The UK has long been a leader in green energy solutions and is one of the pioneering nations when it comes to government and industry collaboration on environmentally friendly power. Its official Climate Change Programme has worked for more than a decade at cutting carbon emissions for a more stable environment, but the momentum gained by the Department of Energy and Climate Change is a delicate one that will need even more support to continue.
However, it is important to consider the challenges that come along with these power sources so that we can work toward a 100 per cent renewable energy scheme by the year 2050. Solar power, which is prevalent in renewable home energy plans across Europe, is a great way for households to independently produce the electricity that they need. Many families use it to supplement the energy that they get from a certified provider whilst a lucky few are even able to go off the grid entirely. However, there are variables to account for when considering how much solar energy can be produced, for example geographical location and directional orientation of solar panels. Another factor to account for with solar power is the weather; the same system might produce significantly less on an overcast day due to limited sun exposure.
The UK is the leading developer of offshore wind turbines, and thus has been able to get a head start in figuring out the advantages and disadvantages of this type of power. Placing turbines farther out to sea can yield significantly more power because of higher speed winds, and the production of offshore turbines has also provided a great economic advantage to the UK, as this sector is one of the few that withstood the recession. When juxtaposed with onshore wind power, offshore turbines are more easily utilised because of the amount of space and lack of restrictions that come with harvesting wind power away from the shore.
However, there are also issues with offshore power. Currently, the UK is facing the challenge of producing wind turbines that can withstand build-ups of sea salt and uncontrollably high winds when put out to sea. Offshore wind power could be an even greater supplier of electricity in the future, but first we need more research and development to figure out how to make it more cost effective. This will include coming up with solutions to cut down on the number of annual maintenance trips to these turbines due to unforeseen mechanical issues.
In a recent poll, Opus Energy revealed that the average energy customer is already getting 10 per cent of his or her power from renewable sources, and that number could jump to 25 per cent by the end of the year. Undoubtedly, the future of green energy in the UK lies in identifying these challenges and finding creative, innovative solutions to them, which begins with education. The more the average UK citizen knows about green energy, the less daunting it seems. Spreading knowledge about new developments in renewable power is the first step to garnering more support for research and getting people to switch.