Fossil fuels are used as an energy source all around the world. Humans burn fossil fuels like crude oil, natural gas, and coal for energy, but in doing so we release harmful gases into the atmosphere. When released into the atmosphere, these gases tend to trap even more heat than the Earth usually does, causing the climate around the world to change. There are different ways that we can produce energy without releasing these harmful gases into the air. This paper investigates the impacts of fossil fuels to find out how they harm the Earth in order to argue that people should switch from fossil fuels to clean energy, such as solar and wind energy.

Humans have continued to use fossil fuels since somewhere in the seventeen hundreds. Richard Gray, provides knowledge on the usage of fossil fuels worldwide by describing how much fossil fuel we have used over a certain period of time:

But our gas guzzling over the past two centuries has taken a potentially devastating toll on the planet. Burning of coal, oil and gas has been inextricably linked to the rising levels of greenhouse gases in Earth’s atmosphere and is a leading contributor of climate change. The world’s scientists agree that we are on a path towards disaster that can only be stopped by weaning ourselves off our fossil fuel habit.(1)

Humans have been using fossil fuels for a very long time and this has caused harm to our planet. We released so much greenhouse gas into the atmosphere that it is causing the climate on the Earth to change. If we continue to use fossil fuels and release more greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, then the climate on Earth is only going to get worse.  

The usage of fossil fuels by humans causes plenty of harmful impacts to this Earth. However, some may justify their usage of fossil fuels by using natural gas because it produces less harmful gases that harms the Earth than the other fossil fuels like coal and crude oil. In the article, “Natural Gas: Abundance of Supply and Debate” by John Schwartz, mentions two opposing viewpoints on weather natural gas is “the bridge fuel that can power our economy with less of the carbon pollution that causes climate change.”(1) Although this is correct that natural gas produces less carbon emissions than other fossil fuels, there are other ways that natural gas harms the Earth.

“Because burning natural gas produces about half the planet-heating carbon dioxide than coal does for the same energy output, many energy experts suggest that natural gas has an important role to play in reducing carbon emissions. But in the debate over natural gas, nearly every fact is contested, including the amount of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, that escapes into the atmosphere while the gas is being drilled and transported.”(2)

Not only does natural gas release carbon emissions when used, but it also releases another gas called methane when it is being drilled out of the ground and transported. Methane is another greenhouse gas that harms the Earth when it is released into the atmosphere. Although Natural gas produces less carbon emissions than the other fossil fuels, it also releases methane when being drilled and transported. In the article, “The Natural Gas Gamble: A Risky Bet on Americas clean energy future”, Steven Clemmer mentions:

“Like all fossil fuels, burning natural gas for electricity generation results in the release of CO2and thus contributes to global warming. While smokestack emissions from natural gas combustion are significantly cleaner than coal, the global warming emissions from natural gas extend beyond power plant smokestacks. The extraction, distribution, and storage of natural gas result in the leakage of methane—a powerful global warming gas 34 times stronger than CO2 at trapping heat over a 100-year period—which diminishes the climate advantages of natural gas over coal.”(2)

When natural gas is being drilled out of the ground, it releases methane into the atmosphere which is about thirty-four times stronger and more effective at trapping heat than carbon dioxide. Releasing Methane into the air can cause more severe climate change.

The usage of fossil fuels does not only harm the planet Earth, but also the people who live on it. The article, “The hidden costs of fossil fuels” by Mary Finigan, explains the different effects the usage of fossil fuels can have the health of the people on Earth. According to the article,

“Burning fossil fuels emits a number of air pollutants that are harmful to both the environment and public health.Sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions, primarily the result of burning coal, contribute to acid rain and the formation of harmful particulate matter. In addition, SO2 emissions can exacerbate respiratory ailments, including asthma, nasal congestion, and pulmonary inflammation. In 2014, fossil fuel combustion at power plants accounted for 64 percent of US SO2 emissions.”(1)

The gases released into the atmosphere by fossil fuels when burned can cause acid rain which can be harmful to animals in the water, plants, and structures in cities. Fossil fuel emissions also cause asthma, nasal congestion, and pulmonary inflammation in humans. Not only does fossil fuels harm the Earth but also the inhabitants living on it.

Since fossil fuels cause so much harm to our planet Earth, we should consider trying to use clean energy. Eduardo Porter explains two different points of view on whether or not the country should switch to clean energy. One point of view is that it would be easy to power the American economy almost completely with alternatives such as solar, wind, and hydro energy. Another point of view thinks this is absolutely incorrect. Both viewpoints interpret this predicament in different ways. In the article, Porter says,

“With three co-authors, I published a widely heralded article two years ago asserting that it would be eminently feasible to power the American economy by mid century almost entirely with energy from the wind, the sun and water. What’s more, it would be cheaper than running it on fossil fuels.” (1)

According to this article, it would be easy to run the American economy using only clean energy from the sun, water, and wind. And not only will it be easy to power the American Economy with clean energy, but also it would be cheaper to do than using fossil fuels.

We need to start using clean energy from renewable sources to reduce pollution on Earth. In the article, “Clean Energy 101: A Renewable Energy Explainer” by Emily Green, she explains what clean energy and renewable source is. According to the article,

“Clean energy — such as solar and wind power — is an effective replacement for fossil fuel technology and traditional electricity generation. … Renewables, as the name implies, look to energy sources that are constantly renewed like the sun, wind, and waves. In addition, renewables also add electricity onto the grid without having to dig, frack, or pump for fossil fuels that are buried in the earth.”(1)

Clean energy is a replacement for fossil fuels to generate energy without having greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere. A renewable energy source is an energy source that will never run out. We need a renewable energy source that will never run out and produce clean energy to reduce pollution.

There are several different ways to get clean energy. The author of this article, Jeremy Berke, provides information on the implementation of an alternative energy source, solar power. Solar power uses the sun’s radiation rays to create energy. This article gives percentages of the amount of energy coming from solar panels. In the article, Berke describes:   

“According to a new report from the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), a nonprofit group, the US solar market added 2.5 gigawatts of new capacity in the first three months of 2018, up 13% from the first quarter of 2017. That accounts for 55% of all US electricity added in the first quarter of 2018, including fossil fuels and other forms of renewable energy.”(1)

A nonprofit organization that produces solar energy from the sun assisted in creating fifty five percent of all electricity in the United States in the first three months of this year. Solar power is able to produce a tremendous amount of energy like fossil fuels without having to cause damage to our Earth.

But solar power is not the only way to create clean energy. Wind turbines are generators that use wind power to generate clean energy. Christopher Ingraham gives information on the placement of wind turbines around the United States. He also gives information on the amount of wind turbines around the United States and the amount of energy generated from these wind turbines. In the article, Analysis | Every One of America’s 57,636 Wind Turbines, Mapped, Ingraham says “The database shows that Kern County is home to some 4,581 wind turbines with a total power-generating capacity of somewhere north of 4,000 megawatts, giving Kern the largest county-level concentration of wind capacity in the nation.”(2) Kern County’s wind turbines provides its residents with over four thousand megawatts of electricity. These wind turbines in Kern County generates massive amounts of electricity to people without causing pollution and harming the Earth.

Right now, scientists around the world are in the process of creating a new renewable source that will produce no greenhouse gases called nuclear fusion. In the article, Nuclear Fusion Edges Closer: Chinese Tokamak Facility Can Heat Plasma To Hotter Than 6 Suns, by Deirdre Johnson describes what nuclear fusion is and its benefits. According the article,

“Nuclear fusion involves taking a plasma (or ionized gas) of hydrogen and inducing it to form helium atoms. Simple chemistry tells us that this is done by forcing two atoms of the hydrogen into a single atom. This process is associated with significant energy generation, which involves no carbon emission or other unwanted by-products.”(1)

Nuclear fusion happens when you combine two hydrogen atoms into a single atom. This process does not release any carbon emissions or greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. If we can harness this power, scientists will be able to create clean energy that produces no greenhouse gases and replace fossil fuels for good.

If we don’t stop using fossil fuels and continue polluting the Earth, it will cost harmful effects in the future. According to the article, Letter: Clean energy, not fossil fuels, is our planet’s best hope by Olivia Turner, it describes the effects fossil fuels will have on us in the future if we don’t stop using them. According to that article,

“We are already feeling the effects of human-caused climate change:

More coastal flooding, more forest fires, stronger hurricanes, longer droughts, and so on. Admittedly, climate change has not triggered all these disasters, but it has made them worse or more frequent. Drilling will worsen them.” (1)

We are already experiencing the effects of climate change caused by air pollution like stronger hurricanes, more forest fires, and more. If we continue down this same path and continue to use fossil fuels, then the effects will only get worse and worse.

In conclusion, fossil fuels cause negative impacts on the Earth and human life and should be replaced with renewable clean energy. The greenhouse gases that are produced when fossil fuels are burned causes damage to the Earth and the people living in it. We need to use clean renewable sources to reduce the amount of greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere so that we can stop the climate from changing even more. Replacing fossil fuels with clean energy will slow down climate change since it doesn’t produce greenhouse gases and stop air pollution.

 

Work cited

Turner, Olivia “Letter: Clean energy, not fossil fuels, is our planet’s best hope” 11:28 a.m. November 26, 2018

https://buffalonews.com/2018/11/26/letter-clean-energy-not-fossil-fuels-is-our-planets-best-hope/

 

Johnson, Deirdre. “Nuclear Fusion Edges Closer: Chinese Tokamak Facility Can Heat Plasma To Hotter Than 6 Suns” November 22, 2018

https://www.evolving-science.com/matter-energy/nuclear-fusion-edges-closer-00850

 

Green, Emily. “Clean Energy 101: A Renewable Energy Explainer” November 25th, 2018

https://cleantechnica.com/2018/11/25/clean-energy-101-a-renewable-energy-explainer/

 

Finigan, Mary. “The Hidden Costs of Fossil Fuels”

https://www.ucsusa.org/clean-energy/coal-and-other-fossil-fuels/hidden-cost-of-fossils#.W_yZKOhKjIW

 

Clemmer, Steven. “The Natural Gas Gamble: A Risky Bet on America’s Clean Energy Future.” March 2015, The UCSUSA

https://www.ucsusa.org/clean-energy/coal-and-other-fossil-fuels/natural-gas-gamble-risky-bet-on-clean-energy-future#.W_yPk-hKjIW

 

Ingraham, Christopher. “Analysis | Every One of America’s 57,636 Wind Turbines, Mapped.” Washington Post, The Washington Post, 11 May 2018, https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2018/05/11/every-one-of-americas-57636-wind-turbines-mapped/.

Berke, Jeremy. “The US Has Added More Solar Power than Any Other Type of Electricity in 2018 so Far — More Evidence of an Energy Revolution.” Business Insider, BI, 13 June 2018, https://www.businessinsider.com/more-solar-power-than-any-type-of-electricity-2018-6.

Porter, Eduardo Fisticuffs Over the Route to a Clean-Energy Future. 20 June 2017, https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/20/business/energy-environment/renewable-energy-national-academy-matt-jacobson.html.

Schwartz, John. Natural Gas: Abundance of Supply and Debate. 22 Dec. 2014, https://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/23/science/natural-gas-abundance-of-supply-and-debate-.html.

 

Gray, Richard. The Biggest Energy Challenges Facing Humanity. 13 March 2017 http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20170313-the-biggest-energy-challenges-facing-humanity. Accessed 12 Nov. 2018.