Renewable Energy is the Future
If you search internet for RENEWABLE ENERGY, you will find number of definitions, arguments, discussions and statements from different people and entities. But one of the most common argument and discussion for Renewable energy in the current context of the world is that RENEWABLE ENERGY is the FUTURE OF ENERGY. With all the facts and data in front we can believe that the Renewable energy is in the journey of becoming the FUTURE OF WORLD ENERGY .
For the past hundred years we were relying mainly on Fossil fuels while contributing to the world’s largest man-made pollution and the results are in front of us today. According to an ongoing temperature analysis conducted by scientists at NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS), the average global temperature on Earth has increased by about 0.8° Celsius (1.4° Fahrenheit) since 1880. Two-thirds of the warming has occurred since 1975, at a rate of roughly 0.15-0.20°C per decade which is mainly due to the release of Carbon dioxide related components in the process of burning Fossils to produce Fuels. In order to keep average global temperature increases below 1.5°C, which is the possible increase in temperature to keep the climate in sustain condition, we need to leave up to 80% of our fossil fuel reserves in the ground. This can only be achieved by moving into more environmentally friendly sources such as Solar, Wind etc. to fulfill world’s energy needs because the past damage is unrecoverable, but the future can be saved and habilitated.
Solar energy and wind energy are the world’s biggest sources of renewable energy and grow in popularity each year. Last year Germany has crossed a symbolic milestone in its energy transition by briefly covering around 100 percent of electricity use with renewables for the first time ever and in 2017 Germany produced a record 36.1 percent of its total power needs with renewable sources. And countries like Sweden, Finland etc. are also in the same path of achieving 100 percent of energy needs from renewables.
According to a new study conducted by International Renewable Energy Agency’s (Irena) have found that by 2030, the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) countries can create 220,500 jobs, save 354 million barrels of oil equivalent in regional power sectors, $46-$76 billion in discounted fuel savings, cutting water withdrawals in power sector by 11.5 trillion Ltrs and 136 million tons of carbon dioxide if the region successfully meets its sustainable energy targets. These statistics and forecasted data clear indicate that the world is moving more and more toward Renewables to fulfill the energy needs and it is the Future of Our Energy.
The trend of moving to Solar, Wind and other renewable energy sources is seen all over the world and it is not limited to Europe or Middle East. Many developing countries are focusing on renewable and Sri Lanka is in the lead among South Asian countries where many Solar and Wind projects implemented, and many are on its way to serve the country.
In 2014 Sri Lanka reached the target of generating at least 10 percent of its electricity using renewable energy and she is in the move of achieving 100 percent mark by 2050. This movement is important to balance the electricity demand which is expected to be increase to around 70,000 GWh by 2050 from 14,000 GWh in 2016. According to the project “Soorya Bala Sangramaya” which was initiated by the Ministry of Power and Renewable Energy, Sri Lanka and Ceylon Electricity Board, many domestic roof tops are expected equipped with solar panels to fulfill domestic electricity needs where 100 MW are connected to the national grid in 2016. And with “Rivi Aruna” initiative 74 religious places are connected to national grid with Solar rooftop systems.
Projects such as, Maduru Oya 100MW Floating Solar Park, Mannar 100MW offshore Wind Plant, Monaragala 100MW Solar Park are few of high-profile projects associated with renewable energy development target of the country. Hydro projects such as Uma Oya and Broadlands will be connected to the national grid by 2020 increasing the total renewable capacity. These projects will help Sri Lanka to reach its target of 100 percent renewable within the expected time period and lankadevelopmentnews hope that the future governments and leaders will continue in developing more projects to increase the renewable energy capacity of Sri Lanka and set an example to the world because RENEWABLES are the FUTURE of this WORLD.
10 years from now, this discussion on the future of renewable energy will look very different. The rate of innovation and change in this field has been remarkable, driven by individuals and businesses that are committed to making the world a cleaner place to live. Solar and wind technology is here to stay. As their prices fall and production increases, we expect to see more and more of the energy used daily around the world coming from these sources.
Its time for us to embrace the future and save this world. Our ancestors gave us a beautifully protected world with so much to explore and its our duty to do the same for our future generations. Because Greener we go, safer we are.