The majority of energy currently produced around the world comes from the burning of fossil fuels. These fuels are found in wells and deposits beneath the earth’s surface. They drove some of the most influential period in human history. The discovery of the energy stored in them has changed the way the entire world works. People are now capable of living in almost any environment because of the ability to control the climate indoors, pump water to dry places and transport food to places were growing crops is impossible. Electricity has made all of this possible and electricity is generated almost entirely by fossil fuels. They are not all good though. Their use will lead to some of the greatest problems that world has ever faced, and these problems might be coming soon.  Fossil fuels are a finite resource and the amount left in the world is dropping at an increasing rate. Also, the burning of fossil fuels has disastrous effects on the environment. In order to meet the growing demand for energy in the United States it is going to be necessary to make some drastic changes. Luckily, through the use of renewable energy and nuclear power, the country currently possesses the ability to make these changes. The problem is that fossil fuels are such a cheap and reliable source of energy that companies and governments are not investing in alternative forms of energy. It is essential that in the coming years the United States, and the world, make the shift to clean and renewable energy. 

One of the main problems with the countries reliance on fossil fuels is that they will eventually run out. It is near impossible to predict even roughly when this will occur due to a constantly increasing level of consumption. The concept of peak oil is not very complicated but it is extremely important. The idea is that at some point in time the rate at which oil is produced will be lower than the rate at which people are consuming it, and eventually fossil fuels will become obsolete. This idea can be applied to an individual nation or to the world as a whole. For example, in 1970 the United Sates reached peak oil and started to spend billions of dollars to import it from other countries (Newman 15). The nation was built on fossil fuels and the result of running out would be catastrophic. Millions of people live in cities and urban areas where there is not direct access to farmable land. These people depend on transportation driven by fossil fuels to provide them with food. All of the running water throughout the country is flown through pipes using pumps that are powered by electricity, which is generated almost entirely by fossil fuels.   If the country were to lose its ability to produce electricity millions of people would lose access to the things they need to live.  There were some good things that came out of the fear of running out of usable fossil fuels. It drove a period of increased funding and research into renewable energy and nuclear power. Unfortunately this did not last long. The increase in technology that led to the ability to extract shale oil and gas meant that the world would not reach peak oil for decades. With the immediate threat gone, the rush to find alternative energy sources ended. However, the fact that fossil fuels will inevitably run out is not the only problem, and it may not even be the biggest one. 

When coal and oil are burned they release carbon dioxide (CO2) into the atmosphere. CO2 is known to cause several problems. They range from threats to the local environment and population to global scale issues as CO2 accumulates in the atmosphere. Even the local, seemingly smaller, problems cost trillions of dollars a year (Perera).  Occurrences such as acid rain, smog, and mercury poisoning wreak havoc on areas around coal burning power plants. Acid rain forms when dangerous emissions from these plants buildup in clouds. When rain falls from these clouds into lakes, rivers, and forests they acidify the landscape. Fish and other organisms cannot survive in these environments and will die off if the water becomes too highly acidic. The fishing industry and the people that depend on these fish will be impacted the most by these changes. When the acid rains falls in forests it can kill the trees and plants growing in the area and make the land uninhabitable (Shuster 36). Too combat this problem some owners of coal-fired power plants made the smokestacks that emit these fumes taller. They thought they solved the problem because the surrounding area showed a decrease in pollution. It was not long before they realized that the wind was carrying the chemicals farther away and dropping them on other areas (38).  Smog can also form in areas near power plants. It can be so thick that it blocks out the sun and it causes serious breathing problems in the local population (40). Mercury is another byproduct of burning coal. It builds up in lake and oceans and gets into the bodies of fish, and then it gets passed to humans when these fish are consumed. Mercury can cause serious health problems in people and is even more devastating to the fetuses of pregnant woman. It also causes health problems in animals that eat contaminated fish (42). These are just a few of the problems that can occur in areas affected by the burning of coal. On a global scale the problems that arise have the potential to be even more devastating.

The effects of rising levels of CO2 in the atmosphere are a largely disputed topic. While most scientific studies point to the fact that manmade climate change is undeniable, there are still many people that believe that the change in climate is a naturally occurring phenomenon. Either way the past decade has shown a trend of increasing temperatures. With this increase in temperature comes the risk of more severe natural events. Hotter oceans could result in more powerful hurricanes. The heat is also believed to be contributing to the melting of the polar ice caps. Severe droughts have been occurring in areas of the world that were already experiencing water shortages (Blees 9-15). If these trends continue there will be disastrous consequences and there is no reason to sit back and wait. In Shuster’s book he points out a simple but undeniable reason to act, he says, “Whether you or I believe human activity is primarily responsible for global warming, or is just contributing to it, is not relevant. Why not eliminate all doubt?” (59). If there is even the slightest chance that the burning of fossil fuels is contributing to the global increase in temperature then anything that can be done to prevent it, should be done.

Given the potential consequences of continuing to run on fossil fuels it is important that we ask the question, “what can we do?” As previously stated, we cannot simply stop burning these fuels without endangering the lives of tens of millions of people in the United States. Our actions over the next couple of decades may dictate how long the earth is capable of sustaining life. Luckily we have plenty of options to prevent further damage, but we must start putting time and money into these solutions now. In the United States, and even more so in some countries around the world, renewable sources of energy are in place that emit little to no harmful chemicals. The problem is that in order to create the machines that capture natural energy, such as windmills and solar panels, we need to expend large amounts of energy. If we wait until we are out of the fuels we have to start worrying about the problem, we may find that we do not have the resources necessary to capture renewable energy. The amount of renewable energy produced in the United States has been increasing steadily for the past decade, but the systems in place are not very efficient. With proper funding for research we have the potential to build an energy system that runs almost entirely off of renewable energy.

One of the fastest growing forms of renewable energy is solar power. It captures energy from the sun’s rays and converts is into electrical energy. The energy provided by this process is entirely free of harmful emissions. While solar is a great option for providing clean energy, it comes with some issues. Since the amount of energy generated is dependent on the sun it is not always available. During the night, and even on cloudy days, the people that depend on solar power would need an alternative source of electricity. Another problem results from two things, solar energy is at its highest in the middle of the day, but peak energy usage in the United States occurs in the mornings and evenings (Learning About Renewable Energy). Since there are currently no ways to store energy within the power grid, any excess power collected is wasted. Solar panels also present more minor problems. First being that they must remain clear of particles otherwise the sun’s rays will not be able to contact the surface. Because of this, a simple layer of dust could render them entirely useless.  Another problem is that the materials used to create the panels, as well as the wiring necessary to transport the electricity where it needs to go, are expensive. The overall cost of solar energy is currently so much higher than that of fossil fuel energy that it is difficult for companies to justify an investment. Solar has the potential to greatly increase in popularity in the coming decades. With an increase in funding there are many areas that can be improved upon. The panels currently do not run very efficiently, if the efficiency is increased the monetary return on the panels would increase because more energy could be generated in the same amount of time. Also new technologies that allow for the storage of energy in the grid would greatly increase the potential of solar.

Another area that has seen rapid growth in recent years is wind energy. Wind energy is generated by wind turbines. They feature large blades that are turned when the wind is strong enough. As the blades turn, a generator inside the turbine converts the motion into electricity. Wind comes with many of the same problems as solar. Winds on earth are formed as a result of temperature gradients formed as the sun heats the earth. As a result the wind is highly unpredictable. Alternative sources of energy would need to be in place to supply people when the wind is not blowing. Wind, like solar, is at its peak in the middle of the day when consumption is generally lower. The turbines themselves also present unavoidable issues. Many of the towers are incredibly large which makes maintaining them difficult. Also as the blades spin they collect matter, bugs build up on the edges and in turbines by the sea, salt builds up. The buildup of matter on the blades can reduce the efficiency of the towers by almost half (Learning About Renewable Energy). Like solar, there is room for improvement in wind energy. New, lighter materials, would allow the turbines to collect more energy from the wind, but would need to maintain durability. Wind would also be improved if the energy storage problem was solved.

There are also other forms of renewable energy currently being used in the United States. Geothermal and hydroelectric powers are utilized across the country along with energy produced by biomass. Geothermal energy is produced by pumping fluids down into the earth in areas where the crust is thin and the heat from the earth’s core can be harnessed. The fluid that is sent down into the earth is heated and then returns to the surface. This heat can be used to drive turbines that create electricity. The problem with geothermal energy is that it is only available in certain areas. The majority of locations within the US that can provide geothermal energy are currently doing so. Hydroelectric power is produced when water flows through turbines that rotate and convert the gravitational energy, from water flowing downhill, into electricity. This process can produce enormous amounts of electricity. Hydro power has the same problem as geothermal; it only makes sense to apply it in certain locations. And once again, all of the locations that can be used to produce electricity are currently producing it. Energy is created from biomass by converting the molecules in certain plants into fuel that can be burned in car engines. There is a lot of room for growth in the biomass industry. All that is needed is the land to grow crops such as switchgrass or places to put pools that can be used to grow algae. The main problem with biomass energy is that burning organic matter still produces CO2, but in much lower levels than fossil fuels. Currently renewable energy makes up a mere 9% of the energy consume in the United States on an annual basis (US Energy Facts).

If the country, and the world, is ever going to move away from fossil fuels entirely it is likely going to require the implementation of nuclear energy. Nuclear power is obtained through fission reactions that use uranium and plutonium along with other radioactive elements. They are exposed to extremely high temperatures that start a chain reaction inside of a nuclear fuel cell. Nuclear provides enormous amounts of energy. A single pellet, the size of a human thumb, can provide as much energy as a ton of coal. While that is amazing in itself, the current nuclear reactors only utilize about 1% of the fuel available in the pellet. Proposed new generation reactors would be capable of recycling the spent fuel. This would extend the amount of fuel available from a couple hundred years to thousands of years, potentially even tens of thousands of years (How Long Will the World's Uranium Supplies Last?). Nuclear power is not currently being used on a larger scale for a few reasons.  One of the main reasons is that many people in the United Sates view nuclear power as extremely dangerous. People that lived through the Cold War were raised to fear the potential power of nuclear weapons. Also, accidents that have occurred in the recent past have attributed to the negative outlook on nuclear. Accidents at Chernobyl, Three Mile Island and Fukushima have spread fear that nuclear power is dangerous.  The fact is through, only one of these incidents, the explosion at Chernobyl, resulted in fatalities. 50 people were killed as a direct result of the explosion, 4000 more developed cancer that was directly related to the nuclear fallout from the explosion.   The other two accidents were contained within the reactor facilities. Another problem brought about by public opinion is the idea that nuclear fuel can be used to create nuclear weapons. However the fuel used, along with the byproducts created in the reactor, is far below weapons grade material. That does not mean that it is not dangerous. The material is still extremely radioactive and can cause numerous health problems, but there is no threat of a full scale nuclear weapons being developed from it. Overall nuclear power is much safer than most people think. Newer reactors are built to be extremely safe. They include features that prevent large scale problems and they are also capable of shutting themselves down if they do encounter problems (Touran). If nuclear power is going to be used to replace fossil fuels it is going to require a change in the way people view it. Nuclear is the only option that can constantly provide enough power to serve current needs. Many of the reactors in the United States were built years ago and will be decommissioned within the next two decades (Lester). New reactors take years to design, fund and build. It is essential that the country begins making the necessary arrangements while there is still time.

The potential risks of continuing to run the country on fossil fuels are too great to be ignored.  The pollution emitted from coal and natural gas power plants, as well as emissions from cars, causes problems in local environments and around the globe. The cost of treating illnesses cause by pollution could instead be used to make the shift away from fossil fuels. Renewable resources provide a great alternative to these fuels. The problem is that most of these resources are incapable of producing enough energy to make up for what would be lost by shutting down power plants that run on fossil fuels. Also renewable energy is dependent on factors that are out of human control which makes it unreliable. For this reason a combination of renewable energy and nuclear power is necessary in order to phase out the use of fossil fuels.  There is no time to sit around waiting for our current fuel supplies to run out. The resources that are currently accessible must be used to move us into the next generation of energy production. If we wait too much longer then we may find that it is out of our control. Sustainable energy must be our highest priority.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               
