Final Paper: Energy Sources

Introduction

Hydro- power is a kind of energy that is mainly produced from the use of water whereby energy is tapped from the fast flowing water. This is one of the renewable sources of energy that is currently used in the USA in the 21st century.

This source of energy was at the very first time put into use by the Greeks more that almost 2000 years ago where they used water wheels to chop up wheat into flour. In the year 1880, a dynamo powered by a water turbine was invented that was used to produce arch lighting. More progress took place and in 1881 a dynamo that was connected to a flour mill supplied street lights in the city of Niagara Falls in New York. Since then a lot of progress has been made in the hydropower sector where it is now used in the provision of electricity for so many people all over the world.

The USA is one of the nations that makes good use of hydro-power for the production of energy, and it produces up to about 10% of the country’s electricity.

Technologies that use hydropower energy

One of the most common technologies that make use of the hydropower is the flour mills. This is a process that makes use of electricity generated by fast flowing water that is tapped by a turbine that is situated in the water source. This energy is then passed on to a generator that then transforms it into electricity which is then used to drive the flour mill.

Environmental pros and cons of the hydropower energy

The use of hydro energy has both advantages and disadvantages to the environment;

Advantages

This is a clean type of energy source that does not pollute the environment, it helps keep it from any kind of pollution as the other sources especially the way fossil fuel ones do.

Hydropower efforts help provide added advantages to the environment like irrigation. Once a dam is constructed with the aim of building up the water volume so as to generate enough electricity, the water can be tapped and used to irrigate arid areas that do not get enough rain for the purpose of farming. This helps make the land fertile, therefore, improving its fertility conditions.

Most of the dams that are built are strong and can hold a lot of water. This comes in handy during the times of heavy rains when flooding is most likely to take place. The dams hold the water back preventing any flooding from taking place.

Disadvantages

At times when the water dams are being created, the water flow is changed and even at other times it is redirected to other channels. This is a challenge that may have diverse effects on the water ecosystem because a change from the normal flow of water is experienced.

At times, water may be held up by the dams till it goes to a level that is quite high to appoint that the area ends up flooding. This destroys the natural environment around that area because of too much water.

Economic pros and cons of hydropower energy

Advantages

Hydroelectric power is one that is from a domestic source which is water. We do not need to buy water to generate electricity since it is readily available. This helps us save the money that we would have used to generate electricity through other means that may be very expensive, a good example being fossil fuels.

The energy that is gotten from the water is one that is dependent on the water cycle that is determined by the sun. This makes it a renewable resource that is not easily depleted. If it is renewable, then we have little worries of investing our money in a backup plan. It will always be available.

Disadvantages

For one to be able to build up a reservoir, a lot of money is needed to build a strong and effective one. This may end up costing the government a lot of money to make that possible. This is, therefore, an expensive project to make a start of and some countries may not want to embark on such a project.

Political legislation surrounding the hydropower energy

The hydropower and other forms of power are controlled by the FERC (Federal Energy Regulatory Committee) which is a governmental body that is responsible for licensing new project construction that has to do with power production.

The above is the body that is responsible for managing the power production. When it comes to the issue of power, it is responsible for managing and controlling countries as they produce electricity.

Potential long-term availability of hydropower energy

Unfortunately for the hydropower, its future as a main source of energy is one that is in trouble because the earth is changing fast. Most of the land is drying up, and that means that a lot of water is being used up. The greenhouse effect is also making the earth too warm and this is causing a lot of evaporation of water from the water sources. This has caused a lot of water to be lost, and so most rivers are drying up. If this goes on, in the near future we may not have enough water to generate electricity.

Conclusion

As far as hydro-electric power is concerned, nations need to ensure that they team up so as to produce more electricity through the utilization of water. It is a natural resource that needs to be exploited as it is one that is renewable and environmentally friendly.

As for its future, it is one that we cannot be sure of, at least for the time that we have water, we should make the very best use out of it. It will save us a lot of funds, and we can invest that money in other projects that will bring us better, safer developments. We also have to step up the strategies that we have put in place so as to ensure that our water is conserved for the purpose of generating power.

References

Dos Santos, M. A., Rosa, L. P., Sikar, B., Sikar, E., & dos Santos, E. O. (2006). Gross greenhouse gas fluxes from hydropower reservoir compared to thermo-power plants. Energy Policy, 34(4), 481-488.- A source that will provide information on the comparison between the side effects of the hydropower source and the thermos-power source. Through this one, I will be enlightened on whether the hydropower is a better option than the thermal source.

Paish, O. (2002). Small hydro power: technology and current status. Renewable and sustainable energy reviews, 6(6), 537-556.- This is a source that will help provide statistical data on the current status of hydropower. Does it fall on the small scale or the large scale? This will come in handy to enable one to detect its future effectiveness.

Jaramillo, O. A., Borja, M. A., & Huacuz, J. M. (2004). Using hydro-power to complement wind energy: a hybrid system to provide firm power. Renewable Energy, 29(11), 1887-1909.- This is a book that will help us discover just how we can merge the hydropower system with other energy sources like the wind system so as to increase its effectiveness and sustainability.

Deane, J. P., Gallachóir, B. Ó., & McKeogh, E. J. (2010). Techno-economic review of existing and new pumped hydro energy storage plant. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 14(4), 1293-1302.- A source that discusses some of the major hydropower plants that we have in the world and how the hydropower plants operate.