My Views: I would love it if Solar, Hydro and Wind and other renewable sources of energy + Non Renewable Nuclear were to provide enough energy reliably to completely replace fossil fuels, but I know it’s not a feasible solution at least at this point. And maybe it will never be. Renewable sources of energy are highly dependent on some metal mining (some are rare metals) and I doubt if the prices of those metals would go lower as the demand for those renewable sources of energy sky rockets. i.e., It’s a non-linear equation, the price of renewables will not remain the same if we want to meet 100% of our energy needs from renewables. So, Just Stopping Oil is a pretty stupid idea concocted by people who have a much better standard of living than me.
Skip This if you must: As an Indian, I can speak for 1.4B people (I asked) when I say that, no matter how much pressure developed nations impose on India and countries like India, we will still keep using the least costliest source of energy, because we too want nice things and we too want our women to be liberated from cow dung/wood stoves and from the burden of washing clothes and utensils. So yeah, there is no way bar great scientific innovation which will phase out fossil fuels at least in the near future and perhaps ever.
PS: I don’t like fossil fuels, I don’t like the pollution or the effect it has on the environment and I wish they could be replaced by something renewable, but I just don’t like the chances of that happening.
We’re starting to be able to mass produce thin sheets of solar panels as easily as newspaper. It’s time to replace coal plants and switch to renewables.
You can also put wind turbines out at sea and out of sight and add tidal generators below them. But wait there’s more! You can generate power at wave level too! So now this combination generator system can send lots of power back to shore.
…where it cannot be effectively stored at present.
The question is whether it can be utilizied. Some countries do use 100% renewable energy so the answer must be yes.
If by utilised you mean effectively stored and distributed when required, then yes I agree but most countries are a long way from that.
I think you’ve taken a couple of anomalies for the last part and generalised across all countries.
The countries that are close to 100% renewables have unique circumstances that enable them to.
For example, Iceland has a small concentrated population with easy access to geothermal energy.
Paraguay generates a lot of its electricity from hydroelectric dams as it has suitable rivers to be able to build them on. Even so, its citizens often burn firewood for heat.