The definition of renewable energy is a naturally replenished energy which uses non-extinguishable resources such as wind, sun, rain, tides, geothermal heat. Why all the fuss, can’t we just continue living the way we have been living and everyone will just get along?
Well, it depends who you ask. Some experts believe uranium sources will last another several billion years while other believe it is set to expire in a few hundred years. Now that’s a vast difference! So if we take the median answer, well then we still have a few thousand years to discover renewable energy. But as much as people criticize government policies (we’ll get to that in a minute), and commercialization of the industry, this sector of the market continues to grow.
This is a cool picture of UKs largest ecovillage “BedZED” which use renewable energy sources and reduce as much wasteful carbon footprints as possible.
Wind Energy
One hot type of alternative energy is wind power which is steadily growing at the rate of 30% annually, with a worldwide installed capacity of 121,000 megawatts (MW) in 2008, and is widely used in European countries and the United States. While some people may feel these are hideous looking intruders, wind energy could generate 20 percent of the electricity needed by households and businesses in the eastern half of the United States by 2024.
Hydropower
Brazil has one of the largest renewable energy programs in the world, involving production of ethanol fuel from sugar cane, and ethanol now provides 18% of the country’s automotive fuel. They have also recently been granted permission for building a huge dam in the heart of the Amazon rainforest which would generate a ton of hydroelectric power helping with Latin America’s demand for electricity. Unfortunately, this form of renewable energy may hurt the local indigenous people and have a negative impact on the environment.
Wind energy could generate 20 percent of the electricity needed by households and businesses in the eastern half of the United States by 2024
credit The largest dam in the world (Itaipú)
Solar Power
In searching for a definition of renewable energy, you are bound to come across solar power which use photovoltaic cells to convert the radiation from the sun into usable energy. These extremely versatile systems can power everything from your small PUMA cell phone to massive building complexes. In fact, after Haiti’s horrendous and disastrous earthquake, solar cells easily replaced a dwindling diesel supply.
Alan Doyle, a science editor at MSNBC, recently wrote that a single solar water purification system, recovered from the rubble by the Red Cross, is now purifying 30,000 gallons (over 110,000 liters) of water a day.
credit Arizona State University Parking Lot cut 7% in Arizona’s energy bill
Other definitions include biofuel energy and geothermal energy. Biofuels are extracted from the sugar components of plant materials and still provide roughly 2% of the world’s transport fuel. Geothermal energy is obtained from the heat of the earth itself one of the largest being the Geysers in California.
Controversy
The Obama administration is now pouring billions of dollars into regulating greenhouse gases under the “Clean Air Act” with the idea that harmless carbon dioxide humans generate with every activity is to be considered a pollutant and therefore subject to control by those running the EPA. This wave of protests has now been been nicknamed Ecototalitarianism.
So there you have it… a dry definition of renewable energy mixed in with some juicy political tidbits. Now what are your thoughts and feelings about having “clean air”?
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It is good website. Please keep sending us latest inforamtion on alternate energy technologies.
Great post, although no matter what anyone says renewable energy is the way of the future and in my opinion small jumps are being made forward, however it is interesting to consider where we will be in say 100 years or so!