As our morning in Chimborazo was relatively short, we met with our professor to discuss energy in the United States as well as Ecuador. New Jersey relies on 47% of its energy to come from Nuclear Power; Whereas the United States as a whole only relies on 19% of nuclear power for energy. Most of Americas energy sources are from petroleum and natural gas at 63%. Only 10% of Americas energy stems from renewable resources, the highest being hydropower.
In the Galapagos Islands, San Cristobal uses a third of renewable wind resources as an energy source. The wind resource was given to the island by the country of Denmark. However, wind power is extremely variable and is subject to change with a changing climate. Due to bird migrations and land use, wind power has low support for expansion. In many areas we visited, there were solar panels that were either being constructed or already in place. On Isabela Island, an entire field of solar panels was being constructed to replace the diesel generator that powered the town. The benefit of Solar Panels is that they are less variable than wind turbines and easier to measure over time. As China is interested in using Ecuador's oil reserves, Ecuador is looking to expand their diversity in renewable resources, such as hydropower. As the use of hydropower resources are cheaper and easier than using coal, the promotion of the resource has been greatly pushed by Ecuador. However, by damming rivers such as in coca codo sinclair, many residence in the area are angered as it blocks fresh water from their villages. Sources: http://www.newsweek.com/2016/06/10/wind-turbines-saving-galapagos-islands-464423.html http://www.power-technology.com/projects/coca-codo-sinclair-hydroelectric-project/
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ExperienceThrough Stockton University, I traveled to Ecuador where I studied Biodiversity, |