RENEWABLE ENERGY SOURCES
By Emil Bedi, CANCEE and Hakan Falk, "Energy Saving Now".
 Fortunately, solutions exist to cut
greenhouse gas emissions, reduce acid deposition, improve air quality and to
solve social problems related to recent energy use. Shifting investment from
fossil fuels like coal and oil to renewable energy and energy efficiency would
allow cleaner, more sustainable sources of energy to take their rightful place
as market leaders.
 Renewable energy systems use resources that are constantly replaced
and are usually less polluting. All renewable energy sources – solar energy,
hydro power, biomass and wind energy have their origin in activity of the Sun.
Geothermal energy which, because of its inexhaustible potential, is sometimes
considered as renewable source is getting energy from the heat of the earth.
Renewable energy is a domestic resource which has the potential to
contribute to or provide complete security of energy supply. Countries that
depend on imports of fossil fuel resources are in danger due to the risk of
sharp rise of the cost of imported energy (mainly oil). This is particularly so
for developing countries, where the oil import bill adds every year to the
problem of financing an already large external deficit.
 |
| 1.Amount of Solar energy falling on Earth in one
year. |
| 2. Present solar energy use. |
| 3. Natural gas reserves. |
| 4. Coal reserves of coal. |
| 5. Oil reserves. |
| 6. Uranium reserves. |
| 7. World energy consumption in one
year. | | Renewables
are virtually uninterruptible and is of infinite availability because of its
wide spread of complementary technologies - thus fitting well into a policy of
diversification of energy supplies. Renewable resources are well-recognized as a
good way to protect the economy against price fluctuations and against future
environmental costs. Technologies based on renewables are largely pollution-free
and make zero or little contribution to the greenhouse effect with its predicted
drastic climatic changes. In addition, they produce no nuclear waste and are
thus consistent with environmental protection policies, building towards a
better environment and sustainable development.
FUTURE OF RENEWABLES
The shape of
our future will be largely determined by how we generate and apply technological
innovation the most powerful force for progress in the modern world. The
renewable energy sources are able to have a strong transformative effect on the
whole of society in the coming decades. By virtually all accounts, renewable
energy resources will be an increasingly important part of the power generation
mix over the next several decades. Not only do these technologies help reduce
global carbon emissions, but they also add some much-needed flexibility to the
energy resource mix by decreasing our dependence on limited reserves of fossil
fuels. Experts agree that hydropower and biomass will continue to dominate the
renewables arena for some time. However, the rising stars of the renewables
world - wind power and photovoltaics - are on track to become strong players in
the energy market of the next century. Wind power is the fastest-growing
electricity technology currently available. Wind-generated electricity is
already competitive with fossil-fuel based electricity in some locations, and
installed wind power capacity now exceeds 10,000 MW world-wide. Meanwhile, PV
electricity - although currently three to four times the cost of conventional,
delivered electricity - is seeing impressive growth world-wide. PV is
particularly attractive for applications not served by the power grid. Advanced
thin-film technology (a much less expensive option than crystalline silicon
technology) is rapidly entering commercial-scale production.
 |
| The BP gasoline station with photovoltaic panels on the
roof. |
Perhaps even more promising than the
technical developments in renewables are the resounding endorsements from major
energy companies like Enron, Shell, and British Petroleum, which have invested
heavily in PV and wind in recent years and are planning significant increases in
these and other renewables efforts. The energy-starved developing
world, which accounts for a large portion of the projected new electricity
demand over the next 20 years, is considered one of the biggest markets for
renewables. Many of these countries are attracted to the modular nature of
renewable energy technologies, which can be located close to the users. The
renewable technologies are far cheaper and quicker to install than
central-station power plants and their extensive lengths of transmission
line. Renewables are also gaining favour in industrialized countries.
In the USA, national surveys show that well over half of consumers are willing
to pay more for green power, and a number of power companies are now offering
this option. In Europe, strong public support for clean energy is causing the
renewables market to expand rapidly. In 1997, the European Commission released a
white paper on renewable sources of energy, in which it noted that renewables
are unevenly and insufficiently exploited in the European Union.
 |
Different scenarios show the contribution of renewables by 2010 to
range from 9.9% to 12.5%, but a goal of 12% renewables share (“an
ambitious but realistic objective”) was set, to be achieved through the
installation of one million PV roofs, 15,000 MW of wind and 1,000 MW of
biomass energy. The current 6% share includes large-scale hydro, which
will not expand for environmental reasons. Growth is expected from
biomass, followed by 40 GW of wind and 100 million square metres of solar
thermal collectors. Photovoltaics will grow up 3 GWp, geothermal by
1 GWe and heat pumps by 2.5 GWth. Total capital investment to
achieve the 12% target will be 165 billion ECU (1997-2010), but it would
create up to 900,000 new jobs and drop CO2 emissions by 402 million
tonnes/a. |
 |
Contributing less than 6% to the EU’s energy consumption, it called
for a joint effort to increase this level for export potential and to
address climate change. More than half of Europe’s energy is
imported, and will rise to 70% by 2020 without action.
The European Wind Energy Association estimates up to 320,000 jobs
would be created if 40 GW of wind power is installed, the PV Industry
Association says it would create 100,000 jobs if 3 GWp is met, the Solar
Industry Federation estimates 250,000 jobs under its market objective, and
another 350,000 jobs could be created to meet the export market. The white
paper proposes a number of tax incentives and other fiscal measures to
encourage investments in renewable energies, and measures to encourage
passive solar. “The overall objective of doubling the current share
of renewables to 12% by 2010 can be realistically achieved,” it concludes,
and the contribution of renewables to electricity generation could grow
from 14% to more than 23% by 2010 if appropriate measures are
instituted. | Job creation is one of the most
important features related to the development of renewable energy sources. The
employment potential of renewables can be estimated according to the following
data:
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