The environment and solar power

The latest climate news is perhaps the worst we have received so far. Climate experts are extremely concerned about the rapid ice melting at the poles and surprising hazards emerging that are truly scary. Global climate change has caused the world to become more circumspect when examining the future of energy generation. All energy sources have some impact on our environment. Fossil fuels harm our environment in many ways. This includes air and water pollution, damage to public health, wildlife and habitat loss, water use, land use, and global warming emissions.

The clear advantages of renewable energy use

However, renewable sources such as wind, solar, geothermal, biomass, and hydropower also have environmental consequences, some of which are significant. The intensity of environmental impacts differs depending on the specific technology used, the geographic location, and a number of other circumstances. By understanding the current and potential environmental concerns associated with each renewable energy source, we can learn to effectively minimize these impacts as they become a larger portion of our electric supply.

Wind power is not as efficient as solar power

Providing power from the wind is one of the cleanest and most sustainable ways to generate electricity as it creates no toxic pollution or global warming emissions. Wind is also abundant, endless, and affordable, which makes it a viable and large-scale alternative to fossil fuels.

Despite its vast potential, there is a mixture of environmental impacts associated with wind power generation that should be identified and mitigated.

Solar power is the best alternative energy source

Like wind power, the sun provides a huge resource for generating clean and sustainable electricity. The environmental impacts associated with solar power can include land use and habitat loss, water use, and the use of hazardous materials in manufacturing, though the types of impacts vary greatly depending on the scale of the system and the technology used—photovoltaic (PV) solar cells or concentrating solar thermal plants (CSP).

Geothermal energy

The most widely developed type of geothermal power plant (known as hydrothermal plants) is located near geologic “hot spots” where the hot molten rock is close to the earth’s crust and creates hot water. In other regions enhanced geothermal systems (or hot dry rock geothermal), which involve drilling into the earth’s surface to reach deeper geothermal resources, can allow broader access to geothermal energy. Geothermal plants also differ in terms of the technology they use to change the resource to electricity (direct steam, flash, or binary) and the type of cooling technology they use (water-cooled and air-cooled). Environmental impacts differ depending on the conversion and cooling technology used.

Utility-scale solar operations

There are land use and ecological impacts with utility-scale solar energy facilities. These systems require huge areas for collection of energy. Consequently, the facilities may interfere with existing land uses and can affect areas such as wilderness or recreational areas. As energy systems may impact land through materials exploration, extraction, manufacturing, and disposal, energy footprints rise. The construction of solar facilities on vast areas of land necessitates clearing and grading, causing soil compaction, modification of drainage channels, and erosion. Central tower systems need large quantities of water for cooling, which is a problem in dry settings, because an increase in water demand may strain water resources from the facilities which may cause the contamination of groundwater. The development of any large-scale industrial facility can contribute contamination to air and water quality. Some of these threats include the release of soil-carried pathogens and contamination of water reservoirs.

Now is the time to install a solar energy system!

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

HahaSmart Blog - More Solar Tips and Guide