Background
A growing number of people in Wisconsin use the sun to heat their
homes and businesses at night. How can this be? Are they able to make
the sun shine at night? Of course not! Many of these home and business
owners have houses and buildings that are designed to store the sun's
heat during the day and radiate it throughout the evening. Other homes
and businesses burn firewood. Wood contains stored energy from the sun
(trees convert solar energy to chemical energy through the process of
photosynthesis). Some homeowners and business owners use sunlight to
generate electricity, or they may use the wind, which is a renewable
energy resource created with help from the sun. (See the Wind section in Unit 1).
Renewable energy systems use resources that are constantly replaced.
Examples of renewable energy resources that are used for home heating
and electricity include solar, wind, biomass (wood and other plant
matter), and hydropower (falling water). In Wisconsin, about four
percent of the energy consumed by residents comes from renewable
resources; most of this energy (80 percent) is from wood, and the rest
is solar. For information on each of the renewable energy resources
and how they can be used in homes and businesses, visit the
Focus on Energy Fact Sheets.
Many factors influence people to choose renewable energy resources.
Today's technological advancements
have developed more efficient means of harnessing and using renewable
energy sources, and these sources are gaining increasing popularity.
They offer us alternatives to nonrenewable energy sources, such as
nuclear (which has safety and disposal issues), oil, coal, and natural
gas (which can cause acid rain and may contribute to the overall
warming of Earth's atmosphere known as the greenhouse effect).
Existing renewable energy installations are making significant
contributions to the U.S. energy supply, and research activities are
demonstrating the far-reaching impact that a great reliance on
renewable energy sources could have on our country's energy security.
In addition, ongoing and planned research offers still more
possibilities.
Procedure
1) List energy resources that you
use to heat and power your home. For example, if you use electricity
(which we all do), what energy source is used to create the
electricity? You may have a few energy sources listed. Now identify
which resources are renewable and which are nonrenewable. If you are unaware of
how you can use renewable energy, go to
Green
Energy Programs in Wisconsin.
View the
Renewable Energy Influences Chart
2) Why do you think some people
choose to use or purchase renewable energy? You will be learning first
hand why people choose to use renewable energy and what their
influences are by contacting and interviewing a home or business owner
who uses renewable energy. The information you obtain will be shared
with educators as well as help us build our Guest Speaker and Field
Trip database, which is used by educators statewide when they are
looking for a person to come into their classroom or a place to take
their class for a field trip.
3) Print out the sheet Contacting
and Interviewing Home and Business Renewable Energy Users:
PDF version
or
Word version (if you need this form emailed, faxed, or
mailed to you, please let us know as soon as possible). Use the list
on this form to contact people who use renewable energy if you can't
find anyone in your community who is not on this list. You should
either use email or the phone to make your contact since mail will
take too much time away from this short course.
4) Print out the form Sample
Survey for Renewable Energy Home or Business Owners:
PDF version or
Word version (if you need this form emailed, faxed, or mailed to
you, please let us know as soon as possible). Use this form to help
you ask questions to those you contact. Feel free to ask other
questions as well. Learn as much as possible!
5) Analyze the results of your
interviews by answering these six questions:
PDF version or
Word version (if you need this form emailed, faxed, or mailed to
you, please let us know as soon as possible).
6) Fax or mail: a) List of energy
resources you use to heat and power your home and whether they are
renewable or non-renewable, b) Completed survey questions,
c) Information on the person you contacted (name, address, business
name, renewable energy use, etc.), and d) the completed form
Analyzing the Results of Interviews to: KEEP, Renewable Energy
Education Online Final Assignment, 403 LRC, UWSP, Stevens Point, WI
54481.
Activity: