Using renewable and sustainable energy sources will undoubtedly decrease greenhouse gas emissions, which the UN recommends cutting significantly by 2020 or we face substantial changes in climate that impact us all. While no renewable energy source is 100% perfect, the fact remains that renewable energy sources are a better option than non-renewable ones due to environmental and societal impacts.
Participating in the sustainable energy movement and utilizing renewable energy sources has considerably less negative impact on the environment overall. For example, the environmental impacts associated with solar and wind power are mainly land use and habitat loss because solar facilities require large tracts of land to house solar panels.
Comparatively, extracting fossil fuels such as coal, oil, and natural gas, have a massive negative impact on our environment as we have seen firsthand in recent years. We drill huge holes into the earth and strip it bare. Getting to fossil fuels can damage public health, endanger wildlife, and create pollution like greenhouse gas emissions. Furthermore, we then burn fossil fuels to create energy. This emits extremely large quantities of CO2 into the atmosphere, which directly contributes to global warming.