Climate change and solar energy

Considering the almost constant reports of climate-related weather issues, it's hardly surprising that solar panels and wind turbines are an increasingly common sight. What are the benefits of renewable energy sources and how do they improve our health, environment, and economy?

This article explores the many positive impacts of clean energy, including the benefits of wind, solar, geothermal, hydroelectric, and biomass.

Less global warming through renewable sources

Our atmosphere is overloaded with carbon dioxide and other global warming emissions resulting mostly from the burning of fossil fuels. These gases act like a blanket, trapping heat in the atmosphere. The result is a variety of significant and damaging impacts, from stronger, more frequent storms, to drought, floods, sea level rise, and extinction of various species of animals. Approximately 29 percent of global warming emissions come from electricity in the U.S. Most of those emissions originate from fossil fuels like coal and natural gas.

Solar is linked to improved public health

Fossil fuel use is responsible for many human health problems. Pollution from coal and natural gas plants is linked with breathing problems, neurological damage, heart attacks, cancer, premature death, and a host of other serious problems. The pollution affects everyone, even the relatively healthy: one Harvard University study estimated the life-cycle costs and public health effects of coal to be an estimated $74.6 billion every year. That’s equivalent to 4.36 cents per kilowatt-hour of electricity produced—about one-third of the average electricity rate for the average US home.

Some dangerous health impacts originate from air and water pollution that clean energy technologies don't generate. Wind, solar, and hydroelectric systems generate electricity with no air pollution emissions. Geothermal and biomass systems emit some air pollutants, though total air emissions are much lower than those of coal and natural gas-fired power plants.

Solar and wind energy require virtually no water to operate and thus do not contaminate water resources or strain supplies by competing with agriculture, drinking water, or other important water needs. In contrast, fossil fuels have a significant impact on water resources: both coal mining and natural gas drilling can befoul sources of drinking water, and all thermal power plants, including those powered by coal, gas, and oil, withdraw and utilize water for cooling.

Inexhaustible energy from the sun

Sunny skies, strong winds, abundant plant matter, heat from the earth, and fast-moving water can each provide a huge and constantly available supply of energy. A relatively small portion of US electricity currently comes from these sources, but that could change soon. Studies have repeatedly shown that renewable energy can provide a substantial share of future electricity needs, even after accounting for potential restrictions.

Jobs and other economic benefits through renewable sources

Generally speaking, the renewable energy industry is more labor intensive compared to fossil fuel technologies which are more capital intensive. Solar panels need people to install them and wind farms need technicians to maintain them. More jobs are created on average, for each unit of electricity produced from renewable sources than from fossil fuels.

In 2016, the solar industry employed more than 260,000 people, including jobs in solar installation, manufacturing, and sales, a 25% increase over 2015. The hydroelectric power industry employed approximately 66,000 people in 2017; the geothermal industry hired 5,800 people.

Affordability and clean energy solutions

Clean energy generates affordable electricity all across the globe right now and can help stabilize energy prices in the future. Renewable facilities need upfront investment to erect their structures and, they can then operate at a very low cost. As a result, renewable energy prices tend to be relatively stable over time.

For more information relating to going solar, don't forget to visit our solar blog section for more handy guides and articles.

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