Fossil Fuels and Alternative Solution - Report Example

Name: Lecturer: Course: Date: Fossil Fuels and Alternative Solution Introduction Energy is a driving force for development in the current world. In the past, use of coal was widespread. With time, this trend changed to a more unconventional alternative sources of energy such as solar power and nuclear energy. Usually, the sun is the comprehensive source of energy for all human beings and other creatures. Fossils fuels include those energy sources which are from different sources other than the primary sources. Fossil fuels include oil, natural gas, and coal. Fossil fuels are an environmental and health threat because they lead to pollution. Respiratory diseases have been on the increase over the last decade in the United States because of the use of fossil fuels. Combustion of fossil fuels leads to the release of harmful gases such as carbon monoxide, which would impact on the respiratory system, hence triggering asthma and other diseases. The biggest problem in the US elicited by fossil fuel use is asthma. Most of the cases are from Washington DC. One can attribute to too many automobiles in the city, which use oil. The release of exhaust fumes leads to damage to the atmospheric gases. The use of fossil fuels also affects the environment due to the release of greenhouse gases which affect the ozone layer hence increasing temperatures. Temperatures have risen drastically in the United States hence causing melting of ice in various parts. Such a scenario has caused flooding and difficulty for the transport sector. Conversion to the use of solar energy would help the United States of America deal with the environmental and health issues that the use of fossil fuels raised. Solution Fossil fuels have proven to be an excellent source of energy, but the environmental and health threat is a hindrance. For the government to realize a healthier environment, I propose the need to replace the fossil fuels with an environmentally friendly source such as solar energy. In this case, solar power will be the solution to environmental menace displayed by fossil fuels. The solution would start with investing more on solar panels and generators that would produce enough energy that can be comparable to fossil fuels. However, to reach such a target, the government needs to come up with policies that would mandate every State to produce target amount of energy over a particular period, such as a six months or less. Also, the government can subsidize the prices of polycrystalline silicon panels to ensure that every citizen accesses the renewable source of energy. Fossil fuel energy dependence may be a great factor that would pull back the government of the US from implementing the solution. Weighing the options of the energy source that releases more energy, fossil fuels takes it all. According to Cohen (692), National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), which is US Energy Department, postulate that use of renewable electricity combined with other sources of energy, which are environmentally friendly, will contribute to more than 80 percent of energy by 2050. Going by such statistics, things would be promising in ditching the harmful source of energy. However, NREL forges ahead to come up with mechanisms whereby the costs of renewables such as solar energies would be minimized. That is in a bid to ensuring that it takes over from the fossil fuels. Another effort for implementing this solution is to increase reliability while expanding the transmission to all parts of the United States. One should do so without hindrance from topographical stature and technological mishaps. Therefore, there is a need for the government to convert to the use of solar energy while ditching the use of fossil fuel (Wilson 107). Solar companies need appropriate subsidization from the government of the United States. Verengo Solar Company needs to receive assistance from the government in the installation of solar panels all over the residential places in the United States. The current installation targeting 12000 units in American residential areas would be achieved only when the government sets out policies from the Congress to ensure that the target is reachable. SolarCity is another big company targeting residential installations. Most of the households in the US have not set up the individual solar power panels to boost the energy source. However, there should be no monopoly in the solar business because the prices would rise hence unaffordable for the residents. The government has to set out policies that bar monopolistic powers while allowing free entry to the market for the sake of the citizens. Also, the government needs to team up with the solar companies in providing the services. Installation of polycrystalline Silicon panels may be expensive because of the high cost of the silicon materials. Some companies may find it hard taking part in a business which does not give enough revenue to support its entire operations. Some of them may pull out hence making the target of connecting every citizen to the energy grid of the solar power. Therefore, the government should subside the solar companies so as to convert entirely to the solar power use while ditching the harmful fossil energy (Fox 660). Solar energy, when put to use, will not take up a lot of resources. In fact, it is a free source of energy which is available for every human being so long as they have a solar panel. The most remote places in the United States can comfortably use the source of energy. Therefore, the government needs to consider such a scenario for the wellbeing of its people in every part of the US. It would only mean that the technological know-how in coming up with machines that will take up the energy use should be high. The government of United States has to set aside funds for putting up large solar panels, which would then produce higher Kilo Watts of electricity. In that case, it would cater for the industrial and domestic use. Industries would come up with their solar panels and solar heaters to facilitate their activities with the help of the government (Panwar, Kaushik and Surendra 1520). Hawaii is one of the places that have proven that renewable energy can take up the entire energy agenda. Taking the same route, the government of the US can put its policies towards the use of underground cables to reach their islands such as Oahu. Oahu, being the largest cities in Hawaiian State, has a potential to work well towards the use of solar energy. The solution to pollution and health crisis is lying on the potential to exploit the God-given energy sources. If the US government had come up with a lot of support from the same, things would have been very different now in many parts of Washington DC, New York, California and many other congested cities of the United States. Decentralizing production of solar energy would also help in mitigating the costly nature of transmission. Initially, solar energy in the US based on centralized nature of production. However, centralization is whereby the necessary authority confines the generation processes of solar energy to one particular point. Consequently, some energy would get lost on the way because of technological mishaps that would be costly. The government needs to be so vigilant in administering the renewable source of energy so as to benefit the people of the United States (Cohen 690). Justification Solar energy not only cares about the environment but also less costly as compared to fossil fuels. Fossil fuels would require going through an extraction process, in the case of coal or oil, which may be destructive to the environment. In some instances, people extracting coal may be involved in accidents which eventually take their lives. Such a scenario would be costly hence leaving children unaccounted for. Therefore, to avoid such a case, adopting the use of renewable sources of energy would be most effective. Furthermore, solar is the primary source of energy in every part of the continent. The solar power, if harnessed well, can be way above the amount released by other sources of energies. However, it is crucial to note that one pays nothing to obtain it. Connectivity to the main grid may just take some bucks, after which maintenance cost will not be high at all. Solar energy may not need too much on connectivity because the government of the US would provide subsidized solar panels to its citizens. It is because not all of them can afford the most modern solar panels. Some of these panels include polycrystalline Silicon. In such a case, polycrystalline ones have lower levels of silicon as compared to mono panels. According to Wilson (68), the government can spend less in producing them because silicon may be expensive to acquire. However, the government need to subsidize solar companies to ensure that solar energy becomes the primary power source so as to avoid impacts on the environment and human health. Fossil fuels release a lot of harmful gases into the atmosphere. Carbon monoxide is one of the gases which forms because of incomplete combustion of the fuels. It causes extreme headaches while putting the people under stress, which may cause heart diseases. Also, fossil fuels lead to the release of nitric oxide and nitrogen dioxide, which result in brown clouds in the atmosphere across the skyline of major cities such as Washington DC and New York. In 2015, the cases of such clouds have been rampant in New York because of many automobiles and industries which use oil. Such would not be the case if solar energy would have been in use. On the contrary, solar energy does not release any gas to the atmosphere. Also, it does not get depleted as compared to fossil fuels such as oil. At some instances, the prices of oil rise due to increased demand. Surprisingly, the cost of solar does change despite the increased usage. In the past, the government had been employing renewable sources of energy. The reason behind change in preferences may be as a result of advancements in technology. Also, the need to be the largest world’s economy may have prompted the adoption of fossil fuels. Based on the evidence of the destruction of the environment and human health, there is need to convert to the solar energy (Fox 652). Opposing Viewpoints According to Byrne, et al. (4560), fossil energy should continue being the sole source of power in the US. The analogy behind it is that major companies such as Hindustan Petroleum, Hellenic Petroleum and Motor Oil Hellas would lose because they were the primary producers of oil as fossil fuels. However, they argue that it may take the country long to adapt the solar power usage adequately. Also, the argument is that the energy that the country can harness from solar generating machines and panels may not be useful because of the lower content compared to the fossil energy such as oil and natural gas. However, his opinion remains to be controversial because it does not consider the destruction that its use poses to the environment. Nevertheless, he should have come up with recommendations which would ensure that the harmful effects are alleviated. Also, fossil fuel companies and other allies have put up concerted efforts to turn against policies that champion for the adoption of renewable sources of energy. Renewable energy also faces resistance from media while they focus on failures that face them such as the Solyndra’s bankruptcy. I, therefore, think that such viewpoint does not hold because the environment and human health are better than the interests of some companies. There is no need to lose innocent lives for the sake of using fossil fuel. Conclusion Fossil fuels provide high energy although it is destructive to the environment and human health. However, there is a need for the United States to replace them with more sustainable and environmentally friendly sources of energy. Consequently, solar energy is the best alternative because it is harmless to the environment. The source of energy is cheaper than fossil energy. In fact, extraction, transportation and combustion of fossil fuels, such as coal and oil lead to harmful effects on the environment and human health. The government of the United States need to subsidize solar companies regarding the production of solar panels, especially polycrystalline silicon panels. Such a move will help in reducing the harm that fossil fuels would have caused. Works Cited Byrne, John, et al. "American policy conflict in the greenhouse: Divergent trends in federal, regional, state, and local green energy and climate change policy." Energy Policy 35.9 (2007): 4555-4573. Cohen, Steven. "What Is Stopping The Renewable Energy Transformation And What Can The US Government Do?." Social Research 82.3 (2015): 689-710.Business Source Complete. Fox, Benjamin. "The Offshore Grid: The Future Of America's Offshore Wind Energy Potential." Ecology Law Quarterly 42.3 (2015): 651-698. Academic Search Premier. Panwar, N. L., S. C. Kaushik, and Surendra Kothari. "Role of renewable energy sources in environmental protection: a review." Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 15.3 (2011): 1513-1524. Wilson, Richard. Health effects of fossil fuel burning: assessment and mitigation. Ballinger Publishing Company, 1980. Read More