Thanks James for this reflective piece as part of the Young Sustainability Champion Badge
We need energy very much.We use energy almost everyday,from taking a shower to watching videos on YouTube,energy is very important.Currently,about 80% of our world’s energy comes from burning fossil fuels,while the remaining percentage of our energy are from biomass,nuclear and renewable energy.So what is the difference between all these sources of energy?Well,fossil fuels are actually animal remains being burned,while biomass is plant remains being converted to biometric materials.Nuclear energy is released immediately as it is energy.However,they are very costly and has lots of environmental effects such as global warming,air quality
Deterioration,oil spills,frequent acid rain which is hazardous to our health.They are also not renewable,which means they can only be used once and that is it.Thus,due to our planet’s booming population,the demand for energy is more,which means more fossil fuels are burnt and we could possibly run out of fossil fuels worldwide,and it is fast approaching.Luckily,we have a solution,which is the use of our renewable energy.
The definition of renewable energy is basically means that that the source never runs out.In other words,it is very reliable and it never runs out.They also don’t produce emissions,which helps in reducing pollution and battle climate change.Our technology is advanced to harnessed and produce energy.Awesome,right.
However,there are some downsides in renewable energy.To understand more,we must first study the sources.They are solar,waves,wind,rain,tidal,and geothermal energy.If we look carefully,you will realise that they are intermittent,for example,the wind turbine will only spin if there is wind,or the solar panels will produce energy only in the presence of the sun.The batteries are not able to store energy and use it in the future.Secondly,our technology is not advanced enough to allow renewable energy to power big cities/countries.They can only operate at a small place.Thirdly,when they are built,they make uses of natural sources and thus may disrupt migration patterns or even wildlife.!
Despite the challenges faced, it is a way better alternative to our costly fossil fuels.Scientists are every day developing equipment used to harness our renewable energy, by making it cheaper and more effective!
Sources:
National Geographic Climate 101 video on renewable energy
youngscientist.sscglobal.com.sg provided video on renewable energy