Renewable Energy Sources Pros and Cons

With fuel prices constantly rising and global oil reserves on the verge of declining, renewable energy is what is being looked at, as the energy source of the future. Sure enough, the concept of renewable energy is being increasingly promoted and publicized all over the world, but do you actually know the various energy types that constitute renewable energy? Well, for the benefit of those who don't, here's a quick introduction, after which we will take a look at renewable energy sources pros and cons.

Types of Renewable Energy

There are many sources of renewable energy. The various known forms are as listed below:

• Solar energy
• Hydro energy
• Tidal energy
• Wind energy
• Geothermal energy
• Biomass
• Fuel cells
• Nuclear energy

Solar energy requires no introduction. It is the energy obtained from the Sun's rays, which can be utilized for multiple domestic, as well as industrial applications. Hydro energy is the process of using the potential energy of stored water to produce power. Tidal energy is a process, in which the kinetic energy of sea waves is used to generate power. In case of wind energy, wind or flowing air is used to spin the blades of a windmill for generation of power. Geothermal energy makes use of the Earth's natural heat (in the form of underground steam and hot springs), to power turbines and generate electricity. Biomass is a concept wherein plant waste, animal waste, agricultural residue, decomposed material, etc., are chemically combined for the generation of power. Fuel cells mainly rely on the chemical reaction between hydrogen and oxygen, to produce electricity (and water as a byproduct). Nuclear energy is something that the whole world knows, so that is a topic I will skip. Well, now that you have a basic idea about renewable energy sources, let us move on to the next part of this article, i.e. renewable energy sources pros and cons.

Renewable Energy Sources Pros and Cons

Listed below are the pros and cons of renewable energy sources. First up, are the pros.

Pros

• The word 'renewable', says it all. Fossil fuels are perishable sources of energy, whereas renewable energy sources are non-perishable and can be easily replenished.
• Most renewable energy sources do not involve the combustion or burning of fossil fuels or other substances, which otherwise result in the release of toxic chemicals or other harmful atmospheric byproducts. Therefore, renewable energy is a clean source of energy and one that offers numerous environmental benefits.
• Renewable energy sources are plentiful and are available all over the world. Plus, being non-perishable energy sources, one doesn't have to worry about these energy reserves declining or getting exhausted in the future.
• Most of these energy sources have low maintenance costs associated with them. Also, renewable energy sources such as solar energy, can be tapped very easily and conveniently for domestic use by individual home owners.

Cons

• Reliability and consistency is a significant drawback with respect to renewable energy. Atmospheric conditions and geographical locations make a huge impact on the efficacy of these energy sources.
• The initial investment or setup cost is significantly high, in case of renewable energy sources. This, often, acts as a deterrent in people switching over to renewable energy sources.
• Every form of renewable energy has its own set of problems, drawbacks or limitations with respect to environment and ecology.
• People are not yet fully convinced about the sustainability and the value-for-money aspect of renewable energy. Therefore, global acceptance of renewable energy on a mass scale is something that is yet to happen.

Fossil Fuels Pros and Cons

Let us now quickly run through a few fossil fuels pros and cons, so that we get a better idea, as to how fossil fuels and renewable energy sources fare against each other.

Pros

• History is on its side. This is the form of energy that is being used globally, for more than a hundred years.
• All the technology developed so far, has largely been on the basis of fossil fuels alone. Therefore, nothing drastically new needs to be invented or discovered.
• The economies of a lot of world nations are largely dependent on or driven by the sale of fossil fuels.
• The world and all the people of the world have gotten used to fossil fuels. Many people resist change, and this is no exception.
• At present, there is no other source of energy which can strongly compete with fossil fuels, on the basis of an overall comparison.

Cons

• Fossil fuel reserves are limited. They are declining as you read this article, and are most likely to run dry in a couple of decades (or sooner!).
• Thanks to their declining reserves, the cost of fossil fuels is only likely to increase, with every passing day. After all, it's a classic case of demand vs supply.
• Fossil fuels cause a significant amount of pollution and environmental damage, and needless to say, they have contributed significantly towards global warming.

Well, this was a short overview of renewable energy sources pros and cons. Based on their respective pluses and minuses, and those of fossil fuels, I guess it's pretty clear as to which way the world should go. Go green!