Distributed electricity generation's environmental impact

Distributed generation use minimizes the amount of electricity that should be generated at centralized power plants. It can decrease the environmental impacts of centralized generation.

FREMONT, CA: Distributed generation incorporates different technologies generating electricity at or near where it will be used, like solar panels and combined heat and power. Distributed generation may help a single structure, like a home or business, or it may be part of a microgrid—a smaller grid tied into the greater electricity delivery network—for example, at a major industrial facility, a military base, or an enormous college campus.

When linked to the electric utility’s lower voltage distribution lines, distributed production supports clean delivery and dependable power to more customers and lowers electricity losses along transmission and distribution lines.

In the residential field, common distributed generation systems possess solar photovoltaic panels, small wind turbines, natural gas-powered fuel cells, and emergency backup generators, generally fueled by gasoline or diesel fuel. Conversely, in the commercial and industrial arena, distributed generation includes resources like combined heat and power systems, biomass combustion or cofiring, solar photovoltaic panels, hydropower, wind, municipal solid waste incineration, fuel cells fired by natural gas or biomass, and reciprocating combustion engines, comprising backup generators fueled by oil.

Environmental Influences of Distributed Generation

Distributed generation advantages the environment, and if its use diminishes the amount of electricity centralized power plants should generate, it can lower the environmental effects of centralized generation. Present cost-effective distributed generation technologies aid in producing electricity at homes and businesses through renewable energy resources such as solar and wind. Distributed generation can also utilize the energy that would otherwise be wasted in a combined heat and power system. In addition, by using local energy sources, distributed generation alleviated or eliminated the line loss during transmission and distribution in the electricity delivery system.

However, there are also negative environmental impacts that distributed generation brings, which should be tackled properly. For example, distributed generation systems require a footprint, and as they are closer to the end-user, some distributed generation systems will be unpleasant and cause land-use concerns. In addition, distributed generation technologies involving combustion, especially burning fossil fuels, can produce several impacts as larger fossil-fuel-fired power plants, such as air pollution.

Although these impacts are less in scale than those of the bigger power plant, they are nearer to populated areas. Some distributed generation technologies, comprising waste incineration, biomass combustion, and combined heat and power, need water for steam generation or cooling. Moreover, because of scale efficiencies, distributed generation systems utilizing combustion are less efficient than centralized power plants. Thus, distributors should comprehend how distributed energy technologies create adverse environmental issues at the end of their helpful lives when replaced or removed and take necessary steps while choosing and utilizing these technologies.

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