ALTERNATIVE ENERGY: Five Alternative Sources of Energy and the Pros and Cons of Each

By John Newcomb

As the world reels under the impact of global warming, the necessity for alternative sources of energy seems even more urgent. With the cost (financial as well as environmental) of using traditional fossil fuels increasing day by day, mankind's survival depends on exploiting alternative, renewable sources of energy. Here, we take a look at some of these sources, and the pros and cons of each.

1. Solar Energy
Pros: Present everywhere. Limitless, clean, renewable and sustainable.
Cons: Current technology to exploit solar power is very expensive. Requires large land area to be fully utilized. Not useful on rainy or cloudy days, or in areas that do not get adequate sunlight.

2. Wind Energy
Pros: Present everywhere, limitless, and renewable. Wind power is a very clean source of energy.
Cons: Like solar power, requires a very large land area to be of actual use. Wind strength not the same everywhere; can only be exploited where the wind speed is high enough. Wind mills are an eyesore and destroy the landscape.

3. Nuclear Energy
Pros: Clean, sustainable, renewable. Can be tapped anywhere.
Cons: Expensive. The radioactive waste produced by nuclear power plants is very dangerous and almost impossible to dispose of. Still, one of the most promising energy sources in wide use today.

4. Hydroelectric Energy
Pros: Clean, virtually limitless, sustainable.
Cons: Expensive. Can be tapped only at large waterfalls. Requires huge physical infrastructure. Diffifulty in transporting produced power.

5. Geothermal Energy
Pros: Clean, virtually limitless.
Cons: Can be tapped only in regions where it is available (which are few and far in between), limiting its effectiveness. Difficult to tap. Not very sustainable or practical.

John is a blogger who has been writing online for 3 years. His latest blog is about cable amplifier. Check it out here: Cable Amplifier.

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