Electrical Power in Australia - Essay Example

The world has become more dependent on the energy that contributes to the development of the world in various fields. Electrical Energy is one of the most important energy which plays a significant role in the life of human beings. Since Michael Faraday invented Electrical energy, the human reliance Electrical Power has exponentially increased. . The common source of electrical energy is fossil fuel which cause many negative effects on the environment such climate change and global warming. Twidell and Weir (2006, p. 3) say that from 20th to 21st century, there has been increased demand for energy so as to satisfy development need of human beings across the globe. Further, they note that the increased demand has been more significant in fossil fuels such as coal, gas and oil. Environmental scientists note that fossil fuel greatly contributes to increased level of carbon dioxide in the environment resulting to climate change because of resultant global. Moreover, the mining of these resources causes land degradation and creation derelicts that can cause land instability hence more costly hence most governments are seeking alternative energy. This has resulted to increase demands explorations of various energy sources including renewable energy such solar and wind energy among others that do not have negative effects to environment. Australia one of the famous countries cross the world that uses Solar and Wind forms as a source of electrical energy, it has many electrical plants using solar and wind energy. The Australian government has made many projects to encourage using wind and solar energy. The government has planned to supply electrical energy from renewable energy sources to 4,000,000 people from 2010 to 2020 (Australia Greenhouse Office, p.vii). This essay will examine the main sources of renewable energy of wind and solar energy as a source of electrical power in Australia. Then it will provide an argument that can use them as an alternative future solution through technologies, the environment and costs. Definition: They are mainly two categories of energy which include ‘non-renewable’ and ‘renewable energy’. The clean energy which is harnessed from natural environment resources and can’t be depleted is usually referred to as renewable energy (Twidell and Weir 2006, p. 7). The key sources of renewable energy include the sun and are what are known as solar energy and wind energy respectively. Sun and wind source cannot run out and the quantities produced of them depend on sun intensity, latent, hours of exposure, technology used and the speed of wind. Therefore, these resources depend on the intensity of solar and strength speed of wind, but they can be used forever. On the other hand as argued by Twidell and Weir, 2006, p.7), non-renewable energy can be defined as an energy which has fixed quantity and finite lifetime and the main sources of non-renewable energy are nuclear and fossil fuels. The lifetime of sources is defined as the amount of these resources can be utilised till disappearing (Twidell and Weir, 2006, p. 3). The sources of renewable energy almost are friendly with environment compared with resources of non-renewable energy which impact negatively on the environment. The main resource of renewable energy in Australia: 1- Wind Australia has a potential of generating energy from wind. It has been empirically proven that at 50 metres above ground the wind travels at a speed of about 6m/sec. Several areas in Australia usually have a standard and a good velocity for electrical generation from wind. Further, the speed of wind increases as the distance above the ground increases. The logic behind this is that as the height increases, obstacles that cause friction and reduce speed of wind decreases (Blakers, 2000, p. 223). Based on this concept and with average wind speed, Australia has the capacity in terms of technology and financing to invest in wind power generation by constructing the towers and wind farm. According to Blakers (2000, p. 223) there are technologies that can be utilised by engineers and scientists to detect wind speed and temperature of the air. Based on this, scientist and engineers in Australia can choose suitable areas to construct wind farms. Furthermore, Blakers (2000) argues that Australia has good and adequate wind speed. He says that there are various areas in Australia that experiences average wind speed within 50m above the ground which are usually between 9 m/sec to 8 m/sec. These areas that are suitable potential areas for setting wind farms are SE South Australia, Western Australia, elevated areas of NSW, Queensland, Western Victoria and Northern Tasmania. Furthermore, Australia Greenhouse Office (2003, p. 28) provides good evidences how the wind energy can be used to provide electrical energy in some towns and islands. A good illustration of this point in Denham, Western Australia saves approximately150, 000 litters of diesel annually by using wind energy. Due to this, Australia has an adequate speed of wind. Solar Solar energy is derived from direct sun radiation and from minor sources like reflections from the sky and clouds. According to Blakers (2000, p224), solar radiation of approximately 1kw/w2 is received at noon on a sunny day. The power from this solar energy can generate about 50 MW/km2 that is sufficient to generate electricity without using fossil fuels. Blakers (2000, p 33) debates that although Australia does not exploit well solar energy, Australia generates a good production of energy from the sun which can be used to produce electricity. Therefore, Australia can use solar energy as power of generating electricity Sustainability and Environment Perspectives in These Potential Sources Wind Energy Wind energy is one of the energy sources that are sustainable as it does not produce any pollutants like fossil fuels. Wind energy is sustainable since which is free, unlimited and clean energy source. Lowe (2007, p.24) and Stevens (1992,p.3) argues that the emission of carbon dioxide from generating electricity from fossil fuels in Australia is 47% which can decrease about 50-60% of this emission from using sustainable energy such wind energy. That is means, it can use wind energy to overcome the emission of carbon dioxide from fossil fuels . Therefore, using wind generation does not have a big effect on the environment. Also, Australia has adequate spaces to generate wind energy without cutting trees. Blakers (2000:229) indicates that wind generation can generate in many areas in Australia that are not including obstacles such trees. The areas with these parameters are suitable in guaranteeing average wind speed. To generate a good energy from wind, it require just 40m2 for each tower whereby they are spaced at 5 to 7 rotor diameters apart, so the normal farming operations can continue around the tower ( Blakers, 2000, p.229). In addition, this implies that the other remaining land space around the towers can be used for other compatible land uses like farming (Blakers, 2000, p.229). Also, wind generators do not have much noise, rarely affects telecommunications gadgets and birds death. Therefore, wind energy is friendly with the environment. Solar Energy Energy derived from solar is a clean energy that is able to meet human beings energy needs without releasing carbon dioxide. Blakers (2000:230) argues that solar power stations have no noise, no emission of carbon dioxide as well as electromagnetic waves. For example, the main materials used in making solar power are glass and steel which are friendly and can recycled. Therefore, it can be said that solar power energy do not have hazardous materials that are threat to environment and human being. Blakers (2000, 230) claims that Australia can dispense with fusel fuel to generate electricity from solar power if Australia establishes about 1500m2 solar generation or 0.02 per cent of Australia’s total land. Due to this Australia has good sites and optimal exposure to solar rays which can be converted into electrical energy (Blakers 2000:230). Development Level of Wind and Solar Energy in Australia Wind Energy Australia has a high development level of wind energy. The government has made many strategies to increase the dependence of wind energy. they has developed towards. Out of the recognition of the potential of wind energy and its ability to be main resource. Australia is working hard to develop wind energy and associated technologies. The Australian government is targeting to increase generation of electrical energy from renewable energy sources to 20% in 2020. Zahedi (2010, p. 2099) observes that by 2010, Australia had about 42 wind farms. Zahedi (2010, p. 2099) indicates that in combination, these farms had 563 wind turbines that generated a combined output of 824 MW. As well as, there has been expansion effort and nine more firms have been commissioned. These new nine stations will be able to generate a combined 860MW. Blakers (2000:224) says that, it has been proven that wind farms can generate from 2,000 kW to 5,000 kW. In addition, with added technology like computers control of power generation is easier. For instance, over the period of time, numerous wind farms in Australia have shown the real potential whereby they have recorded from 2MW to 22MW of electrical energy. The wind farms that have recorded these magnitudes are in Albany, Blayney and Tasmania regions (Blakers 2000:226). Consequently, there is chance for improved efficiency as well as increase in the generated electric energy amounts. Solar Energy Solar energy is another sustainable source of energy that is at its highest level of development in Australia with increased government commitment to its development. Currently, Australia is ranked as one of first few countries that adopted and uses numerous technologies for production of electrical solar energy. Diesendorf (2007, pp. 157-168) argues that with the present technological advancement in electrical field, there are various possibilities of technology that can applied so as to tap and generate energy derived from solar power. Australia forms one of the bedrock of inventions of these solar technologies. Some of the technologies that have been done in Australia include crystalline silicon on glass and silver cells. One of the popular technologies used for solar power generation in Australia is solar thermal electricity. This technology is mostly utilized in New South Wales where water is heated by sun till it turns vapour. Afterwards, the vapour is forced through the turbine for the electrical energy generation. The other popular technology is solar photovoltaic cells. This technology uses semiconductor materials to change sunlight to electrical energy. In 2005, solar power plants using photovoltaic cells contributed a total of 60MW (Diesendorf, 2007:162). Challenges Facing Uptake of the Electrical Energy from Wind and Solar Energy in Australia and Possible Solutions Wind energy They are various challenges facing the development and utilization of solar energy in Australia as it will be argued in this paper. One of the critical elements that have hindered the uptake level of wind energy by households and firms is the cost per Kilowatt. Diesendorf (2007:124) argues that the final cost of electrical energy derived from wind farms is a factor of average wind speed in the wind farm and the size of generators in the wind farm. Moreover, there are other initial cost like connection fee between the wind farm and the electrical network. In addition, recurrent expenditures like operation & maintenance costs predetermines the final charges (Diesendorf, 2007:124). Consequently, the above issues will vary the cost of final power delivered to the consumer with 20-25 per cent (Diesendorf, 2007:124). In 2005, final cost of electrical energy derived from wind farms in Australia costed 7.5 to 8.5 Australian cents per kilowatt-hour. However, the contrast arises from the fact that the electrical energy prices from coal power was around 3.5-4.0 Ac/kWh, which is much lower and less costly compared to electrical energy from wind farms (Diesendorf, 2007:125). This affects the affordability and uptake of wind energy. The challenge above if not well addressed will impact negatively on the uptake levels and thus the benefits of wind energy will not be realised. To address the issue of prohibitive cost attached to wind speed, the solution lies to selecting suitable sites. In Australia there are numerous potential zones that have very good average wind speed to generate power. The areas include southwest Australia which has half a million kilometres with average wind speeds of 6m/s above ground at 60m (Blakers, 2000:224). According to Diesendorf (2007:125) expanding sales of turbines in Australia and worldwide will reduce cost of turbines and installation of the wind turbines. Consequently, Australia should invest in mass production and installation. Solar Energy Solar energy development and utilization also faces a lot of challenges in its development and utilization. Diesendorf (2007:154) argues that in comparative terms, the final price of electrical energy generated from solar energy is much more than conventional methods. Moreover, the use of photovoltaic (PV) technology is an expensive engages due to the cost of the materials and assembly. As a result of the later concerns power generated with photovoltaic technology is approximately 16 per cent higher as compared to dominant sources (Diesendorf, 2007:163). There has been effort by the state to encourage adoption of solar energy (Blakers, 2000:234). The essence of solving the high cost is based on appropriate technologies. For instance, Australia National University developed a photovoltaic trough (PV/T) concentration system that can reduce cost of electrical energy from solar. The technology focuses sunlight in a little area and resulting to a decrease in the area of cells. The beauty of this is that, the cheap cell area is used instead of the expensive cell area (Australia Greenhouse Office, 2003:6). Conclusion In conclusion. With this huge potential in the country, Australia has all the grounds to effectively invest in clean renewable energy sources at household and macro-economic level due to huge potentials it posses. In the long run the intended benefits will outweigh the current costs. The only point of worry is the comparative cost. Therefore, government through an integrated and collaborative effort should find way of reducing these associated costs. In a nutshell, renewable energy is the way to go so as to attain sustainable development. References Blakers, A. (2000). solar and wind electricity in Australia. Australian Journal of Environmental Management , 223-236. Diesendore, M. (2007). Greenhouse Solutions with sustainable energy. Sydney: University of New South Wales . Stevens, M. (1992). Renewable Electricity for Australia. Canberra. Office, A. G. (2003). Renewable Energy Commercialisation in Australia. Canberra: Australia Greenhouse Office. Weir, J. T. (2006). Renewable Energy Resources. Oxon: Taylor& Francis. Zahedi, A. (2010). Australian renewable energy progress. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews , 2208–2213. Read More