📖 Chapter 5 of 9 · Green Energy - Basic 1 · Class 5–6
Chapter 5: Why Clean Energy Is Better
What is wrong with smoky power?
Some power is made by burning things, which sends smoke into the air. That smoke dirties the air we breathe and is not good for people, animals or plants. It can also make the whole Earth too warm.
Why is clean energy better?
Clean energy — from the Sun, wind and water — makes power with no smoke. It keeps our air fresh, our sky blue and our Earth healthy. When we choose clean energy, we help everyone breathe easier.
Story Time — The Two Skies
Vikram · a town in Maharashtra
Near Vikram's town stood an old factory with a tall chimney that puffed grey smoke all day. On the other side of town, new solar panels and wind turbines had been set up. Vikram noticed something one clear morning: the sky above the factory was hazy and dull, but the sky above the clean-energy field was bright and blue.
“Why are the two skies so different?” he asked his teacher. “The smoke from burning fuel dirties the air,” she explained. “It makes a haze, and it is not healthy to breathe. The clean-energy side makes no smoke, so its air stays fresh.”
Vikram remembered how he sometimes coughed when the wind carried the factory's smoke his way. “So clean energy is better for our lungs, too?” “For your lungs, and for the birds, the trees, everyone,” his teacher said. “Smoke harms all of us. Clean power harms no one.”
“Then why do we still use the smoky kind?” Vikram asked. “We are changing, slowly,” she said. “More and more of our power now comes from the Sun, wind and water. People like you, who understand why it matters, will help us change even faster.”
Vikram looked again at the two skies — the dull one and the bright one — and knew which one he wanted for his town. “I choose the blue sky,” he said firmly. His teacher smiled. “Then you have already learned the most important lesson in this book.”
Story Time — A Promise on Earth Day
Sara · Goa
On Earth Day, Sara's school planted trees and talked about keeping the Earth healthy. “What does clean energy have to do with trees?” a classmate asked. Sara, who had been reading about it, raised her hand.
“Smoky power dirties the air and can make the Earth too warm,” she said. “Clean energy — Sun, wind and water — makes no smoke. So it keeps the air fresh, just like trees do. They both help the Earth.” Her teacher beamed. “Beautifully explained, Sara.”
As they patted the soil around a new sapling, Sara said, “So if we use clean energy and plant trees, we are helping in two ways at once.” “Exactly,” her teacher said. “Clean power keeps new smoke out of the air, and trees help clean the air we have.”
Each child made an Earth Day promise. Sara's was this: “I will switch off what I do not use, and cheer for clean energy whenever I see it.” She wrote it carefully and pinned it to the class board.
That evening, walking home past a row of solar panels gleaming in the last sunlight, Sara felt hopeful. “A blue sky, healthy trees, clean power,” she thought. “That is the Earth I want to grow up on.” And she meant to help make it so.
Solved Examples
Think first, then read the answer.
1. What does smoky power do to the air?
Show answer
Answer: It dirties the air with smoke, which is not healthy to breathe and can make the Earth too warm.
2. Why is clean energy better?
Show answer
Answer: It makes power with no smoke, keeping the air fresh and the Earth healthy.
3. Who is harmed by smoke?
Show answer
Answer: Everyone — people, animals and plants.
4. Name two things that help keep our air clean.
Show answer
Answer: Using clean energy, and planting trees.
5. Which sky was bright — the factory's or the clean-energy field's?
Show answer
Answer: The clean-energy field's sky was bright and blue.
Check Your Understanding
A. Fill in the blanks
- Burning fuel makes _______ in the air.
- Clean energy keeps our air _______.
- We can help by planting _______.
B. Yes or No
- Smoke is healthy to breathe. ( ___ )
- Clean energy makes no smoke. ( ___ )
- Trees help clean the air. ( ___ )
C. Talk about it
- What can your family do to help the air stay clean?
- Why do we plant trees?
Check your understanding
Tap an answer to see if it is correct. This is just for fun — nothing is saved.
1. What does smoky power do to the air?
- Cleans it
- Dirties it
- Nothing
Show answer
B. Dirties it
2. Why is clean energy better?
- It makes no smoke
- It is louder
- It costs more
Show answer
A. It makes no smoke
3. What helps clean our air?
- More smoke
- Planting trees
- Waste
Show answer
B. Planting trees