Essay: Renewable Energy Sources in United Kingdom

Sample Essay

Words 1,430

Ben Cruachan Power Station

The Ben Cruachan power station in Argyll, Scotland is another storage hydroelectric power generator. Its electricity generating capacity is over 400,000 kW (British Hydropower Association 2009).

Sloy-Awe Hydro-Electric Power Scheme

Running out of the Allt na Lairige Dam, this is the largest and one of the oldest conventional hydro electric power plants in the UK. It has been generating power since 1959, while construction on the project started in late 1950. Its electricity generating capacity is 152.5 MW. The construction of this plant raised the water level at the Loch Lomond by 47 and almost doubled the size of the lake, disturbing the ecosystem of the area (Scottish and Southern Energy plc 2005).

Rheidol Hydro Electric Scheme

Located in Capel Bagnor, near Aberystwyth, based on the river Rheidol, this project is composed of a large network of reservoirs and waterways with three main generators totaling a 56 MW capacity with five auxiliary generators. This is the largest hydro electric power project in England and Wales (British Hydropower Association 2009).

Glendoe Hydro Power Plant

Located near Fort Augustus in Inverness-shire, Scotland this power plant has a 100 MW capacity (British Hydropower Association 2009).

Combustible Biomass

Since plants sequester carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, combustion of plant-based fuels does not cause a net increase in the carbon dioxide content of the atmosphere since the carbon dioxide released is roughly equal to that sequestered earlier. Several schemes exist to utilize biomasses as fuels in the UK. Biomass heating systems include traditional log burning heating systems and wood chip boilers. There have been studies investigating the large scale harvest of North American switch grass and coastal panic grass in the UK for use as biofuel. (Christian, Riche and Yates 2002)

The largest amount of energy generation from biomasses in the UK is from burning methane produced in landfills, another sources of methane is sewer sludge. (House of Lords – Economic Affairs Committee 2008)

Almost 50% of UK’s renewable energy comes from burning biomasses. 24% of which is from landfill gas, 10% from using biomass alongside coal in coal burning power stations, 6% from combustion of solid city waste, 3% from  Sewage sludge, 3% from animal biomass and 2% from power plants that only use combustible biomass as fuel (House of Lords – Economic Affairs Committee 2008).

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