Running head: RENEWABLE ENERGY: THE KEY TO A CLEAN FUTURE

Renewable Energy: The Key to a Clean Future

Mara Prata de Arajo
California State University Fullerton

RENEWABLE ENERGY: THE KEY TO A CLEAN FUTURE

Abstract
This paper extensively concentrates on renewable energy technologies, explaining in
details three important examples: wind power, solar power and hydropower some of the fastest
growing sectors of the renewable energy industry. The renewable energy technologies are
identified as an effective solution to reduce some environmental problems, such as air pollution,
acid precipitation, ozone depletion, climate change and global warming that are intrinsically
related with current energy use and supply, strongly based on fossil resources. Several aspects
related with renewable sources, environmental impacts and energy utilization are examined,
exposing positive and negative points of wind power, solar power and hydropower

RENEWABLE ENERGY: THE KEY TO A CLEAN FUTURE

1. Introduction
The concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere have reached 400 parts per
million, the highest in three million years (New Energy Finance, 2013). Growing evidence of
environmental degradation is due to a combination of several factors, such as the increase of world
pollution, energy consumption and industrial activity. These factors show the deep relation
between environmental and energy issues. However, problems with energy supply and use are
intrinsically related not only to global warming, but also to such environmental concerns as air
pollution, acid precipitation, ozone depletion, forest destruction and emission of radioactive
substances.
Energy will be a determining factor in whether the world can surpass the evident
environmental and energy crisis and make a transition to a sustainable global economy. The
renewable energy technologies are the key to a clean future and a stance based on the growth of
energy produced by renewable sources, such as wind, sun and water, is being adopted. These
solutions are discussed in more details in this paper, presenting positive and negative aspects of
the following renewable energy technologies: wind power, solar power and hydropower.
2. Renewable energy technologies
Renewable energy sources technologies produce marketable energy by converting natural
phenomena into useful energy forms. They are continually replenished and represent a massive
energy potential which dwarfs that of equivalent fossil resources. However, renewable energy
sources are generally diffused and not fully accessible, some are intermittent and all have distinct

RENEWABLE ENERGY: THE KEY TO A CLEAN FUTURE

regional variability. Such aspects of their nature gives rise to difficult, but solvable challenges
inherent in development and use of renewable energy resources.
Renewable sources of energy vary widely in their cost-effectiveness and in their
availability across the world. Although water, wind and other renewables may appear free, their
cost comes in collection, harnessing, and transporting the energy. According to a research
developed by Boomerang New Energy Finance in 2012, hydropower, solar power and wind power
represent an important part of the global renewable energy market. In the following figure, it is
possible to visualize with more details the investments performed in the several sectors of
renewable energy.
Figure 1: Asset finance of renewable energy assets by sector, 2012, $BN

RENEWABLE ENERGY: THE KEY TO A CLEAN FUTURE

2.1 Wind power

Wind power is the worlds fastest-growing energy technology. According to the Energy
Department report (2012), the United Sates is one of the worlds largest and fastest growing wind
markets. In 2012, wind energy became the number one source of new U.S. electricity generation
capacity for the first time representing 43 percent of all new electric additions and accounting
for $25 billion in U.S investment. This tremendous growth helped Americas total wind power
capacity surpass 60 GW at the end of 2012 representing enough capacity to power more than 15
million homes each year, or as many homes as in California and Washington state combined.
Renewable wind energy is an impressive energy strategy that reduces harmful greenhouse
gas emissions, diversifies the energy economy and brings innovative technologies on line. Large
and modern wind turbines are used to generate electricity with the natural winds energy, either
for individual use or for contribution to a utility power grid. The wind turbines usually have two
or three blades and they are mounted on tall tower to capture the most energy. As the blades turn,
the central shaft spins a generator to make electricity.
The power in wind increases rapidly with its speed, that is why wind turbines are placed in
areas of strong, steady winds. It generates electricity without producing pollutants, helping the
environment. However, there can be negative impacts in the nature, mainly related to wildlife
deaths. Frequently, birds and bats are killed by collision with wind turbines, but it is not more than
the number killed by collisions with other structures, such as buildings and airplanes. The impact
on wildlife can be reduced placing wind farms and individual turbines in appropriate areas.

RENEWABLE ENERGY: THE KEY TO A CLEAN FUTURE

2.2 Solar power

Solar power is a growing sector of renewable energy. It is considered a promising
alternative to face the challenges of expanding the supply of energy with less environmental
impact. Solar energy technologies use the sun's energy and light to provide heat, light, hot water,
electricity, and even cooling, for homes, businesses and industry. The practical applications can
be divided into two groups: solar photovoltaic (photovoltaic panels and cells) and thermal energy
(flat collectors and concentrators).
Photovoltaic system uses solar cells to convert sunlight directly into electricity. Although
sunlight is free, solar cells and the equipment needed to generate marketable energy are really
expensive, which contributes to elevate the cost of this type of energy generation. The other
practice, thermal energy, focuses in the capture of suns heat. Concentrating solar power systems
focus sunlight with mirrors to create a high-intensity heat source, which then produces steam or
mechanical power to run a generator that creates electricity. Flat-plate collectors absorb the sun's
heat directly into water or other fluids to provide hot water or space heating. And solar process
heating and cooling systems use specialized solar collectors and chemical processes to meet largescale hot water and heating and cooling needs.
The advantages of this type of energy are evident when the environmental costs of
extraction, generation, transmission, distribution and use of fossil energy sources are compared
with the equivalent from solar sources. Solar powers potential for supplying is enormous, but the
electricity generated is still too expensive more than twice as expensive as electricity from fossil
fuels. The other negative point is the variability. Available sunlight varies considerably as a result

RENEWABLE ENERGY: THE KEY TO A CLEAN FUTURE

of differences in cloud cover and latitude, and also varies with the seasons. In the summer, longer
daylight hours and a higher sun angle provide more solar power, compared to the winter when the
sun is up for fewer hours and at a lower position in the sky.
2.3 Hydropower
Hydropower makes up seven percent of total U.S. electric generating capacity and is the
United States largest source of renewable electricity, avoiding over 200 million metric tons of
carbon emissions each year (U.S. Department of Energy, 2014). Because it has no pollutant air
emission, hydropower helps to reduce the air pollution, acid precipitation and ozone depletion.
However, the place where a hydroelectric power plant will be built has to be chosen carefully. If
a large amount of vegetation is growing along the riverbed when a dam is built, it can decay in the
lake that is created, causing the buildup and release of methane, a potent greenhouse gas.
Hydropower is a renewable energy source that uses the Earths water cycle to generate
electricity. Water evaporates from the Earth's surface, forms clouds, precipitates back to earth,
and flows toward the ocean. The movement of water as it flows downstream creates kinetic energy
that can be converted into electricity. A hydroelectric power plant converts this energy into
electricity by forcing water, often held at a dam, through a hydraulic turbine that is connected to a
generator. The water exits the turbine and is returned to a stream or riverbed below the dam.
Hydropower is mostly dependent upon precipitation and elevation changes; high
precipitation levels and large elevation changes are necessary to generate significant quantities of
electricity. In order to produce hydropower, it is necessary to integrate river flow, an uneven land
and an amount of water in a given period of time. Therefore, an area such as the mountainous

RENEWABLE ENERGY: THE KEY TO A CLEAN FUTURE

Pacific Northwest has more productive hydropower plants than an area such as the Gulf Coast,
which might have large amounts of precipitation but is comparatively flat.
3. Conclusion
The renewable energy technology is an interesting topic to study and one that is growing
in importance as energy and environmental concerns become more pronounced. The high
concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, the climate change, the global warming and
the air pollution are just some reflections of the current environmental degradation that affects all
the world.
Renewable energy is an effective solution to surpass current environmental problems. It
offers a secure energy supply with less negative impacts in the nature. Even with the variability
and relative high cost of installation, wind power, solar power and hydropower are gaining
increasingly space in the energy market. Renewable technologies are the key to a clean future,
representing an excellent alternative to the current energy supply strongly based on fossil
resources.

RENEWABLE ENERGY: THE KEY TO A CLEAN FUTURE

References
DOE report finds major potential to grow U.S. hydropower. (2014, April 29). . Retrieved July
20, 2014, from http://www.pennenergy.com/articles/pennenergy/2014/04/doe-reportfinds-major-potential-to-grow-u-s-hydroelectric-power.html
Energy Dept. Reports: U.S. Wind Energy Production and Manufacturing Reaches Record Highs.
(2013, August 6). . Retrieved July 19, 2014, from http://energy.gov/articles/energy-deptreports-us-wind-energy-production-and-manufacturing-reaches-record-highs
Global Trends in Renewable Energy Investment 2013. Frankfurt School-UN Environment
Programme (UNEP) Centre & Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF). Report number:
6, 2013.
Renewable Energy Sources in the United States. (n.d.). . Retrieved July 8, 2014, from
http://nationalatlas.gov/articles/people/a_energy.html
Sadorsky, P. Modeling renewable energy company risk. Energy Policy, 40, 39 - 48. Retrieved July
8, 2014, from the SienceDirect database.
Sorensen, B. (2010). Renewable Energy: Physics, Engineering, Environmental Impacts,
Economics & Planning. Burlington: Elsevier Science.