energy sources
As minister for energy, it is my duty to be thinking about the future development of energy in Wales. In the past, our country has greatly depended on non-renewable sources of energy such as coal and gas, but it is becoming increasingly clear that these sources of energy will soon run out, and so alternative sources of energy need to be found that will not be used up. These renewable forms of energy come from sources such as the wind, tides and the sun. Therefore we should be thinking about where we are going to get our energy from in the future, should we continue in the way we have until non-renewable sources are entirely gone or start planning for an alternative now? Non-renewable sources of energy have always been able to cope with changing demands, been extremely reliable and available for use, and can be used for electricity. ... One of the oldest forms of non-renewable energy is the use of coal. ... Although reserves are running out, they will still last for over 300 years and modern methods mean that the energy output has now increased, and can be used for electricity and heating. ... An example of a more modern form of non-renewable energy is nuclear energy. ... It could also turn out to be very expensive to use this form of energy, as plants need replacing regularly, and it costs a lot of money to remove buildings and to build new ones. Another concern is that disposing of nuclear waste has to be done very carefully and if nuclear energy became very popular then it would become increasingly likely that waste may not be controlled properly and could cause a lot of pollution and radioactivity.