By Sue Lynn Carty
Article Link: http://greenliving.lovetoknow.com/Non_Renewable_Resources
The picture to the left shows the energry consumption from 2006. The ones that are most consumed are nonrenewable resources.Summary: Nonrenewable resources are "energy sources that we use and consume faster then nature produces them." It is expected that the natural gas supply will run out within the next 35 years. Because of our ability to easily obtain these sources and get them in mass quantities, we use so much so fast. Eventually, there will be no nonrenewable resources left for us to use. Oil and coal are two major resources used, and are almost none that could replace them easily. Oil and coal are the most common ones, but aluminum, copper, silver, gold, and diamonds are also going to run out in the close future. After being brought to our attention, people started changing their ways to help conserve energy, but as of now these nonrenewable resources are a necessity and there has yet to be another option created for when we run out.
Opinion/ Reflection: I think we need to come up with a backup plan for when we run out because if these are as important as everyone is saying we wont be able to live the same way without them. Hopefully, by the time we run out there will be a better way to use our resources and not waste anything. The pollution it can cause is insane as well. Fossil fuels can release carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, hydrocarbons and sulfur oxides into the air and some can cause smog. Smog can cause lung irritation, irritation to the eyes, nose and throat, worsen existing respiratory and heart conditions, shortness of breath, and permanent lung damage over time. The burning of fossil fuels can be very dangerous. I believe there needs to be a better way to get energy so we don't put lives and major cities/states at risk. It's scary to think something that is so necessary to the way we live could possibly run out in your lifetime, but something definitely needs to happen before so it doesn't result in a tragedy.
Questions:
1) If we run out of these resources how big of an impact will it have on us?
2) Is there anyway to create, duplicate, or preserve oil, coal or other major resources?
3) Environmentalists are always talking about how driving less, turning off the lights, solar pannels, and more are helping the use of the nonrenewable resources go down. Does this actually have an effect on how quickly the nonrenewable resources will run out?
I agree that we need to come up with an alternative right away. There are solar panels, wind turbines, and hydroelectricity. However, they do not produce as much energy as fossil fuels do. There are some ways that take a while but do produce energy. Yet we are human and do not have the patience to wait for it. On this gieco commercial, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VU6hmgTY76M, the guinea pigs power his laptop. Although it is not a lot of energy, it still is an alternate power source than fossil fuels.
ReplyDelete3.) I believe that if we stopped using fossil fuels it would slow the rate that they will run out. However, I believe it would still run out. We will always have the people that refuse to change their ways and would use them.
i agree with Caitlin, we are very dependent on non renewable resources that will soon be running out. It is crucial that we come up with a plan soon before they run out. We should begin to search for a resource that not only is there an abundant amount, but its not as harmful to the environment we live in as the present non renewable resources.Like Caitlin said before, its apparent that the resources will run out in most of our life times. We over use these resources, and waste them. Solar power energy is something i believe we can fall back on which is a good resource, and most importantly a clean one. Many people in my neighborhood have solar panels on their roof tops and my family is also thinking about getting some as well.
ReplyDeleteQuestion 1) i think it will have a pretty big impact but we can always use the sun as a resource through solar energy, and we can drive battery powered cars when oil runs out. Don't get me wrong it will be a huge impact on society but we do have some things to fall back on
I agree with Caitlin that we are very dependent on non renewable resources. In response to Caitlin's second question, I'm not 100% sure if there are alternatives at this very moment for oil and other major resources, but I'm sure that if our country digs deep enough we can find alternatives. In my opinion, I feel as though our country doesn't really see what an impact these resources will have on us if don't stop using them as much as we don't have to. We definitely should find a way to use alternatives like Caitlin had stated and also only use them when REALLY needed.
ReplyDeleteQuestions :
1) How long has this been an issue and as a country have we even TRIED to come up with alternatives or are we ignoring the problem?
2)Do you think using LESS of the non renewable resources will help our problem or would it make it worse and cause issues within the citizens because some people will do what they want?
3)How long do you think we have until we do run out of non renewable resources and do you think that we're going to act differently upon that happening or are we not going to care?
I think that everybody knows that the overuse of fossil fuels is a big problem, but nobody is doing anything about it. And the best, simplest way to illustrate this is to look at yourself. Would you buy and drive an electric car, even though they're more expensive than regular cars? Would you take the time and money to install solar panels into your house? For most Americans, the answers to these questions are no. People are aware that this is a big problem, but they're not doing anything about it.
ReplyDeleteAnd why aren't they? I think a lot of people (I've thought about this too) think that if they start conserving energy and finding alternative fuels, it's not going to affect the environment significantly. This also ties in to my answer to Cait's third question: I think that conserving energy really will have an impact, what people fail to release is that what they're doing builds up over a lifetime. Also, you can encourage people you know to "go green" and further help the environment.