Meredith1

EllaMeredith
ProfessorBeaulieu
English101(0404)
29November2015

TheDecreasedUseofFossilFuels,LeadingtoanIncreaseinRenewableEnergyTechnologies
andaCleanerEnvironment
Astheworldbecomesmoreeconomicallyandtechnologicallyadvanced,manypeople
maynotconsidertheimplicitcoststhishasontheenvironmentandtoitsinhabitantsalloverthe
world.Anexampleisthefactthatmorefactoriesandotherfacilitiesarebeingbuiltwherethere
werepreviouslyprimitiveforestsandlandscapes,whichcontainedtreesandotherplantsthat
helpedtodecreasethecarbonintheatmosphere.Whentheforestsarechoppeddown,theyno
longerhavethepowertohelpremoveharmfulCO2emissionsfromtheatmosphereandhencethe
carbondioxidegasintheenvironmentcontinuestoincrease.Withinthepastfewdecades,the
effectsofglobalwarminghaveincreasedgreatlyduetothehighcarbonemissionsandwillonly
continuetocausemoreproblemsallovertheglobewiththecurrentoilandcoalusageashighas
itis.Thisiscausinganincreaseinglobaltemperatureoverallandleadingtoairandwater
pollutionthatisnegativelyaffectinglivesofmanyanimalsandpeopleeverywhere.However,
thereisasolution:renewableenergy.Thistypeofenergycanbeusedtodecreasethecarbon
emissionsworldwidebecauseitdoesnotgiveofftheharmfulpollutantsthattheburningoffossil
fuelsdoes.Windandsolarascleanenergysourcescanbeusedinplaceoffossilfuels,which

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willleadtoadecreasedamountofgreenhousegasesintheenvironmentandandcreatealess
pollutedandsaferenvironmentoverall.

Theeffectsofglobalwarmingaregettingworseandworseasyearspass.Iftheuseof
fossilfuelssuchascoalandoilcontinuestoincrease,whichitispredictedtobasedonthe
estimatedrapidincreaseofhumanpopulationwithinthenextfewdecades,thenthereis
definitiveevidencethatsaysthefuturelivesofmanypeopleandtheplanetaregoingtobeputat
agreatriskandnegativelyimpactedifthecurrentdegradationoftheearthcontinues.Someof
theissuesthattheburningoffossilfuelscausesinclude,airpollution,acidprecipitation,ozone
depletion,forestdestructionandemissionofradioactivesubstances,justtonameafew
(Kalogirou3077).However,thiscontinueddegradationanddepletionoftheearthdoesnthave
tocontinuelikethis.Withthesupportoflargecompaniesandthegeneralpublic,theuseoffossil
fuelsastheUnitedStatesandothercountriesmainsourceofenergycanchange,andwill.The
timeisnowforrenewableenergysourcestotakeoversofuturegenerationscanbesavedfrom
thedespairofadeterioratedearthinyearstocome.
Theswitchtorenewableenergysourceswillnotbeeasy,especiallyconsideringthefact
thatfossilfuelshavebeentheUnitedStatesmainsourceofenergyforcenturies,beginningway
backintheindustrialrevolution.FossilfuelsfirstgavetheUSthepowertoproducemanygoods
becausetheywereacheapsourceofenergythatcouldbeusedtopowerthelargefactories.A
studyonthecarbondioxideemissionsfromtheuseoffossilfuelsshowedthatthetotalCO2
emissionshaveincreasedmorethan500foldfrom1751to1950(Andres4).Thisshowsthat
fossilfuelshavebeenimportantandessentialintheeconomicgrowthoftheUSinthe18th

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through20thcenturies,andproducedsubstantialamountsofCO2eventhen.However,times
havechanged.Thecarbondioxideemissionshavebecometoomuchofaproblemandcreated
manynegativeeffectsfortheenvironment.Itistimeforaswitchfromtheheavyrelianceon
fossilfuelstothestronguseofrenewableenergysourcesasamainsourceofpowerfortheUS
andothercountriesaroundtheworld,andhopefullywillleadtoalesspollutedatmospherein
yearstocome.
Inthispaper,Iwilldiscusshowglobalwarmingiscontinuingtoincreaseduetothehigh
useoffossilfuels,aswellasthenegativeeffectsoftheburningoffossilfuels.AlsoIwill
explainhowtheUSistryingtotransferawayfromsuchhighuseoffossilfuelsasthemain
sourceofenergybecauseoftheuncertaintyinhowmuchmorecoalandoilthereisinthe
reserves,inadditiontothereasonforthedecreaseinfossilfuelsbecauseofglobalwarming.I
willthenshiftmyfocustoexplainhowrenewableenergyhasalotofpotentialtoday,fora
varietyofdifferentreasons,aswellasexplainingthemanybenefitsandimpactsofthese
renewableenergysources.Furthermore,IwillconfirmthattheUSamongothercountriesare
tryingtomoveawayfromfossilfueluseandtowardsarenewableenergyfuture,inparticularthe
ObamaAdministrationsgoalsforarenewableenergyfuture.IarguethattheUSshouldswitch
tocleanenergysourcestoreducetheimpactsofglobalwarmingandmakeforacleanerand
saferenvironmentoverall.
Theproblemofglobalwarmingisbecominganincreasingissueastimepasses.With
thecombinationofCO2,CH4,CFCs,halogens,N2O,ozone,andperoxyacetylnitrate,all
producedfromhumanbasedactivitiessuchasdrivingofcarsandburningoffossilfuelsfor
energy,causeanoverallriseintheearthstemperatureandpollutionofwaterandair

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(Kalogirou3078).Thisleadstocatastrophiceffectsthatdecreasequalityoflifeofmillionsof
people.Thiswaterandairpollutionisleadingtomanypeopledevelopingdebilitatingdiseases
suchascardiovascularmortalityandmalnutritionduetocropfailure,aswellasrespiratory
problemsbecauseoftheharmfulemissionsintheatmospherewhicheventuallyleadstodeaths.
TheWorldHealthOrganizationestimatesthattherehavealreadybeenabout150,000deathsin
thepast30yearsduetoclimatechangefromtheincreaseingreenhousegases.Global
temperatureexpectedtorisebetween1.4and5.8degreesCelsiusbytheendofthecentury,and
thisputsevenmorepeopleatriskiftheburningoffossilfuelscontinuesandtheearths
temperaturedoesindeedrisethismuch(Patz70).
Onequestionthatmanypeoplemayaskconcerningfossilfuelsandtheriseofrenewable
energyisWhenwillthefossilfuelreservesrunout?Howmuchlongerdowehaveuntilwe
mustuserenewableenergysourcesastheprimarysourceofenergy?Thetruthis,thereisno
definitiveanswer.AccordingtothedirectorofBiochemistryattheUniversityofYork,fossilfuel
reserveswillonedayrunoutandconsequentlytheworldenergydemandwillnotbemet;the
onlyquestioniswhenthatwillhappen(Shafiee182).AccordingtotheWorldEnergyOutlook,
fossilfuelswillcontinuetobethemainsourceofenergy,accountingforanapproximated84%
ofenergydemanduntilatleast2030,assumingthatthereservesofcoalandoillastthatlong
andthereisnotaconversiontomoresourcesofrenewableenergybeforethistime.Although
coalisthehighestemitterofCO2basedemissions,itstilldominatesthemarketduetothefact
thatitisrelativelylowcostandhighavailabilityofrawmaterials(Prakash2716).Thereisa
searchfornewsourcesofenergytoovertakethesefossilfuels,suchaswindandsolarthatare
renewable,butforthenextfewdecadesthemainsourceofenergyisstillpredictedtobenon

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renewable(Shafiee184).However,oncethetimecomesforrenewableenergysourcestotake
over,theywillbeabletosustainthedemand.Renewableenergysourceshavetheabilityto
accountfor60%oftheworldsenergydemand,and40%ofthemarketforfuelsuseddirectlyby
themiddleofthe21stcentury.Ifthishappens,thenthecarbondioxideemissionswouldbe
decreasedby75%comparedtothelevelsin1985(Johansson1).Thisisveryimportantbecause
itwouldgreatlyhelptodecreasetheamountofgreenhousegasesintheatmospherewhichwould
decreasetheeffectsofglobalwarmingandmakeacleanerenvironmentaltogether.
Recently,renewableenergysourcessuchaswindandsolarhavebecomeverypopular
amongcompaniesandconsumers.Thereasontheyhavebecomesoprominentintodayssociety
isbecausetheyhavealotofpotentialintermsofswitchingtoacleanenergyeconomyinorder
todecreasegreenhousegasemissionsandlowenergycostsduetotechnologicalimprovements
thatwilloccur(Moriarty244).Renewableenergysourcesusenaturallyoccurringresources
suchassolarenergyandwindandharnessitintousablesourcesofenergytosustainenergy
demands.Thesenaturallyoccurringresourceswillneverrunoutandareconstantlyreplenished
tocreatemoreusableenergy(Elliott261).Inaddition,therearelittletonoglobalwarming
emissions,comparedwithcoalandoilsourceswhichemitamuchgreateramountofcarbon
dioxide.Coalemitsbetween1.4and3.6poundsofcarbondioxideperkilowatt/hour,whilewind
emitsonly.02to.04pounds,andsolarbetween.07and.2pounds.Theemissionsfromthe
burningofcoalclearlyoutweightheemissionsfromrenewableenergysources,whichshowthat
theseenergysourcescanbeimplementedacrossthenationtocreateacleanerenvironmentand
lesspollutedenvironmentoverall.AstudybytheUSdepartmentofenergysnationalrenewable
energylaboratoryshowedthatproducing80%oftheworldsenergyfromrenewableswould

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decreasetheglobalwarmingemissionsfromfossilfuelsupto81%(BenefitsofRenewable
EnergyUse).
InastudydonebytheAmericasEnergyFuture(AEF)RenewablesPanelonthe
potentialofdifferenttypesofrenewableenergysuchaswind,solar,geothermal,solarthermal,
andhydroelectric,itshowedverypromisingresults.Theyevaluatedthesourcesbasedon
multiplefactors:timeforinitialinstallation,cost,performance,andimpact.Thestudywas
organizedbasedonwhattheresourceshadincommon,ratherthanseparatedbythedifferent
typesofenergy(Holmes369370).Thestudyconcludedthattherenewableresourcebaseis
largelyrelatedtoenergydemandsandthattherenewableenergysourcesaresufficiently
developedsothegrowthwillcontinuetobesignificantoverthefirsttimeperiod,fromthe
presentto2025(Holmes371).Thisstudyresultedinpositiveconclusionssuchasknowingthat
isitfeasibletobeabletoslowlytransfertomanydifferenttypesofrenewableenergyinsteadof
fossilfuels,whichwillultimatelyleadtoacleanerenvironmentfor
Forasocietytogroweconomically,itneedstohaveasteadysupplyofenergytomeet
theneedsofthepeople,forwhichfossilfuelshavebeenusedmainlyinthepast.However,the
continuedburningofthesenonrenewableresourcesisleadingtodetrimentaleffectsonthe
environmentandtohumanhealthworldwidebecauseofthegreenhousegasestheyemitalong
withthepollutionofairandwater(Akella390).Currently,renewableenergyisgrowingfaster
thananyothertypesofenergy,anditisfoundabundantlyinmanyplaces,comparedtofossil
fuelswhicharerunningoutandonlyfoundincertainlocationsaroundtheworld(Prakash2717).
Astudywasdonethatfocusedontherelationshipbetweenrenewableenergyconsumptionand
economicgrowthfortwentyOECDcountriesbetween1985and2005toshowthatmore

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renewableenergyusageleadstohigherGDPandincreasedgrossfixedcapitalforthesenations.
TheresultsconcludedthatthereisalongrunequilibriumrelationshipbetweenrealGDP,
renewableenergyconsumption,realgrossfixedcapitalformation,andthelaborforceinthese
countries(Apergis660).Theseresultsprovethatcountriescanindeedgroweconomically
withouttheuseoffossilfuels.Thisisimportantbecausealmostalllocationshaveaccesstosome
typeofrenewableenergy,sodifferentcountriesaroundtheworldwillbeabletogrow
economicallywithoutemittingharmfulpollutantsintotheatmospherethatleadtonegative
effectsfortheenvironmentandincreasetheoveralleffectsofglobalwarming.
Withasmuchpopularitythatrenewableenergysourceshave,theyarestillnotbeingused
totheirfullpotential,andtheenergytheyproducehasthepowertoincreasegreatlythroughout
thiscentury.Lastyear,about9.8%ofallenergyconsumedintheUnitedStateswasfrom
renewableenergysources,andtheyaccountedfor13.2%ofthetotalelectricityproductioninthe
nation(RenewableEnergy).Thisnumberisexpectedtoriseintheupcomingdecades,dueto
thepopularityandpotentialthattheserenewableenergysourceshaveforthefutureandthe
supportthattheObamaadministrationhasforconvertingtoacleanenergyeconomytoreduce
globalwarmingeffects.InhissecondStateoftheUnionaddress,ObamaannouncedthattheUS
mustdomoretocombatclimatechange,inordertoprotectfuturegenerations(Atkin).He
directedthefederalgovernmenttotripleitsuseofrenewableenergyby2020,whichwouldbring
thetotalrenewableenergyusageupto20%.Additionally,Obamahasproposedathreetierplan,
thatwouldcutcarbonpollutioninAmerica,leadinternationaleffortstocutglobalemissions,
andpreparetheUSforthecostlyimpactsofclimatechange(FACTSHEET).Theseeffortsby
theGovernmentandObamaadministrationarecrucialtothetransitiontomoresourcesof

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renewableenergy.Inordertodecreasethecarbondioxideemissionswhichwillleadtoacleaner
environmentoverall,thegovernmentmustuseitsmoneyandpowertobackthesedecisionsto
becomelessdependentonfossilfuelsasanationaltogether.
Withasmuchsupportasrenewableenergysourcessuchaswindandsolarenergyhave,
therearestillmanypeoplewhoopposethelargescaleimplementationoftheseresourcesfora
varietyofreasons.Somebelievethatthecostofrenewableenergyismuchhigherthan
conventionalenergysourcessuchascoalandoil,howeverbecauseofthecontinualtechnological
improvementsintheseareasandthefactthatrenewableresourcesarecostcompetitivewithcoal
andoil,thecostofsolarandwindenergyareequivalenttothecostoffossilfuels,andwill
continuetodecreaseinthefuture(Painuly87).Anotherproblemthatrenewableenergysources
appeartocauseistheamountofspacetheytakeupinordertoproducethemostenergypossible.
Almostadecadeago,therewasanideatoput130windturbinesoffthecoastofCapeCodinthe
Nantucketsound,andthisideawasquicklyshotdownbytheenvironmentalistsandpeoplewho
wantedtopreservethebeautifulviewoftheoceanandnotputtheanimalswhoresidethereat
risk(Barringer).Renewableenergysourcessuchaswindandsolarpowerusegreatamountsof
land,andhaveanegativevisualimpactonpeoplewhoresidenearthem(Tsoutsos293).
However,iftheUSissopersistentinconvertingtoacleanenergyeconomy,therearesacrifices
tobemadebetweenpreservingidillicscenery,orreducingcarbonemissionstocreateacleaner
andlesspollutedenvironmentinthelongrun.
Itmayseemasthoughthegreenhousegasesfromtheburningoffossilfuelswillnever
decreaseandthepollutionoftheairandwaterwillcontinuetobeprevalentformanyyearsto
come.However,thetimeisnowforachange.Renewableenergysourcessuchassolarandwind

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haveaverystrongpotentialtotakeoverinthefuturedecades,andcertainlywillwiththegreat
supporttheyhavefromthegeneralpublicandfromthegovernment.Ifthesecleanenergy
sourcestaketheirplaceinsocietyandleadtoamuchlessextensiveuseoffossilfuelsinthe
future,thenthiscanhaveahugeimpactontheatmosphereandenvironmentasawhole.A
cleanerenvironmentwillbenefiteveryone,anditisonlyamatteroftimebeforefossilfuelsare
leftinthedustandrenewableenergysourcesbecometheUSsandothercountriessolesourceof
energy.

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