The Most Critical Environmental Issues In Hawaii

Florida Public Service Commission forecasts from current trends that by 2024 the use of environmentally harmful energy sources such as coal, nuclear power, and oil will decrease (2). The use of natural gas is forecasted to rise to generate 64.73% of Florida’s energy (Florida Public Service Commission, 2). According to the forecast by Florida Public Service Commission, the use of other sources to generate energy will also decrease

The article “The Island in the Wind” written by Elizabeth Kolbert shows that an island can generate clean electricity for its entire population, and hopes the world can too. On the Danish island of Samso lives a population of people who have learned the importance of their environment. In a decade they have switched from being an entirely coal and fossil fuel run island, to producing all of their energy from wind on their own island. Not only are they producing all of their energy yet they are yielding so much that they can export energy to other areas. “ By 2001, fossil-fuel use on Samso had been cut in half. By 2003, instead of importing electricity, the island was exporting it, and by 2005 it was producing from renewable sources more energy

In Hawaii, economic and environmental choices often go hand-in-hand. Our state’s location in the middle of the Pacific Ocean has created a natural paradise which draws people from all over the world who, in turn, bring economic prosperity to the state through our tourism industry. However, it is also undeniable that sustainability and clean energy are essential to Hawaii due to our bearings in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Tourism and development demand tremendous amounts of energy, land, and resources. Some argue that we must continue to exploit our land and resources for tourism and development, which supports us financially. Not only does Hawaii’s economy depend on others, but Hawaii as a whole is pathetically dependent on others in every aspect. The dependence on imports that we are currently imprisoned to threatens our resources and our way of life. Currently, 95% of Hawaii’s energy comes at great cost from imported fossil fuels. Every year, 47.2 million barrels of oil, or roughly 34 barrels per person in Hawaii, are

Protecting Hawaii’s rain forest from the invasion of Corporate America is Bill McKibben’s intention as an environmentalist. His 28-paragraph article, “Power Play Endangers Hawaii’s Rain Forest,” appeared in Rolling Stone, a popular culture magazine, on May 31, 1990. He argues that producing power through geothermal drilling harms the Wao Kele o Puna rain forest, the environment, and the people that live nearby. He also presents alternative methods for power, hoping that people will consider these, such as solar-water heating systems and energy efficient gadgets. Unfortunately, his elevated, subjective stance and attempt to convince his audience through

Meanwhile, in Cuba, they produce their energy by using (geothermal, solar, wind, wood and

A.Many of the cars that drive by on the highway, the flame that heats dinner on the stove, and the electrical power that flow through homes share a common attribute: they are fueled by natural gas or oil, both of which are fundamental sources of energy in the US and are mined through the process of fracking.

The U.S. is using non-renewable resources affecting the environment and the resource itself negatively. This is a problem because the fossil fuels are creating a tremendous amount of Carbon Dioxide and the Carbon Dioxide is polluting the air. This is bad for the environment because of the amount of pollution and because of the way you obtain fossil fuels. This resource is not renewable, this means that the resource will run out over time. In this day and age, the demand for this resource is increasing rapidly due to overpopulation and the demand for more cars. If we could come up with a renewable resource to replace fossil fuels, then we wouldn't have to rely on a non-renewable resource any longer. This is where hydropower comes in. hydropower should replace fossil fuels and the U.S. a better place.

Global warming or climate change is at the top of the agenda as far as major environmental issues go. All our current environmental issues end up becoming a global problem. Take any one, two, or even three issues; water levels rising, carbon emissions, temperature increases and you have global warming. These issues and more combined starts a cascade effect like gradual heating of earth, ocean levels start to rise due to melting of polar ice caps in short, a greenhouse effect.

Hawaii’s geography is optimal to make use of biofuel, solar, and geothermal resources (Brown et al. 2008,

Hydropower, energy taken from flowing or falling water, had been the number 1, main source of renewable energy in Costa Rica since about 1989, (Worland) making up about 80% of the electricity produced in the country. One particular ICE (Costa Rican Electricity Institute), the government owned provider of power, hydroelectric plant and reservoir near the Arenal volcano produces 21% of the energy for the whole country alone.

Credibility: I’m sure you’ve all heard about or seen windmills and solar panels. For those of you here on Okinawa there’s no way you haven’t seen the giant white windmills and street lights equipped with solar panels. These forms of alternative energy are a growing trend here on Okinawa as the island strives to free itself from energy dependence

Hydroelectric power plant is one of the major power plants all over the world in order to create electricity. It is also one of the best renewable energy sources on the planet earth. In ranking, Canada is the third largest country to produce hydroelectricity power. The efficiency of this power source is 90% and this is very impressive as the percentage of efficiency is very high. Hydro power plants generate 24% of the world’s electricity. More than 1 billion people are associated with hydro power plants as they use the power supply from hydro power plants.

Coal, gas and oil and are being consumed at an unsustainable rate. Additionally, fossil fuels contribute to global warming, which has numerous, dangerous repercussions. One alternative energy source is solar energy. Solar energy is a great alternative because it is cost effective, low maintenance, renewable, and does not produce pollution. An additional bonus is that extra solar energy produced can be sold back to the general power grid. The only drawback is that solar panels only work when the sun is out, which makes it unpractical for some climates. As previously mentioned, Hawaii receives little rain due to mountains, and it receives plenty of sunlight due to its latitude. Hawaii has the 6th highest solar potential rating in America. Solar energy would not only save money and be highly practical, it would benefit the

Shipping and transport are reliant on power and oil, and similarly that power is mostly generated

Thailand’s electrical energy generation is almost entirely produced by conventional thermal means, via oil, natural gas and coal. The remaining power is generated by hydro, renewables and biofuels (Global Energy Institute 2013). Thailand’s own oil supplies from the Gulf of Thailand have reduced, as such Thailand has become more reliant on importing oil for electrical generation. Due to the costs of importing oil, Thailand has been transitioning towards