Northern Illinois is in an area that was covered by glaciers, most recently the Wisconsian and Illinoisian, which ended around 10,000 years ago. These glaciers created a flat and fertile landscape in North Central Illinois. Farmers have taken advantage of this land by producing agriculture. Can anyone else see the other benefits of this flat landscape? Wind farms can produce large amounts of power with virtually no environmental impact. These flat plains provide few obstacles for wind interruptions. One of the drawbacks of being in an open space is lightning which can damage the turbines. I believe many home and landowners would be persuaded to build wind farms if there would be economic incentives for the amount of energy produced by wind farms. This is the beginning of greener energy for Northern Illinois.
Chicago, Elgin, and Schaumburg- these cities are impractical for building wind farms but instead have high rises. What could be a suitable renewable energy source for these growing communities? One resource meets their power demands: solar. Solar power can be depended on because it is a clean energy source and will always be present in our lifetime. Solar panels, which are used to covert the sun's rays to energy, have many benefits themselves. They produce energy quietly, easy to install, and with little maintenance. As with many energy sources, solar power does have drawbacks. The panels cannot produce energy 24hrs. A day and are quite expensive to manufacture. The cost, however, is paid off over few years. When you have an excess amount of electricity, that electricity could be sold back to the power company. This may benefit the entire power grid, as each building would receive a little solar electricity. The key is for business and homeowners to get informed about the certain tax breaks for solar panels/energy. The government is doing its part, they have invested $1.5 Billion for solar research over the past quarter century and many states require electricity companies to purchase solar energy. The environment and building owners would benefit by this energy. There is another type of energy that is generated by the earth and is also environmentally friendly.
Many homes are heated by magma. What do I mean, magma from underneath the earth's crust heats the crust, rocks and soil. This heats up a liquid refrigerant, which in return, heats up the building. The process can also be reversed which heat is removed from the building and sent underground. Geothermal energy is always replenished by the continued heating released by the earth's core. The benefits of geothermal energy greatly out-weigh the drawbacks. There are no CO2 emissions into the environment; the ground stays at a constant temperature {roughly 55°F all day}, and it repays itself within a few years. How does the system repay itself? It requires little maintenance throughout its lifetime. Because the heating/cooling system is underground there is an additional advantage: quiet. There are some disadvantages to geothermal energy such as in the short term, geothermal systems are quite expensive to install, but as stated earlier, they do pay themselves off in a matter of years {the amount of years varies on the size of system}. It is quite complicated to install for the common person, so anyone interested in installing a system should contact a professional. Energy professionals should recommend these systems for two reasons. They benefit the environment by not releasing harsh pollutants, which decreases the landowners' carbon footprint. They also benefit the home/business owner by saving up to 75% on their energy bill, plus the government offers tax credits up to $2000. These benefits must be told to the landowners.
In Northern Illinois, there are many green solutions to the traditional energy sources, or should I say the challenge that faces the citizens of the region. People should have choices where they acquire their energy. The key is to educate the consumers to understand not only the effects on the environment but also how these green energy sources can save them money on their energy bill. Which would you pick: a green, clean energy source that can save you money every month and save the environment, or nuclear power which is a high security risk and produces large amounts of harmful nuclear waste?
Andrew Paxson
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