Ethical Energy and the Ethical Considerations of Environment - Essay Example

Ethical Energy ID 19714 Order No. 268254 20 January 2009 Table of Contents: Table of Figures Serial No. Description and Link to the figure Figure 1 A Wind Farm [Sourced from: Wright, Sally, 2004] Figure 2 A Nuclear Power Plant Schematic [Sourced from Brain, Marshall and Lamb, Robert, 2008] Figure 3 A Photograph of Germany's Brokdorf nuclear plant [Sourced from Brain, Marshall and Lamb, Robert, 2008] Figure 4 The Nuclear Waste Storage facility near Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant [Sourced from Brain, Marshall and Lamb, Robert, 2008] Figure 5 Hitachi Thermal Power Plant in Japan [Sourced from: http://www.power-hitachi.com/products/ffp/images/features_02.jpg] Executive Summary This paper presents the ethical considerations of environment when planning for a large engineering project like Energy & Power Systems. The analysis of the proposed solutions pertaining to power requirements of Belina (in sub-Saharan Africa) and establishment of Nuclear Power Plants, Fossil Fuel fired Power Plants, Oil or LPG fired Power Plants and Renewable Energy Power Plants (Wind Farms) have been carried out and the advantages of Renewable Energy Power Plants against the other types of Power Plants are enumerated keeping in view the impact on the local communities, ecosystem and the local, regional and global environment. Fossil Fuel Power plants are one of the primary sources of Green House emissions increasing the level of greenhouse gases in the environment (Carbon Emissions) thus causing increased atmospheric temperatures across the globe (Global Warming). Oil and LPG plants cause emission of Sulphur intoxicants which are very harmful for the local ecosystem, natives, plants & animals. Nuclear Power plants do not cause greenhouse emission or sulphur emission problems but have their own serious hazards especially in the disposal process of nuclear waste (radiation and soil contamination as the waste is buried deep in the ground as per current procedures). Hence, if a feasibility exists (example, availability of land, high speed wind, landscape, people acceptance, etc.) then Wind Mills should be preferred as much as possible even if the cost of initial deployment is higher than Fossil Fuel power plants. Nuclear Power plan should not be preferred unless the infrastructure & expertise of spent nuclear fuel handling is not as per the standards defined by the US Department of Energy. Moreover, they are much more costlier compared to the fossil fuel plants, Oil or LPG fired plants and the Wind Mills. [Ekmann, James and Forbes, Sarah et al.2004; Irish Council of Bioethics. 2007] Introduction Environment ethics is the moral responsibility of every individual of the world towards the environment and the living beings of Planet Earth in the current as well as future generations. Given the increasing magnitudes of threat to the environment of Planet Earth, it has become mandatory for every individual of this world to possess a reasonably high level of environment ethics. The current adverse effects of climate change across the globe require sustainable environment management practices for the benefits of current & future generations. The Green House layer of gases is an envelope around earth that maintains the current temperature of earth which otherwise shall become cooler by 33 degree Celsius. The levels of these gases have risen significantly due to act of human beings through primarily industries & vehicles and hence the world is experiencing the problem of Global Warming causing major climate changes across the world. Hence, the engineers of the world are forced to rethink their strategy when providing consulting services for establishment of such industries (specifically power plants) keeping in mind their accountability towards the local, regional and global environment. Environment Ethics & Energy Electricity is generated by an Armature comprising of copper coils that rotates within a strong Magnetic field thus producing electric current as a result of electromagnetic induction. The system that rotates the armature within the magnetic field is called a turbine which comprises of bladed that can be rotated by high speed steam generated by boiling millions of gallons of water within a large boiler. The mechanism by which heat is generated to boil water within the boilers defines the type of power plant - Coal fired, Oil fired, LPG (liquid petroleum gas) fired or Nuclear reactor fired. Wind farms however are different systems where steam is not generated using boiling water to rotate turbines and hence the armature. The armature is directly attached to the wind turbines using specially designed couplers that rotate due to thrust of wind thus rotating the armature within the magnetic field. Figure 1: A Wind Farm [Sourced from: Wright, Sally, 2004] Figure 2: A Nuclear Power Plant Schematic [Sourced from Brain, Marshall and Lamb, Robert, 2008] Figure 3: A Photograph of Germany's Brokdorf nuclear plant [Sourced from Brain, Marshall and Lamb, Robert, 2008] Figure 4: The Nuclear Waste Storage facility near Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant [Sourced from Brain, Marshall and Lamb, Robert, 2008] Figure 5: Hitachi Thermal Power Plant in Japan [Sourced from: http://www.power-hitachi.com/products/ffp/images/features_02.jpg] Most of the energy generation across the world are carried out by Fossil Fuel based thermal power plants. US alone generates more than 85% of energy (which is expected to increase to 89% by 2025) using fossil fuel, oil and LPG. The World Energy Outlook of International Energy Association suggests that 90% of energy in the world would be generated by coal, oil and natural gas by 2030. These projections are alarming given the impact on the environment caused by the emissions by these power plants. While this reality cannot be ignored that transition to alternate means of energy is a mammoth task which may take many decades, adequate steps need to be taken to transition to more environment friendly means of energy as much as possible in order to save our Planet for the generations of tomorrow. In this context, all countries should keep their energy options open in order to diversify their energy portfolios. The accountability is on both developed countries and developing countries whereby the developed countries should proactively take their learning & best practices to developing countries to offer alternate means of energy other than fossil fuel, oil or LPG based power plants. In this context, two types of energy are the in consideration by a number of countries across the world: Safe use of Nuclear Energy and the Renewable Energy (Solar Cells or Wind Farming). [Twidell, John, 2006; Wright, Sally, 2004; World Council of Churches, 2007; Murphy, Thomas S, 2008; Brain, Marshall and Lamb, Robert, 2008; Ekmann, James and Forbes, Sarah et al, 2004] The following actions are proposed by the World Energy Council (WEC) to achieve sustainable energy development: Market Reform including Trade and Regional Integration Appropriate Regulations and Institutions to address capacity and transmission bottlenecks Rapid diffusion of new technologies in the Energy markets Establishment and Commitment Local, Regional and Global Environment Goals Safety & Reliability by keeping Energy Options open Promotion of Human Dignity & Ethics The future means of energy at a global scale are visualized in the following forms: Continued usage of Fossil Fuel with more & more advancement of technologies for reduction of carbon emissions Continued use of oil & LPG by controlling oil prices and emissions Introduction of Nuclear Power Plants in developing countries after critically evaluating the maturity of a country to handle them properly Renewable Energy Sources - Wind & Solar; as per feasibility Hydro-Electricity [Irish Council of Bioethics. 2007; 18th World Energy Congress, 2001; Lorenzini, Paul, 2005] Discussions The discussions presented herewith are pertaining to the case study of Belina whereby the advice by Karsson Engineering Consultancy Company is presented herewith: (a) EUROGEN and MINIGEN: These organizations propose deployment of Nuclear Power Plants and are taking accountability of supply of fuel & management of spent nuclear fuel for 40 years. Nuclear Plants are undoubtedly environment friendly given that they do not cause greenhouse or other such harmful emissions because nothing is burnt as such. However, the primary question herewith is that 40 years may complete the lifespan of this generation of the country but the next generation would be facing the consequences of our decisions. Hence, first of all, 40 years is too short a period to avail the commitment of these organizations. It is expected that after 40 years these organizations would systematically hand over the nuclear plant operations, nuclear spent fuel disposal management & fuel import management to the Government of Belina. The question to be addressed is - Will the government of a country in sub-Saharan Africa would be matured enough to take the accountability of such a complex energy system after 40 years keeping in mind the technical & management errors, malfunctions, secured import of nuclear fuel, threats of misuse from terrorists, etc. Keeping these factors in mind, the recommendation herewith is that this country may not be matured enough to take ownership of Nuclear Power Plants even after 40 years when the contract of EUROGEN or MINIGEN (whichever is selected) expires. (b) RelRose, Atishi and NATFUEL: RelRose is offering Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) based, Atishi is offering Oil based and NATFUEL is offering wood fired Power Generation Plants. In the modern era of Global Warming problems, deployment of yet another means of Carbon emissions may not be a wise decision. In this context, the LNG plant should also not be considered for the power requirements given that it is just an enhanced version of fossil fuel considered as "cleaner than coal". It contributes to Global Warming [http://www.energyjustice.net/naturalgas/], is very expensive, is hazardous and accident prone as reported by energyjustice.net. (c) Windiber: This organization is offering 1 MW turbines in farms of 50 turbines each. A wind turbine doesn't occupy much of ground space but typical distance between two adjacent turbines is between 500 feet to 1000 feet. This means that a wind farm of 50 turbines will occupy a length of up to 50000 feet across the ridge line (i.e., up to 20 kilometres). This means that if Wind Turbines are selected for fulfilment of the entire power requirement (1GW), then a large part of the non-agriculture & ridge lands of the country would be covered by the Wind farms. However, Wind farms have major environmental benefits because there are no emissions & fuel requirements and the maintenance is much easier & cheaper. In fact, after one time deployment of these wind farms the government will have negligible dependence upon the suppliers and will be able to guarantee clean & healthy air not only to the current generation but also to the generations of tomorrow. Modern Wind-farms cause noise levels that are even lesser than homes of people. Technologies are getting enhanced day by day ensuring improvement of efficiencies of the wind turbines to the extent that they continue to provide electricity even if the wind velocity has reduced below current acceptable thresholds. [State Energy Conservation Office. Austin. Texas. 2001; Twidell, John, 2006; Wright, Sally, 2004; World Council of Churches, 2007; Murphy, Thomas S, 2008] Conclusions & Recommendations While more than 90% of global energy requirements are fulfilled by Fossil Fuel based power plants, the environmentalists have proved the danger to the global environment & ecosystem due to their operations. Hence, if a developing country is looking forward to add new power plants to fulfil increased demands of energy, they should use this opportunity to deploy renewable energy systems after analyzing the feasibility. Following are the proposed recommendations for the Government of Belina: (a) Belina should not consider Nuclear Power in the immediate context given the current nuclear threats in the world and the level of accountability required to manage Nuclear Energy and handling & disposal of Nuclear Waste. (b) Oil and Wood fired plants again should not be considered to ensure that this project does not add to the already created mess of Global Warming & Climate Shifts that mankind is suffering from. (c) USA has already started to witness the problems associated with LNG as the fuel for Energy. The dependence is a lot on the middle-east, Iraq & Iran and such other countries that are the center of energy conflicts with US. Moreover, LNG causes harmful intoxicants in the air (like lead, mercury, Naturally Occurring Radio-Active material - NORM, etc.) and also aids Global Warming. (d) Wind farms are the cleanest source of energy that is run by wind thrust which is a never ending natural resource. Moreover, the maintenance & operation cost of wind farms is negligible compared to the other sources of energy thus making the government independent of the suppliers in managing their energy costs. The one time installation of wind farms are undoubtedly more expensive compared to the fossil fuel plants and also huge land areas are occupied by these farms. But in the long run, it is worth to fulfil the energy needs of the country using Wind Farming which guarantees a clean & pollution free environment to the current & future generations of the country and helps in preservation of natural habitat, & species & natural beauty of the locality. Reference List: Brain, Marshall and Lamb, Robert. How Nuclear Power Works. HSW Inc. Discovery Communications LLC. USA. 2008. Ekmann, James and Forbes, Sarah et al. The Convergence of Environmental Issues-From Ecosystem Impacts to Technology Solutions. National Energy Technology Laboratory. PA. 2004. Energy for People Energy for Peace. Results of the 18th World Energy Congress Buenos Aires, Argentina. 2001. Environmental Ethics - Whose Planet is this Anyway. Irish Council of Bioethics. 2007. Lorenzini, Paul. A Second Look at Nuclear Power. Issues in Science and Technology and ProQuest Information and Learning.2005. Murphy, Thomas S. Nuclear Power and the Environment. Nuclear Issues Paper. Energy Information Administration. Official Energy Statistics from the US Government. 2008. Public Acceptance of Nuclear Power - Some Ethical Issues. Energy Advisory Group of the Working Committee on Church and Society, World Council of Churches, Geneva, Switzerland. 2007. The Advantages of Renewable Energy. Renewable Energy - The Infinite Power of Texas. State Energy Conservation Office. Austin. Texas. 2001. Twidell, John. The Political and Ethical Case for Renewable Energy. Editor of the journal Wind Engineering and co-author (with A. D. Weir) of Renewable Energy Resources. (Taylor & Francis, 2nd Ed., Personal Copyright. 2006. Wright, Sally. Wind Power - Impacts & Issues. Renewable Energy Research Laboratory, University of Massachusetts at Amherst. 2004. Read More