Ireland gets 

49% 

of its

energy from renewable sources. This means that a large proportion

of the energy in Ireland is renewable with the rest sourced from

the likes of gas (38%), coal (7%), and peat (5%).

A study in 2019 revealed that 

five

 of Ireland’s ten energy suppliers

have sufficient green attributes to cover their sale of ‘green source

products’.

Energia

 - 100% renewable

Just Energy

 - 100% renewable

Panda Power

 - 100% renewable

Pinergy

 - 100% renewable

SSE Airtricity

 - 100% renewable