Week 7:
2) Where does the energy you use come from? What impact does your energy use have on the environment?
I called they Puget Sound Energy company line, and understandingly they were busy because there were power outages, with the wind and what not. Anyway they directed me to their website, which had quite a lot of information about where their energy came from. I also got the percentages of the power supply which PSE uses. Source http://www.pse.com/
Coal 34%
Hydro 45%
Natural gas 17%
Nuclear 1%
Other 1%
Wind 2%
Total 100%
I was surprised to find that some of the energy that I use also came from hydroelectricity, wind power and nuclear. Also on their website they listed the sources of their power source.
Hydro electricity:
They seem to have a couple more hydroelectricity projects coming along, one of them included Snoqualmie Falls. Anyway, their hydro power comes from Baker River Hydroelectricity Project, which has two dams and both are located on the Skagit River
Thermal:
According to PSE's website, they said their largest share of total power supply is electricity, natural and coal-fired plants comes from East Montana's Colstrip Power Plant, which provides 700 megawatts. I was surprised to hear that PSE's thermal energy came from as far away as Montana...
Wind
PSE's first wind farm was Hopkins Ridge Wind Facility in Columbia County
Their second (one having a nice name) Wild Horse Wind Facility in Kittitas County
Natural Gas
Surprisingly, the gas comes from both Western U.S. and Canada.
PSE buys most of their gas during the summer monthes when the prices are lower, and store it in an underground reservoir. However, during the winter when most of their customers use it (not surprising due to the freezing weather) PSE taps it from the reservoir.
The underground facility is in Jackson Prairie Southwestern Washington state, which is a natural gas storage facility.
There are many environmental impacts. Most of the problems are related to CO2 emissions being put into the atmosphere. Espcially when 34% of the power supply is coal, this is especially related to Global warming and the limited resources due to demands. The other is the number of resources being used, since gas is a natural resource-and hence I could be impacting the environment by using too much of it. Also, the impacts of hydroelectricity is uncertain (at least for me) because dams are an either 'take it or leave it' power supply. They can either have an impact on the environment, due to water shortages and ipacts on species, or drive communities out due to building the dams or they can be just as helpful, providing communities with energy supply. Fortunately, PSE uses a combination of power sources instead of focusing on just one power source.
Week 8
Before I go start answering the questions, I have to rant about the rain in Pacific Northwest. There are quite a lot of flooding-maybe due to the surface material and the angle (steep) of the roads and hills-thus rain and snow runsoff. Could this be an impact of Global Warming/Climate Change? Is it the Pineapple Express? Who knows.
Anyway,number 1 question is on another blog posting.
Week 8:
2) What are realistic activities you could do to cut back on your water use?
There are many ways I could cut back and I should cut back. These activities include:
-showering for shorter periods of time, instead of 15 minutes maybe 5 minutes
-Using less or no water for cleaning. Instead of cleaning a countertop with water I could alternatively use a dry cloth (like micro-fiber) to wipe. Or I could run water into a bucket, then use that water to wash/clean. However, this could pollute water (more about that later)
-Using less water for washing fruits and vegetables. I don't know how this could apply with using less water, but washing fruits and vegetables is important to get rid of dust...the same goes for rice and legumes, which sometimes need a thorough was until the water runs clear. Sometimes I have used some of the water from this to was pans, then afterwards I would rinse the pans
-Cutting back on wheat grown in the Midwest-and use local wheat grown in Washington or Oregon State. Since the Midwest doesn't have as much water (it's not surrounded by any oceans), then one of the alternatives is to use flour or produces grown in states that have more water resource
-Cut back by washing clothes at least once a week, or when you don't have any clean clothes
To save energy, you can hang them out in the sun to dry (not a job I like doing particularly).
- I have heard that if you want to wash your car, it's ideal to wash it at a car washing facility (ei: Brown Bear) since they use less water
- Buy less bottled water. Use tap water resource instead.
3) What are some of the ways you directly/indirectly contribute to water pollution?
Again, there are many ways I indirectly impact water. These can include:
- I contaminate water by using it for cleaning, dirty water goes into the sink
- Using too much of it, even when I use it for washing produces
- I use lots of shampoos and soaps, which probably drains into bodies of water
- Using energy, some of which comes from coal (34%) which is mined from the ground, not only is it hazardous to water, but humans and the environment; and using Hydroelectricity-dams are built on bodies of water, and could impact species
- Using oil/gas/petroleum for transportation, as a result these resources are transported on cargo ships and can have devastating results if spilled into bodies of water; such is the most recent examples in San Francisco (California) and in Russia. Not only does it impact species of birds, fish...but also water
- Using plastic-again, the result is the same as the examples above. Plastic degrade slowly, if not ever.
Question 4 is not really a question, but a worksheet which will be included along with week 7.
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