GREEN TECHNOLOGIE AND RENEWABLE ENERGY
Assignment brief:
Renewable technologies are developing rapidly, and are widely considered to make a positive contribution to the green economy. However, how ‘green’ are such technologies? In this assignment, you are required to write a report, supported by appropriate evidence, which critically evaluates the relative environmental impact of covering a ten hectare field with either solar panels, wind turbines or crops for biomass use. You are required to put yourself in the position of an environmental consultant who has been asked by a local council in the south of England to give them guidance on the best way to use some bare ground covering twenty hectares of land. Your challenge is to persuade them of the value of the project (solar, wind or biomass) that is the ‘greenest’.
A key approach to evaluating the environmental impact of any item of technology is ‘Life Cycle Analysis’ (LCA), which is sometimes referred to as ‘Life Cycle Assessment’. This aims to evaluate impacts throughout the entire life cycle of a particular product, ‘from cradle to grave’, or in terms of the raw materials required for construction right through to disposal of the product at the end of its useful lifespan. You are therefore encouraged to evaluate the environmental impact of solar panels, compared to wind turbines and biomass power, by compiling relevant evidence, including the results of LCAs that have been performed. You are encouraged to explore both the scientific literature and the information available over the internet to obtain the evidence required to complete this Task. You will get credit for considering the full breadth of potential environmental impacts.
You are required to produce a written report, which should contain the following:
- A description of the concept of Life Cycle Analysis and how it is performed, illustrated by an appropriate diagram,
- A description of how you envisage the three different projects (i.e. solar, wind and biomass) to be set up (i.e. how many panels you would install, how many turbines, which crops or trees you would plant, etc.).
- A presentation of a Life Cycle Analysis for your three projects, compiled from the information that you have been able to access. Note that you are not expected to present and analyse raw data, but to provide a summary of data from published or unpublished studies.
- An evaluation of the quality of the evidence that you have been able to access, including identification of any information gaps or areas of uncertainty that you encounter,
- Based on the evidence that you have obtained, indicate which project the council should invest its money in, with justifications.
The word limit for this Part of the Assignment is 2100 words.
Marking criteria
Key criteria include: (i) a critical understanding of the concepts of ‘green technology’ and ‘renewable energy’, and the main drivers for their development and implementation; (ii) full comprehension of methods used for evaluating the environmental impact of different technologies; (iii) an ability to critically evaluate scientific evidence relating the impacts and effectiveness of green technologies, and their contribution to sustainable development; (iv) an understanding of the process of technological development, its relationship to scientific innovation, and its adoption by society; (v) an ability to communicate an understanding of green technology and renewable energy.
