New York City College of Technology
Electrical & Telecommunication Engineering Technology
Renewable Energy Reduces Greenhouse Gas Emission and Climate Change
By: Zeeshan Ahmad
Environmental Economics
ECON 2505
Prof. Sean P. MacDonald
May 24, 2017
Renewable Energy
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Energy that can be renewed.
Energy that is collected from renewable
resources.
Energy that can not be depleted.
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Types of Renewable Energy
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Wind Energy
Solar Energy
Geothermal
Hydroelectric
Biomass
How Renewable Energy Reduces(RES) Carbon Emission?
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According to Garavand et al., the greenhouse gas (GHG) emission of
electric power sectors around the world is about 1/3 of the total world GHG
emission, indicating the significance of electric power sectors in the global
warming issue.
Electricity production also accounts for more than one-third of U.S.
greenhouse gas emission, with coal-fired power plants produce 25%, and
natural gas-fired power plants produce 6% of U.S. greenhouse gases.
Compared to them, Renewable Energy Resources produce little to zero
greenhouse gas emission.
Natural gas emits 0.6-2 pounds of CO2 equivalent per kWh.
Coal emits 1.4-3.6 pounds of CO2 equivalent per kWh.
Wind emits 0.02-0.04 pounds of CO2 equivalent per kWh.
Solar emits 0.07-0.2, geothermal 0.1-0.2, and hydroelectric 0.1-0.5.
According to Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), renewable energy will lower
about 277 million metric tons of power plants CO2 annually by 2025.
So, reduction in greenhouse gas emission will ultimately slower the process of
climate change.
Environmental Benefits of less Carbon Emission
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It will slower the process of
Climate Change.
There will be less global
warming.
Sea level will not rise. It means
that there will be less risk of
coastal flooding.
There will be less risk of
wildfires.
Wildlife will not be affected.
Economic Benefits of Renewable Energy
1. A vast and inexhaustible energy supply
• According to Luderer, Wind turbines produced 1.23 Exajoule or 1.6% of
global electricity generation in 2010, and it has the potential of producing
5,700EJ/year.
• Similarly, the annual growth rate of solar power is 40% and supplies
0.11EJ/year, but it has the potential to produce 1,600-50,000EJ/year.
Economic Benefits (Cont.…)
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2.
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3.
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According to the U.S Department of Energy SunShot, solar power has the capacity
to deliver $400 billion in environmental and health benefits in the U.S by 2050.
Current installed solar system supplied 20 gigawatt power, and resulting in reduction
of greenhouse gases by 17 million metric tons which is worth almost $700 million
per year.
The reductions emission are worth $259 billion in reduced global climate damages,
and $167 billion in health and environmental benefits.
Jobs and other Economic Benefits
According to UCS, renewable energy would create more than three times as many
jobs as producing an equivalent amount of electricity from fossil fuels—resulting in a
benefit of 202,000 new jobs in 2025.
In 2011, the solar industry employed approximately 100,000 people on a part-time
or full-time basis, including jobs in solar installation, manufacturing, and sales.
Stable Energy Prices
The costs of renewable energy technologies have declined steadily, and are
projected to drop even more.
The average price of a solar panel has dropped almost 60 percent since 2011.
UCS’s analysis of the economic benefits of a 25 percent renewable electricity
standard found that such a policy would lead to 4.1 percent lower natural gas prices
and 7.6 percent lower electricity prices by 2030.
Health Benefits of Renewable Energy Resources
Besides other health benefits such as asthma, cardiac, and skin affection, RES has less
mortality compared to other energy sources.
Table1. A comparison of mortality attributable to energy sources using point estimates from
available models.
Data is taken from Gohlke et al. (2008)
Challenges
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Renewable Energy Sources are not cost
efficient.
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Grid is willing to buy energy at very low rate.
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Installation of batteries is prohibited in certain
counties.
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Sun doesn't shine all the time.
Possible Solutions
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Cost reduction is one of the easiest solution.
New Berkley Study describes that, the aim of the advancement in solar power is to
reduce the installation cost by 70% which will result in fulfilling 14% of U.S electric
demand, and will reduce 13% greenhouse gases in 2030.
Hossain has proposed a special design of solar panel with blackbody radiation
which will be able to produce about 27,770 kW/year or 7.6 kW/day solar energy.
One square meter solar panel will be to fulfill 100% residential needs.
Commercial buildings will require more panels according to their needs.
By keeping all the calculated cost up front, supply for 30 years cost at $0.05/kwh
for monthly 4000 kwh for 100 people.
Conclusion
• Deploying solar energy can ensure economic, reliable, and climate-friendly power
system for future global energy demand.
• There will be less fluctuations in electricity price, less carbon emission, and more
generated power output.
• Mortality associated with electricity generation can be reduced upto 90%.
References
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Garavand, S. A., Imani, H., & Memarinezhad, H. (2014). Investigation the effects of electricity
price variation under power market on optimal selection of wind turbines with purpose of Co2 emission reduction.
Advances in Environmental Biology, 697-703. Retrieved from
http://go.galegroup.com.citytech.ezproxy.cuny.edu:2048/ps/i.do?p=AONE&sw=w&u=cuny_nytc&v=2.1&it=r&id=
GALE%7CA392176594&asid=6b3f0f8070eafc333347a185c62feadb
Gohlke, J. M., Hrynkow, S. H., & Portier, C. J. (2008). Health, economy, and environment:
sustainable energy choices for a nation. Environmental Health Perspectives, 116(6), A236. Retrieved from
http://go.galegroup.com.citytech.ezproxy.cuny.edu:2048/ps/i.do?p=AONE&sw=w&u=cuny_nytc&v=2.1&it=r&id=
GALE%7CA181148409&asid=3bba11dbdecdb71aaf661cbd78b010dc
Hossain, M. (2016). Solar energy integration into advanced building design for meeting energy demand and
environment problem. International Journal of Energy Research, 40(9), 1293-1300. Retrieved from
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http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com.citytech.ezproxy.cuny.edu:2048/doi/10.1002/er.3525/full
Luderer, G., Krey, V., Calvin, K., Merrick, J., Mima, S., Pietzcker, R., . . . Wada, K. (2014). The role of renewable
energy in climate stabilization: Results from the EMF27 scenarios. Climatic Change, 123(3), 427-441. Retrieved
from https://link-springer-com.citytech.ezproxy.cuny.edu/article/10.1007/s10584-013-0924-z
New Berkeley Lab Study Tallies Environmental and Public Health Benefits of Solar Power. (2016, May 18).
States News Service. Retrieved from
http://go.galegroup.com.citytech.ezproxy.cuny.edu:2048/ps/i.do?p=AONE&sw=w&u=cuny_nytc&v=2.1&it=r&id=
GALE%7CA452835091&asid=548b29f72208eb3cfdf259050e3b61d7
Union of Concerned Scientists. (n.d.). Benefits of renewable energy use. Retrieved from
http://www.ucsusa.org/clean-energy/renewable-energy/public-benefits-of-renewable-power#.WSCthWjyvcs