What Is a Renewable Resource?

A r💞enewable resource is a resღource that can be replenished naturally over time. As a result, it is sustainable despite its consumption by humankind.

Renewable resources for the pro𝐆duction of energy are considered especially important for their potential to replace nonrenewable, or finite, resources. Additionally, renewable resources can offer cleaner energy s൲olutions than those provided by nonrenewable resources such as coal and fossil fuels.

Examples of renewable resources include the sun, wind, water, the Earth’s heat (geot♌hermal), and bi🍌omass.

Understanding Renewable Resources

A renewable resource is a resource of which there is a seemingly endless supply because it can be replenished. For example, renewable resources su𒁃ch as the 🍌sun, the wind, and geothermal heat are considered inexhaustible.

Water is also considered a renewable natur🐟al resource, as long as there is precipi🃏tation. Changing climate patterns have underscored the need for conservation efforts to protect water supplies.

Other natural resources are considere🥃d renewable even though some time and effort must go into their renewal. In addition, most precious metals are considered renewable because they’re reusable. Since they are not destroyed during their extraction and use, they can be recycled.

Unlike renewable resources, once a nonrenewable resource is depleted, it cannot be recovered. As the h🍃uman population continues to grow and finite resources become increasingly scarce, the demand for renewable 🔯resources increases.

Renewable Resources Used for Energy

Fossil fuels have been used since the late 1880s to produc�♒�e the energy we use. Renewable resources such as hydropower and wood have been used much longer. In fact, they were the two primary renewable energy resources up to the 1990s.

In the years s🐈ince, renew🎀able energy production has come increasingly from biomass, geothermal, solar, water, and wind resources.

Renewable resources that can replace fossil fuels in th🐲e production of🦄 energy are a major focus of nations around the world. The challenges for successful renewable energy production include reliability and expense.

A great deal of research is taking place to determine the viability and best implementation of renewable energy on a mass scale.

Examples of Renewable Resources

Sun

Sunlight is a widely recognized renewable resource. In fact💞, it has been used throughout human history to warm shelters, dry and cook foods, and heat water. Different technologies exist and continue to be developed to collect and convert solar radiation into heat energy that can be used for va💧rious purposes.

For example, solar photovoltaic (PV) device♛s, or solar cells, change sunlight into electricity. Depending on the number of solar cells in use, they cܫan power small appliances or provide electricity for many homes.

The challenge with using sunlight for our energy needs is that it can vary and, at times, be unreliable. The availability of sunlight depends on the time of day, existing weather conditions, season of the year, and geographic location.

Wind

Wind has a direct relationship to the sun. Daily winds result when the sun’s heat is captured unevenly by the varying surfaces on the Earth, including oceans and other water masses. Air above land heats ✱up faster than air above water during the day when the sun is shining. That warm air expands and rises. Cooler air takes it๊s place. This creates wind.

In earlier years, windmills were used across the United States to capture energy and pump water from wells. They still exist in some farming areas to provide livestock with water.

Today, wind is harnessed to produce electricity. Wind flows over blades in wind turbines. The blades turn, and that drives an electric generator. In turn, that generates electricity.

Typically, wind turbines don’t produce emissions capable of polluting the air or water. Also, they don’t need to be cooled by water. Though rare, they can have some negative effects on the environment if they leak lubricating fluids or catch fire. They can also negatively impact bird life and species.

In 2023 (the most recent annual data available), wind turbines provided about 10.2% of total U.S. utility-scale electricity generation.

Water

Hydropower is the energy produced by water. It was an early renewable sou♚rce of energy even before it was used to generate electricity. For example, hydropower turned paddle wheels on rivers to allow for the mill൲ing of grain and lumber. However, changes in precipitation and lack of water due to droughts can affect hydropower production.

Hydropower was used to generate electricity in the U.S. beginning in 1880. Today, m💟ost of the nation’s hydroelectricity is produced in facilities located at large dams built in the 1970s.

Until 2019, hydropower was the🔴 largest source of total annual renewable electricity generation in the U.S.

In 2023 (the most recent annual data available), hydropower accounted for 5.7% of total utility-scale electricity generation.

Geothermal

Geothermal is a renewable resource that uses Earth’s heat to generate power. Hot springs heated by the Earth have been used for😼 centuries for bathing. Geothermal energy has also been used, and still is, for district heating systems.

Geothermal energy is used to gene𓃲rate electricity as well. Power plants for this purpose are built below ground, within approximately൩ a mile of Earth’s surface.

Seven U.S. states had geothermal power plants as of February 2024: California, Hawaii, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, and Utah. In 2023 (the most recent annual data available), they produced approximately 17 billion kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity.

In 2023 (the most recent annual data available), geothermal accounted for about 0.4% of total U.S. utility-scale electricity generation.

Geothermal heat pumps are another way to use Earth’s heat. They transfer heat from the ground (or water) into buildings during the winter and reverse the process in the summer to aid in heating and cooling.

Biomass

Renewable organic products that produce energy are referred to as biomass. The process of photosynthesis uses en🍎ergy from the sun to convert biomass resources into chꦺemical energy.

In 2023 (the most recent annual data available), biomass provided nearly five quadrillion British thermal units (Btu) and about 5% of total primary energy use in the United States. In the same year, it accounted for about 1.1% of total U.S. utility-scale electricity generation.

Biomass renewable resources include wood and wood waste, agricultural crops and waste (which are mainly used for biofuel), municipal waste including paper, cotton, food, and yard waste, and animal manure and sewage.

Biofuel refers to liquid fuels and blending components produced from feedstock biomass materials. Most biofuels are used as transportation fuels, but they may also be used for heating and electricity generation. This renewable resource has become more prevalent in recent years as an alternative to nonrenewable resources such as coal, oil, and natural gas.

In January 2024, U.S. biofuels production capacity was about 24 billion gallons, an increase over the same period in 2023. In addition, the U.S. was a net exporter of biofuels. The fuel ethanol accounted for most of biofuel production and increased 2% in production capacity over 2023.

Although prices are still high for biofuel, some experts project that as the prices of fossil fuels increase, the price of biofuel will become more competitive.

Renewable Resources vs. Nonrenewable Resources

Renewable Resources

Renewable resources are those resources that can continue to exist despite being consumed or can replenish themselves o💯ver a period of time even as they are used. They i🃏nclude sun, wind, water, geothermal, and biomass.

The disadvantage of reꦬnewable resources is that they may❀ not be available for use when needed.

For example, the ability to collect and u𒀰se solar energy is limited at night and when the sky is overcast. The continued🎃 availability of water depends on ongoing precipitation and weather conditions.

Renewable resources are considered to have less of a n𝔍egative impact on the environment than nonrenew𓄧able resources.

Nonrenewable Resources

Nonrenewable resources are those resources that ඣare considered finite due to the extremely long time it takes for nature to create them. Oncജe depleted, they become unavailable. They include coal, natural gas, and oil.

The advantage of nonrenewable resources is that they’re readily available now and the 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:infrastructure for their use exis꧋ts to produce power on demand.

However🔯, they have a greater negative environmental impact than renewable resources. The heat trapped by carbon dioxide gas when coal and oil are burned contributes to the atmosphere’s rising temperature and global climate change.

Activists, consumers, and government leaders promote renewable energy as⛄ a way to generate needed power without the emissions that are warming theꦡ planet and threatening life on Earth.

Special Considerations

A Global Trend Toward Renewable Resources

Renewable resources have become a focal point of the environmental movement, both politically and eco🍌nomically. Energy obtained from renewable resources puts much less strain on the limited supply of 🤡fossil fuels, which are nonrenewable resources.

The problem with using renewable resources on a large scale is that they are costly. In most cases, ဣmore research is needed to determine how to use them most cost-effec🦹tively.

Beyond th♐eir limited supply, energy sources such as fossil fuels damage the 🐷environment when produced and consumed, and they contribute to global warming.

The first major international accord to curb carbon dioxide emissions and global warming was the Kyoto Protocol, signed in 1997. More recently, global powers met in Paris in 2015 to pledge emissions reductions and a focus on higher reliance on renewable resources for energy.

Incentives for Use

Incentives can encourage the use of alternative energy. For example, energy taxes place a surcharge on fossil fuels. This can make the prices of renewable resources more competitive and attractive. As a result, people may be more inclined to use renewable energy. Also, the reward of 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:renewable ene𓆉rgy certifica🌸tes (RECs) acts as an🎀 incentive to produce energy using green sources.

澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Green funds, which are investments such as mutual funds, support eco-🤡friendly and sustainable companies by investing in them. These investments also help to promote environmental awareness.

These incentives seem to be having an effect. According to the U.S. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Energ🍸y Information Administration (EIA), in 2023 (the most recent annual data available), renewable energy provided almost 8.25 quadrillion British thermal units (Btu). This represented 9% of total U.S. energy consumption.

In 2023 (the most recent annual data available), 21.4% of U.S. utility-scale electricity was generated by renewable energy sources.

State and federal governments have encouraged more biofuel consumption with requirements and 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:incenti💛ves for the use of renew♐able energy. The EIA anticipates that U.S. renewable energy consumption will continue to increase through 2050.

The Bottom Line

Renewable resources include th꧂e sun, the wind, ꦆwater, Earth’s heat (geothermal), and biomass.

Renewable resources are natural resources that replenish themselves or exist on a continual basis. In recent years, they have been of special i﷽nterest for the vital role they can play in the production of energy. They’re also seen as having less of a negative impact on the environment.

Of course, renewable🏅 resources were used for thousands of years before nonrenewable resources such as coal and oil began to be used extensively in the late 19th century.

Due to the finite nature of coal and oil, plus the threat from climate change, the world community is focused on the greater use of renewable re♍🦩sources to meet energy needs.