The short answer is yes… but it’s definitely not an easy job! There’s an old proverb; “where there’s a will there’s a way” that exactly summarises the barriers that prevent the idea from coming true.
When it comes to powering the world with only renewable energy, a more convenient question will be; “Will there be enough will to power the world through renewables alone?”
We’re actually in the middle of a gold rush because our true gold tends to be the fossil fuels. But by the very nature of fuels, they are, unfortunately, finite! The estimates for fossil fuel reserves are revised each decade and new sources are found to support those with growing demands. But there will be a time when fossil fuels will be mere samples in laboratories.
In the 21st Century, solar power, wind, tidal, hydro and many other renewable energy sources were considered. There were genuine concerns about the technical issues with renewable technologies and many realise that there are sustainability problems as well. With climate change, literally, everything is unpredictable. You can’t just spawn a hydro-electric power station by a river only to see it running low due to severe scarcity of rainfall.
Solar power, for example, is great when the sun shines and tend to provide about 20 W/m2 on average instances. However, then night falls, they are completely useless. Wind-based power stations struggle when there is no wind. Because no wind means no power.
Most experts agree that a future with renewable energy only would be a mixed hybrid with solar, wind, tidal, geothermal and most likely… nuclear as well. Let’s just hope that there are no dire consequences of using nuclear power as seen in the past! It is estimated that a solar farm of the size of Texas will be enough to provide all the power that the US needs. But is something like that even possible?
Some possible changes that have been proposed to make solar farms more viable are the addition of energy storages. That way, there will be no issues when it comes to energy generation at night.
If we go 100% renewable, that means that you’ll need to invest a lot… but for the greater good. A recent study by Stanford and UC Davis analysed the repercussions of 100% renewable earth. They concluded that if we have a 100% renewable technology generation, around 2.5 to 3 million lives would be saved per year!
By 2050, all existing power plants would need to switch to some renewable alternatives to some fuels they use. That will be a stepping stone to the objective that many have set around the world. Can you believe it… Most of the things around us will be running 100% on renewable energies? Games like Roulette, blackjack and many more found in landbased casinos won’t run on energy as it’s the dealer who does everything…Renewable energy can come into practice when you are playing Live Casino Games at Magical Vegas! Any clue why? Because you will use your phone and the internet to access it. Both of which would make use of 100% renewable energy.
But which country has already stepped in the future of energy sources? Iceland is almost 100% reliant on renewable energy. Of course, the country has a bit of advantage since it has an abundant source of geothermal energy, given the island’s unique geology!
We only hope that each country manages to spot any potential source of renewable energy and consider following Iceland in turning the world 100% renewable!