Bahia Energy Group, Inc.

Energy development is the ongoing effort to provide abundant and accessible energy resources to all humans. It is the progressive development of knowledge, skills and institutions for harnessing diverse primary energy sources and converting them to ever more convenient and efficient secondary energy forms, such as electrical energy.

The goal of Renewable Energy Development is to develop commercially viable energy technologies based on renewable energy supplies thereby addressing concerns about the exhaustion of fossil fuels and environmental, social and political risks of extensive use of fossil fuels and nuclear energy. Renewable energy technologies are only limited by creativity and economic feasibility.

Renewable energy is energy obtained from sources that are essentially inexhaustible. Renewable sources of energy include all sources of energy that are captured from on-going natural processes, such as solar power, wind power, water flow in streams (hydro power), biomass, biodiesel and geothermal heat flows. Fossil fuels, while theoretically renewable on a very long time-scale, are exploited at rates that may deplete them in the near future. Most renewable forms of energy, other than geothermal and tidal power, come from the Sun. Below is a list of common renewable energy choices currently available in today's marketplace.

The following are the most commonly used and readily available resources:

• Biogas (methane)
• Biomass
• Geothermal energy
• Hydro power
• Hydrogen
• Municipal solid waste
• Oceanthermal energy
• Tidal power
• Wave power

Carbon emissions are releases of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere from burning of fossil fuels. Fossil fuels are fuels formed in the ground from the remains of dead plants and animals. It takes millions of years to form fossil fuels. Oil, natural gas, and coal are fossil fuels.

A carbon footprint is a representation of the effect you, your household, your community or organization, have on the climate in terms of the total amount of greenhouse gases you produce (measured in units of carbon dioxide).

Determine your personal carbon footprint with the Safe Carbon Climate Footprint Calculator. The SafeClimate carbon footprint calculator allows you to determine carbon dioxide emissions from major sources: home energy consumption and transportation by car and plane.

'Carbon Neutral' represents the point at which greenhouse gas emissions have been assessed, reduced where possible, and the remaining non-reducible emissions are offset through high quality renewable energy, energy-efficiency or forestry projects.

A carbon offset is a project or activity that avoids, reduces or sequesters carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the atmosphere to compensate for GHG emissions from another project, activity, or business. In contrast to emissions trading, which is regulated by a strict formal and legal framework, carbon offsets generally refer to voluntary acts by individuals or companies that are commonly arranged by commercial or not-for-profit carbon-offset developers or providers.

Offsets include renewable energy, reforestation, or home and building energy efficiency. A well-known carbon offset example is the planting of trees. Renewable energy offsets commonly include wind power, solar power, and biofuel. Some of these offsets are used to reduce the cost-differential between renewable and conventional energy production. Other offset projects consist of combusting or containing methane generated by farm animals or landfills.

Many renewable energy sources lack greenhouse gases and other emissions in comparison with fossil fuel combustion. Some renewable sources do not emit any additional carbon dioxide and do not introduce any new risks such as nuclear waste. In fact, most biomass actively sequesters carbon dioxide while growing.

To reduce emissions, you, your community or your organization need to follow a series of steps:

• First, measure your "carbon footprint";
• Second, reduce and conserve energy everywhere possible;
• Third, purchase alternative energy where practical; and
• Fourth, applicable to communities and organizations, invest in offset projects from credible carbon-offset project developers.

Carbon-offset project developers identify, assess, and verify emission-reduction projects based on defined eligibility criteria and negotiate investments in them.

See 'Energy Applications' for examples.

Renewable energy resources may be used directly, or used to create other more convenient forms of energy. Examples of direct use are solar ovens, geothermal heating, and watermill and windmills. Examples of indirect use are electricity generation through wind turbines or photovoltaic cells, or production of fuels such as ethanol from biomass. The anticipated use of fuel cells in cars, for example, is another renewable technology.