The Dangers of Fossil Fuel Use

The Dangers of Fossil Fuel Use

Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary defines the term fossil fuel as “a fuel, as coal, oil, or natural gas, that is formed in the earth from plant or animal remains.” The major fossil fuels include coal, petroleum, and natural gases. Here in the United States, and all over the world, fossil fuel functions as an extremely beneficial resource. We use gas to fuel our cars and depend on electricity produced from coal and oil to heat and cool our homes. But, these positive aspects do not come without drawbacks. Environmental health, climate change, acid rain, and air pollution are among the top problems with fossil fuel production and consumption.

(http://environment.about.com/library/weekly/aa050700.htm)

Fossil fuel use creates severe impact on the environment in all stages of use: recovery, transportation, preparation/refining, storage, and end use. Recovery, the first stage is basically the process of coal mining. This includes the destruction of topsoil, and the risk of gushers or accidents. Also, recovery leads to discolored local creeks and rivers because of the acidic run-off of these waters (Lecture 3/11/02).

Next, these resources must be transported all over the world, where they will go into the preparation and refining stage. During this stage, there is a risk that refuse or sludge will result from coal cleaning parts (Lecture 3/11/02). Also, air and water pollution may result from the process of petroleum refining, which involves the change of the chemical composition of petroleum to produce desirable chemicals and fuels. However, that means that the undesirable results are released to pollute the atmosphere. (Lecture 2/22/02)

After being properly refined, the resources are stored. This stage may cause environmental problems such as gasoline leaks in underground tanks at gas stations. Finally, end use results in the release of pollutants from combustion. These pollutants include unburnt hydrocarbons, particulate matter, such as ash or soot, and sulfur and nitrogen oxides (Lecture 3/11/02). The combination of these pollutants often results in smog, a problem most pressing in California (http://www.sparetheair.org/).

Major challenges exist concerning environmental problems with fossil fuel use. One challenge is to reduce fossil fuel use, in general, while also accommodating the increasing population and industrialization (Lecture 3/18/02). A second challenge is to remember to put human life before the need for industrialization. The National Resource Defense Council states that every year, some “64,000 people may die prematurely from cardiopulmonary causes linked to particulate air pollution".