Due to increasing worldwide energy consumption and the probable depletion of the world’s non-renewable energy sources, ways of extracting and using alternative energy sources are being implemented. Using alternative energy sources can be both advantageous and challenging. Let us examine the pros and cons of alternative energy sources below.
One important advantage of using renewable energy is that it will never run out. Perhaps more importantly, harnessing renewable sources of energy creates little waste that is harmful to the environment. Some countries employing renewable energy as another source of energy are also showing economic gains, particularly in many regional areas. Most of their projects are situated away from the urban centers and capital cities, and these localized areas can benefit from the increased use of local services and even tourism revenue.
A general disadvantage of using renewable energy is that it is difficult to generate large amounts of electricity comparable to that of conventional fossil fuels. Another common problem among alternative energy sources is the reliability of the energy source. Because it is naturally generated, renewable energy supplies rely on the weather conditions.
The other major disadvantage associated with alternative energy sources like wind, solar and hydro power is their large cost of construction relative to traditional fossil fuel-producing facilities.
Here are several specific pros and cons of alternative energy sources:
- Solar energy. The sun is a great source of energy because it is free and efficient. It is feasible to maximize the energy given by our sun to supplant traditional electricity. But there are barriers — areas at high lines of latitude and places with frequent rains are not able to produce enough efficient solar energy to replace traditional non-renewable sources.
- Wind power. Wind is also an efficient power source. It is feasible for wind energy to supplant up to 20 percent of the total electric consumption in the future. It is also a very environmentally friendly source of power because there are no harmful gases created in the process of converting the energy to electricity. Placement is a very important factor when considering wind power. High latitudes and coast lines are great sites to install windmills, however a relatively large land area is required to put up enough number of windmills to produce the amount of electricity required to make a serious dent in our energy consumption.
- Hydroelectric and tidal power. Both of these energy sources use water. Hydroelectric power is primarily sourced from dams. Tidal energy, on the other hand, uses the ocean’s tides. Although these power sources are very clean, there are a few disadvantages. Constructing river dams as sources of hydroelectric electricity is very expensive, while tidal power depends much on the ocean. Because the ocean is unpredictable, there are only 9 places in the world that are suited for this form of power source. Tidal energy power plants are also said to leave damaging effects on migratory birds and fish.
- Biomass. Biomass consists of fermented animal waste, agricultural crops, grains and other natural products. It can be used to produce ethel alcohol that can replace gasoline needs. Although it recycles waste materials as an alternative power source, a disadvantage is that it produces greenhouse gases like methane.
Although there are some disadvantages connected to alternative power sources, their unfavorable effects are relatively small compared to the harmful effects of using conventional sources of electricity. The search for a cost-effective and eco-friendly alternative energy goes on, but we are getting closer every day.
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