Sustainability - created from Mind Map

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Solar energy

PROS: Renewable, Abundant, Sustainable, Environmentally Friendly, Good Availability, Reduces Electricity Costs, Many Applications, Shared Solar, Silent, Financial Support from Government/State, Low Maintenance, Technology is Improving

CONS: Expensive, Intermittent Energy Storage is Expensive, Associated with Pollution, Exotic Materials, Requires Space

SCIENTIFIC METHOD: Energy from the sun is available in limitless supply in most areas. Installing a photovoltaic system allows energy from the sun to be harnessed to replace or supplement grid power without the need to use up resources that are not renewable.

ETHICAL ISSUES: "Solar energy does not emit any harmful gases or pose any other threats to the environment. Producing 100kwh of electricity from renewable energy prevents 1200 pounds of coal from being burned and 2400 pounds of carbon dioxide from being released into the air. It has the environmental equivalent of planting a half acre of trees, whereas producing those 100kwh from a coal plant has the environmental equivalent of driving a car for 2400 miles (IPS, 2006)."