Question

Pretend the coastal town of Galveston, TX has decided to install a new wave of generators on all its beaches to create energy for the entire island. What disadvantages might arise?

Answer 1

Answer:

There could be several disadvantages associated with the installation of generators on the beaches in TX. For example, they could be sound pollution, increased heating, and hence habitat loss. Further, it would require a lot of energy input as well.

Explanation:

Firstly, we need to consider that Galveston is a small island and despite of negative environmental impacts, it can partially afford installation of generators on the beach. However, if the whole state (TX) is about to install generators on all beaches, it could drastically affect the environment quality at the beach. Typically, a beach should be free of any pollution. However, running generators would increase the sound pollution at first, and then it would also release excessive amount of heat. Many organisms in the marine environment are senstive to both sound and heat pollution and they would start moving away from the continental shelf. This would finally result in the loss of habitat significantly.