I Love The Smell OF Methane In The Morning

Natural gas might be one answer to the problems with pollution in the power grid. Relatively cheap, abundant, and in some cases renewable, natural gas has become one of the most recent members to join the Big Three of coal, petroleum, and nuclear as a power plant fuel. Its use has jumped over the last decade 35%, and as more agitation over coal pollution, nuclear waste disposal, and the unreliability of cheap foreign oil occur, natural gas is looking more and more like the belle of the ball. Natural gas can be a non-renewable resource pumped out of the ground, or a renewable resource from manure and biomass. It produces 45% less CO2 than coal, with none of the particulate matter and ash that coal combustion creates. In fact, coal gasification leads to natural gas production, although at this writing it is not necessarily economically feasible (meaning cheap) to do this on a large scale. Is natural gas the fuel we have been waiting for to solve all of our environmental problems?

The 400 Pound (Carbon) Gorilla

Almost. There are a few small issues concerning the use of methane as a replacement for other fossil fuels. Natural gas is the cleanest fossil fuel technology we have; however, that is like having the world’s prettiest frog. The big problem with natural gas is CO2. The byproducts of methane combustion are carbon dioxide and water vapor, both of which are considered ‘greenhouse’ gases, meaning that their presence in the atmosphere traps heat and contributes to global warming. Methane itself is a powerful greenhouse gas, able to trap 20 times more radiant heat in the atmosphere than CO2.
In addition, methane doesn’t stack very well. Transportation is primarily by pipeline, with a few LNG (liquefied natural gas) carriers available to move stocks of gas from production points to end destinations. The largest known natural gas reserves worldwide are in Russia, Saudi Arabia, and Iran; which leads us to a series of geopolitical questions to answer if we choose to start importing from countries whose relationships with us are not always cordial. As a non-renewable resource, the United States has roughly 75 years of natural gas available at current levels of production and use; however, natural gas is quickly on its way to becoming a primary fuel source, so consumption levels are expected to increase dramatically over the next 15 years which holds the potential of a ‘gas gap’ that will have to be filled by importing natural gas from other countries. Pipeline infrastructure construction to increase carrying capacity is also an issue. Methane is used as a heating fuel as well as a power plant fuel, so supplies of methane drop during the winter and increase in the summer. Since methane storage is more complicated and expensive than stacking coal or storing petroleum, supply has to meet consumer demand at a rapid pace.

So Close, You Can Touch The Manure!

Biogas, or methane produced from biomass fields such as landfills, swamps, bogs, sewage, and manure, is renewable but under-funded technology where the methane from bacterial decomposition can be captured and used as a fuel to produce electricity. While still in the infant stages, the technology is sound, with biogas providing some power in landfills and local industries, usually with a bit of natural gas added to the biogas to help it burn more efficiently. The best thing about biogas is that it uses waste products (garbage, compost, manure) to make energy, making it very cost effective. Consider: the more biogas methane we capture and use for power production and heating, the less methane escapes into the atmosphere. That in itself makes biogas a worthwhile technology. With ‘digester’ machines, the process for retrieving methane from manure is greatly enhanced, speeding up the methane making process from thousands of years to 10-14 days. The gas then can be used to power the farm, or sold during off – peak hours to the electrical grid. The good news is that digesters provide a steady flow of methane gas, therefore making a steady flow of power. And finally, unlike methane, manure stacks nicely.

So What Can I Do?

Well, natural gas is already a viable source of electrical power generation, and is becoming a source for automotive fuel as well. The big problem is carbon dioxide emissions from combustion and drilling. As always, the best way to reduce emissions begin at home and at work by reducing the amount of electricity required to run your household or workplace. For starters, you can :

*Use motion sensors instead of a light switch. This keeps empty rooms from having a light on to keep the ghosts company.
*In cold weather, turn the thermostat down even LOWER and use an electric blanket instead. Just make sure to turn it off when you get out of bed, and dress real fast!
*Get rid of that hot tub or spa. You haven’t used it since the 80′s anyhow.
*Make sure you don’t have dead plugs. A dead plug is plugged into a wall, burning electricity, and not DOING ANYTHING. Battery chargers, cell phone chargers, and the Roomba charger all drain electricity if you leave them in the wall with nothing attached. Pull them out.
*If you own a waterbed, make sure it stays covered properly. Keep the blankets on it, and keep the heater timer plugged in. Then again, you haven’t used the waterbed since the 80′s either.
* Use the microwave for heating small amounts of food. It is more efficient than using the oven, and doesn’t heat the house up during the cooking process.
* Change the filter on your air conditioner/heater regularly. This helps the unit run more efficiently, and takes 22,000 pounds of cat hair out of the house.
*Install a whole house fan. This saves you about 4 degrees on your cooling in summer months. Make sure you open more than one window for air intake; otherwise you will be sucking small woodland creatures into your house.
*When buying a whole home air cooling unit, make sure you get one with a high SEER (seasonal energy efficiency ratio) rating. Most energy efficient models have a rating of 12 or better, older units are 8 or less.
*If available, use the fan-only switch for night cooling. Make sure you have screens in place in the windows to keep bugs and vermin out.