Energy and World Change
The lesson started off with an interesting fact about how much more (solar) energy the sun can provide as compared to other natural sources of energy. Just a small fraction of the solar energy provided from the sun is sufficient to meet our energy needs. Yet, we have not fully harnessed the full potential of the Sun’s energy due to the high costs incurred by the large number of solar panels needed. However, this is a sound concept and will definitely reduce the burden on the limited natural resources and cut down emissions significantly.
It cannot be overly emphasized that countries have to reduce their emissions. While it is pleasing to see that countries are increasing their investments in green technology, more efforts should be put in by countries, such as India with only a marginal increase. Germany has set a very good example in their investment in solar energy. Germany experiences all four seasons and does not receive a lot of sunlight. Yet they still chose to invest in solar energy. Their target was to derive 20% of their energy from renewable sources by 2020, and not only are they on track, but they may even surpass the 20% mark to hit 30%.
Moving on to the readings assigned for today’s session. Reading 6 offers a good overview of what we should do to progress towards a renewable energy future. It mentioned suggestions like government to enforce strict sustainability criteria, and supporting climate and energy agreements. However, the recommendations may not be effective due to self-interest. For instance, in a bid to revive the US economy, President Obama reduced the budget Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 2011. Where the welfare of the country is at stake, efforts to go green and sustainability are often compromised. Furthermore, there is imperfect information available to all. Thus, it would be difficult, say to monitor the amount of pollution caused by a particular firm.
Presentations given today and the discussions generated were refreshing. It was brought up that the plan to construct wind farms has generated much protest from the local community due to the loss of the natural habitats and landscape. Their concerns were understandable as I would personally be against the idea of having a beautiful view in front of my home being ruined by a wind farm, especially if a premium was paid for that view. Thus, an alternative offered was to develop an offshore wind farm. For me, my preference would be the development of the offshore wind farm because land is scarce. On the other hand, the ocean offers plenty of space as very few physical structures are actually found on the ocean. Furthermore, my guess is that the offshore wind farm may actually generate more wind energy due to the sea breeze. Another presentation was about creating artificial tornadoes using residual gases from nearby plants as a source of energy. The issue raised was about the safety of using such sources. Personally, I feel that safety is not much of a concern since the tornado is artificial and within our control. Rather, people may be slow to accept such technology as they perceive any form of tornado to be dangerous.
On a whole, I would give today lesson a rating of 7/10. While the presentations given were certainly interesting, some were overly technical, making it hard to follow. A brief coverage of what the technology is about and the changes that it could make would make the presentation easier to understand.
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