by Environmental Articles on June 7, 2009
One of the main contributors to the amount of carbon dioxide in the air is the production of energy. We all use electricity every day in fact we treat it as a given, we flick the switch and on go the lights, the television and the microwave but have you ever stopped to consider where your energy is coming from? If you haven’t, then you might not realize that most of our current energy needs are mostly being met by fossil fuels and coal. Both of these energy sources are responsible for a lot of the toxic carbon dioxide that is currently in our atmosphere and it is because of these carbon dioxide emissions that scientists are growing increasingly concerned with its impact on our environment.
Because people do not realize how their normal electrical usage can affect the climate in such a strong way, they are not as concerned about trying to find alternatives. However, the importance for finding clean, renewable, sustainable forms of energy has never been more important. Apart from the fact that the energy sources we use now could harm the atmosphere, the fact is that they are not renewable and eventually at the rate at which we are consuming the energy, we will soon run out. This is probably the most pressing reason behind our need to find alternative sources of energy.
Right now energy companies have been exploring the options for using solar and wind energy on a wider basis than is currently being used. Dams are also a great source for hydro power but are only good in areas with lakes and rivers that can be confined and used as a source of energy. Likewise, wind energy can only be harnessed in areas where there are consistently moderate wind gusts, so a lot of areas which do not fall into this category might not have access to enough wind energy to sustain their power needs.
Right now researchers all over the globe are trying to find alternative energy sources. The most common yet controversial form of energy that does not release carbon dioxide into the atmosphere is nuclear power, but concerns over the dangers of contamination and melt downs have kept nuclear power from developing on a larger scale. Nuclear power may be a clean form of energy but is not without its share of downfalls, it produces harmful nuclear waste which takes millions of years to break down which can only be stored. This is problematic considering we only have so much land for storage and being contained in this way, the nuclear byproducts could eventually leach into the environment.
Until something is discovered that can help reduce the problems we are all experiencing, the best thing that everyone can do to help the situation is to try to cut back on their energy usage on a consistent basis. Research has shown that if everyone just took the time to turn off the lights in their homes when they were not in use, that it would help to cut back the amount of energy being used by up to twenty five percent.
by Environmental Articles on May 30, 2009
With the increase in concern over the release of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere and the decrease in the supply of fossil fuels for energy, researchers are constantly looking for renewable, sustainable energy solutions. This means that a lot of time and energy is being put into the successful application of energy sources such as solar energy.
Solar energy is at the top of the list of these future energy sources because the sun is one thing that is not likely to go away any time soon or at least within our immediate lifetimes. Also, the sun releases one thousand watts of energy per square meter. This energy is the same all over the globe which is available to anyone and is a renewable supply on a daily basis.
Right now the problem with using solar energy on a high yield level needed to supply large areas is that at this point in time, the technology simply does not exist to adequately capture all of the solar energy and process it successfully. Technology is evolving to make solar panels capable of processing more of the energy that is passed through them. Hopefully in the near future we will be able to rely more and more on sunlight as a sustainable form of energy that will help cut back (or possibly eliminate) the need for burning fossil fuels.
There is however an increasing number of people that are converting their individual homes to utilize solar energy. Infrastructure on a mass scale may not exist to power entire communities and cities but at the individual level people are able to capture and successfully use this energy for their own needs. This is the direction the world is moving toward, clean, renewable and sustainable energy.
So effective is this method of energy production that the herdsmen of Mongolia, who because of the far reaching expanse of its steppes are isolated by vast distances from the power grid and therefore rely upon solar energy to supply their electrical needs. They are now able to bridge the great divide in technology that physical distance has kept them from in the past and now use cell phones while riding their horses.
Another form of energy that is capable of being renewable and sustainable is nuclear power. However, there are many concerns over this type of power source and the dangers that can arise if not handled properly. Apart from the fact that contamination and melt downs are an ever present reality, nuclear power is dangerous because of its byproducts which cannot be reabsorbed or destroyed.
In fact the byproducts from nuclear waste take millions of years to break down which means that they can never be dispersed freely into the ecosystem making storage a nightmare.
There is only a finite amount of space and the nuclear waste is fast filling up. While nuclear power fulfills an immediate need for us, we never know the aftermath or the far reaching consequences our future generations will inherit. So, while this energy source is one that will be capable of running large amounts of energy for many years to come, it has some serious drawbacks that must be taken into consideration if it is going to be used on a larger scale in the future.
For the time being, researchers continue to look for ways to implement renewable, sustainable forms of energy that can be used well into the future without harming the environment. The sense of urgency has increased as the concern over the environment has been addressed on the national stage where energy companies are exploring the use of solar, wind, and hydro power where they can.
Unfortunately for the time being, we have to continue to rely on fossil fuel energy until a realistic solution presents itself. What we can do right now is reduce our demand on these natural resources in order to preserve them for longer.
