Climate Crisis and Clean Energy
The Road to Clean Energy
The current population of the world exceeds 7.6 billion and the demand for energy is on a rise. It is estimated that the available fossil fuels on our planet would run out by 2060 at our current rate of consumption thereby emphasizing the need for cleaner renewable energy sources. It evident that burning of these fossil fuels and coal in the process of producing energy, releases a large amount of nitrogen dioxide which is a major cause for acid rains and smog. The burning of coal in power plants release nitric oxide, sulfur dioxide, smoke and other major atmospheric pollutants which leads to a major a climate crisis. The ice caps in the arctic are unraveling faster than expected with the rise in global warming due to carbon dioxide emissions thus emphasizing the need of cleaner energy sources and a zero-carbon future.
We live in an era where technology is rapidly developing, and numerous companies have started a more ecofriendly approach towards energy consumption and waste disposal. Many successful entrepreneurs like Elon Musk are avid believers of renewable energy. Today Musk's company, Tesla has become the largest clean energy company in the world and many other companies are on the path to cleaner energy. Tesla’s mission to accelerate the world’s transition to sustainable energy through increasingly available and affordable electric vehicles and energy products. He has stated that he plans to build mega factories and produce batteries which will pave the way for powering the future. Building the world’s largest power plant is one of Musk's major plans and it involves rolling out free solar panels and Tesla batteries to 50,000 homes in South Australia over the next four years and developing it further. The plan is estimated to produce 20 percent of the state's daily energy requirements. He intends to promote renewable energy with the use of solar panels as well and states that within the next 15 years most homes will have his solar-ready tiles on their roofs.
When speaking of renewable clean energy China takes a prominent place. Betting heavily on energy efficiency, solar energy, wind and other renewables, as well as other less carbon-intensive technologies China is now one of the leading countries which produce clean energy. According to the International Energy Agency, emerging and developing countries will show the greatest demand for energy over the next 25 years (Christian,2019). Therefore, it is critical that these countries consider renewable energy, ensuring stable supply and meeting desired environmental outcomes. India was the first to set comprehensive quality and performance standards for light emitting diodes (LEDs), thereby saving around 277 terawatt-hours of electricity between 2015 and 2030. This means that the damage from 254 million metric tons of Carbon emissions or the equivalent of 90 coal power plants can be eliminated. Although the numbers seem impressive, switching to cleaner energy is no small task. The most suitable approach would be step by step implementation of separate sections where power is needed, similar to the example above where India started the use of LEDs. It is arguable that switching to LEDs or energy efficient light bulbs is not exactly similar to switching to clean energy because still the energy required for this may be provided through Coal power plants, but we cannot deny the fact that these implementations reduce a large amount of energy consumption and wastage thereby relieving the strain on these sources of power. This helps more cleaner energy power plants such as hydroelectric, solar or wind power plants to contribute to the power supply. This is a clear example on how step by step implementation plays a major role on providing cleaner energy in the future and we can all contribute to this from our households as well. There are various ways in which each household can minimize energy wastage such as switching to energy efficient lights, domestic solar panels or more. So, it is obvious that Switching to Clean energy is not something that happens overnight. It is a massive process that has to happen in many stages, whether it is through billion dollar companies, one’s country or your own individual contribution the main thing to keep in mind is that even the smallest contribution can help in the fight towards cleaner energy and climate crisis.
Reference List
Christian, Z. (2019, June 4). A new era of shared clean energy leadership begins in China. International Energy Agency. https://www.iea.org/.../a-new-era-of-shared-clean-energy...
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