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6 Renewable Energy
6.7.5 North America
The capacity of renewable energy will continue growing and becoming more costcompetitive. The core fundamentals that will continue driving growth are reducing
costs of solar and wind generation, advanced battery storage technology, and the
growing expertise of grid operators as well as the more toolsets for the integration
of intermittent renewable energy into the grid. There will also be more demand for
green (renewable) energy from both individuals and businesses.
6.7.6 South America
Investment in renewable energy will increase due to the frequency of natural
disasters within the region. It is also poised that countries in this region will continue
experiencing storms, droughts, and catastrophic floods. In nations such as Columbia
and Peru, the number of deaths and fatalities related to climate change will be higher.
Other South American nations including Uruguay will increasingly deploy wind
and solar energy. More importantly, Mexico and other South American nations will
lower their emissions.
6.8 Summary
• Renewable energy sources are sources that continually provide energy without
being depleted because of their ability to replenish themselves.
• Primary renewable sources are geothermal heat, water, biomass forms, wind, and
tidal.
• Main types of renewable energy are wind, biomass, hydroelectric power, biofuels, geothermal, and solar.
• Solar energy is clean and does not lead to any pollution. Challenges associated
with it are high costs and the low amount of energy supplied.
• Wind energy is also an enormous supply of electricity, but the major challenge is
the need for wide-area coverage to produce a large quantity of energy.
• Geothermal energy also suffers from high costs and the limited number of places
that are considered active.
• The main challenges facing hydroelectric power generation are the need for
dams, the impact on communities and ecosystems, and high development costs.
• Biomass energy is unviable as it contributes to environmental degradation.
• Renewable energy benefits the environment by minimizing water and air pollution, reducing the amount of greenhouse gas emissions, and reducing the demand
for non-renewable resources.
6 Renewable Energy
6.7.5 North America
The capacity of renewable energy will continue growing and becoming more costcompetitive. The core fundamentals that will continue driving growth are reducing
costs of solar and wind generation, advanced battery storage technology, and the
growing expertise of grid operators as well as the more toolsets for the integration
of intermittent renewable energy into the grid. There will also be more demand for
green (renewable) energy from both individuals and businesses.
6.7.6 South America
Investment in renewable energy will increase due to the frequency of natural
disasters within the region. It is also poised that countries in this region will continue
experiencing storms, droughts, and catastrophic floods. In nations such as Columbia
and Peru, the number of deaths and fatalities related to climate change will be higher.
Other South American nations including Uruguay will increasingly deploy wind
and solar energy. More importantly, Mexico and other South American nations will
lower their emissions.
6.8 Summary
• Renewable energy sources are sources that continually provide energy without
being depleted because of their ability to replenish themselves.
• Primary renewable sources are geothermal heat, water, biomass forms, wind, and
tidal.
• Main types of renewable energy are wind, biomass, hydroelectric power, biofuels, geothermal, and solar.
• Solar energy is clean and does not lead to any pollution. Challenges associated
with it are high costs and the low amount of energy supplied.
• Wind energy is also an enormous supply of electricity, but the major challenge is
the need for wide-area coverage to produce a large quantity of energy.
• Geothermal energy also suffers from high costs and the limited number of places
that are considered active.
• The main challenges facing hydroelectric power generation are the need for
dams, the impact on communities and ecosystems, and high development costs.
• Biomass energy is unviable as it contributes to environmental degradation.
• Renewable energy benefits the environment by minimizing water and air pollution, reducing the amount of greenhouse gas emissions, and reducing the demand
for non-renewable resources.