As you know I am constantly on the
lookout for informative stuff on
Alternative Energy Sources. Today, I
come across a really
excellent article that talks
about Eco Energy Sources from a new
point of view. Today’s article is titled Weighing The Cost Of Green Power .
Article by Cynthia Wagner
Everyone just assumes green power will save the day and solve both the global warming problem and everyone’s energy needs. If people would just get on with switching to this form of power and away from the world’s current addiction to fossil fuels, then everything would be solved. And yet there are problems with this view, and they have to be realistically addressed. The first difficulty of course is that while people talk a good game, they generally don’t want to pay what it would actually cost to switch to all this wonderful sustainable energy.
Some of the green power technologies, even one as well developed as solar panels, either contain toxic materials or can only be manufactured with “dirty” energy. This should make enthusiasts at least take a second look. And more recent technologies being studied, such as the means of harnessing the power of ocean waves, could do damage to an already ailing marine ecology. None of these green energy solutions has a perfect, clean track record.
Questions about materials lead to another disturbing fact connected to the manufacture of green energy technologies. Many of these new tools for generating power, such as solar panels, wind turbines, and powerful, lightweight batteries, depend on rare earth metals for their special properties. And most of these metals, at the moment, are found mainly in China. They are often mined in a destructive way that harms the environment and adversely affects farmers.
If the rest of the developed world must depend on these metals to create their renewable energy sources, will they turn a blind eye to the high cost the Chinese people might pay so they can feel virtuous?
It’s easy to talk about the benefits of green power, how it’s less destructive to the environment, and how its energy efficiency stacks up when it’s finally manufactured and being used. But for all these green energy solutions there is some kind of cost. It’s true that no living thing can create or use anything without having some sort of impact on the world around them. The question is how to weigh the costs of creating and using green energy realistically against the costs of not doing so.
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Weighing The Cost Of Green Power
Best regards,
JamesGallo
ekonenargi@gmail.com
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