subject: Advantages Of Solar Energy [print this page] Solar panels are an incredibly popular renewable energy resource in the UK, as an increasing number of both homes and businesses reap the environmental and financial benefits solar power provides. The rise of energy bills and the increasing concern over the effects of global warming have caused a surge in popularity for renewable energy resources to be manufactured and improved. Nowadays, the advantages of solar energy being used to power the home are common knowledge and solar panels can be sighted on many buildings across the world.
Environmental Benefits
Solar energy efficiency is highly commended, as government initiatives encourage solar panels to be used for powering domestic and commercial premises.
Renewable energy resources, such as solar panels, rely on naturally occurring and renewable sources to obtain energy from as an alternative to fossil fuels. Fossil fuels are limited resources, they don't naturally replenish and once their supply expires there will be no more. Solar panels however, use energy from the Sun, which is an infinite resource, to generate electricity. Using renewable energy resources such as sunlight, helps to minimise the use of fossil fuels and preserve them for longer.
Burning fossil fuels is incredibly harmful to the environment. As they burn they release greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, which is one of the main contributors towards global warming and climate change. Combustion isn't required in order for sunlight to be used as an energy source, so it's a clean way of powering homes and buildings. Buildings which have solar panels installed boast minimal carbon emissions and a low carbon footprint.
Financial Benefits
One of the other main advantages of solar energy is that solar panels are an attractive financial investment to both business and homeowners alike. The concept of generating free electricity to be used at will is hard to resist. Government initiatives such as the feed in tariff have made the advantages of solar energy even more apparent for business and homeowners.
The feed in tariff financially rewards home and business owner each time a kilowatt hour of energy is produced using the solar panels. A small addition is made for when electricity is produced and not used and is, therefore fed back into the national grid. The combination of free electricity and the feed in tariff mean that solar panels are an attractive concept for those willing to invest.
Solar panels' financial and environmental benefits have made solar energy a widely used resource of power. Solar cells have evolved tremendously from their most famous appearance at the top of a calculator. Their advantages have been recognised worldwide and are now even used as a supplement for fuel in hybrid cars.
