Renewable Energy

What are the Different Forms of Renewable Energy?

• Wind Power:
 In the form of wind turbines
 Produces no CO2 emissions during operation
 Expensive to build and maintain
 Not aesthetically pleasing
 Disrupts the environment; placed in land or sea
 Only works where there is a lot of wind (best is
offshore)
 You can buy smaller turbines to go on your house
• Water Power (hydroelectric power HEP):
 Usually in the form of dams
 Expensive to build and maintain
 Creates reservoirs behind the dam; used for water
sports and other recreational activities
 Attracts tourists to the area
 Normally have to relocate some people due to the
scale of the operation
 Can lose valuable land, such as farmland
• Solar Power:
 In the form of solar panels/photovoltaic cells
 It can heat buildings etc.
 Only works when it is sunny – not throughout the
whole day
 Two different forms:
o Photovoltaic: converted to electricity
o Concentrating solar power (CSP): uses
the sun to boil water, which then
provides power
• Biomass:
 Made from living or recently living organisms, e.g.
wood, waste and alcohol fuels
 Produce CO2 when burnt
• Geothermal Energy:
 Uses the heat from the Earth itself
 Used in Iceland
 Expensive to build a power station but low costs to
run and maintain
• Nuclear:
 Unsafe to dispose of waste
 Waste is radioactive for many years
 Not aesthetically pleasing – an eye sore
Where are they being Developed and Why?

Wind Power: Biomass:

• North Sea, off the coast of • UK
Belgium • Texas, USA
• Denmark
Nuclear:
Water Power (HEP): • USA
• China - the Three Gorges Dam • OECD Europe (Organisation
• USA – Niagara Falls, New York for Economic Co-operation
and Development) –
Solar Power: Germany
• California
• Around the world in homes

 They are alternatives to

fossil fuels
 They will increase the
energy of the countries that
are developing them

Geothermal:
• Iceland  Can only be developed in
• West USA – California, areas with access to
Nevada, Hawaii geothermal energy (heat from
the Earth)

To what extent do Renewables Impact upon Energy Security?

Renewables impact upon energy security by:

o Improving it because the country is producing its own energy

to meet its demands
o Decreasing the security of the OPECs because countries are
converting to alternative fuels and importing less fuels like
coal, oil and gas from them, therefore they are getting less
income and reducing the security of their economy
o Allowing poorer countries to become secure and develop a
little because they can use small scale projects, such as
biomass, to produce electricity. This improves their lives and
the energy security of their country as a whole

Why are Renewables not viewed as the Answer to Energy Security

Concerns?
 Some renewables are unreliable and can only be used at
certain times of the day and in certain climates, for example,
solar power can only be used during the and/or in hot
countries
 Relying renewables could attract terrorist attacks because
they know that if this was destroyed then the whole country
would stop working