The diagram depicts the consumption of renewable energy from 1959 till 2008 in the USA. Most sources of renewable energy experienced an incline during the aforementioned years, and have continued to rise steadily. The overall consumption continues to rise and fall, experiencing peaks during 1984, 1990 and 1997 amongst others.
Biofuels underwent a drastic expansion, increasing from non-existential to almost two quadrillion btu in just 20 years. Wind Power also underwent a similar rise, although less noticeable, going from zero to over trillions of btu. In contrast, both hydroelectric power and wood had a limited change in growth. The former rose till 1975 where it underwent a sharp fall to a little over two quadrillion btu for up to three years. It went on to experience a peak during the late 1990s, hitting a relative high of around three quadrillion btu. Wood seems to lose its popularity as the years roll, possibly due to the negative implications associated with its use on the Earth’s environment. Wood rose menially for 35 years before hitting its highest: around two quadrillion btu in the late 1980s.
With the fluctuations depicted in the graph, it is not a large claim to say that both biopower and wind power have the capabilities to exceed current popular sources of energy. With the negative implications associated with both hydroelectric power and wood, future generations are better off experimenting with novel methods to utilize newer sources of energy.