Background
For these reasons it is paramount that value the science of ecology. However, we must also understand the dynamics of the causes of human impacts on the Earth in order to properly teach ecological improvements. Everything is made up of energy. From the pebbles above the concrete, to the mango on your plate everything is made up of energy. Thoughts, feelings, emotions, all have energy. Energy however has some very interesting characteristics. Energy is never created nor destroyed; it only has the ability to transform. Globally we need and use energy for a multitude of purposes from growing food to running the vacuum. Energy moves cars along the road and trains along the tracks. Energy allows us to listen to our IPODs while typing on a laptop. It comes from many different sources and comes in several different forms of matter.
We divide energy into two sub categories, non-renewable and renewable. Energy that is limited is called non-renewable energy. These forms of energy are available in restricted supply, and are not readily replaceable. Coal is a non-renewable energy source. According to the Energy Information Administration (EIA), coal represents about 22.5% of energy consumption.5 Coal is burned and used to heat water to produce steam in large processing plants. The steam is used to turn turbines which convert and store energy. Coal is inexpensive, however it produces carbon-dioxide, sulfur-dioxide, and methane gasses as byproducts. These gases are harmful to the environment.
Natural gas is also a non-renewable form of energy. It is used to heat homes and fuel stoves. The EIA states that natural gas makes up 23.3% of energy consumption.5 Although Natural Gas is delivered with 90% efficiency is not easily transportable without transforming to liquid form.
Nuclear power is produced from uranium. Fission releases heat which turns turbines. The atoms within uranium are split; this process releases energy in the form of heat. Nuclear power produces 8.3% of the energy consumed.5 Although no carbon dioxide emissions exit into the atmosphere using this process, nuclear energy produces nuclear waste and radiation which are highly toxic.
Oil is the most abundantly used source for energy consumption (37.5%).5 Oil is only used for a small portion of electricity making, but oil fuels almost all forms of transportation. Oil is made into useable energy through a process of distillation. Oil, natural gas, and coal are fossil fuels which mean that they are created from the remains of fossils. The demand for these fossil fuels, especially oil is on the rise. Yet, peak collection of oil may not be very far away. Besides the increasing costs of oil, burning of it produces harmful greenhouse gases.
In 2007, the world petroleum consumption averaged 85.9 million barrels per day. The United States alone consumed 19.44 million barrels per day or 24.1% of all consumption. Petroleum alone was 56.9% of all imports in 2007. The DOE writes that of the petroleum imported 68.3% went towards transportation, of which 83.9% of the transportation petroleum is used on highways.2
Even if every human being were to cut their energy usage of these nonrenewable energy sources, we would still be emitting harmful gasses into our atmosphere and creating toxic waste. We need to do more to change the structure and components of our energy sources and usage. Renewable energy sources are replaceable or recreated within a short period of time. Renewable energy sources tend to be less utilized, and are currently being studied and used for their many benefits.
Biomass is the most abundantly used form of renewable energy (3.6%).5 Biomass is made up of food and animal waste. Burning biomass produces heat. Also chemical energy from organic waste creates methane or biofuels. The best part of biomass is that it recycles waste, and is easily storable. However, biomass does produce some carbon dioxide when burned.
Hydropower is available every day, all day long. It is always moving, predicable, and reliable. However it is only available near large bodies of moving water. Transporting this form of energy from coastal communities to inland would be costly. According to the EIA, Hydropower currently accounts for 2.4% of energy generation.5
Wind energy is considered renewable because wind restores itself. Wind energy is used to make electricity. Large windmills can be placed on or offshore for collecting the force of the wind which moves turbines which transform to electricity. Wind is unfortunately unreliable. The wind however blows more at night which is when demand for energy is at its least. Windmills have also been the cause of many deaths of birds who get caught in the mills during migration season. Wind energy currently only represents .3% of all consumed energy.5 Geothermal uses the Earth's heat to generate electricity. Temperatures below the Earth's surface are constant. It can be extracted from naturally occurring places, but also only accounts for .3% of generation.5
Finally, the remaining renewable resource is solar power. Solar power is the most underutilized renewable energy source. The sun is available all day and can be used for photovoltaic (electricity) or thermal (heat) uses. The sun despite being capable of supplying all of our needs only generates .1% of all energy consumed.5 Development of the solar industry is dependent upon availability of raw materials. Stabilizing the cost and supply of these materials has been a major platform of issues for the industry. Since the intensity of sunshine isn't controllable, the supply isn't always 100 percent reliable. However, it is somewhat predictable.
Since energy is not created nor destroyed, it is the methods of converting one form of energy to another that poses risks to our environment and therefore health. Some doubt or misunderstand the primary environmental implications of our need for energy that is consistent, reliable, and abundant. Perhaps this is because current adult generations assume major catastrophe is not probable in their lifetime. However, this viral contagious complacency is the major symptom of a planetary catastrophe. Evidence of global climate change is copious.
A May 8, 2009 article found in the McClathy News found that In Chacaltaya, Bolivia an 18,000 year old glacier has melted completely. What used to be a scenic half day's drive up to 17,000 feet above sea level no longer exist.6 Anwen Roberts of the Spiegel International News reports that an entire population is being displaced from the island country of Tuvalu as rising sea levels basically evaporate their homeland. The islands which are about four inches above sea level are a dramatic representation of climate change and global implications.7 According to the National Climatic Data Center, 2008 had the second highest number of tornadoes with a total in the high 1600s.8 Migratory patterns of most animal species have accelerated on average four miles north. Seasonal changes have become muddled and irregular as seasons come later, swifter, or stronger. The planet is communicating with us; it is just not in English.
Additionally climate change has many adverse effects on human life. According to the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), as the Earth's average daytime temperature increases the nighttime average lows have raised almost twice what the daytime temperature has.12 As carbon levels in the atmosphere rise this traps heat in the atmosphere that otherwise would have escaped. For example, in 2003, heated summer nights in Europe allowed no time for victims of heat stroke time to recuperate from the daytime radiance. Ross Gelbspan quotes in his book Boiling Point that in August of 2003, alone more than 35,000 people died from heat related illnesses.10 Gelbspan also notes effects on humans in 2001. Northern China faced twenty-two blizzards in two months. 100,000 herders were stranded and many died. In May 2001, the unseasonably high temperatures caused the deaths of forty people. In August, Iran's worst drought was briefly interrupted by massive flash flooding that caused 500 casualties. November flooding killed 1,000 in Algeria. The following spring brought a heat wave that killed another 1,000 individuals in India.10 Climate change not only impacts human casualties, it also impacts human quality of life.
At the forefront of these health issues in urban situations is air quality. According to One commonality of all living organisms have is the use and need for clean air. Yet the air we breathe and live off of is often ignored and under evaluated. John Wargo's book Green Intelligence Creating Environments that Protect Public Health, in the United States air pollution kills as many people as those who perish in traffic incidents.11 The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulates acceptable levels of atmospheric gases. They monitor the levels NO x , carbon monoxide, lead, sulfur dioxide, ozone, and two sizes of matter usually in smoke. The individual that sets the appropriate standards is the EPA's Administrator, appointed by the President and confirmed by Senate. The EPA also determines the acceptable average air quality for all US citizens. The EPA reevaluates these standard levels every five years. The levels are set for the average healthy adult, but fail to consider children whose body mass per particulate would have a much lower threshold for exposure. According to Rena Sterinzor, an outspoken environmental activist, asthma cases have jumped 75 percent from 1980 to 1994; forty percent of these sufferers are children.12 Areas with poor air quality have a higher prevalence of asthma and other respiratory diseases. The people most predisposed to respiratory illness are children and the elderly. Many cities have instituted a Code Red air quality rating which warns those most susceptible to stay indoors during the worst air quality days.12 Instead of cleaning or regulating our air we have instituted a system that encourages people to remain indoors. However, indoor air quality is not regulated at all.
Indoor air quality is also impacted by energy consumption, smog, and carbon monoxide; it however is complicated further by pesticides, cleaning chemicals, fragrances, and plastics. The EPA does nothing to monitor indoor air quality. Hospitals filled with chemical components, plastics, germs, disease, bleaches, and disinfectants answer to no one about the quality of air patients and employees breathe. Even school systems with registered asthmatic students are under no jurisdiction to control or even monitor indoor air quality. This lack of consideration must dramatically impact human health. This must be a front running concern, however unlike most other western societies the US has done very little to address these concerns.
Other nations have managed to hear the planet's cries, and have responded. Germany has committed to cutting back fifty percent of emissions in just as many years. The United Kingdom has vowed sixty percent in fifty years. Holland promised eighty percent in forty years. Western countries aren't the only concerned. China's thriving economy didn't stop it from making emission cuts; they cut back 19 percent in five years.10 In personal travels to India, remote deserts include mass biomass plants, homes have mini energy producing "dung holes," and solar panels are abundant. Yet the United States seems to live in denial.
The US media downplays these dramatic issues. Our previous administration did many things to play into public uncertainties. Government purposely allowed citizens to believe that there was no scientific consensus to global climate change.10 Ecology is not a fuzzy unpredictable science. Real observations, real testing, and real data exist to testify to these vivid changes and environmental consequences. There should be no doubt in the public's mind that our actions and continued use of coal and petroleum are negatively affecting our surroundings. This is not just an issue in the back of environmentalists and tree huggers' minds. This is a paramount issue for civilization; excuses of ignorance are no longer acceptable.
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