When it comes to renewable resources, everyone has a different view on what they mean and how they can benefit humankind. Let’s take wind power for example. Most people see windmills as an eyesore on the top of a building or other structure. The term “renewable” is normally applied to these energy resources and technologies that have a common characteristic: they are naturally replenished or non-depleteable. renewable resources are also commonly referred to as non-exhaustible or renewable energy.
The terms renewable resources can actually be misleading because some of them are not truly renewable. Take the term solar energy for instance. The use of solar cells in order to generate electricity is definitely renewable because the sun is always out and reaching places all over the world. However, solar cells have been around for decades, if not longer, and it appears we may run out of them relatively soon. So while solar energy is renewable, we may very well, run out of it within the next few decades.
Another example of renewable resource is the energy produced by fossil fuels. These natural resources such as oil, gas, coal, and so on, can also be depleted, but there are some who believe that we can still produce a large amount more than that. Fossil fuels are indeed non-exhaustible and may stay in the ground underground for millions of years. Nevertheless, new technologies and ways of extracting these fossil fuels have allowed us to mine and utilize their value even further. Although, it will certainly take a long time before we are able to produce sufficient quantities of oil, gas, or coal, there are certain technological advancements that are still in the development stage that will increase their production drastically.
Many are also unaware that the earth obtains enough heat and light from the sun to produce substantial quantities of these renewable resources. While it is true that the quantity of heat and light received by the earth each day is decreasing, many scientists believe that it is still possible to recover this lost energy. Additionally, it may possibly be possible in the future to produce enough renewable sources of energy for all of Earth’s inhabitants.
Some renewable resources can be found on this planet earth itself, like water, air, and land. Another type of renewable resource happens to be solar energy which is usually captured in its photovoltaic form. Another resource is wind power which is often derived from windmills. Still another renewable resource is geothermal energy which is provided by running water through pipes heated in the soil below the resource.
The earth obtains numerous other types of renewable resources available today such as the following: wind, water, light, solar radiation, and geothermal energy. However, scientists believe that there are still many more types of renewable resources still waiting to be discovered. One thing that is important to note is that the cost of obtaining any of the renewable resources can vary dramatically. Also, this is also dependent upon the level of technology currently available for obtaining that particular resource.
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