Solar Power and Carbon Footprint 9

What Does Carbon Footprint Mean & How to Contain It

Carbon footprint is defined as the total amount of greenhouse gas generated due to any kind of human activity. Greenhouse gases emissions are usually measured in equivalent tons of Carbon Dioxide/CO2 that can be emitted through variety of means including transport, production, land clearance, food cooking, fuel emissions, manufacturing goods, wood, building and services. Carbon footprint is the sum of all emissions of CO2/carbon dioxide. Simply said whenever someone drives a car, its engine burns fuel which creates CO2, depending on fuel consumption and driving distance.

Activities like travelling by public transportation (train/bus) a distance of 6.5 to 7 miles; driving car to a distance of 3.75 miles; Fly a plane a distance of 1.375 miles; work on computer for 32 hours; produce 5 plastic bags or 2 plastic bottles adds 1 kg of CO2 to the personal carbon footprint of every person. A lot can be done to contain CO2 emissions such as walking or cycling whenever possible, buying organic food, switching off lights off when not in use. Setting up solar power units to make use renewable energy of sun to generate electricity or heat can also help cut CO2 emissions.

Cut Carbon Footprint With Solar Power

Yes, it’s true that manufacturing solar panels does release carbon dioxide/CO2, but taking into consideration the lifespan of a solar panel, a solar panel produces 20 times less CO2 than coal power. Burning of fossil fuel is a cause of CO2/greenhouse gas emissions. On a average generating electric power causes greenhouse emission equivalent to 2.5 billion tons of CO2 annually. Any greenhouse gas emission affects our environment, as such efforts need to be made to cut down on carbon footprint. Using solar power that generates power using sun rays can help cut down carbon footprint.

What is Solar Power

Solar power refers to the energy generated by using the sun’s rays, either for heating or generating electricity for use in private households or businesses directly via solar panels or indirectly via solar thermal collector. The biggest advantage of solar power is that once initial investment is made to install solar panels the energy generated is basically free; considering that once solar panels are installed, the environmental benefits last for decades. Also, solar power generated if surplus can be sold back to the power grid, allowing extra monetary benefits for those who install solar panels.

Reducing Carbon Footprint of a House Via Solar Power

Reducing electricity drawn from electricity grid helps reduce carbon emissions. That means cleaner air, water and soil for your own family, the community, and for the future generations to come. If a house installs rooftop solar panels equivalent to 5 Kw and considering the fact that a solar panels life is average 30 years, it not just helps cut down CO2 emission/ carbon footprint but on the hind side it also results in numerous environmental benefits over a period of 30 years. Some of the benefits of installing 5Kw rooftop solar panel at home are equivalent to :-

1. Planting 3030 trees.

2. 22 cars off the roads at least for 365 days or 1 year.

3. Atleast 2/3rd of rail car full of coal saved.

4. 41 tons waste recycled instead of being sent to landfill.

5. Atleast 1.5 truck filled with fuel saved.

Solar panels are generally installed on the south facing roofs in northern hemisphere and on the north facing roofs in the southern hemisphere. As electricity produced by solar panels using sun’s rays is much more carbon-friendly a greener household can be created that makes use of a solar water heating system; and solar air heating thereby cutting down on the carbon footprint of a house even further. The most effective use of solar power for a home is solar water heating systems installed on rooftops. Solar water heating system consists of a network of heat absorbing water pipes that heat the water without the need for gas or electrical powered system. This results in reduction of carbon footprint by up to 60%.

Solar powered wall or rooftop air heating system on a cold winter day, can reduce the need for gas or electricity powered room heating system. The room heating system allow interior air to circulate through metal ducts that have been already heated by the sun results in further reduction of carbon footprint. Solar powered cooling of home can be done by installing plants.

As plants absorb sun’s heat and cool the air through transpiration; filling windows with plants that provide natural cooling during the summer helps control the heat entering a house solar gain and it also cuts the need to operate an air conditioner, thereby further cutting down on carbon footprint of a house. It can very well be said that solar power can help in reducing carbon footprint of a house. Using solar power also helps cut down use of fossil fuels thereby further reducing the carbon footprint. It all depends on how well the solar power is used by the user for his/her benefit.