The Invention of Hybrid Cars - Essay Example

?Introduction Traditional cars use traditional fossil fuel and therefore can be damaging to the environment. Fossil fuel has remained one of the widely used sources of energy over the last many years. It has proved as one of the most effective and cost efficient methods of generating the energy for the cars and other vehicles to run. However, with the passage of time and as the number of cars in use grew, the overall use of the traditional fuel increased too. This increased use of the fuel however, also created serious damage to the environment because of its Carbon emission capability. Due to this consistent use of the fuel not only in cars but in factories and other production processes, the overall damaging effect of fuel was gradually increasing. (Calef and Goble) The invention of hybrid cars- cars which can run on two different sources of energy- provided one of the valid alternatives to overcome the issue of environmental damage and thus allow the society to move in a cleaner and healthier environment. The effect of hybrid cars therefore can be enormous on the environment as well as on the fuel efficiency of the cars. This will therefore invariably also allow developing sustainable businesses. It is also important to note that the hybrid cars are based on the complex technology and the overall energy resources required to manufacture such cars are relatively higher as compared to the manufacturing of traditional cars. This causal analysis paper will attempt to discuss the hybrid cars effect and how it may positively or negatively contribute towards the environment. Hybrid cars effect Fossil fuel includes the energy sources such as oil, coal as well as natural gas and much of dependence of America is on these traditional sources of fuel. The obvious costs of using this fuel in cars and other uses include the costs such as labor and extraction and other related costs which can be quantified. However, few of the costs are not really quantified and neither is paid by the firms or the consumers. Much of the costs are related with the environmental damage and its resulting impacts on the eco-system of the world, health of the individuals as well as the local environment which can be seriously damaged with the increasing use of the fossil fuel in different technologies such as cars.1 The use of traditional fuel by the regular cars is considered as damaging to the environment and therefore its consistent use can actually create significant costs for the society to clean the environment. (Carlsson and Johansson-Stenman). It has been suggested that world can save billions of dollars if it can help reduce the deaths caused due to the pollution. It has been estimated that the air pollution can shorten the life of an individual by approximately 9 months. 2This result therefore suggests that the use of traditional cars can create significant air pollution and resultantly contribute towards the health related problems. Hybrid cars can have relatively different effect on the environment and can actually reduce the damaging impact of the fuel on environment. The use of hybrid cars can also result into better fuel mileage as well as the better utilization of the alternative sources of energy which can be more efficient and effectives. Besides, hybrid cars can also affect the way cars are run because of the better environmental impact of their use. The use of hybrid cars can also result into the reduction in the use of gas during the drive especially for slow drivers. Since hybrid cars use an electric motor to support the traditional fuel supply as an alternative source of energy therefore slow drivers can actually shift to the use of electric motor during the drive and can therefore save significantly in terms of fuel and gasoline. (Demirdoven and Deutch). It is also important to understand the use of hybrid cars also provide an alternative for those consumers who are relatively more concerned about the environment. Increasingly, customers are becoming more and more concerned about how their use of different technologies can damage the environment and therefore prefer to use such technologies which are more conducive for the environment. Hybrid cars therefore can seriously fit into that bracket providing consumers a very valid and best alternative source of using cars which are environment friendly. (Myers and Kent). Overall the hybrid cars effect the environment in less damaging manner as compared to the traditional cars which use petroleum based gasoline. It is however, also important to note that the manufacturing of hybrid cars can be threatening to the environment. It is believed that the complex technology of the hybrid cars can use more energy in their manufacturing and therefore can be more damaging as compared to the traditional cars to the environment. Though hybrid cars offered a very good alternative for reducing the environmental damage problem however, the use of Nickel based batteries. The extraction of nickel is often done through open mining which is even more threatening to the environment and can become significantly more dangerous when the demand for nickel will increase due to the increase in the manufacturing of hybrid cars.3 Conclusion Hybrid cars can effect the environment in most positive manner as compared to the traditional cars because of their better technology and use of alternative sources of energy. Traditionally, the cars use the petroleum based fuel which is considered as seriously damaging the environment. Hybrid cars therefore can offer an alternative and better source of transport which is more conducive for the environment. Hybrid cars also offer better mileage to the slow drivers because of the use of alternative sources of energy during drive. It is also important to note that manufacturing of hybrid cars can consume more energy as compared to the manufacturing of the traditional cars. The higher use of energy in the manufacturing of the hybrid cars and the use of nickel based electric batteries in them can therefore create more damage to the environment as compared to their overall contribution towards creation of cleaner environment. Works Cited Calef, David and Robert Goble. "The Allure of Technology: How France and California Promoted Electric and Hybrid Vehicles to Reduce Urban Air Pollution." Policy Sciences 40.1 (2007): 1-34. Carlsson, Fredrik and Olof Johansson-Stenman. "Costs and Benefits of Electric Vehicles: A 2010 Perspective." Journal of Transport Economics and Policy 37.1 (2003): 1-28. Demirdoven, Nurettin and John Deutch. "Hybrid Cars Now, Fuel Cell Cars Later." Science 305.5686 (2004): 974-976. Myers, Norman and Jennifer Kent. "New Consumers: The Influence of Affluence on the Environment." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 100.8 (2003): 4963-4968. Read More