Alternative Energy

Alternative Energy

Alternative energy is a very general term referring to nontraditional sources of electricity. Those traditional sources are out of favor with some political groups because they use exhaustible fuels, they pollute, or both.

Alternative sources of energy are often referred to as renewable or sustainable. A renewable source will replenish itself without effort. Examples include sunlight and wind. A sustainable source has to be actively managed or rationed, but with care, its use can be sustained. Examples include crops and wood.

Ideal alternative energy sources cause little or no pollution. Traditional sources require mining or other environmental disruption to acquire, and create noxious fumes, toxic waste, and other side effects in use. The division is not always clear. Nuclear power, for example, causes little or no traditional pollution, but is typically opposed by environmental factions because of its own unique problem with waste disposal.

In the end, alternative energy is usually Aalternative@ because it is less economical or less well-developed than traditional energy sources. Most electricity is, after all, produced by commercial interests or at least by public utilities with some limitations on available resources. For these decision-makers, other choices of technology usually require some kind of government mandate or subsidy to be attractive.