Renewable energy long time due

Jackson Snell/Letter to the Editor

Dear Editors:

My name is Jackson Snell, and  I am currently a member of Mr. Winkel’s American Literature: 1930’s to Today class.  In this class, we recently read Martin Luther King, Jr’s Letter from a Birmingham Jail, and it has inspired me to take action on the importance of using renewable energy sources.

Now is a time of great technological achievement, yet we are still using outdated energy sources.  Decades after first using fossil fuels as energy sources, we still use them today, even though much better options are available.  We are spending time, money, and a large amount of effort trying to more efficiently use fossil fuels, even though they cause massive amounts of pollution and can be very expensive.  We are have also started to use nuclear power as a resource, even though it can be very dangerous.  On the other hand, renewable energy sources can reduce pollution, are completely safe, and are very inexpensive in comparison, but we spend much less time, money, and effort developing them.

This issue is one that affects us all because we are, in the words of King, “Caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in garment of destiny.”  We all need energy for everything from lights to refrigerators to cars.  Yet we still are using fossils fuels for most of our energy  needs, even though it causes pollution and is expensive.  Even if you stop using fossil fuels there are still hundreds of millions of people that would continue to use a resource that causes massive amounts of pollution, which is harmful for everyone.

I feel that now is the time for action.  With the rising costs of energy  and gasoline, people are becoming more and more interested in renewable energy sources.  If we act now, not only will pollution to the earth be minimized, but we stop the wasting of time and money on developing non-renewable energy  sources and use it for developing renewable energy sources.  This will make things better now, but will also make things better for the future.

Imagine some woods completely destroyed by acid rain-acid rain caused by the massive amount of pollution in the air.  Where you look to the sky and see  no white clouds, but gray clouds of smog.  Imagine a town where gas cost 10 or 15  dollars per gallon.  Where heat in the winter cost more than your monthly rent.   This could very well be the future you wake up to to if we don’t try to shift our focus away from non- renewable energy sources towards  renewable energy sources.

I believe that direct action must be taken.  Just as King did, I too must answer the question “Why direct action?”. I believe that if direct action is not taken then the development of renewable energy sources may fall by the wayside until it is too late.  There are several things you could do to take direct action, such as installing solar panels to power your home,  tell others about the benefits of moving away from non-renewable energy source towards renewable energy sources and that they too should take action,  or you could even start using ethanol or bio-diesel in your car instead of gasoline.

Non-renewable energy sources are on an increasing cost curve, meaning that over time the cost for non-renewable energy sources will increase, while renewable energy sources are on a decreasing cost curve,  meaning that over time the cost for renewable energy sources will decrease.  With this in mind, wouldn’t it make sense to shift towards renewable energy sources?  Just as King did, I wrote to help inform others about a topic that needs attention, and I hope that now you see things a little more clearly.

Respectfully,

Jackson Snell

CFHS student