Energy what is Next - Essay Example

For the longest time, non-renewable energy has been the primary source of energy in the world. Consequently, renewable energy has had little popularity and had been side-lined. The primary attribute of non-renewable energy sources is that their availability is finite. These sources rely on materials exhaustible sources, making it impossible to recreate them within reasonable time duration. Such energy sources include wood, coal, and fossil fuels that when consumed, they cannot be restored, hence Tiwari, et al (2012, p. 7) refer to them as conventional energy sources.

Additionally, when non-renewable energy is consumed as fuel in cars or manufacturing plants, emissions pollute the atmosphere through greenhouse gases, especially carbon dioxide. In the world pushing towards reduction of national carbon footprint levels and the insufficient renewable energy resources, there exists a push to find more energy requirement solutions in renewable energy. The simplest definition of renewable energy is energy that satisfies current energy needs without jeopardizing similar needs in the future (Chiras, 2006, p. 22). The implication is that renewable energy presents the aspect of sustainability given that natural mechanisms and movements of the earth are responsible for their quick replenishing.

The major sources of renewable energy are the sun, water and wind. In the recent past, wind farms, solar cells, and hydroelectric power have successfully provided electricity for domestic, transportation and industrial use. Unlike non-renewable energy, renewable energy has little impact on domestic and regional ecology thereby considered as clean energy. Clean energy contributes to negligible carbon dioxide and greenhouse gases emissions and guarantee unrestricted time duration. With renewable energy, cost effectiveness arises from the