The
Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Directive
is now UK law.
Green
Grid Electricity
You do not have to buy your own wind turbine or solar panels to get
all your electricity from renewable sources. You do not even have
to pay any more for your electricity.
Green electricity suppliers, or standard suppliers offering green
tariffs, can guarantee your property is powered by 100% renewable
energy sources at the flick of a switch! for businesses and local
authorities this may even save money, as you must pay higher taxes
(Climate Change Levy) on non-renewable electricity.
There are many options if switching to a green tariff through the
grid, some better than others. Some companies will guaranteed to provide
all, or a portion of, your power from green sources. Others will guarantee
to invest all, or a portion of, your tariff into green energy projects.
The best way to decide which tariff you prefer is to visit
www.greenelectricity.org
(Green Electricity Marketplace Ltd)
This website is widely recognised for the information it provides
on green electricity by:
• environment groups, including Greenpeace, Friends of the
Earth and Sustainable Wales;
• consumer groups, including the National Consumer Council;
• community groups, including EcoLincs; and
• television and the press, including BBC Newsnight, Channel
4 and The Independent.
GEM is one of the leading switching websites for green electricity
tariffs, and unlike most other switching sites they only deal with
green tariffs and as specialists in this field they offer a distinctive
perspective on how 'green' each tariff really is.
How does
it work?
The national grid is like a reservoir of electricity. Electricity
is constantly fed in, by all types of generators, and taken out by
consumers. Once the electricity is fed into the grid it looses its
identity; coal, wind, nuclear and gas-generated electricity all mix
together.
The amount of electricity that is fed into the reservoir by each
generator is measured. This same amount of electricity can then be
sold onto their customers anywhere on the grid. If a company feeds
in 100 units of green power in Scotland, they could sell 100 units
of green power to a customer in Cornwall.
Green electricity
Where
does our electricity come from?
The majority of the UK's electricity comes from burning fossil fuels
(e.g. coal, oil and gas) which is a major contributor to climate change.
Carbon-free sources, including nuclear and renewables, account for
around one quarter of total electricity production. Renewable, or
'green' electricity, accounts for just 4% at present, but is set to
grow over the coming years through policies such as the Renewables
Obligation. This requires electricity suppliers to source an increasing
proportion of renewable electricity.
Green electricity
offerings
Most energy suppliers offer 'green' electricity tariffs. These seek
to support renewable energy. The two main types of offering are green
supply tariffs and green funds.
Green supply tariffs
A green supply tariff means that some or all of the electricity you
buy is 'matched' by purchases of renewable energy that your energy
supplier makes on your behalf. These could come from a variety of
renewable energy sources such as a wind farm or hydroelectric power
station. Your supplier should let you know what sources are included
in the mix, and also what proportion of your supply is renewable.
Green funds
A green fund usually involves paying a premium to contribute to a
fund that will be used to support new renewable energy developments.
The cost of generating electricity from renewable energy sources can
be slightly higher. Under this option, the existing electricity supply
continues as normal, but your involvement will help to alter the mix
of energy sources in future toward renewable sources.
What to do next:
There are many green offerings on the market, each supporting renewable
energy in different ways.
Green
tariffs - tariff types
These days more and more people are thinking about going green when
they buy their energy. But with a number of different green tariffs
currently on the market it can be difficult choosing the one that’s
right for you.
And what do energy suppliers mean by green anyway? For some suppliers
it might mean that they supply you with renewable electricity, others
invest in building wind turbines, or in projects to offset household
carbon emissions. Surprisingly it could also mean that part or even
all of your electricity may actually come from non-renewable sources.
That’s why energywatch has produced a guide to all the green
tariffs currently available. The guide does not evaluate a tariff’s
"greenness" (there's currently no independent accreditation
or audit schemes) rather it categorises and gives background information
about each tariff to help you make a choice.
If you want to switch to ‘green’ product there are a
number of different tariffs currently offered by suppliers, which
energywatch has categorised
You may also find Energy Watch's website useful as it offers a guide
to the green tariffs available.
http://www.energywatch.org.uk/help_and_advice/green_tariffs/tariff_types.asp
