Solar thermal energy

Many scientific studies show the same thing: global warming is real. It is currently a huge problem and getting worse all the time. Climate change is largely caused by human activities. To prevent the worst impacts of global warming, the entire world must take action to reduce global warming pollution quickly and dramatically. Electricity generation accounts for more than 32%  of America’s emissions of global warming pollution. Preventing catastrophic global warming, therefore, will require the United States to move away from highly polluting sources of power, such as coal-fired power plants, and toward clean, renewable energy such as solar.

CSP technologies are a big help

Concentrating solar power (CSP) technologies – which use the sun’s heat to generate electricity – can make a large supplement toward reducing global warming pollution in the United States, and do so swiftly and at a reasonable cost. CSP can also reduce other environmental impacts of electric power production while spurring economic development and creating jobs.

The transition away from fossil fuels

The United States has limited time to turn away from dirty energy sources and toward clean, renewable energy. The latest climate science tells us that the United States and the world must decrease emissions of global warming pollutants quickly and dramatically to prevent the most catastrophic effects of global warming. Should global average temperatures increase by more than two degrees, scientists warn that dangerous impacts from global warming will become sure, including flooding of coastal cities, the loss of large numbers of plant and animal species, and increases in extreme weather, wildfire, and drought? To have a reasonable chance of preventing a two-degree increase in global average temperatures, the world must keep the concentration of global warming pollution in the atmosphere below 450 parts per million.

The U.S. needs to reduce emissions quickly

The United States must, at a minimum, reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 15-20 percent from 2000 levels by 2020, and by 80 percent by 2050 to prevent disastrous impacts from global warming. Other nations must act quickly as well. America’s electric power plants produce more carbon dioxide (the leading global warming pollutant) than the entire economy of any country in the world other than China. Even if America uses energy efficiency improvements to restrain future growth in electricity consumption, the nation will still need to increase its renewable generating capacity dramatically.

Concentrating solar power is ready to reduce global warming pollution

America has tremendous potential to generate power from the sun. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory has recognized the potential for more than 7,000 gigawatts (GW) of solar thermal power generation on lands in the southwestern United States – more than six times current U.S. electric producing capacity.  Other sunny areas of the United States, such as the Mountain West, the Great Plains, and Florida, can also generate power from solar thermal energy effectively and efficiently.

Making the switch to solar power

Due to the financial advantages of installing solar, there are even more cogent reasons for getting on the solar bandwagon. Most people are enticed to solar energy by environmental concerns, but solar is now such an excellent investment, many financial experts recommend solar as one of the best investment options available today. Not only will you have the ability to generate your own electricity, but you may also even be able to sell excess power you generate back to the grid. Going green has never been easier or more necessary. the time for solar is now!

For more information relating to going solar, don't forget to visit our solar blog section for more handy guides and articles.

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