I am constantly amazed by nature–it is such a powerful thing. Sometimes I am even more impressed when we humans use it to our benefit doing our best to prevent any damage to it. I recently traveled to Iceland and fell in love with the country. Here’s why.
Iceland has such a different, unique, and magnificent landscape, where 80% of the land is uninhabited. The unique geographical features result from Iceland’s location in the middle of the ocean, on top of a mantle plume, where the North American and Eurasian plates meet. Forests cover 1.5% of the country and cultivated forests another 0.4%, while glaciers cover 11% of the country. Can you picture it? There are barely any trees and still, they manage to be ecological.
Iceland uses Geothermal energy to its advantage. Icelanders have a limitless and inexpensive supply of pure water, both geothermally heated and ice cold. The cold water comes from mountain springs, it is naturally filtered, safe to drink, and tastes fantastic–I can attest to that.
But what about the hot water? The hot water smells like rotten eggs, it’s not tasty, and it’s not for drinking. This is because hot and cold water come from two different sources. The rotten egg smell is sulfur, which is due to the geothermal origins of the hot water, making it excellent for bathing, but definitely not for drinking. If you visit Iceland, make sure to have a cold glass of water and visit one of the many geothermal pools to experience both.
Today, at least 90% of all homes in Iceland are heated with geothermal energy (swimming pools, showers, home heat, greenhouses, and sidewalks).
As a result of Iceland having an abundance of water, they are able to produce about 92% of their electricity by hydropower. Isn’t that amazing? Meltwater rivers flowing off massive glaciers are the primary source of hydropower according to Green by Iceland.
Consequently, Iceland is the world's largest green energy producer per capita and the largest electricity producer per capita. Having said that, they still rely on fossil fuels for transportation. With electric vehicles becoming more common, will this country become free of fossil fuels in the near future? This remains to be seen.
Written by: Sandy Rivera, Recruiting Coordinator at Hunter Crown, LLC
Looking for your next great opportunity?
Have hiring and/or recruiting needs?