Housely
Renewable power is becoming more and more important to countries throughout the world for a wide range of reasons. (1) For example, renewable power is a substitute for non-renewable power, which is important because non-renewable power lives up to its name by being fated to run out at some point in the future. Furthermore, renewable power reduces the amount of pollutants entering the atmosphere on a constant basis, which are having a horrendous impact on human health as well as changing the climate of the Earth with unpredictable consequences.
Finally, renewable power strengthens the economies of those countries that have chosen to pour their resources into it by creating the jobs needed to keep sources of renewable power running as well as all of the other institutions needed to support their use. Summed up, it is no wonder that renewable power has become so important to countries throughout the world.
The Success of Iceland in Switching Over to Renewable Power
With that said, some countries have had more success than others when it comes to setting up sources of renewable power within their boundaries. In some cases, this is because of their increased political will, which has resulted in increased investment in renewable power from a forward-looking government as well as a forward-looking people. In other cases, this is because of their natural advantages. For example, countries with sunnier climates will have a much easier time setting up solar panels, while countries with windier climates will have a much easier time setting up windmills. Of course, some countries will have both advantages, with Iceland being a prime example.
In short, Iceland has natural advantages when it comes to its sources of renewable power. (2) In part, this is because it has hydroelectric sources of renewable power, which means a setup that generates power by using moving water to move its components. However, it is important to note that Iceland’s real natural advantage comes from the fact that it is an active volcanic island, meaning that it can count on geothermal heat, so much so that particular source of renewable power makes up about 90 percent of heating for its spaces. Something that is extremely important because of Iceland’s cold climate.
With that said, it is important to note that Iceland’s reliance on the sources of renewable power that make up 81 percent of its current use would not have been possible without a significant investment of time, effort, and other productive resources. Furthermore, it is important to note that while Iceland has sought to switch over to sources of renewable power from sources of non-renewable power as much as possible, this is incomplete because of practical reasons. For example, much of the remaining 19 percent comes from the hydrocarbons that are burned on a regular basis to keep Iceland’s vehicles running, which is still necessary because using sources of renewable power on such a small and personal scale is much more complicated and time-consuming. Still, as time passes, it seems probable that Iceland will continue increasing the ratio of renewable power to non-renewable power because there are numerous countries out there interested in fulfilling the same ends. Just as how cars running on renewable power have been becoming more and more popular in recent times, it seems probable that airplanes, trains, and other methods of mass transportation will do the same in the future.
How Is IceWind Contributing to Iceland’s Success?
Naturally, there are numerous actors that have contributed to Iceland’s success when it comes to making the switch from sources of non-renewable power to sources of renewable power. One such example is a recent start-up called IceWind, which specializes in creating windmills that are capable of providing power even with low winds but also of slowing themselves from catching on fire when high winds cause them to turn too fast. (3) This is an incredible development for the simple reason that it makes them capable of operating under a much wider range of conditions, particularly since these windmills are also small enough and rugged enough for small-scale use.
First, the fact that these windmills can continue functioning with low winds means that they become useful even in places that were once impossible for the use of wind power. In other words, their invention has made wind power practical in a much bigger swathe of the world, thus making it much more practical as a way of powering not just homes but also businesses and other institutions in the future. Second, their ruggedness is important because it means that they can be used by all of these actors, which is important because winning the struggle to switch over from sources of non-renewable power to sources of renewable power is not something that can be done without the cooperation of all people on the planet. Since these windmills are so rugged, they can be used by people living out in rural regions as much as people living in urban regions, thus enabling them to become part of the solution instead of being left out as people living in rural regions so often are when countries undergo significant changes throughout a short period of time. Of course, it should be noted that these windmills are also extremely beneficial for people living in rural regions because if they can perform as they have been advertised, this means that those individuals can power their homes without having to rely on outside sources of power whether renewable or non-renewable, meaning that they will have that much more freedom as well as that much lower household operating expenses from a much-trimmed electricity bill.
Further Considerations
It remains to be seen how popular these windmills will become. Chances are good that they will not revolutionize the way that we do things, but chances are good that they will help at least some people at least somewhat. Fortunately, that is all that they need to do in order to contribute to the fight against climate change as well as all of the other issues that have arisen because of non-renewable power, which is something in which we all have our own parts to play.
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