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fossil fuel effects on environment
fossil fuel effects on environment
fossil fuel effects on environment
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Coal Usage in the Victorian Era
Coal was an essential of life, especially concerning warmth and food preparation, for Victorians. The use of coal has a longer history than many suspect; predates the Victorian Era by hundred of years. The Victorians spent a great deal of time not just using various coal products, but also spent a long time thinking and disagreeing about a wide range of issues that concerned such an essential product for their way of life.
The Victorians used various different kinds of this product, plant products buried underground in deposits of sedentary rock for millions of years. Some of the coal product that the Victorians utilized were, coal gas: illumination gas and cook-oven gas; coal-dust; and coke: bi-product of illumination gas production (Jackson).
Some history of London’s coal use
First used by the Romans, and noted as used in Europe around the 13 th Century. The demand of coal increased in the 18 th Century. In 1709, coke was first used in place of wood and charcoal. The first use of coal for lighting purposes occurred in the year 1786 (Everett). Since it was the most popular supply of fuel, coal was in immense demand. The coal mining industry was a very profitable one, when production went well (Everett). However, the burning of coal, especially in factories, led to a great deal of environmental problems and pollution.
Legislations concerning coal mining
* 1842: The Mines Act forbade the mining industry from employing anyone, boys or girls, under the age of ten years old for underground mine work (Bloy)
* 1850: Coal Mines Inspection Act dealt with safety inside the mines, requiring inspectors to enforce the Mines Act and file reports on the conditions and safety inside the mi...
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...entieth Century. The Victorian Web. 11 Oct 2002.14 Mar 2005.
Bloy, Marjie. “Victorian Legislation: a timeline.” 13 August 2002. The Victorian Web. 14 Mar 2005. http://www.victorianweb.org/history/legistl.html
Cody, David. “Child Labor.” The Victorian Web. 14 Oct 2002. 14 Mar 2005.
Mayhew, Henry. “Letter XX.” Social Investigation/Journalism - The Morning Chronicle: Labour and the Poor, 1849-50. Letter XX. Victorian London .14 Mar 2005.
Jackson, Lee. “Income and Management-II.” Etiquette and Household Advice Manuals – Cassell’s Household Guide, New and Revised Edition (4 Vol.) c.1880s [no date] - Income and Management. Victorian London. 14 Mar 2005.
Coal in the 1930’s: The First Lame Duck? European Union. 2002. Great Sutton Street, London. .
Of the three interviews, Patience Kershaw, age 17, is a prime example of why the Mines Act of 1842 was implemented and included females. She not only lifts and moves heavy loads, she works 12 hour shifts and during that
Mary Poovey, “Domesticity and Class Formation: Chadwick’s 1842 Sanitary Report,” in Making a Social Body: British Cultural Formation, 1839-1864 (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1995), 115-131
The Parliament tried to change these conditions through the Factory act of 1833. This act restricted the starting age limit of child workers to have to be at least nine years old to work. It also put restricted hours on child labor. Kids from nine though twelve were only allowed to work eight hours per day. From ages thirteen through seventeen they were allowed to work up to twelve hours per day. Mining conditions were even worse than factory conditions. People were constantly getting diseases and dying from working in mines all day long. To change this, they came up with the Mine Act of 1842. This stopped woman and children from working in the mines. They also put a ten-hour work limit which limited the work day for people who worked in the mine with the Ten Hour act of 1847. This was a big deal for workers who were used to working eighteen hours per day. This slowed down mining but saved many lives in the
Coal mines in these times were glorified death traps and collapsed. Often. Workers or their families were basically never compensated for anything, and even when they took things to court, essentially no court was sympathetic toward any coal miner or their family, and if their father or brother died, they were on their on for the rest of their life, often then forcing child boys to work if they weren’t already. Also, not many workers spoke proper english in the mines, so they could not read instruction signs, and by misuse of equipment, killing themselves and/or other
CF&I owned the land and the mines where the coal was supplied from, the majority of the workers that they h...
According to Heycks’ text The People of the British Isles 1699-1870, “the demand for servants generated by the middle class, was a rapidly growing industry, the second lar...
“The policies of this government are clear – to destroy the coal industry and the NUM” – Union leader Arthur Scargill. B...
Coal was the cutting edge of energy generation before any other source was extensively used. Wood, wind, water, and muscle power provided nearly all of the energy before the widespread adoption of coal. The greater energy density of coal provides a greater efficiency than these other methods of generating power; combine that greater efficiency with its ease of transportation and coal easily becomes the fuel of a nation. In its early days, coal was mined and consumed in England, a country short on wood and usable water power. This shortage in other areas left a gap that the relatively cheap coal could fill. Coal allowed for industry and manufacturing to grow and produce profits greater than almost any other industry. Coal gained its popularity mainly because it had an economic value in that it provided energy in quantities and in locations that were unobtainable and unreachable for the other energy sources at the time. This start in England led to momentum in ta...
For example, factory workers were expected to work 14-16 hour days, six days a week. The dusty, dirty, unlit mills along with few break times made working there a living hell. “Breaker boys suffered from chronic throat trouble and respiratory illnesses that were caused by inhaling coal dust. Above ground machinery, particularly coal crushers, were dangerously loud. If a breaker boy worked long hours around the coal crusher he often suffered from hearing loss (Wagner). Due to the fact that there were no safety laws in place, ear plugs and masks were not used. In fact, no safety equipment was. The dangerous machines with unprotected parts made children susceptible to injury and death. If someone were to get injured, they were immediately fired and not paid compensation for their health care. “If a boy was caught wearing gloves, the boss would beat him. A skin condition that miners termed “Red tips” was brought about by prolonged contact with sulfur from the coal. Breaker boys’ fingers often became cracked, bloody, and swollen from sorting (Wagner)....
With the gradual advancements of society in the 1800’s came new conflicts to face. England, the leading country of technology at the time, seemed to be in good economic standing as it profited from such products the industrial revolution brought. This meant the need for workers increased which produced jobs but often resulted in the mistreatment of its laborers. Unfortunately the victims targeted were kids that were deprived of a happy childhood. A testimony by a sub-commissioner of mines in 1842 titled Women Miners in the English Coal Pits and The Sadler Report (1832), an interview of various kids, shows the deplorable conditions these kids were forced to face.
Starting with no laws or regulations on working conditions, new industries would hire 7-8 year old children boys and girls and send then out into the coal mines and factories. Little boys were used more for the coal mines because they were small and their hands were small enough to work in that
It was just about 40 years before Elizabeth Gaskell published Mary Barton that Great Britain was primarily a rural, agricultural society. Many people grew their own food, and clothes and household materials were usually made within the home. Any specialized occupation almost always centered on the home and family, with children and parents both contributing to the family business. Three inventions, however, swiftly changed this system. The invention of the spinning mule and spinning jenny allowed mass production of woven cloth, which was ...
Lower quality coal is used for generating electricity. To generate electricity they burn the coal in a power plant to produce steam. The steam then travels through a turbine and generates power. The higher quality coal is used for making iron and steel. Coal is retrieved from nature by mining, either from an underground mine or from an aboveground mine. Due to the difficulty of underground mining coal from underground mines sells for more money. After the coal is mined it is processed to remove impurities from it. Lastly it is transported, “The cost of shipping coal can be more than the cost of mining it.” (US Energy Information Administration, 2013). Transportation methods include, truck, barge, train, and pipeline.
The use of fossil fuels on a large scale, specifically coal, began with the Industrial Revolution in England. Industries/corporations first used coal as a main source of energy to fuel their factories, and it became even more popular when railroads started. According to the United States Energy Department, "...by the early 20th century coal had become the major fuel in the United States, accounting for nearly 75% of the nation's energy requirements." Soon after, newer and cheaper fossil fuels, such as oil and natural gas, were high in demand. Energy Supplies, Sustainability, and Costs, by Sandra Alters, states oil was used as the main source of fuel to heat homes and offices, and gas powered the growing number of cars (57). "Oil shoved aside coal as the world's primary fuel, just as coal had replaced wood", says Tom Mast in Over a Barrel: A Simple Guide to the Oil Shortage (15). Most Americans were not concerned wit...