Scotland’s Changing Energy Sources
It’s hard to imagine living in a world where we don’t have any electricity to power the many inventions we have made for ourselves. If you have ever been through a prolonged power cut you’ll know just how troublesome it can be, and how unprepared we are for it. But the truth is that we are placing a lot of strain on the network, and that is part of the reason why we should look to alternative forms of energy to meet our needs. Scotland is of particular interest in this area, since it holds more potential for harnessing ongoing and natural forms of energy, such as solar energy than many other places do. The Scottish government has resolved to take a huge step forward in looking towards alternative means of power in the next few years.
Wind energy — offshore and onshore — is a particularly fruitful area of exploitation in Scotland, since its exposed shores tend to see wind speeds of sufficient velocity to provide homes with a lot of power. Plenty of wind turbines have already been built and are in operation, with many others due to join them in the near future. While not receiving so many headlines as wind power, marine energy is another area which may prove to be a blessing in the years to come. The rugged conditions and sometimes fierce weather in the coastal areas of Scotland mean that there is never any shortage of waves that hold power within them. If that power can be reliably harnessed it could quite literally produce a sea change in how we get our energy in the future.
Another renewable source of energy can be found in bio-fuels. This is known as bio-energy and can be found in many naturally occurring items such as plant matter. While solar power comes directly from the sun, bio-energy is the sun’s energy that has been absorbed by other things, such as plants. Scotland is also moving ahead with its use of fuel cells, which use hydrogen to create energy and power without damaging the world around us. Cars can be made to run on fuel cells, which is a long term goal but not one which is unachievable. Scotland has certainly become something of a leader in this field, as we all try to find alternative ways of powering our modern way of life. Renewable energy has to be the path of choice for our own future as well as for future generations, if we are to halt the effect that our current forms of energy are having on our world.
Scotland is making a very positive start in this area, and indeed many other countries around the world are looking to Scotland’s solutions for guidance on how to improve their own attempts to rely more on renewable sources of energy than anything else. Daniel Collins writes on a number of topics on behalf of a digital marketing agency and a variety of clients. As such, this article is to be considered a professional piece with business interests in mind.
