Today, fossil fuels like coal, gas and oil form the basis of most energy production. These energy sources negatively affect the environment and are going to be depleted eventually. Thus, it is necessary to invest in renewable energy resources. However, renewable energy resources must be viable and able to produce sufficient energy.
This paper examines the adoption of renewable energy resources as sustainable energy production sources. The paper also examines what it will take to ensure the world adopts these sources.
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Currently, the world depends excessively on fossil fuels for energy production with over 80 percent of energy production coming from fossil fuels (International Energy Agency, 2017). The current rate of energy demand in the world means that fossil fuels cannot replenish quickly to meet this increasing demand. The use of these energy sources is also related to environmental pollution, climate change and global warming. Renewable energy is currently considered as a potential solution to substitute fossil fuels. However, renewable resources like ocean power, bioenergy, hydropower, geothermal, wind and solar account for about 20 percent of the global energy source (International Energy Agency, 2017).
Given the increasing human population in the world, the increasing energy demands, the depletion of fossil fuels in the coming years, and the problem of pollution, renewable energy sources offer an effective alternative to fossil fuels.
Renewable resources are beneficial to the environment as they have a modest influence on the environment. They have the potential to substantially reduce the release of unhealthy substances and gases into the environment, which are commonly linked with fossil fuels. Renewable energy resources also lead to notable indirect economic gains, for example, they do not need to be fitted with technologies to mitigate pollution unlike non-renewable resources (Duffy, Ayompe & Rogers, 2015). Once clean energy technologies are deployed there is no need to spend extra resources to clean up polluted waters or grounds contaminated with by-products of non-renewable energy sources.
Moreover, renewable energy resources operate on an unlimited supply of resources, which offers an attractive investment opportunity as the operation of renewable energy plants does not exhaust the finite resources in the earth (Krozer, 2013). In turn, this enhances the value of the resource base of the location hosting the facility through using indigenous resources for generating electricity. A country can greatly benefit by installing a renewable energy facility as this can reduce its reliance on imported fossil fuels. In turn, this can reduce its exposure to price volatility and currency fluctuations.
Renewable energy resources are also cost-effective when compared to non-renewable energy sources (Krozer, 2013). For example, new renewable energy plants less costly compared with non-renewable energy plants based on total cost, particularly when considering environmental expenses and gains and long-term fuel expenses (Duffy, Ayompe & Rogers, 2015). In the long term, renewable resources become a permanent, sustainable and low-cost source of energy once deployed. In turn, this offers future generations with a low-cost energy source that produce energy without degrading the environment.
However, the demands on renewable energy sources are disproportionate because they must keep up with the growing global population and contribute to the replacement of fossil fuels to meet future energy needs and protect the natural environment (International Energy Agency, 2017). While renewable energy sources offer a promising alternative, they must first become practicable as major producers of energy before replacing fossil fuels. Currently, the sources are not producing adequate energy and thus the only alternative to meet the growing energy demands from an increasing world population is still non-renewable sources. Thus, to ensure that the world extensively adopts renewable energy sources, governments should first establish a legal system to govern and encourage private sector players to invest in renewable energy resources and innovations.
In conclusion, governments and private investors can play a significant role to advance alternative energy resources in the form of renewable energy. Nevertheless, while renewable energy has many benefits and can supplement non-renewable energy sources, its capability to fully replace fossil fuel should be fully realized to make it a viable energy source.
References
Duffy, A., Ayompe, L., & Rogers, M. (2015). Renewable energy and energy efficiency: assessment of projects and policies . Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell.
Krozer, Y. (2013). Cost and benefit of renewable energy in the European Union. Renewable energy , 50 , 68-73.
International Energy Agency. (2017). World Energy Outlook 2017 . Retrieved March 12, 2018, from http://www.iea.org/bookshop/750-World_Energy_Outlook_2017
