Fossil
fuels
Fossil
fuels can be described as oil, gas and coal are also classified as fossil fuels
since they are formed from organic means of ancient animals and plants. It can
be seen coal is crushed into burnt and fine dust. According to the article title:
“Energy resources: fossil fuels” (n.d) “it should be observed. There are
specific power stations that are constructed on the coast. In addition to this,
coal tends to provide 28% of its energy and oil offers 40%; when coal is burnt
it tends to produce sulphur dioxide; an acidic gas that contributes to the
formation of acid rain. In order to avoid this from happening, the flu gas desulphurization
process can be used for cleaning up the gases prior to their actual release
into the environment” (Energy resources:
fossil fuels, n.d)
In
terms of the possible problems within fossil fuels, it can be seen refers to
pollution and increasing demand. Within pollution, the article titled “Problems with fossil
fuels” explains “fossil fuels tend to release dangerous chemicals (combustion)
which contributed to unknown amounts of people who are diagnosed with illnesses
ranging from cancer, respiratory disease to heart disease and other illnesses
amongst youngsters and the elderly who are likely to be far more vulnerable (Problems with fossil fuels, n.d).
A
second problem refers to the increasing request; within this context it can be
observed; as countries keep developing, the possibility of them expecting more
fossil fuels would mean an increase in the quantity of fossil fuels is
necessary. There is a great competition too, That makes the prices rise since
fossil fuel sources are limitedly available. According to the article “The
Problem with Fossil Fuels” it describes how countries such as China and India
were faced with an increasing demand: “As
countries with large populations like China and India became more and more
development, they are going to use an increasing amount of fossil fuels.” (The Problem with Fossil Fuels, n.d)
In
terms of the solutions to these two problems, it can be seen, according to the
article titled: “The Sources and Solutions: Fossil Fuels” in order to tackle
pollution, “it is essential to manage and work towards decreasing emissions; by
working on yearly greenhouse gas inventories and that would be considered in
their long term targets to decrease emissions. Secondly, they need to purchase
renewable energy that would help in decreasing the level of pollution and offer
numerous valuable advantages” (The
sources and solutions: fossil fuels, n.d)
In
terms of the chosen case study of the country for fossil fuels, I has h chosen
Spain; according to the article titled
“Fossil fuel energy consumption in Spain” it explains Spain’s consumption “its
consumption of fuel energy was reported at 76.38 during 2010” (Fossil fuel energy consumption in Spain,
n.d). According to the figures released in 2008 on fossil fuel carbon
dioxide emission estimates; it indicates Spain was ranked at the 19th
position of the national emitter of carbon dioxide with 90 million metric tons
of carbon (Spain Fossil Fuel Co2
Emissions, n.d)
The
fact Spain is considered as the world’s biggest energy consumer within Europe
and it has no production of natural gas and liquid fuels clearly shows Spain is
faced with heavy dependency on fossil fuels. It can further be expanded; liquid
fuels are considered as one of the biggest and primary source of Spain’s
overall energy consumption; primarily within the transportation sector.
Loomans (2013)
explains “Spain is a very open to the idea of adapting to renewable energy;
this is clearly apparent from Spain’s consumption of renewable energy is
stable; it has been using hydropower, along with solar photovoltaic”
Furthermore, Spain is currently targeting and considering wind power to provide
40% of the electricity consumption by the year 2020; where Spain is hopeful
about growing its solar energy.
Within
the context of Spain’s future use of renewable energy, it can be observed,
Spain is hopeful about its future which seems positive towards expanding
renewable energy projects within the country, Bechberger (2013) explains “Spain has been witnessed its
electricity sector face a change; especially with the notable changes it has
made in its electricity industry that previously experienced hiking prices. By
focusing more on renewable projects that are designed on decreasing electricity
prices, it would help the country deal with such an issue.”
We saw within the context of this essay the
role of fossil fuels is important to producing energy and it serves a lot of
purposes to keep our environment and infrastructure active, While there are several
advantages, there are too many drawbacks too; these are mainly pollution and
the on-going increasing demand that is a challenge for countries since they
need to search for solutions that would help balance and protect the
environment from being harmed by pollution. In order to attack the
disadvantages, governments need to familiarize to the nature that would consist
of renewable energy that has long term benefits and helps in decreasing costs.
Word
count: 827 words
Bibliography
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