By ISABELLA O’MALLEY (Associated Press)
According to a report from a London think tank called Ember, 2023 broke the record for renewable energy usage, which are energy sources that don't release harmful pollutants like carbon dioxide and methane. The report by Ember states that billions of people are using different types of energy every day, and a large amount of it is from renewable sources that don't release harmful gases like carbon dioxide and methane. Ember, a think tank in London, published a report on Wednesday indicating that 30% of the world's electricity came from clean energy sources last year, with the number of solar and wind farms rapidly increasing.
Last year, clean energy sources accounted for 30% of the global electricity production, with hydroelectric power being the largest contributor, although its output was affected by droughts in several countries due to climate change.
A report by Ember revealed that while hydroelectric dams were the biggest source of clean energy, droughts caused their output to drop in countries like India, China, North America, and Mexico due to the increasing severity of droughts caused by climate change. Research shows that climate change is leading to more rapid and severe droughts that are impacting the production of clean energy from hydroelectric dams..
Last year, there was a 2% increase in electricity usage, equivalent to Canada's annual consumption. This rise was partly due to the increased use of heat pumps for buildings, electric vehicles, and electrolyzers that extract hydrogen from water for energy, all of which are technologies aimed at combating climate change. heat pumpsThe increased demand for electricity was driven by factors such as the growing use of heat pumps, electric vehicles, and electrolyzers, which are technologies designed to address climate change. Last year, the biggest contribution to new clean energy came from solar power, which exceeded the addition of coal power by more than twice. Solar power has consistently been the fastest-growing source of electricity generation for 19 consecutive years, with a surge in installations towards the end of the year.The increased demand for electricity last year was largely met by more renewable energy installations, particularly solar power, which surpassed the addition of coal power by more than two times, making it the fastest-growing electricity source for the 19th year in a row. The report predicts an even larger increase in solar power in 2024.