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- Alternative Energy Debate
- Hydroelectric Power
- Developing Renewable Energy
- Wind Energy in the Modern Power Grid
- Wind Technology
A few years ago these words followed any mainstream use of the phrase "alternative energy". The only renewable power in the public consciousness was rechargeable alkaline batteries (that were, generally, recharged by good old fossil fuel). The gas-guzzling, behemoth luxury cars of the 70s have mostly faded, only to be replaced by gas-guzzling, towering SUVs. Car ownership has soared while public transportation and distance rail has foundered; we have entered an age in which we are increasingly dependent on electricity derived from non-renewable and increasingly scarce sources: coal and oil.
In recent times, however, the term "green" has come to mean more than just money. The public discourse about power revolves around more than carbon-based fuel. Corn-based ethanol enjoys large government subsidies while California has just erected its 50,000th solar panel. Wind farms are harvesting more energy than ever before, hydroelectric plants generate roughly 8% of all American power, and you can drive a Toyota Prius 550 miles from Ohio to New York on a single nine-gallon tank of gas.
It’s hard to turn on the news these days without hearing about "green jobs" created by investing in "green technology" to produce "green power". All of this is supposed to alleviate the American "addiction to fossil fuel". But what does all of this chatter really mean? Are all forms of alternative energy the same? This column delves into this question but for now the short answer is no.
There are myriad reasons that the conversation about (and conversion to) new power sources is overdue. In the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report, the world-wide scientific community almost unanimously concluded that human-caused climate change is a fact. Further, pertinent environmental issues include air quality (Los Angeles and Mexico City spring to mind), peak oil (it’s starting to cost more money and energy to drill than to leave the oil in the ground), and that magic, six-syllable word: sustainability.
If problems stemming from fossil fuels are legion, so too are solutions. Technological advancements such as smart power grids, OLEDs and regenerative breaking can help mitigate the negative effects of oil, as can simply reducing power use. The single greatest step we can take as a society, however, is to switch to clean, renewable energy. There is no "silver bullet" for a hurdle as high as weaning the world off of oil, and any solution needs to be deep and multifaceted. Whether our energy solution is something established like hydroelectric dams or something quirky like the piezoelectric dance floor, renewable energy is the future of human power generation. Our planet cannot handle our misuse of fossil fuels indefinitely. Continuing to rely on oil and coal to power our lives isn’t a risk; it's a guarantee that our futures will – obscured by smog – be dimmer than our past.
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