Iceland’s Renewable Energy Sources & Climate Change

• Main Authors: Roberts, Daniel, Conway, Michael
• Format: Text
• Language: unknown
• Published: Scholarly Commons 2018
• Subjects: Iceland; Renewable Energy; Climate Change; Energy Policy; Engineering
• Online Access: https://commons.erau.edu/student-works/72; https://commons.erau.edu/context/student-works/article/1073/viewcontent/Mike___Dan.pdf

Nearly all of Iceland’s energy comes from renewable resources, with the majority being hydroelectric energy, and the remainder being geothermal. For several months undergraduate student researchers from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, aided by faculty from the Office of Undergraduate Research, conducted secondary-source research on the effect climate change has on Iceland’s renewable resources currently, and progressing throughout the century. Additionally, research was conducted on how the Icelandic Government plans on responding to these eminent changes. Earth's rising temperatures are causing a shrinkage of Iceland’s glaciers, and changing the water runoff from their glaciers at an alarming rate. Iceland’s dams are currently overflowing from the surge in glacial runoff, but soon, the flow rate will peak, and begin to recede throughout the century, until the glaciers have completely melted. In order to discover more about the repercussions of climate change, the researchers traveled to Iceland and conducted in-person interviews with both industry professionals and common Icelanders. Using a combination of secondary-source research, and primary source interviews, it was concluded that the regression of their glaciers will render a multitude of Iceland’s hydroelectric power stations inert within the turn.