Article by Maddie Creech, Reporter

Climate change due to global warming is real and alarming.  As our climate systems change, we begin to see the differences in our daily lives.  Rising sea levels threaten coastal communities, urban pollution is increasing acid rain levels, and our natural disasters are becoming larger and more deadly than ever before.  This process is expedited by the wasteful and pollutive energy sources that have become the standard use of governments, companies, and by people all over the world.  Fracking for fossil fuels, burning coal, and even nuclear energy all contribute to the pollution crisis that is plaguing our earth.  Alarmingly, governments seem to ignore these detrimental effects in order to promote their own candidacy.  Donald Trump, the President of the United States, spoke about the use of coal as an energy source in his State of the Union address calling it “beautiful” and “clean.”  Ideas like these, are what, quite literally, fuel the greenhouse gas industry and attempt to rationalize the continued pollution of the Earth.  Additionally, not only is coal ugly and dirty, it is also finite.  The world has a limited source of the material and as we keep digging further and further to reach it, the risk for workers safety becomes more apparent in addition to the deleterious environmental effects.

Though, it seems as if our future is as gray as the smog-infested industrial cities of developing countries, there is hope to our bleak energy crisis: solar energy.  As an energy source, solar energy is truly beautiful, clean, and more importantly, renewable.  Solar energy is becoming an increasingly popular alternative to traditional energy sources for many homeowners, business, and governments.  It’s renewable factor, reliability, and non-detrimental environmental effects make solar energy the new coal.  Solar panels are easy to install, and can be installed almost anywhere, including rooftops of homes.  The energy generated is trulyclean; it does not require the use of combustion in order to see results nor does it involve fracking or drilling in order to receive it.  Moreover, the power harnessed can be stored onto batteries for later usage.

It’s time for the world so start looking elsewhere for energy sources as our egregious energy practices will soon leave us with more problems than benefits.  In a world where energy is defined by finite resources, it’s time to look for resources that are renewable and seemingly infinite.  It’s time to change the course of our future and adapt how we power our lives and our world; it’s time to go solar.