City Of Las Vegas Newable Energy
The city of Las Vegas has made great strides in saving energy by creating new programs and services to promote renewable energies, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and save money. One such program is their “Newable” energy service that offers low-cost electricity generated from solar power.
City officials have conducted several surveys asking if people would be willing to pay more for lower-energy bills. Almost every person responded with a yes!
So how does Newable work?
Solar powered Newables produce enough electricity to meet the needs of an average family (up to three people). This includes light activity like watching television or using computer software like Netflix.
Power comes from sun-charged batteries which are refreshed during daylight hours when the battery recharges. During nighttime hours, the system produces power through a special component called an inverter that changes direct current (DC) solar power into alternating current (AC) used by household appliances.
Las Vegas installs 1,000 wind turbines
In June 2017, the city of Las Vegas announced that it would be installing 1,000 solar powered batteries to help power its facilities. These new energy storage systems will function as an alternative source of electricity for business or individual use.
The city is investing $100 million in this project with battery maker Enphase. This includes 250 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of deep-cycle cells designed to last five years for each unit.
Each system has enough juice to keep a small office fully functional during sunset or nighttime hours when the sun does not shine and electric utility companies are running low on supply.
Las Vegas installs a battery storage system
A few months ago, The City of Las Vegas installed an energy storage project known as the Newable Battery System. This device is able to store energy from both renewable sources and fossil fuels!
The Newable Battery was developed by engineers at Stanford University and San Francisco-based company RePower Systems. It has many features that make it particularly efficient for large utilities like the one in which it’s used here.
One such feature is its ability to regulate voltage, allowing it to function efficiently even when there are fluctuations in power supply. Another is its durability; the batteries in this project have a ten year warranty!
These qualities make the Newable Battery perfect for use during times of high demand, since it can hold all that extra electricity until it’s needed.
Las Vegas installs smart technology
Photo by ThisIsEngineering on Pexels
With every new smartphone comes an ever-expanding list of features that users can access and use. Some are more powerful than others, however! For example, most smartphones now have cameras that take decent pictures, but some are so advanced that they can even do live streaming or time lapse photography.
More powerful phones also tend to have better high performance computer processors which allow for faster processing of information. A user would know what this means because their phone would be constantly buzzing with all sorts of notifications and alerts.
Not everyone enjoys being distracted by constant messages and alerts, though. People who prefer less digital noise may choose older generation cellphones over newer ones with similar features. This is why there are now mobile devices that rely on “energy” or power efficient microprocessors instead of higher performing ones.
These types of computers don’t need lots of electricity to run effectively, making them perfect for our current energy crisis situation. In fact, many experts say we will eventually reach a point where there just isn’t enough electricity to create a fully functioning device.
We call these types of computers “green” since they consume far less energy than something without such advanced features. Although green technology wasn’t designed with saving energy as its top priority, it does save us money in the long run due to lower utility bills.
What is newable energy?
Renewable energy sources like solar, wind, water, biomass, or landfill gas are sometimes referred to as “newable energy” because they use an input that we have already invested in (energy from nature) to produce another useful product.
Many people are familiar with photovoltaic cells which convert sunlight directly into electricity, but there are many other newer types of renewable energies being explored.
Thermal energy comes in the form of heat, so any source of heat can be converted into thermal energy via equipment called turbines.
Kinetic energy comes from moving objects, and using this kinetic energy you can create electricity! For example, if you had a very fast boat, you could use it to power generators that make electricity.
What makes these different forms of renewable energy interesting is that you probably already own most of the components! You just need to find efficient ways to capture, process, and store them.
Why is this important?
Creating energy via renewable sources is an increasingly popular way to run your home or business. In fact, some states have even made it law! The State of Nevada now requires most large businesses to use at least one solar panel system that generates enough electricity to power up to 1/2 of a square foot of space for every employee they have.
This is very significant as many companies have multiple employees working outside during warm weather seasons so having their own source of power can be expensive. Technology has come a long way since those initial laws were passed, and there are easy ways to add solar to your business now.
City-run utilities across America are investing in greener alternatives like photovoltaic (PV) panels because it makes sense economically. It’s not just good for the environment, but also for your wallet!
Fortunately, you don’t need to invest heavily in PV technology nor do you have to know how to install them to start saving money today. There are already a variety of pre-packaged systems available from all major national brands who want to help you get going with no hassle.
Who should pay for newable energy?
As mentioned before, there are many different types of renewable energies being experimented with today. Some seem more feasible than others, but none to date have been able to achieve mass-market success due to one important thing: cost.
Most people do not believe that investing in green power is worth it because they feel that it is too expensive. This perception comes from two sources: supply side (power companies’ profits coming at your expense) and demand side (energy corporations lobbying this notion).
Supply side is very real. Power companies make huge profit off of our natural gas and electricity consumption. By installing efficient appliances and equipment, we can reduce how much money these businesses make, which in turn reduces their motivation to manufacture and market products.
Energy corporations also enjoy low taxes so they don't mind spending money to lobby politicians to keep the current tax structure. The government then uses those funds to help promote business through advertising, marketing, and publicity campaigns.
What are some challenges?
One major challenge that many cities face is how to incentivize green energy use in their buildings while also ensuring enough power is available for essential services like emergency response teams, hospitals, and shops.
Mostly due to the high cost of electricity, most large corporations can’t effectively run environmental programs because they don’t have adequate resources to fully implement them.
Facilities typically need at least 15 kilowatts per person to run effective programs such as recycling or renewable energy projects. Most residential areas give one to two people this much power, but most businesses get three to seven.
Cities like San Francisco and Oakland have tried creating community solar farms where individuals or groups can contribute to a shared fund to produce their own energy, but this only covers part of the needed fuel source.
Power plants offer both natural gas and coal which can be used to make energy, so these are more practical than just using sunlight directly. There are several ways to connect to the grid, however, it always comes down to finding a balance between price and quality of service.
What are some benefits?
Many people have heard about how keeping an energy budget is important to saving money, but there are actually many other ways that you can benefit from lowering your electricity use.
Some of these additional strategies include avoiding wasting electrical appliances, using lower power modes for electronics, and understanding what types of electricity uses your computer, phone, or TV will experience.
By being more efficient with your electricity, you will be helping the environment by reducing greenhouse gas emissions as well as help ensure that your electricity bill stays at least somewhat stable.
You also do not need to make large savings in order to receive rewards! Most of us spend quite a bit less than our neighbors on our monthly bills, so there is really no reason why you cannot cut back on your own spending too.
It is very possible to achieve your goal of saving money while staying within your budget.