Major disadvantages of fossil fuels.
Fossil Fuels pros and cons you need to know
Fossil fuels are the primary source of energy in most parts of the world. According to U.S Energy Information Administration (EIA), 80% of the primary energy consumption in the U.S. is powered by fossil fuels. In this article I have discussed about the fossil fuels pros and cons which will give you a clear picture of this energy resource to understand why our future energy needs cannot rely on these energy sources
Because of several harmful effects of fossil fuels on the environment and human health it is often debated if it is safe to continue using these fuels for everything from power generation to cooking, heating and more in our everyday life. It is, therefore, imperative to know about the major disadvantages of fossil fuels in order to have a clear understanding why we need to use environment friendly renewable energy sources alternatives to fossil fuels. But before we go into the fossil fuels pros and cons let’s first look into how fossil fuels are formed.
How fossil fuels are formed?
Fossil fuels such as coal, oil and natural gas are formed from the dead and buried remains of plants and animals that lived millions of years ago. Because of this natural process of formation of fossil fuels, which takes an impracticable long time to create more, we call them non-renewable. These dead organisms, buried over time, turned into sedimentary rocks by mixing with sand and mud. These rocks ultimately are converted to various fossil fuels such as coal, oil, and natural gas under different conditions after being exposed to extreme heat and pressure in the earth’s crust over millions of years. Fossil fuels are basically hydrocarbons and contain high levels of carbon.
Fossil fuels pros and cons – facts we need to know
Because of major disadvantages of fossil fuels, like their negative impact on global climate and human health, it is true that we are talking about immediate switching over to renewable sources as alternatives to fossil fuels. But in our day to day use there are several advantages of fossil fuels which make them still stand out in energy production. Let’s, therefore, go into the fossil fuels pros and cons so that we can make well-informed decisions about switching over to environment friendly renewable energy sources.
Pros of fossil fuels
Following are the major advantages of fossil fuels for which these energy sources still continue to be the primary source of energy for the vast majority of the world.
1. Cheap source of energy
One of the main advantages of fossil fuels is that statistically they are actually one of the cheapest forms of available energy resources.
Notwithstanding the fact that government incentives are one of the factors for relatively lower cost of fossil fuels, considerable reduction in the cost of extraction of these resources than what it was earlier, has also substantially contributed to the overall cost reduction of this energy resource. With the use of innovative technologies, today the extraction of fossil fuels has been possible with a high degree of efficiency. In fact, the cost of extraction of fossil fuels is now much less than installing the renewable power sources.
2. Reliable source of energy
Fossil fuels are a very reliable source of supply. With our current infrastructure, alternative sources of power like solar and wind are not widespread enough to supply all our energy needs as reliably as fossil fuels. Fossil fuels can be used day and night as a source of power and they aren’t held up like wind and sun, by weather conditions. Fossil fuels are extremely useful to supply base-loads as compared to other not-so-reliable renewable energy sources.
3. Easily available resource
Easy availability is one of the major pros of fossil fuels. Fossil fuels are found in plenty in most part of the world which satisfy the demand of almost all the countries. Some countries have vast resources of coal, while some have high resources of oil and natural gas. With the help of advanced technology and equipment it is now quite easy to locate the fossil fuel reservoirs and to harness energy.
A recent statistics shows that global reserves of fossil fuels stand at about 1,200 billion tons of coal, about 1,800 billion barrels of crude oil and about 185 trillion cubic meters of natural gas.
Because of their affordability and abundance, fossil fuels have become the primary energy source of most part of the world.
4. Easier to transport
Transportation of fossil fuels that are in liquid or gaseous forms can be done easily and safely over long distances. Underground pipelines are usually laid to transport oil or gas very efficiently. Low cost of transportation of fuels right to the place where we need to use them is one of the major factors why fossil fuels are still the main energy supplier for the vast majority of the world.
5. Highly efficient energy resource
Fossil fuels have a very high calorific value, which is also one of the major pros of fossil fuels. Because of this high calorific value, fossil fuels are considered one of the most efficient energy resources as compared to other sources of energy. These fuels are so high in energy density (output per unit of volume or mass) that we require much less of these resources to produce a lot of energy we need.
The average efficiency of a coal fired power station is around 35% while efficiency of an oil-fired station is around 45% and a gas fired station has an efficiency of around 52%.
No renewable energy sources can even come closer to the efficiency of fossil fuels.
6. Easy to set up fossil fuel plants
Unlike renewable energy, which is dependent on the availability of the energy sources like sun, wind and water, a fossil fuel plant can be set up in almost any location as long as the supply of fossil fuels is ensured. Being easy to transport on long distances it is not difficult to ensure continuous supply of fossil fuels to the power plants.
7. Generates employment
Notwithstanding the fact that future energy sector job growth may be driven primarily by renewable sources of energy, it cannot be denied that fossil fuels have created numerous jobs in the US energy industry. According to a report by the U.S. Department of Energy, in 2016 about 56% of energy industry jobs involved in power generation stemmed from oil, natural gas, and coal. This shows that fossil fuel driven energy sector is a big source of employment which is also one of the major advantages of fossil fuels.
Cons of fossil fuels
Now let’s see the major disadvantages of fossil fuels. Here is a list of cons of fossil fuels which are likely to make these energy sources undependable for future energy generation in most part of the world.
1. Pollute the environment and affects human health
Environmental pollution is one of the major disadvantages of fossil fuels. The US Environmental Protection Agency finds fossil fuels cause 78% global greenhouse gas emissions.
Combustion of fossil fuels releases carbon dioxide, which is a harmful gas. When released into the atmosphere carbon dioxide causes greenhouse effect leading to global warming which is becoming a big problem affecting our planet today. Global warming has been associated with acid rain which is very dangerous for all the living species on the earth.
One of the recent research findings has also isolated the impacts of fossil fuel soot on global warming. Soot is the particle that comes out from the combustion of diesel, jet fuel etc. One particular type is called black carbon – the dark, smoky soot that emerges, for instance, from diesel vehicle. The other kind is called brown carbon, which is brownish or grey pollution. From research findings it emerged that soot is the second leading cause of global warming after carbon dioxide – a stronger factor than methane. It has been found that soot severely affects people’s health.
Burning fossil fuels also releases harmful particles like sulphur dioxide and heavy metals into the atmosphere.
Emissions of greenhouse gasses and release of other toxic elements into the atmosphere cause serious health complications for humans such as bronchitis, asthma, low lung functioning, and cardiovascular diseases.
Coal mining workers face serious health hazard since the coal dust is known to stay within their lungs causing difficulty for them to breath. Coal mining and oil drilling are, in fact, costing as many as hundreds of lives in a single year.
WHO has linked 7 million premature child deaths a year to air pollution and estimated that the yearly health cost of treating air pollution related health issues is around $100 billion.
Fossil fuels are, therefore, hazardous to the overall health of all the living creatures on the earth, and ending its use can save our planet.
2. May cause environmental damage by oil spills
Oil spilling while transporting oil from one place to another is one of the major disadvantages of fossil fuels .
While transporting, spilling of oil into the sea and on the nearby coast from the tankers, on being crashed or grounded, cannot be ruled out. In fact, several such oil spills have occurred in the past, especially in the United States. Such oil spills on the land and in the sea can cause considerable damage to the environment. This can also pose hazards to the aquatic animals including those living offshore. Crude oil contains some toxic substances which when mixed up with water may severely endanger aquatic life. Oil spills may not occur frequently, but when they do they can kill hundreds of animals.
3. Fossil fuels are not renewable resources
Fossil fuels are not renewable and are finite resources. Non-renewable energy resources are not replenished naturally at a quick enough pace to keep up with their human consumption and they are destined to deplete eventually. As already explained formation of fossil fuels typically takes millions of years.
According to a report of California Energy Commission, at our current usage rate fossil fuels are projected to run out in the next 50 years, which means once depleted we have to wait for indefinite period for formation of new fuels. Depletion of global reserves of fossil fuels also threatens the long-term sustainability of global economy.
However, good thing about this is – it is forcing us to think about energy sources, alternatives to fossil fuels, which would eventually result in the growth of renewable and clean energy sources.
4. Susceptible to price fluctuations
Price fluctuation is also one of the major disadvantages of fossil fuels.
Fossil fuels are highly susceptible to price fluctuations. The impact of such fluctuations is greatly felt by the developing countries that are heavily dependent on import of fossil fuels.
Few countries of Middle East are responsible for 40% of world’s oil production and hold the majority of the world’s oil reserves. These countries adjust their oil productions so as to maintain the oil price at a level as desired by them. According to the U.S. Department of Energy such price adjustments by the oil producing countries result in worldwide price fluctuations.
Before I conclude the discussion on major fossil fuels pros and cons let me also address some of the related questions often asked by the people.
Can fossil fuels be replaced?
Due to gradual fall in costs of renewable energy, it has already started to replace fossil fuels in electricity generation. In fact, wind and solar power are the cheapest forms of electricity virtually anywhere in the world now.
Renewable electricity is now cheaper per unit than oil and about the same price as fossil methane but, still, more expensive than coal.
What is environmental impact of fossil fuels?
When fossil fuels are burned, they release carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases, which in turn trap heat in our atmosphere, making them the primary contributors to global warming and climate change.
You may also like to read: Biofuels Pros and cons
Conclusion
It would be evident from the comparison of fossil fuels pros and cons discussed above that despite several advantages of fossil fuels, these fuels are hazardous for our planet. Environmental pollution is one of the major disadvantages of fossil fuels which can severely endanger overall health of all the living creatures on the earth. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the burning of fossil fuels was responsible for 76 percent of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions in 2016.
Therefore, although there are several pros of fossil fuels there is a need to think about ending the use of these energy sources considering the their major disadvantages particularly its air pollution related health issues. In order to save our planet we need to think about using other environment-friendly renewable sources of energy, alternatives to fossil fuels.
Moreover, as already explained above, the formation of fossil fuels typically takes millions of years for which they are unsustainable and cannot be expected to cater the world forever.
