Renewable Energy

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Renewable Energy
Introduction
The future sustainability of the human race depends on embracing other alternative energy resources to limit the use of fossil fuels. This is because fossil fuels not only have a negative impact on humans, but also degrades the environment and is associated with global warming as a result of the greenhouse gas emission. In this regard, renewable energy provides the human race with an alternative that will ensure the sustainability of future generations (Prakash 59). On the other hand, non-renewable energy is exhaustible, and this means that a time will come when the fossil fuels will no longer exist on planet earth. As a result, the human race will be left with a shortage of energy supply due to a lack of exploiting other alternative energy resources for sustainable development. Other than the exhaustible nature of non-renewable energy, the damage on both environment and the human race is bound to leave planet earth uninhabitable in the long run (Prakash 61). At present, most countries are undergoing development and industrialization that rely heavily on non-renewable energy to power engines in the factories, for instance. However, these non-renewable energies causes air pollution that his harmful to human health in addition to emitting greenhouse gasses that deplete the ozone layer. Despite renewable energy providing a more sustainable alternative, critics point out that renewable energy is costly than fossil fuel.

However, it is still important for the human race to consider the impact of fossil fuel and the need to shift to renewable energy resources for future sustainability.
The importance of renewable energy
While the world has been ignorant regarding the importance of renewable energy, the use of fossil fuels continues to impact negatively on planet earth. There are numerous renewable energy sources that mankind can as an alternative to the non-renewable energy. Among the most common include solar, the wind and hydroelectric power. These energy sources have an advantage over the non-renewable energy sources in the sense that they are not exhaustible. In addition, they are user-friendly and do not degrade the environment or the ozone layer. The environmental benefits of using renewable energy are significant in the sense that they help to cut down on the amount of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere. Since renewable energy resources can be tapped anywhere in the world, conflicts can be avoided by relying solely on fossil fuels. As such, renewable energy resources are more reliable compared to fossil fuels that only exist in a few parts of the planet earth (Owen 208).
On another note, when the human race shifts to renewable energy resources, the impact on the environment because of global warming will be minimal. Over the years, different regions across the world have experienced harsh climatic conditions associated with global warming. Some of the consequences associated with global warming include the shift of climate. This explained the increase of drought and famine in the Sub-Saharan Africa, for example, or the rise in the sea level in that has led to casualties in coastal regions around the world (Owen 213). Global warming has also been associated with heat waves experienced in some parts of Europe such as France, for instance. These negative impacts on the environment are as a result of mankind’s overconsumption of fossil fuels rather that shifting to alternative energy resources that are eco-friendly. A shift to renewable energy resource will ensure that the planet earth does not fall short of supply for energy generated for different purposes. Conversely, this is not possible if mankind continues to depend solely on fossil fuel that is non-renewable. Further, while the price for fossil fuel tends to fluctuate, a focus on renewable energy will ensure that prices remain stable since there are various ways that this type of energy can be harnessed (Nie et al. 412).
How to improve the use of renewable energy
While most of the regions around the world are heavily reliant on fossil fuel for their energy needs such as electricity, powering automobiles and factories, a focus on policies meant to develop other energy resources can bring about a shift from fossil fuels. For instance, policies meant to reduce global warming are necessary in terms of ensuring that countries adopt other avenues for tapping energy. Among the renewable energy resources that countries can use as an alternative to fossil fuel include hydroelectric power, solar power and wind power. The reliance on fossil fuel has contributed to the destruction of the ozone layer, and this has led to the adverse effects of global warming experience around the world at the moment. Fossil fuels emit a number of greenhouse gasses that not only impact negatively on the environment, but also the health of human beings (Nie et al. 418).
Today, there are millions of automobiles on the roads that use fossil fuel thus increasing the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. However, the reduction of automobile that use fossil fuel require a focus on developing hybrid cars, for example, that use other alternative sources of energy such as solar. Across the world today, there is more awareness regarding the impact of using fossil fuel. As such, the world population is ready to embrace other alternative energy resources to safeguard the sustainability of the future generations. Due to the interest of the public to shift to other alternative energy resources, there is a need to reduce the cost of renewable technologies to ensure more people move away from consuming fossil fuels. In addition, governments need to fund projects aimed at improving research on renewable energy technologies to ensure that the supply of renewable energy resource remain constant globally. Programs that are geared towards sensitizing the public regarding the benefits of renewable energy are also necessary. This is because, most people still prefer the convenience offered by the use of fossil fuels than renewable energy resource that are sometimes cumbersome to use (Prakash 65).
On the other hand, while governments introduces renewable energy resources to the public, there is also need to place restriction on the continued supply of fossil fuels since this can interfere with the process of introducing alternative energy resources into to the market (Nie et al. 421).
Critics regarding the use of renewable energy
The opposition to the use of renewable energy emanates from the high costs related to renewable energy technologies that are unaffordable to many around the world. For instance, it is still not possible to manufacture hybrid cars in large scale due to production cost involved and the consequent price that they fetch in the market. As such, it is only the affluent in the society that can afford most of the renewable technologies. On the other hand, governments have investment heavily on machines that rely on fossil fuel and the transition to renewable energy may take a while. Further, there are countries whose economies solely depend on fossil fuels and a shift to renewable sources can impact negatively on such economies. For instance, the production of oil in countries such as Saudi Arabia is a source of employment for many people and when oil production is reduced, it means many people will also lose their jobs and this increases poverty levels due to long-term unemployment (Pocock 16).
Critics of renewable energy also reject the hype surrounding global warming and are of the opinion that is it not that worse as pointed out by the environmental activists. This debate has also led to the reluctance of some industrialized countries refusing to sign the Kyoto treaty. There are also concerns regarding the use of renewable energy resources in other regions. This involves, for instance, the building of dams to generate hydroelectric power. Such projects are considered to stretch government coffers and this impact negatively on the provision of other public services. Such projects also interfere with the aquatic life that is often displaced by diverting the river flow into man-made dams. The reliability of some of the renewable energy resources are also in question since some of the energy resources tend to be seasonal, for example, solar or the wind (Coen and Thormeyer 548).
Conclusion
As the world population continues to increase, it has reached a time when the human race can no longer rely on fossil fuel alone. There is a need to explore other energy alternatives to ensure the sustainability of future generations. Conversely, depending on fossil fuel also impacts negatively on the environment and human health. As such, protecting the environment require a shift to energy resources that are not only eco-friendly, but also promotes the well-being of the human race.
Works Cited
Coen, David andThormeyer, Robert.Should large hydroelectric projects be treated as renewable
resources?Energy Law Journal 32.2 (2011): 541-551.
Nie, Pu-yan., Sun, Peng and Yang, Bill. A Dynamic Study on Ecological Disaster, Government
Regulation, and Renewable Resources. American Journal of Economics & Sociology
73.2 (2014): 410-442.
Pocock, Lesley. Review: Fossil fuels, Renewable Energy and the Middle East. Middle East
Journal of Business 6.2 (2011): 13-21.
Prakash,Vastu. Renewable Energy and Sustainable Development: an Overview. Curie Journal
3.2 (2010): 59-69.
Owen, Anthony.Evaluating the Costs and Benefits of Renewable Energy Technologies.
Australian Economic Review 39.2 (2006): 207-215.