Introduction

According to new research (“Fossil Fuels | National Geographic Society,” n.d.) Fossil fuels are generally made from decomposing plants and animals. Fossil fuels are compound mixtures made of fossilized plant and animal remnants from millions of years ago. The creation of fossil fuels—either oil, natural gas, or coal—from these fossils is determined by the type of fossil, the amount of heat, and the amount of pressure. The fuels may be burned to provide energy and can be found in the crust of the Earth. An example of fossil fuel is coal, oil, and natural gas. Coal is a substance that is typically found in sedimentary rock formations, which are collections of rock, dead plant and animal materials, and layers of silt. A chunk of coal must contain more than 50% fossilized plant material. Shale is one sedimentary rock type that contains oil in its native form. The thick oil that can be used to make gasoline is created by heating this substance. Typically, pockets of natural gas can be found atop oil deposits.

Fossil fuels were first burned for energy at the start of the Industrial Revolution. However, the way we use fossil fuels has changed substantially over the past few centuries, both in terms of what we burn and how much. Over the past 50 years, the consumption of fossil fuels has grown significantly—approximately eight times since 1950 and roughly twice since 1980. But the fuels we use have changed as well, moving from just coal to coal and oil, then to gas. Many regions of the world are seeing a decline in their use of coal today. Oil and gas, however, continue to expand quickly.

Impact of Fossil Fuel on the Environment

There are numerous advantages of using fossil fuels including their high energy concentration, low cost, and ease of accessibility; they can also be harmful to the environment. Fossil fuels cause land degradation, and water and atmospheric pollution. The technological, social, economic, and development advancement has been largely driven by fossil energy. Coal, oil, and gas—fossil fuels—have played a significant role in the world's energy systems and still do. However, they also have several drawbacks. They are the main cause of global climate change and when burned, they release carbon dioxide (CO2). They also contribute significantly to local air pollution, which is thought to cause millions of preventable deaths annually and temporary and permanent cardiovascular and respiratory syndromes.

Land Degradation:

Our ecosystems and landscapes have been severely impacted by the discovery, processing, and transportation of underground coal, gas, and oil reserves. Large tracts of land are leased by the fossil fuel sector for the construction of processing, waste storage, and disposal facilities, as well as infrastructures like wells, pipelines, and access roads. In the case of strip mining, huge expanses of land are scraped and blasted away to reveal underground coal or oil, including forests and entire mountaintops. The nutrient-leached land will never recover to its original state, even after operations stop.The outcome is the fragmentation and destruction of vital wildlife habitat, which includes areas needed for breeding and migration. Even animals that can leave may suffer since they are frequently compelled into a habitat that is less than ideal and must compete with it.

Water Pollution:

Our streams and groundwater are subject to numerous risks from the development of coal, oil, and gas. Large amounts of undesired rock and soil are dumped into streams by coal mining operations, which also wash toxic effluent into rivers, lakes, and streams. During extraction or transportation, oil leaks and spills have the potential to contaminate drinking water supplies and endanger entire freshwater or ocean ecosystems. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency was sluggish to acknowledge the contamination of drinking water caused by fracking and its toxic fluids. The wastewater produced by all mining, fracking, and drilling operations is huge and can contain radioactive elements, heavy metals, and other pollutants. Industries keep this garbage in open pits or underground wells where it might leak or overflow, contaminating streams and aquifers.

Global Warming:

When we burn oil, coal, and gas, we don’t just meet our energy needs—we drive the current global warming crisis as well. Fossil fuels produce large quantities of carbon dioxide when burned. Carbon emissions trap heat in the atmosphere and lead to climate change. In the United States, the burning of fossil fuels, particularly for the power and transportation sectors, accounts for about three-quarters of our carbon emissions.

Ocean Acidification:

Oil, coal, and gas burning alter the fundamental chemistry of the ocean, making it more acidic. Up to 25% of all carbon emissions caused by humans are absorbed by our oceans. The ocean's acidity has increased by 30% since the commencement of the Industrial Revolution (and because of our coal-burning habits). The amount of calcium carbonate, a material utilized by oysters, lobsters, and several other marine species to produce shells, decreases as the acidity of our seas increases. This may hinder development, erode shells, and endanger entire food systems. Coastal populations are affected by ocean acidification as well. It is reported to have lost the oyster business millions of dollars and thousands of jobs in the Pacific Northwest.

To sum up, the world needs to wake up to this threat and realize that more needs to be done in developing methods that will balance the need to produce electricity and the need to safeguard the environment. Environment-friendly policies need to be established, including afforestation, environmental impact assessment, and operational quality assessment, among others, as well as adhering to international frameworks that protect the environment.

Fossil Fuels | National Geographic Society. (n.d.). Retrieved October 19, 2022, from https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/fossil-fuels/

Picture credit: Ritchie, H. (2020, November 28). Fossil Fuels. Retrieved October 19, 2022, from https://ourworldindata.org/fossil-fuels