Geothermal Energy
Storyboard Text
- As a renewable resource, geothermal covers a significant share of electricity demand in countries such as Iceland, El Salvador, New Zealand, Kenya and the Philippines, and meets more than 90% of heating demand in Iceland.
- Thank you so much for teaching me about the importance of taking care of our environment! I will surely advocate for geothermal energy!
- Geothermal energy is a source of renewable energy that will last until the Earth is destroyed by the sun in around 5 billion years. The hot reservoirs within the Earth are naturally replenished, making it both renewable and sustainable. Additionally, worldwide energy consumption is currently around 15 terawatts, which is far from the total potential energy available from geothermal sources. While we can’t currently use most reservoirs there is a hope that the number of exploitable geothermal resources will increase with ongoing research and development in the industry. It is currently estimated that geothermal power plants could provide between 0.0035 and 2 terawatts of power. Geothermal provides a reliable source of energy as compared to other renewable resources such as wind and solar power. This is because the resource is always available to be tapped into, unlike with wind or solar energy.
- However, there are also a few downsides. Geothermal energy is an expensive resource to tap into, with price tags ranging from around $2-$7 million for a plant with a 1 megawatt capacity. Although geothermal energy does not typically release greenhouse gases, there are many of these gases stored under the Earth’s surface which are released into the atmosphere during digging. While these gases are also released into the atmosphere naturally, the rate increases near geothermal plants. However, these gas emissions are still far lower than those associated with fossil fuels. The largest single disadvantage of geothermal energy is that it is location specific. Geothermal plants need to be built in places where the energy is accessible, which means that some areas are not able to exploit this resource. Of course, this is not a problem if you live in a place where geothermal energy is readily accessible, such as Iceland. Due to the ground being more resistant to seasonal heat changes than the air, it can act as a heat sink/ source with a geothermal heat pump just two metres below the surface.
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