Using Alternative Energy Sources in the U.S. The United States has many directions to choose from in the oncoming future of energy. “Options for the world's energy future may include surprises, thanks to innovative research under way around the world” (LePoire 1). History has shown that surprises can change generations . Since the mid 1900’s, experts have been conducting research on the way our nation has been using energy. The United States have relied on other countries to gain knowledge with their energy sources. China is one huge partner that helps them out a lot. They have experimented with many different alternative energy sources and have given the U.S lots of helpful information for improving our energy demands. Even though we already meet most of our energy requirements, we still look into improving it everyday to improve our way of living. Despite its ability to be supplied with other nations to be supplied with other nations, the U.S. must invest in alternative power sources if it is to meet the energy demands of the 21st century. The United States relies mainly on other nations to receive there alternative energy source. An alternative energy source is energy that is solar, wind or nuclear energy that can replace fossil fuel sources such as coal, oil or natural gas (Alternative Energy 1). The United States is very close to China with making decisions. China is one of our biggest competitors with energy (Using Alternative Energy 1). China has experimented with many alternative ways of using energy within the world. One major energy source that is used a lot is coal. Coal generates around 44 % of energy but tends to be a big air polluter. Although coal mines seem like a brilliant idea, it causes many b... ... middle of paper ... ...pposing Viewpoints. N.p., 13 June 2011. Web. 30 Mar. 2014. http://ic.galegroup.com/ic/ovic/ReferenceDetailsPage/ReferenceDetailsWindow?failOverType=&query=&prodId=OVIC&windowstate=normal&contentModules=&mode=view&displayGroupName=Reference&limiter=&u=huds29590&currPage=&disableHighlighting=false&displayGroups=&sortBy=&source=&search_within_results=&p=OVIC&action=e&catId=&activityType=&scanId=&documentId=GALE%7CCV2644150574 "Nuclear Energy." Opposing Viewpoints. N.p., 2013. Web. 30 Mar. 2014. http://ic.galegroup.com/ic/ovic/ReferenceDetailsPage/ReferenceDetailsWindow?failOverType=&query=&windowstate=normal&contentModules=&mode=view&displayGroupName=Reference&limiter=&u=huds29590&currPage=&disableHighlighting=true&displayGroups=&sortBy=&source=&search_within_results=&p=OVIC&action=e&catId=GALE%7C00000000LVY0&activityType=&scanId=&documentId=GALE%7CPC3010999227
Introduction The reliance on other countries for fossil fuels that produce energy has put the United States of America at risk of being pulled into unstable regions around the world, jeopardizing international relationships and putting its own citizens in harm’s way. America needs to balance both the pursuit of alternative energy solutions and reducing energy usage. Our military runs on fossil fuels produced by other nations who do not have similar interests or values as the United States, ultimately adding unwanted risk that becomes difficult to manage. There are advantages to alternative energy solutions that could allow for America to become an independent energy nation, eliminating the need to support and stabilize various regions around the world. The U.S. Military needs to reduce its overall energy usage by taking advantage of breakthrough technologies that could be integrated into current systems.
The path that the United States took to become the largest consumer of power in the world was one largely chosen by market forces and government intervention. The role of culture on the use of energy is negligible in comparison with the influences of economic and political factors. The choices to adopt several new methods to produce energy were caused by the backing that these energies had in creating wealth or saving money for those who used the new energy and by the backing of the government through direct and indirect subsidies. One can examine the transitions to coal, oil, nuclear power, and current transitions toward green energy in order to see that the market forces are the dominant factor in dramatic increase of energy consumption in the United States.
Thirty-seven percent of the energy used in the United States comes from oil. Natural gas comes in at second, contributes twenty five percent of the energy. Coal gives us twenty one percent of our energy while the other seventeen percent comes from other energy sources. Those other resources include nuclear, wind, and mostly solar. Besides the environmental harm that some people think fracking has, it has the potential to produce more natural gas and oil. It also is a non-renewable resource and will take a very long time for it to come back because of the earth’s natural creation. Solar and wind power are renewable, but do not produce enough energy to run our country. All of the solar panels and wind mills we have on the earth right now could ...
America is threatened by the destruction of their own environment. United States is known for their innovation towards alternative energy like solar power, wind power and nuclear power. However , these alternative energies are not completely beneficial towards the United States.
“By 2050, one-third of the world’s energy will need to come from solar, wind, and other renewable resources” (www.altenergy.org). America can no longer rely so heavily on nuclear energy. America needs to harness the energy found within natural, renewable resources. In fact, nuclear energy needs to be phased out completely because of its negative impact on health, the environment, and its overall cost.
Our nation is on the brink of an energy crisis and alternative means to produce
The development of science and technology has led to people considering using alternative fuels to generate electricity. There are many alternative fuels that can generate electricity, such as natural gas, nuclear energy, wind energy, hydraulic power and so on (Fossil Fuels Used to Generate Electricity Power Plant Emissions of North America). According to the statistics by the U.S. Energy Information Administration in 2009, the usage of coal was still the largest source to generate the power. Sources of electricity in the United States were generated by 44.9% of coal, 20.3% of nuclear, 23.4% of natural gas, 1% of petroleum, 6.9% of hydroelectric conventional and 3.6% of others (Electric Power Monthly with Data for February 2014). Coal is the main source of electricity in many parts of the world, including the United States. One of the reason why most countries prefer to use coal to generate the electricity is that the cost of using coal is cheaper than other sources but powerful. The coal power stations are much easier to set up than other power station. There are many advantages in generating power from coal. Coal as a source of electricity is economic, safe, effective and it is easy to eliminate the secondary pollutions and so on. As a result, the usage of coal should remain its status and cannot be replaced by other fuels.
The year is 2200. The world is going through a fossil fuel shortage. Oil reserves are almost completely consumed and it is becoming impossible to find new fossil fuel sources. Not prepared for this event to occur, The United States, has no alternative options. As a result of the oil shortage, the standard of living deteriorates. Heat in homes, supermarkets full of food, and transportation, all basic necessities taken for granted, will be depleted because fossil fuels are used to power almost everything. The key to the prevention of this future is renewable energy. Unfortunately the support for the use of renewable energy is weak and ineffective. Unless the US puts forth effort to research and promote the use of renewable energy to consumers, conversion from fossil fuels to renewable energy will no longer be an option.
The United States of America is known as the “Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave. America earned this nickname and has one of, if not the most productive economy in the world. However, one area that the United States shows great room for improvement in is the politics of energy. There’s plenty of ways that I believe America should begin preserving energy and become much more energy sufficient in general.Energy efficiency is defined as a way of managing and restraining the growth in energy consumption. In other words, using less energy in order to provide the same services. Since the late 1900’s, many countries around the world have been installing guidelines to improve energy efficiency. America’s energy intensity and efficiency ratings are nearly the lowest worldwide, due to its current debt, the immense population, and the nations recent budget cuts.
According to the US Environmental Protection Agency, over half of the oil used in the USA is imported. Most of this imported oil is located in the middle east and is controlled by OPEC members. Subsequent oil price shocks and price manipulation by OPEC have cost our economy dearly—about $1.9 trillion from 2004 to 2008—and each major shock was followed by a recession (Reduce). We may never be able to fully eliminate our need to import oil, but we can reduce cartel market control and the economic impact of price shocks by reducing our demand (Reduce). One way we can reduce our reliance on oil is through investing in renewable energy. Solar power, wind power, and hydro power are all forms of energy which come from renewable resources. Unlike oil, solar, wind and hydro electric power is abundant and can be obtained locally.
Alternative energy sources are renewable, and is most commonly referred to as free energy sources. There are many alternative energy sources such as hydro power, solar power, wind, biomass, and geothermal. Using alternative sources is more expensive in the long run, but it is the much safer option for our environment compared to fossil fuels. Although everything used is completely free, such as water and wind, the equipment used to generate these things are expensive. There are several pros and cons that come with the utilization of alternative energy sources.
Claim: Solar power has the potential to become the United States main supply of energy and replace are needs for more conventional and harmful forms of power generation.
Solar, wind, and hydroelectricity are all great ideas, however as outlined in the recent Alternative Lie Series these alternatives still require extensive research and development (R&D) before they can be deemed as viable options to replace oil. Some of these alternate energy sources are simply too costly for the average American family, while others have components that are not safe for the environment. Until suitable energy alternatives are created, Americans can continue to depend on our established network of oil refineries and pipelines.
The world that we live into today affords us the expectation that the flip a switch will turn the lights on. As populations increase and developing nations undergo dramatic economic growth, this energy demand will only continue to grow. The International Energy Agency (IEA) believes that “the world’s energy needs could be 50% higher in 2030 than they are today” (ElBaradei). Given this projected growth, it is necessary for world leaders must take action to secure the energy supply. Meaning that world leaders need to start seriously considering an alternative to non-renewable energy sources. “In 2012, the United States generated about 4,054 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity. About 68% of the electricity generated was from fossil fuel (coal, natural gas, and petroleum), with 37% attributed from coal” (U.S. Energy Information Administration). The fossil fuels that are used to supply over half of our country’s energy are in finite supply and are increasing in price to astronomical heights.
For years man has relied on energy in order to be successful in life. The industrial revolution relied on coal for the new inventions brought into the world. Life as has never been the same since then. However since that time, there has been little done to improve on energy efficiency and humans still primarily rely on fossil fuels for energy. For over a hundred years the Earth has become more polluted and dirtier than ever before. Now, with new, innovative technology there is an opportunity to change that and to rely on renewable, cleaner sources of energy. The main source of energy for the world should be alternative energy instead of energy from fossil fuels.