"In 2015, the average annual electricity consumption for an U.S. residential utility customer was 10,812 kilowatt-hours (kWh)." Based on the population of the united states verse other countries in the world, we use a vast amount of energy per person. As the population grows we need more energy such as renewable and nonrenewable energy.
What is renewable and non-renewable energy?
Renewable energy includes: solar, wind, geothermal, bioenergy, hydropower, ocean energy, hydrogen/fuel cells, and green power. Non-renewable energy is known for, crude oil, natural gas, coal, and uranium. Renewable energy is widely known for being great for the environment and helps save the earth. Although, we do use non-renewable energies more then we should.
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Obviously, those don’t sound too good for our environment and for us humans; our health. A good pro about coal is known for being the cheapest out of all the other non-renewable energies. Also, it is one of the most stable energy resources out of the other sources. "Wind energy typically generate electricity at only 25 to 40 percent of their capacity because their blades are often still. In contrast, a traditional coal plant operates at about 70 percent capacity." The coal company has had some faults. "In the last five years, the coal industry has lost 94 percent of its market value- the price at which it would trade in the …show more content…
“Last year, China became the largest provider of wind energy in the world, with 41,800 megawatts of electricity capacity. The United States, with about 40,000 megawatts, fell to second.” China has been known for trying to use all renewable energies instead of non-renewable energies. United states being second is great but 40,000 megawatts aren’t very much considering how many people there is in the United States. “Local officials in Wisconsin, as in many other states, have the authority to determine how close a wind turbine may be built to a house or property line. This has led to a conflicting set of rules, with residents worried that wind farms are encroaching on farms and subdivisions.” If you think about it, waking up every day and seeing big turbines in your backyard and may be blocking your view, that would suck and you would probably be upset. They made regulations for how far away turbines should be from people’s
Our country is currently suffering energy-wise, we have been powering with inefficient sources for years now and the harm that it is doing to the country has started to become apparent. Renewable energy is the only way to stop, or at the very least, set back the inevitable downfall of our ecosystem. I think that the next big breakthrough for renewable energy is implementing off-grid communities that use renewable sources as their main sources of power, so that we can potentially escape the energy rut that we got ourselves stuck in. America is wasting their finite resources, such as coal and nuclear, when we could actually be using renewable sources that will never run out. Most of our country’s citizens have never thought about where their energy comes from, or they do not even care.
Coal also can be very damaging to the environment. People in the coal industry don’t always follow the precautions needed for helping the recovering environment that coal mining hurt. Most of the time water is polluted from the byproduct the is produced while mining coal. Like acid mine drainage, air pollution from coal-fired power plants, coal dust, coal sludge, and mountaintop
The sun has been a major aspect of life since the beginning of time. People used many other forms of energy before electricity was discovered. There has been a debate over energy resources for years. Many people are worried about what current energy resources may be doing to the environment. Oil spills and nuclear power plant mishaps have only been a few accidents that have had a big impact on the environment and the people who inhabit it. There are plenty of energy sources that do not harm the environment and are still able to get the job done. Solar energy is one energy alternative that will insure the betterment of the country and, at the same time, protect the natural environment.
With concern over global warming growing, people are starting to turn a more serious eye toward cleaner sources of energy. Instead of solar power making a comeback as the ideal form, we are seeing a growth in the use of wind power. Wind farms are beginning to crop up all around the country. This new trend has gathered significant attention. Questions are being raised concerning the effects wind farms may have, from critics and supporters alike. Michelle Nijhuis, in the article “Selling the Wind” discusses the arguments on behalf of and in opposition to the increasing use of wind power, addressing what the consequences may be on the United States.
Roughly 68 percent of the electricity generated in the United States of America is produced by fossil fuels. That includes petroleum, natural gases and coal. Although coal contributes around 37 percent to the factor, it is by far not the cleanest of them all. Some might argue that it is good for the economy because it is cheap and it creates jobs.. But the other side of the story portrays coal mining as a process that kills thousands of coal miners a year and that it practically destroys the environment around the mining with soot and air pollution. Mining now days is a big part of urbanization; due to how cheap the process is. There are different ways that coal mining is done. Mainly mountain top removal is done but there are many other
Coal companies have been destroying our mountains, polluting our water, and poisoning our communities for far too long.
The reason we don’t replace coal energy is because it produces a profitable amount of energy, just like most cars get fairly good mpg. While solar and wind energy are not efficient and take a ton of sun and wind as well as entire farms of panels or mills to produce the same amount of energy, which goes back to solar and wind being more expensive.
Wind power is another form of solar power. Wind isn’t only a clean fuel source, but it is one of the most inexpensive e alternative sources of energy. Just as long wind continues to blow and the sun shines then wind power can produce energy to send to many different areas. There aren’t many locations that have continuous wind. And because of that the widespread development of wind power isn’t as great as it could be. Although there are more advantages than disadvantages when it comes to this energy source, the disadvantages should be taken just as seriously. Wind power can harm animals, there was a study that stated birds were coming in contact with turbines and dying. For many people the noise from the turbines is unbearable, and that’s something else that should be taken into
Burning and mining coal for fuel is harmful to the environment but because how cheap and easy it is to find many people are unwilling to give it up as a fuel source. One of the problems with coal is that they are limited and are non-renewable so once it has been used we won’t be able to use it again.
The United States currently relies heavily on coal, oil, and natural gas for its energy. While the price of natural gas per barrel continues to plummet, the United States is constantly seeking new sources of renewable energy. Renewable energy consists of any type of natural resource (solar power, ocean power, wind power, rain, snow, etc.). that naturally and automatically replenishes itself. Renewable energy is important because it is infinite and everlasting, meaning our children and our children’s children will be able to utilize these resources long after we are gone.
Energy can be put into two broad categories Renewable energy and none renewable energy. Renewable energy sources can be reused continually as they are abundantly found in nature. All of them are non-polluting but devices used to collect the energy may impact the environment adversely. They are free but producing storage equipment or converting them into another form of energy may be costly.
Although renewable energy can be expensive to build, it has less environmental damages in comparison to non-renewable energy. Besides the natural resources such as sun, wind, water and hydrogen, we also have geothermal power, and biofuels as renewable sources. First of all, solar energy is the energy produced when the sun heats the solar panel. Thus, when the sun heat the panels, it produces electricity. Solar power produces energy during the day and can storage energy for the night. Solar power does not pollute so much the environment. However, it has high maintenance cost, and it takes a large land space. Secondly, 15% of World electricity comes from wind. In order to have wind energy, it is important to have turbines to get the wind in order to produce electricity. Tall turbines produce more energy. The drawbacks of wind power are that it requires steady wind and its installations may interfere with TVs, cellphones, and other electrical devices. However, it is quickly built and there is no pollution nor noise produced. Third of all, the water falls in the dam can also generate electricity. For instance, 19% of world electricity comes from water. Regardless of the fact that hydroelectric power has low maintenance costs and does not pollute the environment, it can cause earthquakes, and destroy wild rivers. Only 0.3% of world energy
Global warming is an extremely important and troubling aspect of the world’s current situation. This is due to the fact that the majority of the world’s energy production is from non-renewable energy sources, which are energy sources that either can not be naturally replenished or require thousands of years to be restored. Based on our current energy usage growth rates, there are an estimated 100 years left before our natural resource reserves are exhausted. (Non Renewable Natural Resources: How Much Is Left, Environmental Thinker) China alone consumes nearly as much coal as the combined usage of coal from the rest of the world. (US Energy Information Administration, China Consumes Nearly as Much Coal as the Rest of the World Combined) There is visible evidence of this happening with the increasing pollution levels. Carbon Dioxide and Methane pollution levels in the world reached a record high in 2012 and are 260% higher than the pre-industrial levels. (UN: CO2 Pollution Levels at a Record High, John Heilprin) Converting our world into a more renewable energy dependent society is the most advantageous and likely method for preserving our dwindling fossil fuel supply while also protecting the world that we call home.
Fuels like coal, and oil that once were a fine innovation in creating energy are now rapidly deleting and one day will be gone forever; energy that won’t last is often referred to as non-renewable energy. Besides being set up to fail and become inefficient in the future, fossil fuel energy is not clean to use and poses several environmental complications. Coal, for instance is “the dirtiest of all fossil fuels. Coal combustion not only produces sulfur oxides and nitrogen oxides that contribute to acid rain and snow, it generates millions of tons of particulates that cause asthma and other respiratory diseases.” As with all usage of fossil fuels, it creates enormous amounts of carbon dioxide, which contributes to greenhouse gas. Not only are fossil fuels dirty, they also pose as a security risk and unforgiving on the American wallet. (Saini)
There are two types of resources using to produce electricity, non-renewable energy resources and renewable energy resources. Non-renewable energy resources or known by fossil fuel such as wood, oil, gas and coal can be defined as solid, liquid or gaseous fuels formed in the ground after millions of years by chemical and physical changes in plants and animal residues under high temperature and pressure.