This position paper was the second paper assigned in class. Here classmates had to choose two from a multiple of alternate energies that had the potential to resolve New York City’s energy demand with the use of these alternate energies. The two that was chosen for this paper were geothermal energy and nuclear energy mainly because of thier pollutant is either nonexistent or displaced effectively. In the beginning it describes how the world energy crisis has been a major issue because it relies mainly on the use of unreplenishable fossil and then go on to talk about the pros and cons of using nuclear energy and geothermal energy. 

 

 

What is the future for Alternate Energies?

We can’t help it; it’s the consequence of progress. Humanities advancements in technology has bettered the life of many and is now more accessible than any time before it. But like anything that has the potential to do work, technology requires energy, energy that can be harvested, mass products, distributed and most importantly exploited. It has been for decades that the main source of energy was derived from nonrenewable sources. It was a cheap source of energy, very energy dense, and made a few exceedingly wealthy. With the worlds growing hunger for energy their influence adapted becoming more organized and subtle, tainting the decisions of the ignorant public and lucrative representatives. This façade blinded the eyes from the reality of our energy crisis and promoted a short-term rationale. It was all about “what’s in it for us”, “what about me”, “why do I care?”. Such mentality blocked any thought of sustainability or conservation in favor for economic progress and cost effectiveness. The delusion can only be pushed for so long before a reaction follows suit. This giant elephant in the room, is climate change and it is the manifestation of our own rampant negligence. Now is the time we should be investing in alternative energies I believe the two most promising are nuclear and geothermal energies. Nuclear power paired with geothermal sources are is the best alternative energy solution for New York City. For nuclear power capacity to provide energy to run a city through the use of uranium and other radioactive elements found in nature reduces the amount of air pollution in our atmosphere, while geothermal sources has the potential to extract energy that is already emitted from the earth’s core and serves to be a constant stable source of energy for the city.

Nuclear energy is one of the most promising sources for energy today. Thought when speaking nuclear energies, it is sometimes referred to using radioactive uranium as a primary source of fuel this is not always the case. Thought uranium is more practical that other sources of radioactive elements, the problem arise when that nuclear decay produces its byproduct which is slightly less reactive but just as detrimental to the environment. The temporary solution for disposing the waste has been for many for decades to bury it in the mountains somewhere in Arizona but that brings up many concerns such as leakage and temporary estate underground (Smith). Some solutions include “straining” the radioactive element into less radioactive compounds that are less detrimental to the environment (Hubbert). Another solution is using another radioactive element known as thorium. Thorium is an element that also decays into through fission reactions, but the byproduct is far less harmful than using uranium. This is the next step from harvesting high amounts of energy from elements, but the ultimate energy source would be the use of fusion reactors, that same nuclear processes that is radiated from the sun in which matter is literally converted into energy and the byproduct is harmless helium element which would definitely be able to supply NYC’s energy demand (Crocker).

Another source of alternate energy would be generated in geothermal plants. Geothermal plants are beneficial source of energy as they extract energy from earths core at a very consistent rate. They are also highly productive especially for New York City’s high demand for electricity. One study reported that they were successful on supplying various New York City and Pennsylvania communities based on these sources of energy alone (Reber). Lastly these plants can produce virtually no waste other that keeping the plant operational. This is a great advantage as many other alternate sources of energy one way or another product some sort of waste by product. There are some issues however with using geothermal plants as they are not available in all areas. Another problem with geothermal plants is they only work if they are well maintained which may require supervision and errors are more detrimental. However, even if that might be true that gives no reason why New York should let these challenges be an issue. New York already has the resources needed to harness geothermal energy and is more than capable to get the manpower it needs to maintain such a plant (Bach) .

Even thought environmental consideration is in a rise among more people, the affects of using renewable fuels still lingers. It is important that the conservation effects do not end in New York City but also grows to reach out to national and global influencers and became more adopted as it becomes more viable and practical over other methods. With such examples as geothermal and nuclear source let it be possible for alternate energies not be second looked but instead seen as an essential part in moving on to the next chapter of humanity and its progression.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

References

Bach, Jefferson. “17-2141 Mechanical Engineers.” U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 29 Mar. 2019, www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes172141.htm.

Crocker V.S., Blow S. and Watson C.J.H. 1970 “Nuclear crosssection requirements for fusion reactors” Proc. 2nd Int. Conf. (Helsinki, 1970) 1 (Vienna: IAEA) 67 Nuclear Data for Reactors

Hubbert, M. K. (1956, January 1). Nuclear Energy and the Fossil Fuel. American Petroleum Institute.

Reber, Timothy J., et al. “The Transformative Potential of Geothermal Heating in the U.S. Energy Market: A Regional Study of New York and Pennsylvania.” Energy Policy, Elsevier, 13 Apr. 2014, www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0301421514001517.

 

Smith, Shelby. “NRC Maps of Radioactive Waste Sites.” United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission – Protecting People and the Environment, 17 Aug. 2018, www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/maps/radioactive-waste-sites.html.

 

 

https://www.onepetro.org/conference-paper/API-56-007