Renewable Energy
Sources
Joebeth(Joy) Rodriguez Melendez
According to the Union of Concerned Scientists in the article
“Coal Power Impacts” coal has dangerous impacts in
everyday life
● Cancer
● Asthma
● Breathing Difficulties
● Heart problems
● Neurological Disorders
● Premature Death
Renewable energy sources are new
innovative ways to produce energy,
using the Earth’s natural resources
In “Renewable Energy” author Chris Frewin States “Renewable energy accounts for 13.5% of the
world’s total energy supply, and 22% of the world's electricity. Renewable energy systems are a major
topic when discussing the globe's energy future for two main reasons: Renewable energy systems
provide energy from sources that will never deplete and renewable energy systems produce less
greenhouse gas emissions than fossil fuel energy systems.While renewable energy systems are better for
the environment and produce less emissions than conventional energy sources, many of these sources
still face difficulties in being deployed at a large scale including, but not limited to, technological
barriers, high start-up capital costs, and intermittency challenges”
Why do some experts believe the U.S.
should pursue renewable energy
sources?
They provide :
● Self Sustaining Energy
● Energy Free of Pollution
● Long Lasting
Sadly the technology for this too expensive. In “Barriers to
Renewable Energy Technologies” by the Union of Concerned
Scientists says “ Higher construction costs might make
financial institutions more likely to perceive renewables as
risky, lending money at higher rates and making it harder
for utilities or developers to justify the
investment...However, if costs over the lifespan of energy
projects are taken into account, wind and utility-scale solar
can be the least expensive energy generating sources…”.
In “Renewables Cheaper than 75 Percent of U.S. Coal Fleet, Report Finds” The
Yale Environment 360 claims that renewable energy sources are less expensive
than fossil or coal energy sources. They state, “Nearly 75 percent of coal-fired
power plants in the United States generate electricity that is more expensive
than local wind and solar energy resources...By 2025, enough wind and solar
power will be generated at low enough prices in the U.S. that it could
theoretically replace 86 percent of the U.S. coal fleet with lower-cost
electricity.”
● Toxic Substances
● Disruption of Wildlife
● Big Amounts of Land
● Great Amounts of Water
● Weather Conditions
● Maintenance
ALTHOUGH…
● Clean Energy for the World
● Great Amounts of Future Savings
● Long Lasting
● More Jobs
● Economy
While creating other problems of its own, renewable
energy sources prove to be more clean and useful compared
to coal and fossil fuels. The pros of renewable energy
sources in the end outweigh their cons. For this matter one
can agree that experts and the general public should put
their interest in pursuing these energy sources.
Work Cited
“Barriers to Renewable Energy Technologies” Union of Concerned Scientists, 20 Dec. 2017,
https://www.ucsusa.org/resources/barriers-renewable-energy-technologies. Accessed 8
“Coal Power Impacts.” Union of Concerned Scientists, 15 Nov. 2017,
https://www.ucsusa.org/resources/coal-power-impacts. Accessed 5 Nov. 2019.
“Energy Sources for State and Local Governments.” United States Environmental Protection
Agency,
https://www.epa.gov/statelocalenergy/local-renewable-energy-benefits-and-resources.
Accessed 7 Nov. 2019.
“4 Environmental Impacts of Renewable Electricity Generation” National Academies Press,
2010, https://www.nap.edu/read/12987/chapter/6. Accessed 7 Nov. 2019.
Frewin, Chris. “Renewable Energy” Student Energy,
https://www.studentenergy.org/topics/renewable-energy. Accessed 7 Nov. 2019.
“Renewables Cheaper than 75 Percent of U.S. Coal Fleet, Report Finds.” Yale Environment
360, 25 Mar. 2019,
https://e360.yale.edu/digest/renewables-cheaper-than-75-percent-of-u-s-coal-fleet-report
-finds. Accessed 6 Nov. 2019.
