Local energy is the delivery of renewable energy projects involving a range of public, private and community organizations for the benefit of local consumers operating within a defined area. Bill stated that "Local energy is more secure" and I agree with that. Hackers are constantly hitting the grids. Another benefit of local energy is that it's cheaper. Other benefits are increased efficiency can lower greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and other pollutants, as well as decrease water use. Also improving energy efficiency can lower individual utility bills, create jobs, and help stabilize electricity prices and volatility. Other benefits are improving air quality, lowering energy costs, supporting local economic development, improving public health, and increasing energy system reliability. A form of renewable energy being used is Solar power. Solar power is usable energy generated from the sun in the form of electric or thermal energy. Solar energy is captured in a variety of ways, the most common of which is with photovoltaic solar panels that convert the sun’s rays into usable electricity. Aside from using photovoltaics to generate electricity, solar energy is commonly used in thermal applications to heat indoor spaces or fluids. Residential and commercial property owners can install solar hot water systems and design their buildings with passive solar heating in mind to fully take advantage of the sun's energy with solar technology. I know myself will be looking into this when I retire and but my home.
References:
Local Energy Scottland, https://www.localenergy.scot/what-is-local-energy/
Bill Nussey, Nov 16, 2017, Accelerating the Shift to Clean Energy, https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=987&v=BSXk30p4f8Y&feature=emb_title
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
Energy Sage, https://www.energysage.com/solar/
Reply
I agree with your sentiments on this topic. Renewable energy has proved more than once to be more effective than nuclear energy among other sources of energy where most governments spend a lot of money on annual basis. I my view, the current world needs to be conscious about the issue of energy consumption, and specifically, the type of energy we consume. The reason for this is because the rate of depletion of human life support systems within the natural environment such as ozone layer, ice on mountain peaks, among others is alarming. Local energy is cheap, environmental friendly, and most fundamentally sustainable. Humans should embrace it if they are truly promoting attainment of the SDGs for the next generations.
POST #2
Climate Change Top of FormBottom of Form
Jerome Anderson
The greenhouse effect is a natural process that warms the Earth's surface. When the Sun's energy reaches the Earth's atmosphere, some of it is reflected back to space and the rest is absorbed and re-radiated by greenhouse gases. The absorbed energy warms the atmosphere and the surface of the Earth.
Greenhouse gases include water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, ozone and some artificial chemicals such as chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs). The absorbed energy warms the atmosphere and the surface of the Earth. This process maintains the Earth’s temperature at around 33 degrees Celsius warmer than it would otherwise be, allowing life on Earth to exist.
Rising air temperatures affect the physical nature of the oceans. As air temperatures rise, water becomes less dense and separates from a nutrient-filled cold layer below. This is the basis for a chain effect that impacts all marine life that counts on these nutrients for survival.
There are two general physical effects of ocean warming on marine populations that are crucial to consider: Changes in natural habitats and food supply and Changing ocean chemistry/acidification.
Coral, one of the leading sources for the ocean's food and livelihood, is also changing with global warming. Naturally, coral secretes tiny shells of calcium carbonate in order to form its skeleton. Yet, as carbon dioxide from global warming is released into the atmosphere, acidification increases and the carbonate ions vanish. This results in lower extension rates or weaker skeletons in most corals.
The drastic climate change known as Holocene Climatic Optimum (HCO) and its effect on surrounding wildlife is not new. The HCO, a general warming period displayed in fossil records from 9,000 to 5,000 BP, proves that climate change can directly impact nature's inhabitants. In 10,500 BP, younger dryas, a plant that once spread throughout the world in various cold climates, became nearly extinct due to this warming period.
Toward the end of the warming period, this plant that so much of nature had depended on was only found in the few areas that remained cold. Just as younger dryas became scarce in the past, phytoplankton, coral reefs, and the marine life that depend on them are becoming scarce today. Earth's environment is continuing on a circular path that may soon lead to chaos within a once naturally balanced environment.
Reference:
Nicole Lindell, March 08, 2018, A Discordant Sea: Global Warming and its Effect on Marine Populations, https://www.thoughtco.com/global-warming-effect-on-marine-populations-1434916
Australian Government, Greenhouse Effect, https://www.environment.gov.au/climate-change/climate-science-data/climate-science/greenhouse-effect
Reply
I concur that the modern society is slowly killing the natural habitat that has been sustainable enough to support both flora and fauna for millions of years the universe has existed. Human activities are the key drivers of the greenhouse effect, especially with regard to industrialization. Human survival depends on sustainability of the ecosystem, which is Earth. It beats logic to destroy Earth and still explore possibilities of human survival in other planets such as Mars in the name of science and intelligence, yet if humans do not change they will still destroy other planets. Ultimately it is not all about humanity alone, humans need to focus on the aqua family and how global warming has affected their lives: polar bears no longer have homes while fish are dying on a daily basis.
POST #3
Adesuyi Fawehinmi
What is fracking?
Fracking is another term used for hydraulic fracturing, a process where rocks and rock formations are shattered to allow oil and gas to flow out. Below are the Cons of Fracking,
Requires Huge Amounts of Water : Each fracturing job would require 1 to 8 million gallons of water to complete. With much of the United States presently experiencing deficiency, this can mean bad news, especially when fracking is given more significance than the people who need the life-giving water.
Possible Water Contamination: Apart from probable water shortage, hydraulic fracturing is also related to water pollution. Pro-fracking may say that there is no proof of such circumstance, but this is only because areas presumed of contamination were not thoroughly investigated.
May Trigger Earthquakes: Processes of fracturing have been linked to several earthquakes in the U.S. and overseas, one of which is in Blackpool.
Possible Use of Hazardous Chemicals: The mixture used in fracking often includes additives of biocide, polymeric lubricant, surfactant, and stabilizer. Except because companies are not obliged to disclose any information about the chemicals they use, they have the liberty to change the ingredients.
Hoffman. J. (February 15, 2019). Potential Health and Environmental Effects of Hydrofracking in the Williston Basin, Montana. Retrieved from https://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/health/case_studies/hydrofracking_w.html
Thanks,
Adesuyi
Reply
This is an interesting discussion because it is built on the perspective of highlighting some of the many human activities that destroy the planet on a daily basis. Fracking, for instance, which is what humans use for mining oil and gas has led to more harm than good: loss of lives during earthquakes, hurricanes, caving of mine sites, and over utilization of water resources. Even as humanity advances in intelligence, industrialization, and science, sustainability should always be involved in many of these decisions that destroy the environment. For instance, sustainability in oil and gas mining can be attained through use of advanced technology that spots the exact trajectory to a mine and: this will reduce the damages incurred through fracking.
