Envisage a world where only the twinkle of candlelight illuminates windows in the night, warmth is provided by wood stoves, and horse drawn carriages provide transportation: a world without energy provided by fossil fuels. One might think this is the world of our forefathers and of bygone days; however, with staggering increases in energy demands perhaps such a world may not be so far from reality if humanity fails to adapt to these changing needs and how we produce energy to meet global energy requirements. There is no doubt that the greatest issues affecting humanity today are that of pollution fueled climate change and energy insecurity (Jacobson and Delucchi 1154). A number of solutions have been proposed in efforts to reduce our dependence …show more content…
The narrative of clean coal has been propped up by the industries primary lobbyist group, the National Mining Association, with a budget of nearly twenty million dollars a year (Coniff). Lobbying is a natural part of the political process, but the issue becomes when the lobbying is disingenuous and the coal industry has zero intentions of implementing clean coal, based on the fact that no coal plants currently in the United States make use of any of the technology. Although the technology is still being developed, there are no future plans to implement it as well. On the other side, those who speak out against coal and clean coal are naturally groups concerned about the environment, such as the Environmental Protection Agency and green advocacy groups. They recognize that coal power plants are the primary contributor to greenhouse gas emissions in the United States and thus their emissions must be controlled (Eilperin and Mufson). They also believe even though limiting coal power plants will cost a great deal of money, the American people will have a net benefit due to lower public health costs as a result of air pollution while also benefitting globally by reducing greenhouse gas fueled climate change. Essentially, clean coal is pursued by those who have a vested commercial interest in its being as a mainstay of electricity generation, while those who oppose it are against the negative health and climate effects it
Energy has easily become one of the most important necessities for our everyday lives. Without it we would simply not be able to have transportation or be able to gather any of our other resources that we depend on. If at anytime our energy supply ceases or no longer attainable the results may be horrific. However, it is quite easy to keep this from happening, It is crucial that our current population realize the importance of sustaining our present non-renewable resources. An examination of all the present energy issues and human impacts of energy conservation along with the a resource plan will show importance of energy
The U.S obtains more than 84% of its energy from fossil fuels including oil, coal and natural gas. This is because people rely on it to heat their homes, power industries, run vehicles, manufacturing, and provision of electricity. It is apparent that the country’s transportation industry highly depends on conventional petroleum oil, which is responsible for global warming, thus threatening economic opulence and national security. Apart from that, increasing consumption of fossil fuels have elevated health problems in the state, destroyed wild places, and polluted the environment. After conducting Environmental Impact Assessment, projections showed that the world energy consumption would increase by more than 56% between 2010 and 2040. However, fossil fuels will cater for more than 80% of the total energy used in 2040. Sadly, it will be a trajectory to alter the world’s climate, as well as, weaken the global security environment. Importantly, the rate at which the US relies on fossil fuels needs to reduce since it has adverse effects on the planet’s supplies. The society needs to realize that fossil fuels are nonrenewable, thus taking millions of years to form (Huebner, 2003). Notably, the country can reduce dependency on fossil fuels by practicing energy conservation and efficiency,
Most of the energy that we use comes from fossil fuels like petroleum and coal that provide electricity and gas to power our growing energy needs. These fossil fuels, currently providing most of our home energy needs are finite resources, which mean that, they will eventually run out. Furthermore, the world’s population is growing rapidly. Countries are becoming more industrialised and are using notable amount of energy. Individuals are consuming nearly twice as much as energy as they were using 30 years ago. In Australia itself, the total amount of energy consumed by households has increased over the past two decades and is forecast to increase. This could be due to the dependence of our standard of living on easily available energy. Between
Imagine a world where the air is always clean, free of pollution. A place where children with asthma need not to worry of the air quality in the inner cities. A world where the energy produced to heat a home, turn on a light bulb, and charge your cellphone is always abundant and affordable. Doesn’t this world sound like a wonderful place? Turns out this world isn’t just a figment of the imagination. In fact, we are on the verge of a technological breakthrough that can take steps towards making this fantasy a reality. What is this innovation? It is Clean Coal Technology.
Fossil fuels are one of the most important factors negatively affecting society, considering the fact that they produce large amounts of pollutants and that they influence communities in thinking that they are dependent on them. A reason for which people are reluctant to consider other energy sources is the fact that many devices that are currently in need of energy need fossil fuels. Transforming these devices with the purpose of having them capable of using other types of energy is believed to be particularly costly. However, when considering the bigger picture, one of the best methods of ensuring that people are going to live in a cleaner and safer world in the
Clean coal technology usually addresses atmospheric problems resulting from burning coal. Historically, the primary focus was on sulfur dioxide and particulates, since it is the most important gas in the causation of acid rain. More recent focus has been on carbon dioxide (due to its impact on global warming) as well as other pollutants. Concerns exist regarding the economic viability of these technologies and the timeframe of delivery, potentially high hidden economic costs in terms of social and environmental damage, and the costs and viability of disposing of removed carbon and other toxic matter. More, the byproducts of coal power production range from fly ash sludge ponds full of mercury, arsenic, and sulfur in unlined ponds that can leak into the water supply.
We want instant gratification and coal fits the bill. I noted in my book review of Crude World that Peter Maass didn’t present a balanced picture of the oil industry; it was all bad. He was intended to highlight the negative aspect of our oil dependency. Big Coal is the same in that respect. It is hard to argue that coal hasn’t improved the lives of a great many people around the world, and we know a number of people who would argue that these improvements outweigh the negatives. Further, it is fair to say that the coal industry has come a long way in cleaning up their emission profile over the past few
Jason Hayes, communications director for the American Coal Council says “the industry over the past few decades had invested over $100 billion in cleaning up emissions and it’s already been effective. All of the important noxious pollutants have decreased markedly over the last 30 to 40 years. We’ve been doing all of this on top of dealing with everything else.” Coal may not be green, but it is a source of energy American needs. It is cheap and efficient. Without coal, America wouldn’t be anywhere near where it is today. The coal mined here isn’t just used for energy. America’s
On the same note, the energy revolution spoken of above brings forth another advance in the ongoing global climate situation. The nature of the Kyoto Protocol calls for nations to increase research and eventually semi-convert their energy usage to accommodate for cleaner energy. Products such as solar power, wind power, biomass, geothermal power, and hydropower are now widely being studying to create processes that use less coal, oil, and natural gas in production. Altogether the results have
This paper explores the economic impact the Clean Power Plan, as proposed by President Obama, would have on the coal industry and on society as a whole. The plan, also known as the CPP, has a goal of reducing carbon dioxide emissions by the year 2030. Many proponents of the coal industry claim that the CPP would harm the United States economy with little positive impact on the environment. The White House, other government agencies, scholarly organizations, and organizations regarding the protection of human health and the environment dispute these claims, stating that the CPP would actually lead to a net increase in employment, increased air quality, and an overall healthier society, all while promoting the renewable energy sector. After analyzing the data from both sides, it was determined in this paper that the overall benefits of the Clean Power Plan outweigh the costs, therefore the plan should go forward as planned.
Coal cleanup is very hard work and not a lot of people would want to do it. Their clean up plains are very weak right now and they should have someone to improve and successfully make it better every year. A lot of coal companies have filled bankrupt and have been in the courts because they will have to close down and have very expensive cleanup bills.
The beginning of the industrial revolution in the eighteenth century led to an exponential increase in our demand for energy to satisfy the growing needs of manufacturing, transport, production of raw materials, healthcare, and agriculture. Simple tasks are taken for granted such as “powering-up” the plethora of devices and gadgets that we “cannot live without” – such as our smart phones and computers. Whilst all of these things are central to our very existence on the planet, our increased dependence on energy has essentially been met to date by the burning of non-renewable fossil fuels, such as brown and black coal.
Coal and natural gas are the United States’ main fossil fuels used as energy sources. These fossil fuels both contain mixtures of hydrocarbons, which is a chemical compound of carbon and hydrogen (Olah, 2005). Currently, fossil fuels provide eighty-five percent of commercial energy, such as businesses, worldwide and this eighty-five percent does not even account for residential use. Imagine if the residential energy use was accounted for in that eighty-five percent (Davison, 2007). According to Goodell (2006), “Between 1950 and 2000, the world population increased by 140 percent and fossil fuel consumption increased by 400 percent. By 2030, the world’s demand for energy is expected to more than double,” with most of the electricity
The most of global energy production produces from fossil fuel such as coal, oil and natural gas. The vast fossil fuels generate energy which use for many purposes for instant residential, transportation and industrial sectors. While the rate consumption of fossil fuel higher than their formation leads to oil price crisis. Another concern of fossil fuel combustion is the impact on the environment. Global warming is a significant problem which results in increasing concentrations of greenhouse gas in the atmosphere. These problems drive researchers and societies to search alternative energy such as switching to renewable energy or carbon-free energy to replace fossil fuels. For example Nakata et al., (2011:465) show ‘low-carbon society’
For years man has relied on energy in order to be successful in life. The industrial revolution relied on coal for the new inventions brought into the world. Life as has never been the same since then. However since that time, there has been little done to improve on energy efficiency and humans still primarily rely on fossil fuels for energy. For over a hundred years the Earth has become more polluted and dirtier than ever before. Now, with new, innovative technology there is an opportunity to change that and to rely on renewable, cleaner sources of energy. The main source of energy for the world should be alternative energy instead of energy from fossil fuels.