Green electricity
Green electricity is electricity generated from sustainable energy sources. We call this green electricity because it makes a smaller contribution to climate change than so-called grey electricity. By grey electricity we mean electricity generated using highly polluting fossil fuels. In 2007, the European Union set itself the goal of obtaining at least twenty percent of total energy output from sustainable sources by 2020. By 2030, this must have been raised to 27 percent.
01What exactly is green electricity?
Green electricity is generated from sustainable energy sources, but what exactly is sustainable energy? A sustainable energy source is an energy source that does not cause air pollution and leads to little CO2 emission. In addition, most sustainable energy sources are infinite, just think of the sun or the wind, unlike fossil fuels such as natural gas and coal. A good example of a sustainable energy source is sunlight. Solar panels supply energy every day, even when it is cloudy, although the yield is then of course considerably lower.
Sunlight is not the only source of green electricity. Green electricity can also be generated from wind power, hydropower, biomass and geothermal and ground heat. Geothermal heat is difficult to reach in the Netherlands, but ground heat is increasingly used, particularly in new builds.
Green electricity in the Netherlands
In 2019, just under 20% of the total electricity generated in the Netherlands was generated sustainably. Generating green energy is more expensive than grey energy, but usually the consumer does not pay extra. Of the green electricity consumed in the Netherlands, about half is imported from other countries. A lot of green electricity is imported from Scandinavia in particular. This is done with or without certificates.
Largest Dutch energy sources
In the Netherlands, most green electricity is generated from biomass and wind power. Together, these two energy sources account for the vast majority of the total sustainable energy output in the Netherlands. Biomass means plant or animal waste. Burning or fermenting it produces energy. A caveat here is that burning biomass only partly yields green energy, usually about fifty percent. For this reason, biomass is not always regarded as a sustainable energy source.
Every year, the amount of energy generated from wind power in the Netherlands increases. Wind is one of the cleanest energy sources. Due to the flat landscape of the Netherlands, there are many opportunities to generate energy from wind. Large wind farms in, for example, Flevoland and the Waddenzee generate enormous amounts of green electricity every year.
Green electricity from sunlight and hydropower
The share of solar energy and hydropower as a source of green electricity is very small in the Netherlands. Hydropower contributes a few percent each year to the total energy generation from sustainable sources. Electricity from solar panels is 100% green and is mainly used by individual households. The technology for using solar energy is not yet profitable enough to use it nationally on a large scale. For private individuals, however, the use of solar energy is becoming increasingly attractive.
Dutch green electricity ➜ How is green electricity generated?
Green electricity is better for the environment. The opposite of green electricity is grey electricity. 🌱 Discover everything about green electricity here! ➜
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