The Fourth Assessment Report (AR4) of the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), issued in November 2007, states, “Most of the observed increase in global average temperatures since the mid-20th century is very likely due to the observed increase in anthropogenic greenhouse gas concentrations.” One result of the growing acceptance of climate change is the increasing switch to renewable forms of energy for power generation.
Increased Use of Wind Power
The World Wind Energy Association, in a press release dated Feb. 21 2008, “Wind Turbines Generate More Than 1% of Global Electricity”, stated that, “Compared with the year 2006 when 15,120 MW were added, the year 2007 brought another new record in new installations.” The United States leads the world in the increased use of wind as a source of energy. According to the American Wind Energy Association’s “2nd Quarter 2008 Market Report” the United States “Wind industry installed over 1,000 MW of new wind capacity in the second quarter of the year, bringing the total installed capacity to over 2,700 MW in the year and over 19,500 MW overall”. It further goes on to state that over 7,500 MW will be added in 2008.
Rise in Solar Power Generation
- “Renewables 2007 Global Status Report”, published by REN21 in 2008, reports that “The fastest growing energy technology in the world is grid-connected solar photovoltaics (PV), with 50 percent annual increases in cumulative installed capacity in both 2006 and 2007, to an estimated 7.7 GW. This translates into 1.5 million homes with rooftop solar PV feeding into the grid worldwide”.
- The California Solar Initiative. According to the California Public Utilities Commission’s website titled “About the California Solar Initiative”, California “has a goal to create 3,000 MW of new, solar-produced electricity by 2017 - moving the state toward a cleaner energy future and helping lower the cost of solar systems for consumers.”
- In Germany, the Federal Ministry of the Environment’s report, “Renewable Energy Sources in Figures – National and International Development- Status: June 2007” states that “The total surface area of new solar collectors installed has increased by 50 % compared with the increase in 2005. Just under one million plants with a surface area of around 8.6 million m2 in Germany supported the heating of service and heating water, as well as swimming pools, in 2006.”
Wave Power Projects
- In Canada, according to the Nova Scotia website “Annapolis Basin” Nova Scotia Power Inc. is building “the first and only modern tidal power plant in North America. The Annapolis Tidal Generating Station employs the largest straight-flow turbine in the world and is capable of producing more than 30 million kilowatt-hours per year, enough electricity to power 4,500 homes.”
- A report published in the Portuguese “Jornal de Noticias” dated August 21 2008, states that Portugal has built the world's first commercial wave farm, the Aguçadora Wave Park near Póvoa de Varzim, which should generate 72.5 MW of energy by 2009.
Renewable energy sources are environmentally friendly and as technology develops will become more widespread. “Energy [R]evolution – A Blueprint for Solving Global Warming” published by Greenpeace International states on page 5 that, “Renewable energy technologies such as wind turbines, solar photovoltaic panels, biomass power plants, solar thermal collectors, and biofuels are rapidly becoming mainstream. The global market for renewable energy is growing dramatically; global investment in 2006 reached US$38 billion, 26% higher than the previous year.”
Concerns about carbon dioxide and the environment, the rising price of fossil fuels and dependence on imported energy will ensure that use of, and investment in, alternative sources of energy, especially renewable energy, will continue to grow.
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