Greenhouse gases vs. solar energy 
Solar energy generation is the biggest long-term solution to greenhouse gas emissions and the catastrophic warming of the planet. Other renewable energy sources are less effective, but technological advancements promise better environmental performance for the future.

Solar and wind are the wave of the future
 
Building solar, wind or nuclear plants create an insignificant carbon footprint compared with savings from avoiding fossil fuels, a new study suggests. The research, published in Nature Energy, measured the greenhouse gas emissions of a range of sources of electricity out to 2050. The study showed that the carbon footprint of solar, wind and nuclear power are many times lower than coal or gas with carbon capture and storage (CCS). This held true after accounting for emissions during manufacture and construction.
“There was a concern that it is a lot harder than suggested by energy scenario models to achieve climate targets, because of the energy required to produce wind turbines and solar panels and associated emissions,” explains project leader Dr Gunnar Luderer, who is an energy system analyst at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impacts Research (PIK).
Luderer tells Carbon Brief: “The most important finding [of our research] was that the expansion of wind and solar power…comes with life-cycle emissions that are much smaller than the remaining emissions from existing fossil power plants before they can finally be decommissioned.” 
 

Carbon debt and renewable energy

Some skeptics argue that nuclear, wind or solar power have a hidden carbon footprint, due to their manufacture and construction. This large “carbon debt”, and the related debt of energy, must be paid off if they are to cut emissions over their lifetime. Nuclear plants have extremely dangerous waste to dispose of and there are no safe ways to treat this toxic waste. Factories churning out solar panels use large amounts of electricity, often sourced from coal-fired power stations in China. Wind turbines and nuclear plants need a lot of steel and concrete. In addition, the centrifuges that separate nuclear fuel also tend to produce a large electricity bill. Still, zero-carbon sources of electricity are not the only ones to have a hidden, indirect carbon and energy footprint. For gas and coal, these lifecycle energy uses and emissions come from extraction machines and fuel transport. They also come from methane leaks at pipelines, wellheads or coal mines. These lifecycle emissions continue, even if coal or gas plants add CCS, which also may not capture 100% of emissions at the power plant.

There has never been a better time to install a solar energy system!

If you want to move into the future and join the solar revolution, or if you want to find out what solar panels are right for you, go to HahaSmart.com and try our price checker tool. You can see how much a system will cost, and how much you can save over the next 20 years. 

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