Is Alternative Energy the Solution to Dependence on Oil - Term Paper Example

Is alternative energy the solution to dependence on oil? Essay and Number Submitted Introduction There has been growing concerns recently over the possible implications of overdependence on oil. Scientists predicted that the world has reached the peak of oil production, which suggests that oil reserves are near total exhaustion. Hence, advocates of alternative energy stepped forward to promote the use of renewable energies as a solution to dependence on oil. They mentioned some of the major environmental advantages of alternative energy. However, there are those who argue that alternative energy sources have more disadvantages than more established sources of energy, such as fossil fuels, natural gas, and coal. They do not believe that alternative energy is the solution to dependence on oil. This essay presents and analyzes both sides of the debate, and critically examines its implication for sustainability. Argument for Alternative Energy Sources Numerous factors have triggered the debate over the capacity of alternative energy sources to solve dependence on oil. Some scholars claim that there is an urgent need to use alternative and renewable energy sources. Most energy scholars have the same opinion that, in the future, the world will completely drain its limited supply of oil. Scholars have the same opinion about the availability of coal in the future; as reported by the United States Energy Information Administration (EIA), supply in the U.S. alone can meet present energy demands for two centuries (Smith & Taylor, 2008, 38). The remaining supply of natural gas and oil are a much more disputed subject. Scholars vary considerably in their estimates of the peak of oil reserves, also referred to as the ‘topping point’ (Smith & Taylor, 2008, 38-39). Oil’s topping point will occur when the world has used up precisely one-half of the total amount of remaining oil. This implies that the topping point of oil has been reached and that oil reserves will start to dwindle because oil is a nonrenewable energy source (Smith & Taylor, 2008, 39). The supply of natural gas, which is dependent on the availability of oil, is directly connected to this topping point (Podobnik, 2006). The United Nations (UN) made a decision to build the World Commission on Environment and Development in 1983. The name of the commission was eventually replaced with Brundtland Commission (Elliott, 2003, 7). Its objective was to look for sustainable environmental approaches. By raising awareness about the issues with nonrenewable, non-sustainable sources of energy, the Commission fueled and exposed the debate over the limited supply of fossil fuels and other justifications for the necessity of using alternative and renewable sources of energy. Energy issues have been at the center of economic, political, scientific, and environmental discourses from then on. Those supporting a rapid adoption of alternative and renewable sources of energy believe that the calculated dates for the peak of oil production are mostly immaterial (Elliott, 2003, 18). Environmental issues and the likelihood of tipping points imply that continuous dependence on oil may bring about permanent harm to the natural world. The worst possible damage is a global extermination of species, as well as human beings. Since fossil fuels have to be burned to produce energy, air pollution has been a problem since the advent of the Industrial Revolution. Air pollution has largely been the outcome of burning fossil fuels to produce electricity and supply energy to transportation. Hence, air pollution contains chemicals emitted from burning of fossil fuels (Schmidt, 2007). Air pollution does not only bring about a huge number of untimely deaths annually in developed countries, it also causes environmental destructions. Bodies of water can also be damaged by the use of fossil fuel not merely through acid rain, but through contamination of surface water as well. A case in point is the Exxon Valdez oil leakage. Valdez, the oil tanker of Exxon, contaminated a massive area of the Alaskan coast bringing about serious ecological disaster (Black & Flarend, 2010). Groundwater pollution can also be attributed to, at least partly, oil drilling and mining. Another problem among advocates of alternative energy is the impact of energy probing on land. Mountaintop mining, strip mining, and other surface mining practices cause irreversible modification of the landscape. This can seriously harm life forms and ecosystems, and its needs massive volumes of water for restoration (Black & Flarend, 2010). Drilling and mining of oil can also damage ecosystems and soil fertility. The transfer of fossil fuels can also have adverse environmental impacts. Pipelines can damage the lands through which they pass. Furthermore, there is the possibility of oil leakages all over the massive expanse of land that pipelines pass through (Shojai, 1995). A number of reasons have raised concern among legislators, scientists, and the general public alike. With the continuous burning of fossil fuels and thus the release of greenhouse gases, a number of possible outcomes of warming have been examined through scientific study. The level of warming that will take place may seriously threaten the survival of numerous ecosystems. From a global point of view, a huge loss of ecosystems may have severe impacts on human beings (Shojai, 1995). Certain ecosystems, such as tropical forests, provide numerous benefits worldwide that are totally needed for the continued existence of the human population. The facts that oil reserves are limited and nonrenewable and that the human population is rapidly expanding indicate that a new source of energy has to be discovered or tapped in the future. The threats from global warming strongly justify the need for alternative energy sources (Black & Flarend, 2010). Alternative energies have the capacity to save the environment from most of the destruction it endures today because of humanity’s excessive dependence on oil. Other concerns that have been raised in the debate over the capacity of alternative energy sources to replace oil include social and political dilemmas related to the utilization of fossil fuel. The natural physical location of crude fossil fuels across the globe, especially oil, is quite concentrated and has led to numerous unfavorable geopolitical outcomes (Smith & Taylor, 2008). A case in point is the recent conflict between Iraq and United States, which was provoked by the need for a reliable source of oil, even though under the pretext of international and national security. Occurrences such as the 2006 interruption of natural gas supply from Russia to Georgia have generated conflict in an already unstable region. Political analysts argue that conflict between Venezuela and the United States would not be as serious were it not for the huge oil reserves owned by Venezuela (Smith & Taylor, 2008). While globalization of markets and economies all over the world accelerates the progress of large nations like India and China, these countries embark on a competition with industrialized nations for their share of oil supply. Since oil reserves are finite, rivalry, particularly as these resources become more limited, may spiral into full-blown conflicts where the exercise of military power is completely likely (Deal, 2005). Moreover, either nation without stable sources of oil may become excessively dependent on countries that have large oil reserves, making their economic system much more susceptible to price instability, or they may become forceful in their attempts to acquire a stable energy source for their people (Podobnik, 2006). To thwart the global effects of overdependence on oil, there should be a shift to a dependence on alternative energy sources by all economies, developing and developed. Developed countries have generated numerous problems already through their continuous use of fossil fuel, and developing economies cannot depend on fossil fuels without producing the same adverse global and local impacts. To mitigate the global impacts of the utilization of fossil fuel, efforts at the international arena should be initiated because numerous of the impacts of global warming have an effect on ‘public good’-- defined as a resource that is freely accessible to everybody (e.g. atmosphere) (Smith & Taylor, 2008, 46). Thus, the mistreatment of this good, like the contamination of it, impinges on the value of the good for everybody to a certain extent. For example, if China and the U.S. perform fossil fuel combustion and release greenhouse gases, after the amount of such gases arrive at a particular point, the whole world, not only China and the U.S., have to endure the adverse consequences of the elevated warming. Yet, the U.S. has no reason to shoulder the burden of cutting down its emissions of greenhouse gases, especially if another nation will keep on releasing them. This occurrence is known as the ‘tragedy of the commons’ (Smith & Taylor, 2008, 47-47). The best solution to this problem is for both nations to agree to lessen, or, if possible, totally eliminate their emissions. With regard to alternative energy, attempts toward conversion will be more successful if every energy-exhaustive nation in the world agrees to convert. Per se, the difficulty of persuading most energy consumers across the globe to agree to switch to renewable sources of energy may impede the shift to alternative energy sources. Argument against Alternative Energy Sources However, there are those who do not believe in the capacity of alternative sources of energy to solve dependence on oil. The critics of a shift to an alternative energy source place emphasis on a number of major issues. Although using alternative energy has numerous benefits, the technologies have several disadvantages and obstacles to surpass as well. These setbacks involve difficulties in storing and distributing energy generated from alternative sources, political and social obstacles, environmental impacts, and costs of the technology. Except for nuclear power and biomass, a persistent dilemma with alternative energy is the need to store and distribute it (Schmidt, 2007), even though the latter is usual for almost all sources of energy, even fossil fuels. Although the devolution of alternative energies can mitigate setbacks such as those related to its geopolitical nature and equity among developing or underdeveloped economies, it can raise a dilemma for regions that need massive volumes of energy, such as big cities. This is due to the fact that the characteristic of energy sources can differ by location (Black & Flarend, 2010). For instance, even though solar energy is limitless, it is vulnerable to cyclic light variations and has greater presence in some places than in others. The Great Plains has a massive wind capability, and the Southwest area of the U.S. has vast solar availability, but the energy from these regions would have to be distributed all over the country if alternative energy is to meet the energy demands of places like New York City (Smith & Taylor, 2008, 48). For alternative energy from these places to fulfill the energy demands in far away urban areas, the energy should be passed on as electrical power or stored and transferred for distribution. Even in places having a surplus of alternative energy, natural changes, such as those brought about by seasons and weather, generate the necessity to store energy (Black & Flarend, 2010). For instance, although there is an abundance of solar energy in the Southwest region of the U.S., the sun is absent at night, and heavy rains block solar radiation that supply energy directly. Surplus solar energy should be stored for use during the night or at other periods when there is little or no sunlight (Elliott, 2003). Such differences in supply are inherent in all alternative energies with the exception of biomass. However, the costs of alternative energy are perhaps the most limiting aspect to the expansion of alternative energy use. Even though alternative energies can in fact finance themselves in due course, they require sizeable capital costs at the outset. Therefore, they are not as cost-effective initially for consumers to purchase as fossil fuels, thus lowering the demand for alternative energy (Shojai, 1995). This, consequently, discourage private organizations from investing in alternative energy, which is crucial if the technologies are to be generated on a broad level. Cost has been an impediment to the expansion of solar energy. In addition, alternative energy technologies still require further improvement and modification. The conversion of energy from alternative sources for serviceable purposes is still unproductive (Black & Flarend, 2010). Even though wind energy is quite capable, transferring the energy to distant places can lead to loss of efficiency. Other technical problems include the susceptibilities of the technology to natural forces. Offshore ocean and wind technologies, just like offshore oil drilling, are susceptible to destruction in storms, which can result in disruptions in the availability of energy. Small- and large-scale hydropower technologies are vulnerable to river flooding (Deal, 2005). Although the environmental impacts of alternative energies are minimal in comparison to fossil fuels, they do have environmental effects. Even though biomass can generate carbon containers that counteract its release, it still emits carbon dioxide when burned. The damages to wildlife and ecosystems and land use are primary concerns (Schmidt, 2007). Central solar power (CSP) mechanisms, wind farms, and particularly major hydroelectric technologies and biomass can require massive tracts of land (Smith & Taylor, 2008, 52). Indeed, this is regarded one of the greatest disadvantages of biomass. Rivalry for land between the agricultural domain and energy sources may possibly counteract agricultural progress, especially as regards biomass. If people depend excessively on biomass to fulfill their energy requirements, disruptions in the availability of food are likelihood as well (Smith & Taylor, 2008, 52-53). In general, support for alternative energy is strong. Nevertheless, alternative energies still have political and social concerns that should be addressed. There has already been resistance over the places selected for some forms of alternative energy developments. This generates a complex impediment for alternative energy particularly due to its localized character (Black & Flarend, 2010). Some areas are inherently more suitable for alternative energy development than other places due to abundance of alternative energy resources there. Conclusions As the world progresses in the 21st century, the long-term dependence of humanity on oil is increasingly being questioned. This period’s major energy sector, highly dependent on oil, is being continually tormented by large-scale security disasters. A transition from oil dependence to an extensive use of alternative energies is evidently needed if large-scale environmental, social, industrial, and geopolitical problems are to be prevented in the foreseeable future. However, as shown in the discussion, the development of alternative energy technologies is still fraught with major setbacks, not like more established sources of energy such as fossil fuels, natural gas, and coal. For that reason, governments and private organizations remain hesitant to invest in alternative energies-- lowering the demand for alternative energies while further increasing dependence on oil. References Black, B. & Flarend, R. (2010). Alternative Energy. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO. Deal, W.F. III (2005). The Magic of Energy: Oil Surely Changed the Way that Humans Value Energy. The Technology Teacher, 65(2), 10+ Elliott, D. (2003). Energy, Society & Environment: Technology for a Sustainable Future. London: Routledge. Podobnik, B. (2006). Global Energy Shifts: Fostering Sustainability in a Turbulent Age. Philadelphia: Temple University Press. Schmidt, C.W. (2007). Biodiesel: Cultivating Alternative Fuels. Environmental Health Perspectives, 115(2), A86+ Shojai, S. (1995). The New Global Oil Market: Understanding Energy Issues in the World Economy. Westport, CT: Praeger Publishers. Smith, Z.A. & Taylor, K. (2008). Renewable and Alternative Energy Resources: A Reference Handbook. 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