Page 121 - Additional Materials MSPP Reading book 1

TEXT A (READING TEXT FOR ACTIVITY 4_UNIT 5_BOOK 1)

With the significant benefits from renewable energy, we can’t deny that roles of it are more and more

important. According to Pulsinelli (2012), despite the world economic crisis, China spent $52 billion on

renewable energy in 2011 and the United States was close behind with investments of $51 billion. At

present, renewable energy contributes about 20% in electricity consumed worldwide (Perkowski 2012).

It is evident that the two nations, which took the head in renewable energy investment, have known

thoroughly out the importance of renewable energy. Nowadays, by advances and achievements of

science and technology scientists are having every confidence in bright future of renewable energy.

According to the report of The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in 2011, renewable

sources occupied about 13 percent of the world’s energy in 2008 and the proportion likely to have

risen. The report also point out that within four decades renewable energy could account for almost

80% of the world’s energy supply. The statistics are completely appeared in the near future if we

combine four main alternative resources and use hydroelectric to fill in gaps, which makes easier to

match demand. “The most important thing is to combine renewable energy sources into a bundle”

(cited in Bergeron 2011).

Particularly, in research (Edenhofer et al. 2011) shows that by 2050, geothermal energy could meet

more than 3 percent of global electricity demand and about 5 percent of the global heat demand,

hydropower will contribute about 30 percent of worldwide electricity supply, wind power will grow to

more than 20 percent and solar energy becomes one of the major sources of energy supply with about

15 percent