Non-renewable resources coal and petroleum are energy sources that we use and consume faster than the rate of their production in nature.
These fossil fuels take centuries to form naturally, and crude oil that is Petroleum takes millions of years to form. These resources are available inside the earth in a limited volume only; most experts believe that these will cease to exist within a very short period.
On the basis of studies based on the current rates of worldwide consumption, scientists across the world report that –the natural gas supply will run out within the next 35 years; and within 70 years the world’s current oil reserves will be gone – If the current rate of consumption continues for oil, the supply is predicted to run out within the next 14 years.
A. The Global Problems
The scarcity of these non-renewable resources alone is not a global problem, the pollution load created by burning these resources and the serious consequences of this pollution are even more frightening.
When fossil fuels like coal and petroleum are burnt, they release carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, hydrocarbons and sulphur oxides into the earth’s atmosphere.
The combination of nitrogen oxides and hydrocarbons forms smog. This smog, which is clearly visible over large cities, can lead to a number of serious diseases like – Lung irritation; Irritation to the eyes, nose and throat; Worsen existing respiratory and heart conditions; Shortness of breath; Permanent lung damage over time.
Aside from atmospheric pollution, extracting and transporting petroleum has, in the past, lead to oil spills and slicks, polluting the waters and damaging the natural environments around the slicks and spills.
In addition, strip mining, the extraction method from coal, not only leaves the area barren, but the minerals around the coal itself are acidic. These minerals are left behind after mining, leaving the area completely polluted and preventing the ability for new vegetation to grow.
B. The increasing pollution load
The burning of fossil fuels and, to a lesser extent, the loss of vegetative cover, particularly forests, through urban-industrial growth increase the accumulation of CO2 in the atmosphere.
The pre-industrial concentration was about 280 parts of carbon dioxide per million parts of air by volume. This concentration reached 340 in 1980 and is expected to double to 560 between the middle and the end of the next century.
Other gases also play an important role in this ‘greenhouse effect’, whereby solar radiation is trapped near the ground, warming the globe and changing the climate.
If present trends continue, the combined concentration of CO2 and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere would be equivalent to a doubling of CO2 from pre-industrial levels, possibly as early as the 2030s, and could lead to a rise in global mean temperatures ‘greater than any in man’s history’.
Current modelling studies and ‘experiments’ show a rise in globally averaged surface temperatures, for an effective CO2 doubling, of somewhere between 1.5°C and 4.5°C, With the warming becoming more pronounced at higher latitudes during winter than at the equator.
C. Rise in Global Temperature
An important concern is that a global temperature rise of 1.5-4.5°C, with perhaps a two to three times greater warming at the poles, would lead to a sea level rise of 25-140 centimeters. A rise in the upper part of this range would inundate low-lying coastal cities and agricultural areas, and many countries could expect their economic, social, and political structures to be severely disrupted.
It would also allow the ‘atmospheric heat-engine’, which is driven by the differences between equatorial and polar temperatures, thus influencing rainfall regimes. Experts believe that crop and forest boundaries will move to higher latitudes; the effects of warmer oceans on marine ecosystems or fisheries and food chains are also virtually unknown.
D. A shift to renewable sources
The great energy transition from fossil fuels to renewable sources of energy is under way.
As fossil fuel prices rise, as oil insecurity deepens, and as concerns about pollution and climate instability cast a shadow over the future of coal, a new world energy economy is emerging. The old energy economy, fuelled by oil, coal, and natural gas, is being replaced with an economy powered by wind, solar, and geothermal energy.
The Earth’s renewable energy resources are vast and available to be tapped through visionary initiatives. Our civilization needs to embrace renewable energy on a scale and at a pace we’ve never seen before.
We inherited our current fossil fuel-based world energy economy from another era.
The 19th century was the century of coal, and oil took the lead during the 20th century.
Today, global emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2)—the principal climate-altering greenhouse gas—come largely from burning coal, oil, and natural gas. Coal which is mainly used for electricity generation, accounts for 44 percent of global fossil-fuel CO2 emissions.
The Petroleum which is primarily used for transportation, accounts for 36 percent. Natural gas, which is basically used for electricity and heating – accounts for the remaining 20 percent. Thus, in view of the emerging problems environmentalists suggest that it is time to design a carbon- and pollution-free energy economy for the 21st century.
