Scientist Michael Faraday’s invention of the electric motor has had significant impacts on our everyday lives. At the same time, our use of electricity has also contributed to climate change. In order to generate electricity, we burn fossil fuels, which release greenhouse gasses into the environment.
These greenhouse gasses, mainly including carbon dioxide, make the Earth’s temperature increase. Currently, the world is 1.2C warmer compared to the 19th century, and effects of this climate change include increased droughts, sea level rises and more species going extinct. Generating electricity plays a large part in releasing these harmful greenhouse gasses; approximately three-quarters of electricity generated in the UK comes from fossil fuels. In order to stop any further effects of climate change, we must change our way of generating electricity.
Fortunately, there are many more ways to generate electricity sustainably. Energy forms that do not release any polluting gasses into the atmosphere include wind, water and solar energy. These energy forms are also renewable, which means that the energy source will never run out! To give an example of how these cleaner energy sources work, using wind energy involves the use of wind turbines. Wind turbines have a tall tower with blades attached to the top; the blades are connected to a generator in the turbine. Energy is passed to the blades when the wind blows, and this drives the generator to produce electricity. Meanwhile, many forms of water energy use the movement of water to drive electricity generators, and solar cells convert light energy into electrical energy.
In addition, electricity itself can help us become more environmentally friendly through the use of electric cars. Unlike cars fueled by gasoline, electric cars are powered by rechargeable batteries. They do not emit carbon dioxide and harmful pollutants into the atmosphere. Since the 1990s, electric cars have been gaining more popularity out of people’s concern for global warming, and car companies have manufactured more of them. Overall, although we currently generate electricity in harmful ways, there are many more sustainable ways that we can use and produce electricity.