Brief Overview
This session’s lesson was on energy and how it is constantly
being depleted by our excessive usage. According to statistics in the lecture
slides, “if everyone consumed as much energy as the average Singaporean and US
resident, the world’s oil reserves would be depleted in 9 years”. The lecture
then went on to explain the various types of energy sources available and also
how sustainable energy sources can be encouraged by various measures for a
Green Economy.
Interesting Observations
As the world is starting to gain awareness on the importance
of sustainable forms of energy, it is interesting to note that Brazil’s gasohol
programme is already almost 40 years old. Brazil is regarded as the first
sustainable biofuel economy, and is a policy model for other countries. Burning
of ethanol fuel releases significantly less Carbon Dioxide than conventional
burning of fossil fuels. According to statistics, can ethanol produces 56% less
Carbon Dioxide. This is beneficial to our Earth, which is facing increasing
concerns of global warming and greenhouse effect.
However, there is always an argument on how these lands
should be used. While Brazil uses a huge portion of their land to farm
sugarcanes for energy, many people in Brazil are still suffering from hunger.
So the question is always whether food production is more important or energy
production is more important. From environmentalist point of view, cane ethanol
is definitely viable form of sustainable energy source, however for hunger
activists, the planting of sugar cane for energy is definitely a major source
of concern.
It is also interesting to note that photovoltaics produce
significantly high amounts of electrical energy per square kilometer of land. Photovoltaic
is the method to generate electricity form the solar energy by converts energy
from the sun directly to electricity. The lecture slides state that
photovoltaics can generate substantial amounts of energy; I feel that this
piece of statistic does not apply across the board. The efficiency of the
photovoltaics varies between different conditions and different geographical
areas. In a sunny Singapore, for instance, the efficiency of these solar panels
are definitely very high. However, in the places like St Petersburg in Russia,
where the city is only exposed to 6 hours of sunlight on some days, this piece
of technology can be extremely ineffective.
Despite that, I do agree that photovoltaic is an extremely
viable option to look into for our future energy. It provides several key benefits
compared to conventional burning of fossil fuels. It is extremely clean with
zero emissions of harmful gas. Moreover it is a largely inexhaustible form of
energy as opposed to the fossil fuels, which are running out at an alarming
rate.
Key Takeaway Points
I learnt in this lesson that sometimes, decisions that are
beneficial to the society in the long run may not be perceived as favorable to
the general public. It is therefore important for government to help push green
technology forward with legislation and other tools. Due the high costs of
clean energy, people are often reluctant to change to cleaner sources because
they do not gain substantial personal benefits. Thus if the government can
create incentives to individuals to change to green technology, it would result
in significant increases in the conversion to green energy. For example,
officials in Sao Paolo implemented a policy that requires new residential,
commercial and industrial buildings to install solar water heating systems
(SWH) to cover at least 40% of the energy used for heating water. Regulations
like this helps to kick start the acquisition of green technologies. When these
green technologies become more widespread, the cost of the technology will be
spread over a larger consumer population, causing the price to decrease. Until
then, policies are needed provide the incentive to change.
Issues for further
discussion
Is biomass and waste energy as energy source cause of
concern in the future?
I feel that biomass is definitely an avenue that can be
ventured into for renewable source of energy. The cost of this energy source is
extremely and thus can be accepted by consumers more easily. The major problem
will be to reduce the negative stigmas relating to the use of waste. Like the
implementation of clean water in Singapore, there was strong negative reaction
to the “sewage water” for drinking. But gradually over time, there was
acceptance for this piece of technology when people realized that the water was
no different from other water sources.
Personal rating
This lesson provided me with some mind blowing statistics
and helped cleared several misconceptions of mine. For example, I once believed
that solar energy and waste energy was extremely inefficient, but after the
lesson I realized the vast potentials of these energy sources. Thus I give this
lesson a rating of 9/10.
