What Is Renewable Energy?
When it comes to energy, you probably don’t need us to tell you that humans use a lot of it. And, we’re using more every day. After all, we use energy for everything: cooking breakfast, driving to work, surfing the Internet…energy is vital to our lives.
But, what is energy? And, what does it mean when energy is “renewable”?
Don’t worry. We’ve got the rundown for you right here.
What Is Energy?
If you think back to your fifth grade physical science class, you’ll remember that, energy is defined as “the ability to do work”. Put simply, energy is what gives us power to do things like brush our teeth, turn on a light, or build a skyscraper. It makes things move.
Energy comes in several different forms.
• Thermal energy
• Electrical energy
• Nuclear energy
• Sound energy
• Chemical energy
• Gravitational energy
• Magnetic energy
And, there are two types of energy: kinetic and potential.
Kinetic Energy is energy that’s in motion or working. For instance, lightning is a form of kinetic energy. Or, when you turn on a light switch, the electricity that’s running through the wires of your home is kinetic energy.
Potential Energy is energy that can potentially be used. For instance, when you eat breakfast your body stores those calories (energy) for use during the day. Another example of potential energy is the gas you put in your car. You’re storing that gas to use later on.
What Is Renewable and Non-Renewable Energy?
When it comes to how we get our energy, we’ve got two choices: renewable and non-renewable sources.
Non-Renewable Energy
The majority of the world’s energy comes from non-renewable resources. This means we’re using types of energy that will one day run out, or be too environmentally damaging to extract. They cannot be replenished once they’re gone.
Some examples of non-renewable energy sources are:
• Oil/Petroleum
• Natural Gas
• Coal
• Nuclear energy
According to the Energy Information Administration (EIA), we’re currently getting 40% of our nation’s energy needs from petroleum, 8% from nuclear electric power, 22% from coal, and 23% from natural gas.
We’re also getting 7% of our energy needs from renewable energy sources.
Image courtesy of EIA
Renewable Energy
The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) defines renewable energy as energy that is constantly being replenished and will never run out.
Examples of renewable energy include:
• Solar
• Wind
• Biomass
• Hydrogen
• Geothermal
• Ocean
• Hydropower
Why We Need To Use More Renewable Energy
Energy is a vital resource in our world. All people, in all nations, need energy to survive and thrive.
Currently, most of the world is getting their energy from non-renewable resources. Which means that eventually, we’re going to start running out.
And a world that has to fight for limited energy is going to be a very unpleasant place to live.
Another con to using non-renewable energy is that it’s damaging to the environment.
For instance, burning non-renewable energy sources like coal and oil puts 21.3 billion tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere every year. Scientists estimate that the Earth can only absorb about half that amount, which leaves an extra 10.6 billion tons of carbon dioxide floating around.
That adds up really fast, and it’s a big part of why we’re experiencing the “greenhouse effect”.
The beauty of renewable energy is that there is virtually an unlimited supply.
Think about it: the sun is always shining. The wind is always blowing. The tides are always moving.
These are natural energy sources that are free, clean, and just waiting to be picked up and used.
