why is renewable energy good for your health

[16] Environmental Protection Agency. Greentumble was founded in the summer of 2015 by us, Sara and Ovi. Increased support for renewable energy could create even more jobs. Clean-Burning and Low-Emission. Text STOP to opt out. Even if some of the equipment in the system is damaged, the rest can typically continue to operate. Local governments can dramatically reduce their carbon footprint by purchasing or directly generating electricity from clean, renewable sources. biomass production and/or wind land lease payments, and $11.5 billion in new property tax revenue for local communities [17]. Solar power. Biomass energy uses the energy found in plants. Our goal is to inspire people to change their attitudes and behaviors toward a more sustainable life. Renewable Electricity Futures Study. Analysis and information on the EPA's Clean Power Plan. 2016 Wind Technologies Market Report. Environmental Policy Simulation Tool for Electrical grid Interventions. 2009. Solar Market Insight Report 2017 Q2. Renewable energy already supports thousands of jobs in the United States. However, it is still massively reducing their dependence on the National Grid.#2 No emissions. Apart from estimating the number of deaths that could be prevented and the money that could be saved by investing in renewables, Harvard University researchers are developing an approach for how we can target renewables investment so that it can deliver the highest health benefits to the local population [6]. With such technologically advanced tools to ensure that the deployment of renewables can be successful for both climate and health, there is no reason to think that the renewables revolution will not be successful! Health Benefits; The second category of the advantages of going green is the health benefits it offers. 2011. Biomass energy, a renewable energy source, can also be a non-renewable energy source. 2010. Renewable energy projects can improve health Renewable electricity projects and energy efficiency measures could have health benefits worth millions of dollars a year, according to a new study published August 31, 2015 in Nature Climate Change. 2013. Greentumble is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. Tell Congress we need swift, equitable, significant, and effective climate action. A report from the Joint Research Centre (JRC) states that in 2014, wind energy provided 8% electricity to Europe. Sci. We need to grow a resilient food system from the ground up. This includes sunlight, geothermal heat, wind, tides, water, and various forms of biomass. But if states in that region up the percentage of renewable energy in their mix to 19.5 percent instead, it would result in $13.5 billion in health benefits in 2030 compared to $5.8 billion in costs. Renewable energy is derived from natural processes that are replenished at a rate that is equal or faster than the rate at which they are consumed. Of course, solar power doesn’t work at night, so for those who don’t have solar batteries installed, they still need to be connected to the National Grid if they don’t have enough energy to run the home after dark. Renewable energy minimizes carbon pollution and has a much lower impact on our environment. Renewable energy is one of the most effective tools we have in the fight against climate change, and there is every reason to believe it will succeed. A blog on science, politics, and activism. In fact, a major government-sponsored study found that clean energy could contribute somewhere between three and 80 times its 2013 levels, depending on assumptions [8]. Hydroelectric power plants can disrupt river ecosystems both upstream and downstream from the dam. Biomass and geothermal power plants, like coal- and natural gas-fired power plants, may require water for cooling. Over the next decade, the International Energy Agency expects renewable energy to account for 80% of the world's power consumption. What are fossil fuels? Can we prevent them from being used again? Burning natural gas for electricity releases between 0.6 and 2 pounds of carbon dioxide equivalent per kilowatt-hour (CO2E/kWh); coal emits between 1.4 and 3.6 pounds of CO2E/kWh. Wind, on the other hand, is responsible for only 0.02 to 0.04 pounds of CO2E/kWh on a life-cycle basis; solar 0.07 to 0.2; geothermal 0.1 to 0.2; and hydroelectric between 0.1 and 0.5. (For more information, see How it Works: Water for Electricity. [4] Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS). Use of green and renewable energy also helps reduce the emission of carbon dioxide to the environment which helps reduce carbon footprints. The pollution affects everyone: one Harvard University study estimated the life cycle costs and public health effects of coal to be an estimated $74.6 billion every year. The hydroelectric power industry employed approximately 66,000 people in 2017 [13]; the geothermal industry employed 5,800 people [14]. Renewable electricity generation from biomass can have a wide range of global warming emissions depending on the resource and whether or not it is sustainably sourced and harvested. Tell Uber & Lyft to be part of a clean transportation future. For more information on their negative impacts—including effective solutions to avoid, minimize, or mitigate—see our page on The Environmental Impacts of Renewable Energy Technologies. In 2016, the solar industry employed more than 260,000 people, including jobs in solar installation, manufacturing, and sales, a 25% increase over 2015 [12]. Solar geoengineering technologies cool the earth by reflecting sunlight back into space—but they pose many risks, challenges, and uncertainties. Energy expert John Rogers is back with new renewable energy milestones and advances in wind and solar power, Dr. Elena Krieger explains how an unsung technology can increase reliable access to clean energy. [7] Renewable Electricity Futures Study. The model, which has been dubbed Environmental Policy Simulation Tool for Electrical grid Interventions, or EPSTEIN, can be used to make policy decisions about where renewable energy installations should be set up in order to maximize their health benefits. Different energy sources produce different amounts of these pollutants. Number two, the renewable energy industry is a wonderful source of great jobs, that's durable, that pay great incomes and can replace a lot of the lost jobs in places. Each day we are breaking new ground with renewable energy: from the new record Germany broke by generating 35% of power from renewables in first half of 2017 [1] to the fact that renewables investment remains larger than that for all fossil fuels[2]. These are resources found under the ground: coal, oil and gas. That’s equivalent to 4.36 cents per kilowatt-hour of electricity produced—about one-third of the average electricity rate for a typical US home [6]. The use of renewable energy has many potential benefits, including human beings and environment. But it is not just air pollution that would drop; our waters would also stand to gain. In 2019 this had decreased to around 64% as nuclear power, and in particular, renewable energy use increased. 2 Brattle Square, Cambridge MA 02138, USA Biomass 6. Renewable energy provides a chance to curb greenhouse gas emissions, lower the cost of electricity, and empower communities. They found that renewable energy could help reduce the electricity sector’s emissions by approximately 81 percent [5]. Wind has a substantial share in the global renewable energy market, and an appreciable number of wind farms are to be constructed worldwide in the coming few years. UCS analysis found that a 25-by-2025 national renewable electricity standard would stimulate $263.4 billion in new capital investment for renewable energy technologies, $13.5 billion in new landowner income from? 2011. [2] Energy Information Agency (EIA). In 2011 fossil fuels made up 83% of the world’s energy use. Coal, nuclear, and many natural gas plants depend on having sufficient water for cooling, which means that severe droughts and heat waves can put electricity generation at risk. 2011. U.S. Department of Energy. 1219: 73–98. May 30, 2013 06:37 PM By Lizette Borreli. 2017. Essence of RES is derivation from natural processes so the energy is sustainable and never run out. Cambridge, MA: Union of Concerned Scientists. By continuing, you accept our use of cookies. 210. The result is a web of significant and harmful impacts, from stronger, more frequent storms, to drought, sea level rise, and extinction. Researchers indicate that some common diseases linked to air and water pollution include: The incidence of these diseases is increasing while studies, such as the one from the Clean Energy and Climate Change Office of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency found that in the US, citizens spend an estimated $361.7 to $886.5 billion each year on health for conditions related to the use of fossil fuels [5].