How Can the United States Lessen its Dependence on Fossil Fuels?

1536 Words4 Pages

Semantically fossil fuels are a renewable source of energy, however given that it takes millions of years for the organic materials to be broken down and converted, it is wholly unrealistic to consider them as renewable. As the demand for fossil fuels increases and source diminish faster than they are replentished, the United States must work towards a renewable energy independent state using truly renable sources, both technically and in practice. With changes in the home, as consumers in buying goods and with alternative fuel sources backed by public trust and governmental involvement, the United States could drastically lessen its dependence on fossil fuels, foreign and domestic. The greatest impact on reducing dependence on fossil fuels could begin at home. All around us are devices that consume energy even as we do nothing with them. Known colloquially as “vampire power”, these devices in standby power mode continue to consume energy as they are never actually “off”. Studies by Ross and Meier (2001) have shown that the average household can have up to 40 different devices consuming energy, from clocks to microwaves and DVD players to television, these devices add up to, between, 5% and 26% of the total electricity consumption in a household – energy likely produced at the cost of burning fossil fuels, both in production of the electricity and the transportation of the fuels themselves. For new or retrofit construction, every choice can lead to energy savings; energy that is derived primarily from fossil fuels. The typical household LED replacement for a 60w light lasts about 50,000 hours. Pretending that an incandescent could also last that long, it would consume about 3,000 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of energy whereas the LE... ... middle of paper ... ...rn, M., Ramroth, L., & Lovins, A. B. (2008). Transformational trucks: determining the energy efficiency limits of a class-8 tractor-trailer. Rocky Mountain Institute, Snowmass, CO. Ross, J. P., & Meier, A. (2001). Whole-house measurements of standby power consumption. In Energy Efficiency in Household Appliances and Lighting (pp. 278-285). Springer Berlin Heidelberg. Surface Transportation Board (2012). FY 2012 Annual Report. Washington, DC: Chairman Daniel R. Elliott III Topaz Solar Farm. (n.d.). Vertically Integrated Utility-Scale PV Power Solutions Provider. Retrieved May 18, 2014, from http://www.firstsolar.com/en/about-us/projects/topaz-solar-farm Why choose cloth diapers? Real Diaper Association Diaper Facts.. (n.d.). Why choose cloth diapers? Real Diaper Association Diaper Facts.. Retrieved May 17, 2014, from http://www.realdiaperassociation.org/diaperfacts

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