Harnessing Energy From Fossil Fuels, Wind & Solar Power - Essay Sample

Introduction

Human beings engage in many activities in their daily lives. Most of these activities require energy, such as electricity, heat, and light. This energy comes from different sources, with the main ones being fossil fuels, wind, and solar power. Fossil fuels are deposits of dead organisms that are deposited underground, and they include coal and petroleum products. People drill the ground and take these fuels and then use them in their daily activities after purifying them. The purification of these fuels produces fuels like petroleum, natural gas, and industrial-grade coal that people use in industries, vehicles, and other home applications.

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Currently, fossil fuels are among the most used source of energy. Almost all the vehicles on the planet run on fuel from petroleum products. All the planes use these products for flight. Moreover, coal is used in many industries, whereby it is burnt to produce heat energy. The use of these fossil fuels provides a high amount of energy that powers these engines. Now, while these fuels are the preferred source for many people, it has one major disadvantage. The combustion of this fuel produces a large amount of carbon dioxide gas. These fuels contain large carbon and hydrogen chains, and their combustion breaks the chains down to carbon dioxide and steam.

Carbon dioxide gas is harmful to the atmosphere since it traps radiant heat from the surface of the earth. When heat enters the atmosphere from the sun, it passes to the ground, and a large amount of it is reflected to the sky. If this reflected heat does not find a medium that traps it, it leaves the earth's atmosphere, which cools the planet. However, if the atmosphere has a large layer of carbon dioxide gas, this gas traps the reflected heat. Trapping this heat causes the temperature of the atmosphere to rise, leading to a phenomenon called global warming. This phenomenon causes a continuous rise in global temperatures.

Now, while heat is necessary for life on the planet, too much of it is harmful. Specifically, high temperatures make sea ice to melt, leading to a rise in sea level. This rise affects the activities of people in many ways. Firstly, it makes it hard for people to survive in coastal cities. It also makes it hard for coastal farmers to practice agriculture. A rise in global temperatures also reduces the amount of precipitation that areas receive. Specifically, hotter climates increase the rate of evaporation, which leads to drought in many areas. This drought causes a reduction in food production from agriculture. Therefore, after several years, global warming will reduce the amount of food produced from agriculture globally.

The effect of stressors has increased the rate of climate change in the last few years. The most significant one of these stressors is the production of carbon dioxide gas from the combustion of fossil fuels. These fuels hurt life on the planet. This effect is not only on humans but also on plants, sea creatures, and land animals. Precisely, the drought would reduce the availability of water, which would reduce plant cover on the planet. These conditions would also make the population of animals and human beings to decline. Moreover, hotter climates provide conducive environments for some pests to survive, which implies that cases of plant and animal diseases will increase.

Following the dangers that climate change poses on the survival of life on earth, people must find suitable ways of reducing these effects. The best method is by reducing the amount of carbon dioxide that the combustion of fossil fuel releases to the atmosphere. This goal is achievable if people start using other sources of energy, such as solar and wind power. These alternative sources do not produce any carbon dioxide, and therefore, they do not increase global warming or climate change. Shifting from the dependence on fossil fuels to these alternative sources will benefit the planet by reducing the negative impacts of climate change.

Writing for Experts

Most of the activities that people engage in require energy. While there are many sources of energy, the most used source is fossil fuels, whose combustion produces a large amount of carbon-based gases. These gases enter the atmosphere and trap heat from the ground, causing global warming. This warming of the atmosphere reduces the amount of cloud cover, and it also causes sea ice to melt. A large ice cover causes a high albedo, which makes the world more reflective to incident heat from the sun. However, when this albedo reduces and greenhouse gases increase in the atmosphere, the world ends up becoming hotter.

An increase in global temperatures has many effects that act as negative feedback, leading to more climate change. Specifically, when global temperatures rise, many places start experiencing drought, which causes the death of plants in many locations in the world. This reduction in tree cover increases the rate of evaporation, which leads to more drought. It is also crucial to mention here that plants usually use carbon dioxide during photosynthesis and produce oxygen. Therefore, a reduction in the number of plants globally reduces the ability of the planet to decrease the amount of greenhouse gases from the atmosphere. Additionally, an increase in global temperatures causes sea ice to melt, which reduces albedo and causes more heat to accumulate in the atmosphere. Therefore, these three cases show how the impacts of climate change can lead to negative feedback, which continues increasing the stressors to climate change.

Following the negative impacts of climate change, it is crucial to find appropriate methods of reducing the occurrence of this phenomenon. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) studied the impacts of the stressors on climate change. The panel concluded that the best way to reduce the effects of climate change is by changing the reliance on fossil fuels. Specifically, people should stop using non-renewable energy and start using renewable sources, such as solar and wind power. Currently, technology has led to the development of electric vehicles. The use of these cars will reduce the production of greenhouse gases, which will lead to a reduction in the impacts of climate change. The implementation of specific strategies would have a positive effect on the planet.