Energy Resources and Environmental Impact :: Economy Economics Essays

Energy Resources and Environmental Impact We have in our possession, a variety of energy resources that can be used to replace, some of the more harmful fuels utilized today. Nevertheless, even with all these options we have yet to make a certified effort in the upgrading of our current systems of energy production. Of course this in many ways is tied to politics and economic issues. Yet it is my passionate belief that these should not over power that which is ultimately more important which is the welfare of the environment. Why so much interest in the subject you might ask? Well in truth it stems from the recent class we had on geothermal energy. Out of all the processes we’ve covered so far this one interested me the most. However, when discussed in the classroom I felt that only the positive aspects of the procedure were highlighted. Although a beneficiary way of energy production, I was curious to see it repercussions. Because no system is perfect, this one should be no different, on top of that there had to be a reason why it isn’t as popular as it should be given its efficiency. As the world's largest energy resource, geothermal energy can be inexhaustible. The resource is constantly replenished by circulating ground waters, therefore if the fluids are extracted at a sustainable rate, the resource will be available for future generations.Geothermal energy is probably one of the safest and most reliable sources of energy, outside solar energy. It is reliable (the source of heat, the Earth itself, is relatively constant), and hazard, in terms of unwanted waste products or catastrophic accidents, is nonexiste nt. There are atmospheric emissions from geothermal power plants which are predominantly CO2 and H2S. However, in the context of global climate change, geothermal has significantly lower CO2 emissions than fossil fuels. Atmospheric emissions from geothermal plants average only about 5% of the emissions from equivalent generation sized fossil fuel power plants. The actual land use for geothermal energy production is relatively small for both the fuel acquisition and the energy production. The common practice of re-injecting spent geothermal fluids means the impacts on aquatic life have been eliminated. Geothermal plants also co-exist successfully with other land uses. Adverse environmental impacts of geothermal development may include land subsidence and increased microseismic activity. However such adverse factors need to be balanced against the more obvious advantages of geothermal over fossil fuels.