Renewable Energy: Is Wind Power Worth It?

For years the United States has been one of the leading countries in greenhouse gas emissions. Wind energy has the potential to become the base of sustainable energy for America’s future. Although there are a few disadvantages to wind energy, the protection it offers along with the economical and environmental advantages provide many reasons to use more wind energy and less coal and fossil fuels in America.

At the beginning of last year, I convinced my family to start using environmentally products, focusing on green technology. In order to apply environmental technology properly and effectively, I had to figure out what alternative forms of energy existed and how well they worked. This led to my questioning: what other forms of energy could the United States be pursuing to increase its production of electricity? In an effort to research different form of energy and their benefits and detriments, I read two articles: “A Letter to the Editor” by David Rockwood and “Why Uranium is the New Green” by William Sweet. In his letter, David Rockwood, a professional engineer, discusses the several inaccuracies and possible ramifications of wind power as a main source of electricity. Rockwood claims that wind power is unreliable because of flaws in its system and design, not to mention the detrimental environmental impact. Similarly, in his article William Sweet, a college graduate, talks about different ways to impose some kind of carbon regulation. Sweet compares nuclear and wind power to coal-burning power, remarking that nuclear and wind power technologies can make an immediate beneficial difference on greenhouse gas emissions. Despite the fact that Rockwood goes in depth on only wind power while Sweet talks about multiple sources of power, both of the articles made me think that the United States should pursue some other form of energy to increase its production of electricity.

For years, many scientists, environmentalists, and energy experts have been studying how human’s creation and use of energy has impacted our environment. These experts have discovered some troubling facts. Most of our country’s energy is created from burning fossil fuels that pollute our atmosphere, contribute to global warming, and thus threaten the future of our planet. But there’s a safe and effective solution to this problem: nuclear power. Nuclear power should be used more in the United States to create clean power that doesn’t pollute our environment, in order to help combat climate change.

A substantial amount of wind power’s appeal exists in the low amount of environmental impact it has; wind turbines do not produce atmospheric emissions that cause acid rain or greenhouse gasses. If only twenty percent of the nation’s electricity came from wind power, one third of emissions that come from power plants could be eliminated. This fact is potent with worry over global warming still high.

First off, nuclear waste is very harmful to the environment. If not stored correctly, it could lead to many fatal disasters. Not only is the nuclear waste not

The lab tested various properties associated with wind turbines while measuring the effect on the power. It was shown that wind turbines can supply a significant amount of energy and power. This wind energy has an important application with wind turbines across windy areas of the United States. These turbines can provide power as a replacement for nonrenewable resources. Although wind energy might not be the most vital form of energy currently, it could become a very important alternate energy source in the near future. Wind turbines can be placed all across the United States wherever there is a strong amount of wind. When talking about implementing wind energy there are a lot of things to think about.

Everyone knows that the wind is one of the most significant factor of weather and climate because of its role in influencing the distribution of energy and moisture between the parts of the globe. Recently, people have begun to exploit the wind energy which is witnessing the fastest growth in the world. In fact, this source of energy is growing rapidly in all parts of the world. So, most of governments are trying to use wind power for different aspects. In addition, two decades of efforts to achieve technical progress has led to the production of very sophisticated wind turbines which are adjustable, easy and quick to install. Wind power may have many disadvantages, but the advantage of wind energy is more than the disadvantages. So, there are many environmental advantages of wind power such as renewable source, reduction of greenhouse gases, reduction of water consumption, and taking a small space in the land.

So the question is, now that we have created all of this toxic waste, what do we do with it? What can be done to safely store it or better yet transform it into non-toxic waste? Governments around the world are considering different methods of waste disposal, but so far there has not been much progress in the most effective way to handle it. Several methods have been discussed, which include long-term above ground storage, like the United States currently uses on Yucca Mountain in Nevada. Other methods discussed are outer space disposal, ocean disposal and deep in-ground disposal, among many other suggestions. However, things that must be taken into consideration are earthquakes and other catastrophic events such as terrorist attacks. We have seen the effects of the tsunami and earthquake in 2011 that caused a major accident at the site of the Fukushima, Japan nuclear plant. To this day, this plant is still too radioactive for anyone to be able to safely

After being elected, President Obama canceled the funding of the main site for storing nuclear waste in Yucca Mountain Nevada; therefore, it is likely that the production of new nuclear power plants will be halted for another ten years. ( Stieglitz, par 6) However, eventually when we are forced to produce mass amounts of electricity with less emissions nuclear power will be the obvious choice.

Even when nuclear waste was buried in the ground at special dump sites, it still harmed the area and wildlife because the waste would, again, rot away its container. Today, countries around the world are still faced with the problem of nuclear waste. Is there any way to stop nuclear waste from hurting Mother Nature? The answer is yes. If the world stops using nuclear energy, then there will be no waste that would hurt the Earth.

In a time where the whole world is “going green” there is a push to develop a new clean source of energy that does not pollute the atmosphere. Solar, and Wind energy are experiencing a large amounts of growth, making leaps and bounds in every part of their development; however what citizens, and lawmakers have failed to notice is the best possible “green” energy source has been around for a long time. Nuclear energy is the best possible solution to the world energy crisis, providing enormous amounts of energy without polluting the atmosphere, or taking up open land to be used for agriculture or other development.

The four necessities of human life are water, shelter, oxygen, and food, but as today’s digital society continues to advance, a new dependability on power has added electricity to that list. The capitalization on this new necessity generated an industry focused on energy. Over the years this industry has grown substantially, from coal, to fossil fuels, to natural gas, to nuclear power, and finally to renewable energy while all trying to maintain a balance between the power produced, and damage done to the earth. Energy is a rapidly growing industry that is always on the race to find the most efficient “clean” recourse; when contrasting the two major options, nuclear power and renewable energy, it is very clear that renewable is the more efficient of the two, providing safer, cleaner, cheaper energy that gives power corporations better investment options in this ever-expanding industry.

As it can be seen, wind energy has helped Malawi in many ways but, what would the outcome have been if William had found a book containing another renewable energy source? Would it have been nuclear or hydroelectricity (which is used in Malawi but isn’t very effective)? Would he have found a text covering geothermal energy, rendered useless in this region and give up? Nevertheless, these mysteries will never be solved, although another with the possibility of being solved shows its face. What is another renewable energy source Malawi could use besides wind energy? Solar energy. Along with the wind energy in Wimbe it is briefly stated that solar energy is also being used as well (287). What if Malawi switched over to purely solar energy? How would people benefit this change? To decipher these intricate questions one must delve into solar energy in and of itself. Solar energy is an alternate energy source (much like wind energy) which collects solar radiation (radiation- is a form of energy transfer, instead of direct contact like conduction, radiation transfigures energy through electromagnetic waves) and converts it into useable electricity (“Advantages”). Why solar energy for this remote, poor nation? Compared to the present energy source (hydroelectricity) and wind energy it has many advantages. Unlike windmills, solar panels have multiple uses; for one, the most obvious one, it provides electricity, additionally, solar panels can provide heat (“Advantages”). Although,

When the words nuclear energy comes out of an individual’s mouth there are always people associating it with harm. Most of time people think of the nuclear bombs, nuclear waste or other horrible incidents. There is no doubt that these are the wrong ways of using and looking at nuclear energy. However, there are many positives about nuclear energy. Unfortunately, the nuclear energy that could be talked about today is being ignored and shut down. The thought of terrible incidents are clouding the vision for a potential brighter and better future. The present day people, filled with too much sensitivity, are obstructing those who try to better their countries with the addition of more nuclear reactors. Although nuclear waste can be hazardous, in fact, nuclear energy has a very positive impact on the economy and the environment.

It is clear that the world is in desperate need of new sources of electricity. Right now, more than 70 percent of the world’s power comes from coal, natural gases, and oil. All of these sources are not only unrenewable, but they are polluting our environment. When they are used, they release greenhouse gases into the Earth’s atmosphere and quickly start to make the global temperature rise. We can already see the impacts of climate change: icecaps are melting, ocean levels are rising, animals are going extinct, the air is becoming unsafe to breathe, and the world is getting hotter every year. These impacts are only going to get worse and more prominent if we don’t find a solution. Considering that the U.S. is the second largest contributor to greenhouse gases, we need to act quickly. Luckily, we have the technology to start using cleaner energy and therefore repairing the damage that we have done to our environment. The solution is nuclear energy. The United States needs to use more nuclear power because it creates less waste both in our land and air, it uses less space than other energy sources, and it is much safer than other energy sources.