Well, your parents might be moaning at you because the price of electricity is getting higher and higher, so that's why they want you to turn the light off when you leave the room and not leave the TV on standby. However, there is an even bigger issue about electricity - a global problem.
In order to make the electricity we have to use fossil fuels like coal and oil. Electricity is made in a power station when coal is burned and the heat generated is used to turn water into steam; this steam is used to turn a turbine which is attached to a generator which makes the electricity. So what, you might ask? Well, coal is made from carbon and when we burn anything we add oxygen to the substance, so when coal is burned it produces carbon dioxide. Carbon dioxide is one of the greenhouse gases that is causing climate change, so leaving the lights on in your house is directly causing issues for Planet Earth.
Have a read of this article: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-15444858
Do we need an alternative to using coal to make electricity? Can we reduce the amount of electricity that we are using? Can we make electricity in a different way - if so, how?
Thoughts please :-)
This is a really interesting one, isn't it? What do we do? What can we do on an individual level? I spent the first few days of the half term with some lovely friends in Wales who moved to the countryside to live a much more environmentally friendly lifestyle - they recycle, they eat lots of produce they've grown themselves, they are involved in local sustainability projects... BUT... their neighbours have put up two wind turbines in nearby fields and they think that these turbines are a bit of a pain. You would think that such environmentally conscious people would welcome the turbines but they make noise and they're a bit of an eyesore - they spoil the view which had remained pretty much untouched for years, centuries perhaps. Everything in life seems to be a compromise doesn't it? But perhaps we need to grit our teeth and bear some things.
ReplyDeleteWe have an electricity monitor in our flat which shows how much energy we're using - a small step to seeing what we can do to cut down. This morning my husband pointed out that the graph for yesterday was much higher than usual. I blamed my stepfather who had been round watching out tv all day (we usually ration how much the telly is used!) but my husband said it was because we'd had the cooker on all day because I'd been making a huge roast dinner. Either way, it really made me think - there are so many things, like leaving lights on as Mrs Forder says, that we do, without thinking but which we could perhaps ration or avoid doing so often. Ok, I'm not saying I shouldn't cook but I could have put more things in the same pan and only used one of the oven sections and I could have got a game or puzzle out and encouraged my family to turn off the telly. I'm open to more suggestions too - so what else could I do at home?
in the holidays,you could pretend you've had a power cut and get all the torches out, and board games or watever, and eat sandwiches or food that don't require any electricity being used. it will be something different and a fun experience!... actually I think i'm going to do that... nobody steal my idea!!
ReplyDeleteone way to save electricity is to get rid of all these gadgets!! we do'nt need so many! one smart phone is enough as it has EVERYTHING on it! it has the ability to call,text,browse the internet,socialize online, play games ect. so one is enough we do not need seperate things that do the same things! do you know how much electricity is wasted on chargeing all these gadgets? especially when people use them so often! IT'S ALOT I TELL YOU!
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