Coal is made from dead plants. When coal was formed, plants died and began to rot. Water often flowed over and covered them with sand and mud. Eventually the sand and mud turned to rock and squashed the dead plants until it was compressed into coal seams. There were many coalmines in England during the first part of the 20th century because Britain is very rich in coal.
Oil, unlike coal, is not formed from dead plants, but from dead sea creatures. When animals died, they sank to the seabed and were covered by sand and mud. As time passed, the remains of the creatures turned into oil and the sand and mud turned into rock, containing the oil within the rock. Oil has to be reached by drilling a well using a drilling rig. Because so much oil is used, scientists believe that within 50 years, the world’s oil supply will have disappeared completely. The USA, which was once rich in oil, now has to buy oil from other countries, such as Saudi Arabia in the Middle East. Most of Britain’s oilrigs are in the North Sea. Fossil fuels cause environmental problems with the Carbon Dioxide they release when burned. Also, when fossil fuels are burned, they release the sun’s energy from millions of years ago
Alternatives for using fossil fuels are solar energy, wind energy, tidal energy, wave energy, geothermal energy, nuclear energy, biomass energy and hydroelectric energy.
Hydroelectric energy is a renewable energy source and plants can be built for small communities with only a small output. Unfortunately, very few areas of the world are suitable for this type of power plant, and suitable areas are most often already developed. It also causes some environmental problems by flooding some species natural habitats.
Solar energy can be collected, stored and redistributed. It’s renewable and sustains all life on the planet. To be efficient at energy however, it needs continuous sunshine.
Nuclear energy is renewable in a sorts, with reprocessing plants dealing with radioactive waste. Small amounts of nuclear fuel produces large amounts of energy. However, nuclear radioation is dangerous and high safety standards are needed. The waste materials from the power plants stay radioactive for thousands of years. A nuclear reactor speeds up natural nuclear reactions in radioactive materials. The heat generated by these reactions is used to produce electricity.
All forms of energy production has its advantages and disadvantages. Fossil fuels and nuclear energy have the worst side effects and so, alternatives must be found. Other types of alternative energy sources have little or no effect on the environment. They may cost a lot, take up land and ‘spoil’ the scenery, but this is a small price to pay in order for our planet and way of life to survive.
