Book

Description

Agricultural greenhouses are energy intensive food production systems. The majority of them use fossil fuels and electricity mainly derived by them while renewable energies have limited applications in greenhouses so far. The necessity to mitigate climate change requires the replacement of fossil fuels with renewable energies and low carbon energy technologies. Due to current advances in benign energy technologies many of them are now mature, reliable and cost efficient. They can be used in greenhouses providing heat, cooling and electricity. Application of sustainable energy technologies in greenhouses results in many economic, environmental and social benefits. Utilization of endogenous renewable energy resources replacing fossil fuels is beneficial in many countries. Manufacturing and installing renewable energy systems assists the growth of local energy companies while the production of fuels based on local biomass resources helps the growth of local enterprises.