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RENEWABLE ENERGY 2

Renewable Energy

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Renewable Energy

The European union renewable energy directives 2018 developed a prevalent framework for promoting energy from renewable sources in the European countries and set a binding target of 32% for the total share of energy from renewable sources in the European union’s gross final consumption of energy in 2030 (Ringel & Knodt, 2018). In 2050, the European union’s objective behind the European Green Deal is to become the world’s first climate-neutral continent (Simionescu et al., 2020). This very ambitious package of measures enables European businesses and citizens to benefit from a sustainable green transition. Two prevalent renewable energy sources that are alternatives to fossil fuel in the European union are hydropower and solar power (Ringel & Knodt, 2018). Hydropower is the leading renewable energy source in Europe, with a total generation of over 341TWh annually, amounting to around 36% of the electricity generated from renewable energy sources and 10% of the overall generation (Simionescu et al., 2020). Thus, hydropower remarkably contributes to attaining the European union objectives. On the other hand, solar power’s share of renewable energy as of 2020 has been a really big surprise as newly installed solar power has increased by 11% to 18.2 GW compared to 2018, which amounted to 12.2%, amounting to 8.0 GW (Simionescu et al., 2020). Below are notable benefits and limitations of hydropower and solar energy, as well as a case study of how realistic the proposal is in the UK context.

Benefits of Hydropower

Renewable

Hydropower is categorized as a renewable energy source as it is powered by water, and generally, water is a naturally replenishing resource. Water is the energy source that powers a hydropower plant; thus, there is no pollution emitted when generating energy (Mohammadi & Mehrpooya, 2018). Hydropower is termed as renewable water is the main aspect for its generation, and it naturally replenishes itself, and water is not a source of greenhouse gas emissions (Mohammadi & Mehrpooya, 2018). Therefore, there is no carbon dioxide emitted in generating hydropower energy like most non-renewable energy counterparts, such as natural gas and coal.

Reliability

Hydropower is one of the most reliable renewable energy sources. Typically, water flow is predictable and is accounted for when distinguishing the location; the hydropower plant can be situated (Mohammadi & Mehrpooya, 2018). It can be on an actively flowing river or built within a dam to manage water flow. In addition, the production and output of electricity can be adjusted (Mohammadi & Mehrpooya, 2018). For example, if there is less demand for energy, water can be averted from the turbines, and less energy will be produced. Similarly, more water is made to flow into the plant for energy production when more energy is required.

Safe

Generally, hydropower plants improve the air we breathe since they do not release pollutants into the air. Hydropower substitutes the energy that could be produced from fossil fuels, thus mitigating acidic rain and smog as well as carbon dioxide (Mohammadi & Mehrpooya, 2018). Besides, hydropower development doesn’t produce toxic byproducts. Hydropower also means cheap and clean energy for today and the future. According to research, hydropower developments are long-term investments that can benefit various generations for an average of 50 to 100 years (Mohammadi & Mehrpooya, 2018).

Sustainable Development

Hydropower is an inherent instrument for sustainable development. Hydropower installations make electricity, industries, highways, and commerce available to societies, thus developing the economy, expanding social amenities such as health and education, and improving the quality of life (Mohammadi & Mehrpooya, 2018). Moreover, hydropower is an innovation that has been known and proven for more than a century, and its effects are well manageable and understood through measures for mitigating and compensating damages. In other words, hydropower enterprises are developed and operated in an economically viable, environmentally sensible, and socially responsible way, representing the best concept of sustainable development (Mohammadi & Mehrpooya, 2018). Moreover, it means that these developments address people’s needs today without compromising the capacity of future generations to address their needs.

Limitations

Environmental Consequences

Hydropower plants can be tricky because when they are built with dams. The places where these dams are built are essentially dryland areas flooded with water to be used as reservoirs (Mohammadi & Mehrpooya, 2018). This means that whatsoever habitat was in those locations is ruined or misplaced. Besides, the natural flow of water will also be affected. An artificial water flow also leads to challenges ranging from less sediment reaching the river banks, a natural way to maintain and build up the land, to influencing fish migration patterns.

Expensive to Build

Building power plants generally require a lot of resources to establish. For example, a hydropower plant can cost up to $580 per kilowatt to be built. It means that the upfront cost of establishing a hydropower facility requires millions of dollars (Mohammadi & Mehrpooya, 2018). Therefore, compared to the reducing prices of solar installations, hydropower is a more problematic renewable project to finance.

Benefits of Solar Power

Environmental Benefit

Solar power systems derive pure and clean energy from the sun. Installing solar panels helps combat greenhouse emissions and mitigates collective dependence on fossil fuels. Therefore, an essential benefit is that solar power is a renewable source of energy. Solar power can be harnessed globally and available daily as long as there is sunshine; therefore, there is no time that there will be no solar energy as it can be accessed as long as there is sunlight.

Reduces Electricity Cost

Solar energy will enable companies, industries as well as homestead to save on cost. Solar power helps to meet the energy needs required to undertake certain activities that could otherwise have led to extra cost when performed using non-renewable sources of energy (Shafique et al., 2020). The much money saved on the electricity bill by using solar energy depends on the size of the solar system and the power usage. Production and manufacturing firms will save huge amounts of money that can be allocated to other tasks, thus increasing revenue for the company leading to high profits (Shafique et al., 2020).

Diverse Application

Solar power can be used for diverse objectives. First, it can be used to generate electricity or, rather, photovoltaics as well as heat or solar thermal (Shafique et al., 2020). Solar power can be utilized to produce electricity in regions without access to the energy grid, distill water in areas where there is limited access to clean water as well as power satellites in space.

Limitations

Weather dependent

Even though solar power can still be harnessed during rainy and cloudy days, its efficiency reduces. This is because solar panels depend on sunlight to effectively collect solar energy (Shafique et al., 2020). Therefore, there will be a noticeable impact on the amount of energy produced in the rainy and cold seasons. In addition, at night, there is no energy produced compared to other renewable energy sources such as wind and hydropower.
Uses A Lot of Space
The more energy you want to produce using solar panels, the more the solar panels are required. Solar PV panels need a lot of space, and some roofs might not big enough to fit the number of solar panels that you would like to have (Shafique et al., 2020).

Associated with Pollution

Pollution associated with solar energy is way less compared to both renewable and non-renewable energy sources. However, transportation and installation of solar systems have been related to the emission of greenhouses (Shafique et al., 2020). In addition, there are some hazardous products and toxic materials used during the manufacturing process of solar photovoltaic systems, which can indirectly impact the environment (Shafique et al., 2020).

How Realistic the Proposal is in The UK Context

The UK’s history of energy production has been based on fossil fuels’ natural resources, meaning that the country has not been exploiting its renewable energy for a very long time. However, according to European Union renewable directives stipulated in 2009, the target was to reduce the total non-renewable energy consumption in the UK by 15% by 2020 (Lu et al., 2020). DECC published the analysis and modelling results to illustrate how to achieve the 15% objective by 2020 as a part of the UK Renewable Energy Strategy (Lu et al., 2020). The strategy indicated that about 30% of electricity demand, including 25 from small-scale sources, 12% of heat demand, and 10% of transport demand (Lu et al., 2020). As of December 2020, renewable energy production generated 40% of the overall electricity produced in the UK, which amounted to around 6% of the total UK energy usage (Lu et al., 2020).
Therefore, in 2030, the UK renewable energy directive target of 65% is realistic. It can be achievable when the country employs the same strategy as that of 2009 and has the right framework for action (Lu et al., 2020). The right framework for action includes developing emerging technology, financial support for renewable sources as well as unblocking barriers to delivery. According to mounting research, there has been a rapid decrease in the cost of renewable sources of energy, meaning that the government is fostering the use of renewable energy, which translates to more production of it (Lu et al., 2020). In addition, the shift in government policy to support more renewable energy, especially hydroelectric power, has encouraged investors to drive innovation that is critical in build the country’s economy. Therefore, the country’s target of 65% use of renewable energy by 2030 is very achievable with the right strategy.

References

Ringel, M., & Knodt, M. (2018). The governance of the European Energy Union: Efficiency, effectiveness, and acceptance of the Winter Package 2016. Energy Policy, 112, 209-220.
Mohammadi, A., & Mehrpooya, M. (2018). A comprehensive review on coupling different types of electrolyzer to renewable energy sources. Energy, 158, 632-655.
Simionescu, M., Strielkowski, W., & Tvaronavičienė, M. (2020). Renewable energy in final energy consumption and income in the EU-28 countries. Energies, 13(9), 2280.
Shafique, M., Luo, X., & Zuo, J. (2020). Photovoltaic-green roofs: A review of benefits, limitations, and trends. Solar Energy, 202, 485-497.
Lu, Y., Khan, Z. A., Alvarez-Alvarado, M. S., Zhang, Y., Huang, Z., & Imran, M. (2020). A critical review of sustainable energy policies for the promotion of renewable energy sources. Sustainability, 12(12), 5078.