Alternative Energy Sources and Human Dependence on Oil - Research Paper Example

?Running Head: OIL DEPENDENCE Are Alternative Energy Sources the Answer to Ending Human Dependence on Oil? Title] [Date of Submission] Are Alternative Energy Sources the Answer to Ending Human Dependence on Oil? Introduction Any discussion of problematic trends in contemporary energy industries has to begin with an analysis of the international petroleum system. Oil consumption, which currently provides majority of the world’s commercial energy, is again on the rise. If oil remains the world's pre-eminent source of energy in the coming years, it would make the problem worse for the whole world (Stern, 2007). The best course of action to resolve or reduce the danger of human’s oil dependence is an issue of much discussion and dissention (Green, 2007). Sustainable energy sources are the best option for decreasing oil dependence and this should be encouraged or even mandated. The problem of oil dependence World energy demand has been increasing continually and is projected to increase further. Despite increases in world oil prices, hydrocarbon fuels such as oil, coal and natural gas have been used primarily thus far to supply this increasing energy demand. There are a variety of dangers that result from this dependence according to Newman (2002). Because the last known major oil reserves that haven't been depleted are in the Middle East, the oil-consuming world is dependent on the Persian Gulf for oil, Which leaves oil consuming cities and countries with a deep-seated feeling of vulnerability. US cities are especially vulnerable as they have an average consumption of 431 gallons of gas per person as compared with European cities using an average of 133 gallons per person (Newman, 2002). There are many different views on problem with dependence on oil. One very important theoretical approach to dealing with the problem is that certain actions should be supported by Federal legislation i.e. development of more alternative energy sources. Alternative Energy Sources The Alternative Energy Institute (AEI) is a leading authority on developing alternative sources of energy and they provide extensive information about various new alternative sources of power that are being developed. The main alternative power sources being used in the U.S. are solar power, hydrogen fuel cells, wind power, hydropower, geothermal power, biomass and tidal power (Green, 2007) The Alternative Energy Institute's about solar power are very positive. They observe that in a 24-hour period the sun provides more energy than the human race can use in the next 27 years (Riley and McLaughlin, 2001). Solar power has been being developed for over one hundred years. However, most of the development has taken place in the last thirty years since the first practical solar cells were developed in the early 1970's. AEI notes that solar power has tremendous potential, but what has caused this clean and renewable energy resource to not get the highest priority has been its cost. Coal and oil have been less expensive and this cost difference has precluded solar power from growing like it could (Riley and McLaughlin, 2001). Hydrogen and Fuel Cell technology also is of interest to the alternative energy institute. Hydrogen is the most abundant element on earth and it has potential to propel planes, trains, automobiles, etc.(Elliott, 2003). It has been used in NASA manned flights since 1965. However, it will take years of research and development before this clean renewable energy source may revolutionize the transportation industry. Fuel cells have the benefits of being produced in country instead of being imported, affect the most oil-dependent transportation area and can dramatically reduce health hazards from automobile exhaust. Automakers from Japan, Europe and America are diligently working to perfect this technology. However, a limitation of hydrogen is that it requires energy to free it from water or other resources that contain it. Besides that, it also needs twice as much energy to produce hydrogen as it returns in power. Significant technological and economic hurdles need to be overcome to bring this technology to its full potential (Tester et al., 2005). Wind energy is growing rapidly and is a significant renewable energy source. Hydropower is another energy source well suited to generating electricity (Tester et al., 2005). Modern hydroelectric stations can convert about 90% of available energy into electricity and costs less than oil to produce electricity-about $.07 per kilowatt according to AEI (Tester et al., 2005; Riley and McLaughlin, 2001). The Alternative Energy Institute notes that Hydropower is the nation's largest renewable energy source and helps America avoid consuming an additional 22 billion gallons of oil a year. This keeps the country from using about an additional 30% more oil to the 71 billion gallons we already consume (Riley and McLaughlin, 2001). Hydropower is the leading source of renewable electricity and provides significant portion of all electricity generated by sustainable energy sources on a global basis. But there are other costs associated with hydropower as well such as the construction cost for dams. There are also costs for removing dams and silt that gets trapped which aren't specified. However, excluding the costs of removing the dam and silt, it only costs about 30% the price of oil (Riley and McLaughlin, 2001). However, there are some negative points about hydropower. It is well documented that dams can restrict the movement of migrating fish. Besides that, sometimes dams break and the consequences can be devastating. Dams can also hold back river silt, which can lead to toxic metals collecting behind the dam, and become a mess for future generations. AEI notes that hydropower is a controversial energy source because of these environmental concerns. Overall, hydroelectric power isn't a panacea and is different than solar or wind renewable energy sources as the latter receive very little criticism. Geothermal power is an energy source with good potential. The use of geothermal energy for electricity has grown to about 7,000 megawatts in 21 countries (Geothermal power, 2010; Riley and McLaughlin, 2001). Geysers are Geothermal's most ostentatious evidence of power as much of the activity is not as visible because it is from heat contained within the earth. Renewable geothermal energy is clean and reliable and has great potential in many parts of the world. Geothermal heat is primarily derived from ground water from the earth's surface meeting molten magma rising upward. The steam, hot water or heat from geothermal activity can be used to spin turbine blades to generate electricity. In other words, heat is transferred in winter from the ground or groundwater to homes. In summer it is the other way around as heat is transferred from homes to the ground. Geothermal energy has slightly reduced America's dependence on foreign oil and despite its good points, can't come close to replacing America's reliance on petroleum power by itself (Riley and McLaughlin, 2001). Biomass is a clean alternative energy source that is interesting because it is able to generate power from something like plants and trees that is in abundance an around us. Plants and trees are natural storehouses of solar energy (Kim and Dale, 2004). Plants and trees are natural storehouses of solar energy. Burning organic matter has a clean combustible gas which generates electricity for homes and biomass has a low cost and accounts for almost 15% of the world's total energy supply. Direct combustion at solid waste facilities like garbage burning steam plants is an example of this type of power. AEI points out that there was a decline in new biomass plants in the United States in the 1990's. They don't make specific statements about the cost of biomass energy. However, cost is a significant limitation to this technology. Although biomass generated 449 BTU of energy at municipal solid waste facilities in the USA in 1997, the growth of new projects slowed dramatically in the 1990's (Kim and Dale, 2004). This is due to costly pollution controls, comparatively inexpensive oil and a tax policy that does not favor capital-intensive investments like biomass-burning facilities. It is clear that cost is a significant constraint on biomass energy. Although, Biomass by itself does not have the ability to eliminate oil dependence, but it can complement other clean renewable forms of energy like wind and solar power so that the sum of these and other renewable sources can have a significant impact on decreasing oil dependence (Riley and McLaughlin, 2001). The Alternative Energy Institute also recommends harnessing Tidal energy as oceans collect solar energy on a grandiose scale (Kim and Dale, 2004). Tidal energy is derived by the difference in water elevation between low and high tides. Engineers can build a dam to block the incoming tide, outgoing tide or both. The water can then be directed through a turbine in the dam to produce electricity by turning a generator. But there are limitations to tidal power. There is a long time between the rising and falling tides in which electricity cannot be generated. The maximum a tidal-based energy facility can generate electricity is 10 hours out of a 24­hour day. Another restriction is that a tidal range of at least 21 feet is needed to build a sufficient head of water for the turbines and only a modest number of places have this large of a range (Riley and McLaughlin, 2001). Next, the overall price of the electricity from tidal power is economically prohibitive due to the cost of construction of a tidal power plant. Operation and maintenance costs are low, but design and construction costs are very expensive. Furthermore, tidal energy facilities do have an environmental impact. Although tidal energy is renewable and avoids air pollution, it alters the natural cycle of tides and may affect shorelines and ecosystems. Pollution may be trapped behind a tidal dam and mixing of water could stimulate the growth of organisms that paralyze shellfish. A number of people feel that little is known about the environmental effects of a tidal energy facility and fear that its impact won't be recognized until after its been built. Therefore, tidal power is an uncertain alternative energy source (Riley and McLaughlin, 2001). Although there are many positive attributes of sustainable energy sources, there are obstacles to being implemented. One of the primary impediments to using renewable energy sources is cost since the cost for renewable energy sources have been more expensive than petroleum or other existing energy supplies. Which is why they haven't been used more extensively before this time. However, the costs for using alternative energy sources are steadily declining as they are more widely utilized and further developed. AEI also notes that the country needs to act promptly to develop sustainable energy sources because it takes a long time to change fuel consumption patterns. In addition to the sense of urgency, government funding is another important piece of information that the AEI perceives is necessary for the development of sustainable energy sources. The Alternative Energy Institute notes that the government provides significant amount in federal subsidies to oil and other fossil fuel industries every year, but has been giving very little funding to sustainable sources of power. They believe that having comparable funding for renewable energy sources would only be leveling the playing field and give these sources a chance to become commercially competitive. They also note that it requires a great deal of money to establish a new energy technology and that almost all energy technologies which have reached maturity have done so with the help of public investment. Although they observe that this isn't currently taking place, they believe that it inevitably will some day as the world runs out of oil. There are a variety of other respected authorities, which bolster AEI's stance on developing alternative energy sources. In addition to the existing renewable energy sources of solar, wind, biomass, geothermal, hydrogen fuel cells and hydroelectric power there are other alternative energy sources that are still in the research and development stage. These potential future sources of energy include earth energy, biodiesel and electric cars. This isn't a comprehensive list of all renewable energy sources because that would include many items that presently appear to only have a very small impact in on decreasing fuel dependence. It is instead a group of alternative energy sources that may be able to account for a significant percentage decrease in human dependence on oil. Conclusion In conclusion, there is significant potential to reduce Human’s oil dependence by developing alternative energy sources. However, renewable energy systems like wind, solar, hydroelectric and geothermal alone will not fully replace petroleum in sustaining a standard of living people have grown accustomed to. It cannot solve the increasing energy demands of a growing world population. But it does offer a hope to facilitate society survive the transition to future sustainable technologies like cold fusion and hydrogen fuel cells which require more time to research, develop and implement. References Elliott, D. (2003). Energy, Society and Environment, Routledge Geothermal Power, (2010). Information Retrieved April 03, 2012 from http://www.yourgreendream.com/articles_geothermal.php Green , D. (2007). Scientific American: Oil and the Future of Energy, Lyons Press. Kim S. and Dale, B.E (2004) Global Potential Bioethanol Production from Wasted Crops and Crop Residues, Biomass and Bioenergy. 26(4), 361–375. Newman, P. (2002) Oil dependence, urban vulnerability, and wealth: A view from Australia, World Watch, 23. Riley D. and McLaughlin, M. (2001) Turning the Corner: Energy Solutions for the 21st Century, Alternative Energy Institute, Tahoe City, CA. Stern, N. (2007). The Economics of Climate Change, Cambridge University Press. Tester, J. W. Drake, E. M, Driscoll M.J., Golay, M. W. and Peters, W. A. (2005). Sustainable Energy: Choosing Among Options. The MIT Press. Toman, M. (2002) International oil security: problems and policies, The Brookings Review 2(1), 220-23. Read More