Fossil Fuels versus Renewable Energy - Essay Example

Fossil Fuels versus Renewable Energy Dead and decaying plants and animals form fossil fuels. Fossil fuels are formed when these material decay for a long period. Although, there is an abundance of coal, oil, and natural gas now, it will run out someday. Because the process of forming fossil fuels take long, it will be difficult for fossil fuels to sustain the world demand. Once the resources are used, we cannot get them back. One of the benefits of using fossil fuels is that it is economical to use.

Fossil fuels are used in everything. They are used in our households, and to make products such as plastics (Department of Energy, June 2001).There are also alternatives to fossil fuels. One of the alternatives is wind energy. Wind energy is cheap, proficient, and pollution free (Natural Resources Defense Council, 2013). Wind energy is made from big windmills that are placed on hills to supply power to the households. The downside of windmills is that they kill millions of birds in a year (Fear, 2011).

The other alternative is solar energy. Solar energy is used to power houses, cars, satellites, and buildings. The suns energy is captured and harnessed to provide heat for electricity. Solar power is free to harness. However, it is costly to buy and install panels (Llorens, 2011).Another source of energy is biomass and cellulosic ethanol. This energy is from crops remain, and fast growing trees. The uses of the products influence the environment. However, biomass that uses trees harms the environment.

The other source of energy is hydropower. This uses water to spin turbines to make electricity. Although is cheap to make electricity, it is harmful to plants, fish, and other wildlife in and near rivers (Natural Resources Defense Council, 2013). ReferencesDepartment of Energy. (2001). Fossil Fuels Future. Retrieved from http://www.fe.doe.gov/education/.Fears, D. (2011). Wind farms under fire for bird kills. Retrieved from http://articles.washingtonpost.com/2011-08-28/national/35269438_1_wind-turbines-wind-farms-wind-power Llorens, D. (2011). How much does solar cost?

Retrieved from http://1bog.org/blog/infographic-how-much-does-solar-cost/ Natural Resources Defense Council. (2013). What is renewable energy? Retrieved from http://www.nrdc.org/energy/renewables/default.asp