What is Green Technology ?
Green tech refers to a type of technology that is considered environmentally friendly based on its production process or its supply chain . Green tech—an abbreviation of "green technology"—can also refer to clean energy production , the use of alternative fuels, and technologies that are less harmful to the environment than fossil fuels.
Goals of Green Technology
The goal of green tech is to protect the environment, repair damage done to the environment in the past, and conserve the Earth's natural resources. Green tech has also become a burgeoning industry that has attracted enormous amounts of investment capital.
References : https://www.investopedia.com/terms/g/green_tech.asp
Green technology is a broad category that encompasses several forms of environmental remediation. While climate change and carbon emissions are now considered among the most pressing global issues, there are also many efforts to address local environmental hazards. Some seek to protect specific ecosystems or endangered species. Others seek to conserve scarce natural resources by finding more sustainable alternatives.
In order to provide a viable alternative to fossil fuels, many businesses are seeking to engineer alternative sources of energy that do not generate atmospheric carbon. Solar and wind power are now among the most inexpensive sources of energy , and solar panels are affordable to U.S. homeowners at a consumer scale.Other alternatives, such as geothermal and tidal energy, have yet to be deployed at scale.
Nearly a third of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions are released by transportation activities, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. Many manufacturers are exploring ways to reduce automotive emissions, either by designing more fuel-efficient engines or shifting to electrical power.
However, electric vehicles require a host of innovations in other spheres, such as high-capacity rechargeable batteries and charging infrastructure. In addition, the benefits of electric vehicles are limited by the fact that many power grids still rely on fossil fuels.
Farming and livestock have a substantial environmental footprint, from the high costs of land and water usage to the ecological consequences of pesticides, fertilizers, and animal waste. As a result, there are many opportunities for green technology in the area of agriculture. For example, organic farming techniques can reduce the damage due to soil exhaustion, innovations in cattle feed can reduce methane emissions, and meat substitutes can reduce the consumption of livestock.
Recycling seeks to conserve scarce resources by reusing materials or finding sustainable substitutes. While plastic, glass, paper, and metal waste are the most familiar forms of recycling, more sophisticated operations can be used to recover expensive raw materials from e-waste or automobile parts.
Carbon capture refers to a group of experimental technologies that seek to remove and sequester greenhouse gases, either at the point of combustion or from the atmosphere. This technology has been heavily promoted by the fossil fuel industry, although it has yet to deliver on those expectations. The largest carbon capture facility can absorb 4,000 tons of carbon dioxide per year, a minuscule amount compared to annual emissions.