alternative energy sources that use the natural power of the wind, waves and sun are too expensive and complicated to replace the coal ,oil and gas that we use to power our cities and transport. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this option?

It is a heated debate that the
sources
of renewable
energy
,
such
as wind, seawater, and sunlight are costly and ineffective to replace the
non-renewable
energy
that has been widely used in our daily lives. In my opinion, I mostly agree with the statement and there are some detrimental flaws of renewable
energy
, even though it might bring environmental benefits to the cities. Indeed, it is environmentally-friendy when we consume more renewable
energy
. As we all know, the overconsumption of coal and gas has caused serious air pollution in a variety of cities, due to the large emission of carbon dioxide.
However
, power generated by the nature can effectively reduce the emission of carbon dioxide and
hence
the environment can be well protected.
Also
,
non-renewable
energy
will be used up one day, which may lead to a serious problem of
energy
shortage around the globe.
For instance
, coal is formed from dead bodies of ancient animals million years ago. The
sources
of coal are rigid and cannot be increased easily.
On the contrary
, the
sources
of renewable
energy
such
as wind, seawater and sunlight are gifts from nature and the supply is not scarce. Sadly, we should not neglect the problems faced by the renewable
energy
supply in nowadays society.
First
of all, the set-up cost for the infrastructures of renewable
energy
is significantly higher than that of
non-renewable
energy
.
For instance
, it costs almost a hundred million Hong Kong dollars to build a small wind turbine farm on Yap Lek Island, while a big coal supply factory can be set up at a much lower expense. Other than that, the feasibility of the renewable
energy
supply is low.
In other words
, not every city is a perfect place to widely adopt renewable
energy
use
.
For example
, the harbours near Hong Kong do not have big waves and
therefore
it is not an ideal place for the common
use
of seawater
energy
.
Thirdly
, the sophisticated generation system of renewable
energy
has low efficiency in generating power
use
, especially when it is compared with the
use
of
non-renewable
energy
.
For example
, only 6% of power is generated by eco-friendly
energy
sources
, while over 80% of it is from
non-renewable
energy
. In conclusion, I do think that the
sources
of renewable
energy
are worth establishing as they can safeguard the ecosystem, but there are a lot of obstacles that are waiting to be tackled,
such
as the high financial cost, geographical limitations and low efficiency.
Submitted by kennyykh015 on

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Word Count

IELTS says that you should write a minimum of 250 words in writing task 2. If you go under word count you will lose marks in task response.

A very long essay will not give you a higher band score.

Aim for between 260 to 290 words in writing task 2. This will ensure a concise essay and will be realistic in terms of time management. You have only 40 minutes to write the essay and you need around 10 minutes of planning time, so you will not be able to write a long essay in 30 minutes.

Topic Vocabulary:
  • initial investment
  • sustainability
  • inexhaustible
  • dependency
  • fostering
  • advancements in technology
  • efficient
  • user-friendly
  • surmountable
  • infrastructure development
  • grid adaptation
  • decentralized
  • local generation
  • consumption
  • distribution networks
  • environmental cost
  • ecological degradation
  • economic sense
  • moral imperative
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