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The End of the Fossil Fuel Era
The End of the Fossil Fuel Era
Alissa Mason
4/10/2014
CAS 138T
Pennsylvania State University
The End of the Fossil Fuel Era
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As a global community, countries are expanding exponentially. Economies are booming
and the world of technology is introducing new things almost daily. It is clear that humans are
developing faster than the earth is ready for, hence some of the problems that have risen over the
past few decades of economic expansion. One of these issues is the use of fossil fuels.
Environmental activists have been advocating for an alternative energy source for years (NRDC)
and its time the USA took that claim seriously. Fossil fuels are carbon emitting finite resources
we use for energy such as coal and oil. These sources, although efficient in their use, are
detrimental to our environment and are not dependable. These resources are nonrenewable and
will eventually run out ("The problem with," 2009). The ozone layer is also suffering by having
holes carved out of it due to pollution of fossil fuels, which leads to the inevitable increase in
ultraviolet rays to hit the earth’s surface and all of the living creatures that reside there. Even
though we are years away before the resources run scarce; the time is now to act. Therefore a
policy needs to be enacted that entails a 10 year starting period to decrease and eventually
diminish the use of all fossil fuels and begin using energy sources such as wind energy, solar
energy, and energy efficient cars. A large number of different organizations are already trying to
enforce different policies to help make this happen like the National Resources Defense Council
and the Environmental Protection Agency ("United states environmental,"). The earth’s climate
is constantly changing and to prevent damage to the cycle the time is now to end the fossil fuel
era.
WHY ARE FOSSIL FUELS A PROBLEM?
One problem is that no one really knows what fossil fuels are in the first place. If people
were more aware of what they were and what they can do to humans and the environment more
people would be willing to try and use alternative sources of energy. Fossil fuels include coal,
oil, and any other natural resource that is from the earth and burned for fuel. Coal causes
immense air pollution that is not only hurting the ozone layer and the air humans breathe but also
the actual health of everyday citizens. The gases produced from the burning of coal causes lung
cancer and other long-term problems. One renewable energy activist organization stated that
24,000 people die each year from coal related events such as power plants or the gases emitted
("The problem ,"). Oil is also a severe problem because of air pollution and especially water
pollution. Oil spills have destroyed bodies of water and are putting many animals around the
world in danger. Meanwhile all of these negative effects are happening and the United States is
still using these sources every single day.
It is clear that fossil fuels are the most efficient way of getting energy in the United
States. They run the electricity, cars, heating/air conditioning, and most other sources of energy.
This is an issue that is occurring all over the United States and with everyone citizen. That is one
of the reasons this issue holds extreme importance in the current world because of the amount of
people it involves; everyone. However not everyone is aware of what fossil fuels are actually
doing to the atmosphere, let alone their active role in this finite source of energy. People use oil
when they drive their cars to the grocery store to buy food that was driven there or brought there
overseas by a boat or airplane (all of which using oil for energy). It is the little things like this
that people do not realize because everything adds up and in one hundred years the USA might
regret not acting now to protect not only the earth but the global community, from the negative
effects of not using renewable sources of energy.
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Carbon emissions, green house gases, and chemicals are all being released into the air
and polluting the atmosphere. What people do not understand is that even though the problems
with this are not completely evident in our day and age but in the future the atmosphere will be
completely polluted. The earth has a set ratio of resources, fresh water, and natural gases. Once
they run out there will be NO other resource for energy if fossils fuels are disrupting the
environment the problem will only continue to get worse especially because every day the global
population is expanding and more people are using these resources. The desire for fossil fuels is
increasing every day, especially countries like China where they plan on making sure every
family has a car eventually ("The problem with," 2009). With a situation like that there are
currently not enough natural resources on earth to keep funding that kind of project.
The increased demand for the fossil fuels is also going to cause the price of them to
skyrocket. This is evident in every day life at gas stations. It is evident that the price for
gasoline is inevitably rising and will continue to do so if another source of energy is not found
soon.
Yet simply switching from one source to another causes a bit of an issue because it is not
that simple. First of all fossil fuels are the cheapest and easiest ways to getting a source of energy
which is why they are so desired in the first place. They are easily obtainable and simple to use
which is also why they have been the number one source of energy. However the harm that these
sources are causing to our environment is definitely outweighing the good that they do for the
environment.
As previously stated these fossil fuels emit gases that are depleting the ozone layer. The
ozone layer is a very thin layer of air in the stratosphere that soaks up radiation from the sun and
stops it from hitting the earth. The radiation is ultraviolet radiation that penetrates skin and
causes sunburns or cancer. It is important for the ozone layer to be there because it is protecting
all life on earth. However fossil fuels can emit chlorofluorocarbons, which create holes in the
ozone layer causing it to be less effective ("Ozone layer,"). If renewable energy sources were to
be used instead of these ones, then the USA could get energy freely without worrying about them
diminishing completely, without hurting the ozone layer, without increasing the price of energy
sources, and without polluting the earth.
A PLAN FOR THE FUTURE: SLOWLY MOVING TOWARDS
RENEWABLE RESOURCES
It is clear that in order for the fossil fuel era to end there needs to be a sufficient
alternative energy source for people to use to get the same amount of energy they do now by
using the carbon emitting natural resources. A new policy that should be enacted is the increased
use of solar energy, wind energy, and the integration of energy efficient cars. The use of these
more energy efficient sources will cause a discontinuation of the use of coal, oil and all other
carbon emitting fuels that cause harm to humanity and the environment. Over the next ten years
the United States should build wind energy plants and solar plants in order to begin the process
of moving towards this goal. There will also be movement towards using solar powered and
environmentally friendly cars so that the need for gasoline eventually is completely diminished
from society. As citizens begin to use these newer methods of gaining energy then the country
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will basically wean off of the fossil fuels until they are no longer needed which is hopefully at
the end of this ten year policy plan.
Before going further it is important to understand what exactly these new energy sources
are, what they do, and how the United States will use them. First there is wind energy which is
when huge turbines are turned by the wind and the sun along with these turbines cause water to
evaporate and when it turns into precipitation the energy can be captured and used for a resource
for electricity or other energy uses. Solar energy is also a huge source of energy that is already
being used for many things around the country and is the most important because most
renewable sources come from the sun. The solar power would be able to heat up homes, give
electricity, air condition homes, and do most things that we use fossil fuels for at the moment in
this country ("Types of renewable,").
Another part of this policy that is extremely important to note for the future is the
integration of energy efficient cars. A statement from the White House official website has a
current policy enacted by the president to try and use energy efficient cars by making vehicles
that use less gas to go farther. This policy would save people gas money and also saving the
environment ("Develop and secure,"). Yet the need for cars that do not use gas at all is crucial for
the future in order for pollution to be completely removed from the United States. Cars that use
solar power such as hybrid vehicles are the future of transportation. Another idea is that people
can use other means of transportation like car pooling, walking, or other forms that do not use
gas or burn up fossil fuels in order for them to run.
WHO WILL ENACT THIS POLICY?
In regards to who will actually enact this policy plan there is one clear option. The best
one is the use of the United States Environmental Protection Agency, which is an organization
that writes laws and regulations that protect the environment and humanity based off of laws that
were passed by congress. This policy that is being discussed would be passed by this agency in
order to be formally enacted in the United States.
Currently the Environmental Protection Agency has many policies currently in action to
reduce the emission of greenhouse gases and to protect the environment against the detrimental
effects of fossil fuels. Some of these policies include “Reducing EPA's Carbon Footprint” which
is reducing carbon emissions from the atmosphere (United States Environmental Protection
Agency). The policy mentioned in this brief is a further policy implementation that will go
farther than any of the policies already in use, why is why it is important for it to be enacted
because pollution is only increasing.
The policy will call for wind and solar energy to be used in order to start heating and
conditioning homes and used for any and all sources of electricity. Since this policy is over a
ten-year span it will begin with these sources being used in a few cities around the country.
Then moving to businesses, towns, and homes so that everyone will only need to rely on the
renewable energy resources instead of gas heating, gas stoves, etc.
One of the hardest things about this policy is being able to find a proper alternative
source to the fossil fuels used in transportation vehicles. More people should buy hybrid cars
that use solar power and gas. Even though this is not completely taking away the use of oil the
integration of both the solar power and the oil will decrease costs of oil and decrease the demand
for it. Thus people will be driving further and paying less by also helping to preserve the
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environment. Yet the end goal will still be to have cars that are one hundred percent electric, use
solar power, or use alternative renewable sources to run.
A problem this policy may bring about is further debt into the national government
because of the payments for these different plants to be created for resources such as the wind
energy plants. However in the long run these debts would be paid off by the amount of money
people would be saving from not buying gasoline for their cars and for using the electricity.
In actuality the USA actually buys natural resources from other countries quite often and
the expense of that would definitely decrease if the USA were to become self-sufficient by using
these newly implemented nonrenewable sources of energy. Currently the United States gets most
of its oil from Canada and Latin America and the USA only provides about 40 percent of its oil
meaning the other 60% is bought from other countries. The price of oil is increasing all the time
and when the resources become more and more scarce the price will only triple until it is gone
for good (Flintoff, 2012). Thus the need for alternative energy is a must for the United States’
future.
In summary of the policy the plan would be to use solar and wind energy for the use in all
homes, businesses, and other buildings. The new energy would provide electricity, lighting,
heating, and all other facets that are affected currently by fossil fuels. Another part of the policy
is to begin to use more energy efficient cars The Environmental Protective Agency that is
regulated by the government would be responsible for enacting this policy and the goal is to use
a ten-year period to begin to wean the USA off of fossil fuels completely. This will help America
in the economic and the environmental long run.
WHY THIS IS THE BEST COURSE OF ACTION MOVING
FORWARD
There are hundreds of different policies that could be enacted to fix the fossil fuel
problem. However this policy will definitely work because of various reasons. First of all a lot
of policies try to implement things right away which never works because people need to grow
accustomed to change and this ten-year period definitely gradually gets people used to the idea
of alternative energy sources. Another reason is that there are hundreds of different advocacy
efforts going on from different organizations that want the United States to switch to alternative
resources and this is a policy that does not. In years to come the pollution, ozone depletion, and
carbon emission will only get worse. The harm it will cause will not only effect people in
today’s day and age but will heavily effect the future of this country. Future in regards to the
health of future generations and energy crises for them later in life as well. As stated before
resources used from the other to burn for energy will eventually run out and when that time
comes there needs to be another form of energy at the ready for use or there will be a major
energy crisis. This policy will stop that from happening because acting now will definitely be
beneficial later.
Evidence shows that solar power might be able to actually replace fossil fuels completely
in the long run actually. One of the issues discussed in the past is that the population would not
be able to use solar energy at night. However solar power has the ability to store energy kind of
like a battery and can be dipped into whenever needed. Ausra’s executive vice president John
O’Donnell states, “The ability to utilize solar thermal technology after the sun sets is made
possible by a storage system that is up to 93% efficient” (Lozanova, 2008). Ausra was a solar
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company founded in Australia in 2002 and was later bought by Areva now called Areva Solar
which is a nuclear group based in California ("Areva solar,").
There is also proof that this is a good policy in regards to the fossil fuel issue because it is
an issue acknowledged by the White House and the president himself. This means that the issue
is real and in need of a good policy. However it is obvious that even with the integration of all of
these new policies and the support of the EPA and the Obama legislation the problem will never
be fully contained. This policy will just greatly reduce the need for fossil fuels in order for the
USA to become more economically stable and environmentally friendly. For example
integrating the economic-friendly cars there will still be a need for fossil fuels such as oil to run
different things until the USA is able to create and maintain a stable source of energy to run
machines. Notice the policy is just for cars and is a jumpstart to starting to move completely
towards electric and solar powered cars. Transportation such as planes, trains, boats, and other
machines will need to keep using fossil fuels in the time being. The major issue is the over usage
of oil in cars which is what the policy is aiming to change.
TRUE ACCOUNTS OF FOSSIL FUELS CAUSING HARM TO
THE HUMAN BODY
As mentioned earlier the ozone layer plays a huge role in the safety and harm of the
human population. The ozone layer has holes in it because of the fossil fuels but also fossil fuels
are causing harm to the actual process of the ozone layer. The layer is naturally destroyed and
recreated as the natural process of the atmosphere goes. However there are chemicals in fossil
fuels such as gasoline that release hydrocarbons. This is mostly a problem in the summer
because the heat increases these chemical reactions and creates a build up of ozone layer. The
problem with too much ozone being caused in this way is that it causes health concerns to
humans. The ozone can attack the defense system of the human body leaving people vulnerable
to diseases and destroying their immune systems. This is a demonstration of ground level ozone
pollution that is caused by the ozone layer ("Ozone - the,"). Thus a reason to switch to alternative
resources for energy because although fossil fuels are currently efficient for life on earth, they
will eventually be the reason life on earth can no longer exist.
WHY THIS POLICY IS BETTER THAN ALTERNATIVE
APPROACHES
There have been various acts and other attempts to implement ways to save the environment by
switching from coal and oil to natural resources. Some of these acts were implemented by the
Environmental Protective Agency such as the “Clean Air Act” and “Clean Water Act” ("United
states environmental,"). Even still some acts are still being advocated by different organizations
to have a better environment for all people. These kinds of organizations are not trying to
implement a single organized policy however; they are trying to advocate healthier lifestyles.
The difference now is that this policy is needed in order for change to actually happen. In
the past different companies and organizations could advocate for different lifestyle changes and
The End of the Fossil Fuel Era
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people did not really seem to care. They were not truly affected because it was not a policy in
action; it was just taken as advice.
Now there were actual policies implemented in the past and those were simply not good enough.
Why is that? It is because currently the US government does not put enough action towards
policies to protect the environment to such a degree. The White House page as previously
mentioned stated that the president would like to have more energy efficient cars where there
were more miles per gallon. However these policies did not have a time frame or a course of
action as to how the United States would eventually get to that goal ("Develop and secure,").
There were also policies in the past that were built to try and preserve the environment in a way
that fossil fuels would be depleted, however they did not work as they were supposed to. In
2013 president Obama created the “2013 Expanded Renewables Production-Consumption and
Increased Efficiency Policies” which greatly increased the use of renewable resources however
even with the increase coal and oil are still the major outlet for energy by a landslide (Miller,
2014).
Even worse is that there was actually a significant increase in the consumption of fossil
fuels and the release of carbon emissions in 2013 even with these efforts. That being said it is
clear that this policy is much better than what has been invoked in the past because the plan does
not involve the increase in renewable resources AND the increase in fossil fuels, the policy
decreases the use of fossil fuels (Miller, 2014).
IN CONCLUSION: IT IS THE END OF THE FOSSIL FUEL ERA
Fossil fuels have been the main source of energy for the entire world ever since they have
been founded. Coal is used for energy, oil is used for gasoline for transportation vehicles and
machines, and other chemicals are used for all other electrical needs and uses. Yet the time has
come where the United States needs to realize that these natural resources have a limit because
the earth can only provide so much before the resources are gone forever.
The finite amount of resources has thus pushed for the need to find an alternative why of
obtaining energy in order for life to go on as it always has. Indeed the problem does not just lie
in the fact that the resources will eventually run out, the resources are also causing harm to the
earth, to society, and to the human population. Pollution has created problems with the creation
and cycle of the ozone layer causing chemicals to penetrate into the earth’s surface that would
not be able to if the ozone was not broken down by fossil fuels. People are not subject to health
problems such as cancer and the breakdown of their immune systems because of these issues.
This is an issue that is affecting people all over the world and needs to be addressed.
Therefore the policy that would be perfect for enactment is the creation of a ten-year system that
would increase the use and production of solar and wind energy as well as the integration of
energy efficient cars. During this ten-year process the use of fossil fuels would significantly
decrease while the use of renewable resources would ultimately increase. Even though this
policy would not completely change the need for fossil fuels completely, it will be years and
years before those resources are actually used up and therefore will still be used. Yet the new
policy to begin looking to other sources of energy will make a more sustainable country.
Prices of gases will not go up as much and in the long run the renewable sources of
energy will actually be cheaper and more efficient. If the country continues with the destructive
path of just using fossil fuels the prices of oil and coal will exponentially rise until the sources
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are gone for good and when that happens all economic processes and life will stop because the
number one source of energy is gone.
In conclusion it is evident that the consumption of fossil fuels has become a very
disturbing problem all over the world and in the United States as well. They are hurting the
economy, the environment, and the health of citizens. That being said it is very clear that a
better policy needs to be in place to fix these situations especially because if they are not fixed
now they will become an even bigger issue for future generations down the line.
The time is now to harness renewable resources and make those the main source of
energy for people in the United States. The era of fossil fuels is coming to a close and the health
of the United States will greatly increase with this solution.
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Areva solar. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.areva.com/EN/solar-220/areva-solar.html
Develop and secure america's energy resources. (n.d.). Retrieved from
http://www.whitehouse.gov/energy/securing-american-energy
Flintoff, C. (2012, April 12). Where does america get oil?. Retrieved from
http://www.npr.org/2012/04/11/150444802/where-does-america-get-oil-you-may-be-surprised
Lozanova, S. (2008, March 27). Can it replace coal, gas, and oil?. Retrieved from
http://cleantechnica.com/2008/03/27/solar-thermal-electricity-can-it-replace-coal-gas-and-oil/
Miller, J. (2014, February 12). Were us energy policies effective in reducing 2013 fossil fuels consumption?.
Retrieved from http://theenergycollective.com/jemillerep/339491/were-us-energy-policies-effective-reducing2013-fossil-fuels-consumption
Nrdc. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.nrdc.org/policy/
Ozone layer. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://education.nationalgeographic.com/education/encyclopedia/ozonelayer/?ar_a=1
Ozone - the pollution paradox. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.dec.ny.gov/chemical/8561.html
The problem . (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.greenpeace.org/usa/en/campaigns/global-warming-andenergy/The-Problem/
The problem with fossil fuels . (2009). Retrieved from http://www.mineralwebs.com/problem-with-fossilfuels.php
Types of renewable energy. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/tech/home
United states environmental protection agency. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www2.epa.gov/laws-regulations