Table of Contents
Introduction
Fossil fuels are arguably the largest source of energy for the world. Countries rely on oil to facilitate economy growth with both the oil and the transport industries being the bedrocks of economic growth throughout the world. Fossil fuels are therefore integral in the sustenance of global economies. However, the overreliance on fossil fuels has numerous drawbacks and adverse effects on the environment. The fuels contribute to the emission of greenhouse gasses such as carbon dioxide (Doeden 66). The gasses trap heat in the atmosphere thereby contributing to global warming and the inherent climate change. A combination of the two threatens the future of the world and human civilization a feature that justifies the dedicated research and investments in the energy sector to establish clean sources of energy. Countries throughout the world should concentrate on developing reliable yet clean sources of energy to steer economic growth into the future.
Scholars, environmentalists, and economists have presented short and long-term arguments both for and against the largest sources of energy. Arguments for the source of energy support the reliance on the source of energy. Among the arguments for the use of fossil fuels, include the availability of the fuels. Fossil fuels are easy to find (Bowden 32). The fuels exist in the earth’s crust and spread across a large area. The Middle East, Asia, the Americas, and Africa have large deposits of the resource thereby encouraging their utilization. Furthermore, the fossil fuels industry has grown to become one of the largest and most important sectors in the global economy. Multinational companies have invested billions of dollars in acquiring equipment that has made excavation of the resource easier. Such factors have made fossil fuels easily accessible and equally affordable.
Fossil fuels also became increasingly popular because of the ease of their transportation. Transportation of any source of energy remained a major concern in the development of engines. Fossil fuels such as oil exist in liquid form a feature that makes them easy to transport through fuel tanks in cars and motorbikes among other engines across the world that rely on oil. The capacity to transport fuel remains a significant concern for the world. As scientists continue to develop innovative ways of transporting other sources of energy, they continue to make short-term arguments in support of fossil fuels because of the ease of transportation.
Long-term arguments for the use of fossil fuels are the existence of advanced technologies developed for the safe extraction of fossil fuels. The extraction process was an equally major environmental concern for most people. Earlier methods such as fraction had adverse impacts on the environments by pollution natural resources such as sources of water. However, modern day technologies such as effleurage, solvent extraction, expressed oils and the Phytonic Processes are safe and do not cause immense environmental pollution (Morgan 76). Such technological developments encourage the reliance on fossil fuels since they demonstrate ways of relying on the source of fuel without polluting the environment.
The existence of a technology that uses the fuel is yet another fundamental long-term argument for the use of fossil fuels. Petrol and diesel driven engines are major aspects of life in the contemporary society. Humans have come to rely on the machines thereby making them essential aspects of life. Innovators continue to invest new engines that emit low levels of greenhouse gasses. New car engines emit minimal quantities of carbon dioxide among other gasses a feature that makes fossil fuels increasingly safer. Proponents of fossil fuels, therefore, call for funding of research and technological innovation to discover ways of lowering the environmental pollution that arises from the reliance on fossil fuels (Doeden 121). Systemic investment in research and innovation promises ways of making fossil fuels sustainable.
Opponents of fossil fuels have cited several short and long-term arguments key among which is their polluting effects. The emission of carbon dioxide among other greenhouse gasses is a serious concern given the large number of cars and engines that run on fossil fuels. The world has more than one billion cars and numerous diesel driven engines, especially in the developed countries. While the engines drive the global economies, they also have adverse effects on the world. Global warming is a major concern owing to its related effects such as climate change. The rising sea levels and the rising rates of evaporation are having negative effects such as adverse weather. Storms are becoming increasingly deadly while droughts and winters are becoming increasingly severe a feature that threatens food security.
Long-term arguments against fossil fuels include the expensive nature of controlling pollution. The opponents of the source of energy assert that global warming is a serious threat that remains difficult to mitigate. Any prevention method is costly. Incorporating the cost of controlling pollution would lead to an exponential increase in the cost of the fuel (Morgan 192). Similarly, the extraction of oil is likely to become more expensive and dangerous. Overreliance on fossil fuels is depleting the sources. Oil mines are becoming deeper while oil rigs have to go further into the sea. Such developments heighten the danger that characterizes the extraction of the resource thus proving their non-sustainable nature, especially into the future.
China
The republic of China makes a perfect case for any environmental discourse. As a developed country, China has one of the most polluted environments with its citizens already enduring the adverse effects of pollution. Over reliance on fossil fuels is a major source of environmental pollution in the country. Similarly, China is an innovative and technological country. As such, the country can become a model for clean environments. However, it requires a new energy plan that will sustain the rate of country’s economic growth rate.
The plan should have short-term and long-term changes implemented in stages. First, China should stop relying on fossil fuels in generating electricity to sustain households (Rooij 109). Residential and office structures require minimal energy. Such houses as residential flats and office complexes should rely on hydroelectric power, solar and wind energy among others. Such a drastic policy will lower the country’s reliance on fossil fuels by about 30% thereby leaving fossil source of energy for the transport and industrial sectors.
The plan also entails expansive scientific and technological research to mitigate the polluting effects of fossil fuels. The country should invest in research designed to discover ways of harnessing clean sources of energy. The country should begin producing fuel-efficient cars with the lowest emissions. Electric cars present solutions to the polluting effects of cars. China should invest in mass production of electric cars. The country’s innovators should work towards establishing ways of improving the reliability to lithium ion batteries among other new technologies that will enhance reliance on batteries. Long-term plans should strive to eliminate the country’s reliance on fossil fuels. The country should have the capacity to harness adequate clean energy through wind, solar, biomass, hydro and even nuclear to run its large industries (Orme 76).
The country should also run cleanliness programs complementary to the innovation. The country should invest in reclaiming its forests and incorporating trees in its expansive urban centers. China should transform its cities into Biophilic Cities within the next thirty years as a way of mitigating the polluting effects of carbon the country has emitted into the environment.
Conclusion
Summarily, fossil fuels have contributed to the development of the world. Countries across the world enjoy advanced economies and technological inventions that have improved the quality of life. Most of the technologies rely on fossil fuels. The invention of petrol driven engines was critical to the development of the world. However, the technologies have adverse environmental impacts. Fossil fuels are leading pollutants a feature that requires urgent mitigation. Leading pollutants like China should invest in mitigating pollution and overturning the adverse effects of pollution such as global warming and climate change.
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