In the last twenty years renewable energy has become more prevalent, and in many places renewable energy is the dominant energy source. Countries such as Iceland and Paraguay rely solely on renewable energy sources for their electricity. Several countries, for example Denmark and Colombia have a goal to be 100% renewable energy dependent by 2050. This push towards renewable energy may seem like the perfect alternative to the burning of fossil fuels, but many people don’t take into account the many ways renewable energy sources are harmful to the environment.

A good example of a renewable energy source that perpetuates harm to the environment is wind turbines. Besides being aesthetically unappealing, they kill thousands of birds and bats every year. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service estimates that anywhere between 140,000 and 500,000 birds are killed by wind turbines in a single year alone. Another downside to wind turbines is that they can disrupt an ecosystem. Many ground nesting birds will avoid living near turbines because they appear to be something a predator, such as an owl or eagle, could use as a perch. When these birds move somewhere else this can change their nesting and breeding behaviors resulting in less chicks surviving to adulthood and ultimately changing the entire food web and ecosystem.

Another popular renewable energy source that has harmful effects on the environment is hydroelectric energy. The most popular way to harness hydroelectric energy is with dams built along rivers. These dams can be extremely harmful to the environment. The biggest threat they cause is destroying entire ecosystems further downstream. Dams make it difficult for fish such as salmon to continue downriver to their spawning grounds. When these fish are unable to give birth to their young the habitat can be drastically altered. Since the fish are no longer further downstream populations of predators, such as bears and eagles, that feed on the fish will dramatically decrease. An additional impact dams have on the environment is they increase erosion downstream from the river and all the way to the coastline. When the sediments being carried down river are stopped at a dam the riverbeds downstream will have nothing left to help support them and slowly begin to collapse. This can disrupt ecosystems by providing less ground for animals to nest as well as beaches being unable to restore what is washed away by the ocean.

An often forgotten renewable energy is geothermal. Geothermal energy is less common in the United States because there are very few locations that can support this volatile form of renewable energy. However, when these geothermal facilities are built, they can hurt the environment in a multitude of ways. Sometimes geothermal power plants can cause earthquakes. This phenomenon is similar to earthquakes caused by fracking. Both practices pump water into the ground at extreme pressures typically in a burst causing the earth around to expand rapidly causing mild to moderate earthquakes. In November of 2017 a 5.4 magnitude earthquake suspected to have been caused by a geothermal power plant struck the city of Pohang South resulting in over 80 people being injured. Another environmental impact of geothermal energy is that they often release harmful gases into the atmosphere. One gas that geothermal power plants release is carbon dioxide. This is the main gas that is always being argued in the news since it is a greenhouse gas that causes climate change.  This can be averted by pumping the gases back into the ground. According to the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy a power plant in Nevada reduced its Carbon Dioxide outputs by 39 percent when it started pumping it back into the ground. However, not all geothermal power plants use this method, so many still pump carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.

Solar energy created by solar panels also has its own negative environmental impacts. Most solar panels are made with materials such as lead and cadmium that are extremely toxic and can cause cancers. After many years of use the materials inside solar panels will start to break down and can be washed away by rainwater. When these chemicals enter the environment, they can kill many plants and animals and even be a threat to people. Another downside to solar panels is that they use materials like aluminum and copper that have to be mined up out of the earth. These mines are extremely bad for the environment since they destroy entire habitats and in extreme cases lead to groundwater reservoirs being contaminated. It’s not just the mines that destroy habitats. Solar panel farms take up large amounts of land that were home to many different species of plants and animals. Solar panels also don’t always get recycled when they stop working. The International Renewable Energy Agency estimated there was about 250,000 metric tons of solar panel waste around the world by the end of 2016.

While we may not have perfect renewable energy currently, there are ways we can achieve this in the future. The most important thing you can do is vote on representatives who will support the creation and funding of cleaner renewable energies. Another vital thing you can do is support and join organizations who push for less fossil fuels and more clean energy.