The Earth is dying. In 2018, the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change released a report that claimed there were a mere 11 years left before all damages done related to climate change would be irreversible.
Non-renewable energy and fossil fuels, such as coal and oil are currently overloading our atmosphere with carbon dioxide and other emissions that trap heat and lead to an increase in temperature-- otherwise known as global warming.
This climate change has extreme impacts and grave consequences on the environment, wildlife, and human health. For these reasons, Denmark believes this is an issue in immediate need of attention and is therefore working towards promoting the use of renewable energy sources through the implementation of more solar energy practices, weather forecasting, and the enforcement of regulations to reduce non-renewables annually.
A majority of all energy worldwide comes from non-renewable energy and 84% of the world’s energy specifically comes from fossil fuel sources.
Non-renewable energy sources are defined as sources that cannot be naturally replenished for years. Modern renewable energy consumption is measured in terawatt-hours (TWh) per year and can be graphed as per results. Globally, the world produced approximately 5.9 TWh of modern renewable energy in 2016. This represents a 5 to 6-fold increase since the 1960s.
The byproduct of these non-renewable sources, carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases has resulted in a drastic increase in greenhouse gas emissions, ultimately increasing global temperatures and threatening life all over. The planet's average surface temperature has risen about 1.62 degrees Fahrenheit since the late 19th century, a change driven largely by increased carbon dioxide and other human-made emissions into the atmosphere.
This is where renewable energy comes in. Renewable energy creates three times more jobs than fossil fuels. According to Cleantechnica, “a national study showed that job creation in clean energy outdoes fossil fuels by a margin of 3-to-1 — every dollar put into clean energy creates three times as many jobs as putting that same dollar into oil and gas.” In terms of oil exploration and gas drilling, these are affecting species from the removal of their homes and their sanctuaries.
Non-renewable energy expansion also poses a risk to human health, just as pollution from mercury emissions can lead to neurological effects in people’s brains. Due to the potential dangerous impact on the well-being of society, there is still hope as creating a drift towards more renewable energy integration in the energy supply can help prevent these impacts from progressing to a degree of which its effects would be irreversible.
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Written by volunteer Nayana Sharma
Date Published: 11/24/2020
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Sources:
Breum, Henrik. "The Danish Energy Model." Energistyrelsen, Danish Energy Agency.
“Climate and Energy the Danish Way.” UM, https://kenya.um.dk/en/danida-en/nrm/climate-change/climate-and-energy-the-danish-way.
“12 Countries Leading the Way in Renewable Energy.” Click Energy, www.clickenergy.com.au/news-blog/12-countries-leading-the-way-in-renewable-energy/.
“Denmark - Renewable Energy Products, Denmark - Renewable Energy.” Denmark - Renewable Energy Products, https://www.export.gov/article?id=Denmark-Renewable-Energy-Products.
Emily Folk. “- How Businesses Can Further the Development of Renewable Energy.” Renewable Energy Magazine, at the Heart of Clean Energy Journalism, Emily Folk, 18 July 2019, https://www.renewableenergymagazine.com/emily-folk/how-businesses-can-further-the-development-of-20190718.
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