Substitution of Coal for Cleaner Solutions

Spencer Foulk

Department of English, Old Dominion University

ENGL 231C: Introduction to Technical Writing

Jadwiga K. Staniszewska- De Mott

April 5, 2022

Abstract

Outrageous sources of pollution are globally affecting the lifestyle and health of humanity. These sources of pollution use non-renewable resources which provide an overall gain to the prospect of civilization, but their continuous use create degradational consequences overtime. Underdeveloped nations are a main source since they do not have access to clean forms of energy like solar, wind, thermal, biomass, and hydro energy. Jobs requiring the extraction of non-renewable sources like coal are the only source of work, in certain areas, which forces local citizens into countless hours of work. The process of extraction can be dangerous and is not suitable for the well-being of workers. This has been an issue ever since the industrial revolution. As of the year 2022, there has been a massive decrease regarding the use of non-renewables. We need to strive towards better solutions with the intent of a cleaner and safer working environment. This will not only benefit humanity, but it will also decrease the amount of air pollution in the atmosphere including carbon dioxide, greenhouse gases, and global warming. A lot of people overlook this issue because of what it provides overall, but it is no longer trivial.

Keywords:       Pollution, majority, renewable, resources, countries

Substitution of Coal for Cleaner Solutions

“New analysis of the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Toxics Release Inventory finds that oil refineries and petrochemical facilities are among the worst polluting sectors of the economy, and that the toxic burden of those sectors falls disproportionately on Black, Brown, Indigenous, and poor communities.” (Donaghy, 2021) With an ongoing increase in the need for power, companies have been productive as ever to create long term sources of energy. While this has been beneficial for the growth of global economy’s, scientific research says otherwise. Pollution into the earth’s atmosphere has occurred for decades due to the gains in power sustainability. If the pollution continues to rise without a necessary change, then,” the atmosphere could warm by as much as 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit above preindustrial levels by the year 2040, according to the latest report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change” (Stark, 2019) This is also damaging developing countries without technological advancements of those that are nationally recognized. News channels, scientist, and journalist have all touched on issues dealing with pollution along with World Health Organization stating that,” about 212 million people or 71% of the population in the Sub-Saharan African countries (apart from Mauritius and Seychelles) are affected by household air pollution from indoor smoke, pollution due to small particles, carbon monoxide and nitrogen oxides,” (Chang, 2021).  This effect is unacceptable and can lead towards respiratory issues and health failure. Of the non-renewable resources, coal remains the dominant resource of energy in today’s ecosystem. It has contributed a detrimental effect on the environment and cannot continue to operate. “Since our research sample is developing country rather than a developed country, it is still possible to use coal as an energy source,” (Khan, 2021) Most of the research is based on developing countries instead of developed countries which means that clean energy sources can began production. The environment, developing countries, and ordinary individuals disadvantaged by non-renewable resource pollution due to excessive industrialization and a lack of substitution.

Background

Non-Renewable resources are available in an indolently decreasing supply due to their finitely given nature, along with their counterpart known as renewable resources which replenish themselves indefinitely.” While renewable energy resources have the advantage of unlimited supply over the long haul, they are limited in their availability at any given moment.” (Stark, 2020) This is the primary reason for the popularity of coal during the industrial period. Due to its popularity, I will be focusing on coal as the primary non-renewable resource. “More electricity is produced from coal than from any other energy source, but burning coal comes with significant costs to humanity and the climate.” (Shwartz, 2019) Coal has been an issue since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. At the beginning of the industrial revolution, it was a useful beneficiary for power thus equating its growth over the course of centuries to come. Since it was new at the time, there was not a lot of information regarding its harmful effects on civilization which led to a popularization of the resource.

Current situation

Coal by itself is not affecting the world. The burning of coal for its use in a steam powered engine is the main cause of global wide pollution. “Each year, noxious fumes released from coal-fired power plants cause tens of thousands of premature deaths worldwide. Coal plants also generate about 30 percent of all global greenhouse gas emissions.” (Shwartz, 2019) Coal contributes thirty percent of the total amounting greenhouse gases in the world. It still used today in developing nations like Africa, South America, and Asia. About 153,229 people die every year due to indoor air pollution, with approximately 45% of them being children, including the impact due to coal use in several Sub-Saharan African countries on the environment.” (Chang, 2021) These are only the death rates for locally known countries in Sub-Saharan Africa which does not account for many spots in Asia, Europe, and other continentally developing sub-countries. Our solution lies in preventing the use of coal and its production for better alternatives. Looking over at the graph, in figure number three, we find a list of the top ten contributors to coal production in the year of 2022, concerning the United States. Reflecting on the graph we find that there is a massive jump from West Virginia to Wyoming. This shows that there is a major necessity for coal in Wyoming. It also shows that United States, as far as it has come, is still highly reliant on coal; even though, “Coal production in West Virginia, the state with the second-most coal output, fell by an even larger share than Wyoming in 2020, declining 28% from 2019” (EIA.gov, 2021)

Why should we stop?

“Although coal and oil have been vital to the development of modern civilization, it is now recognized that atmospheric CO2 levels must be reduced to avoid the serious effects of climate change, including natural disasters.” (Sorimachi, 2022) Companies will argue a slew of things to continue the operation of their coal-based industries: It is not possible given the needs for power: there is not a source of power strong enough to replace coal: we can utilize high quality filters instead of shutting down. These are only a few of the excuses that companies use to continue the use of their industrial plants. These excuses, along with coal mines which are newly discovered weekly, are why industries continue to thrive. As an example, we can look at the decline in copper as a representation of the amount of coal that is available. Copper is proportionally more finite than coal. Figure number 4 on the right represents a contrast between the world copper reserves and their prices. Looking at the chart we find that there is a spike in purchase rates during the years between 1930 to 1970. We find a decrease in the copper reserves followed by a detrimental decrease in the pricing from 1980 to the year 2000 when both are steadily rising. The prices fell because of a scarcity in copper. This would not be an exceptionally worthwhile investment for business’s if this curve were to continue because it would call for a substitution of the resource when they depleted. “When the price increased in the 2000s, these materials were re-classified as “reserves” and exploration increased.” (Dobra, 2014) Looking at graph number five, we find that copper reserve life from 1930 to 2010 went down from an estimated 50 years to forty with a possible continued growth. Unless we discover other areas of reserved copper underground, this graph will hold true regarding coppers reserve expectancy. Who is to say that the expectancy will not increase beyond the 40-year mark in a positive direction? Coal in this situation would be even worse since there is a greater reserve than copper. While finite resources decrease overtime, it is minute to the point that topics regarding industry fuel depletion are irrelevant which goes to show that industries will continue to use coal. Therefore, we need to convince and persuade the global economy towards the use of clean energy.

Process

There are plenty of tactics that we can utilize to slow the use of coal worldwide. One way involves the use of abatement pollution.

Abatement pollution deals with reducing pollution damage on the environment. There are numerous devices and techniques that accomplish this including:

• Electric vehicles – Electric vehicles are a form of transportation that operate without the use of a gas-powered engine. They instead rely on batteries as a fuel source for travel. A substitute towards electric vehicles will drastically reduce air pollution.
• Team Seas – Team seas is a fundraiser created for the benefit of the ocean which deals with the removal of pollution from the ocean. Mr. Beast and Mark Rober started the fundraiser which has successfully removed thirty-million pounds of trash after raising thirty-million dollars in fundraising.
• Renewable resources – renewable resources are infinite and will never run out. Examples of renewable resources include solar, hydroelectric, biomass, geothermal, and wind energy. The substitution to these resources has decreased the use of non-renewable resources which has reduced the amount of air pollution globally.
• UPLA filters – Nuclear powerplants use them to control the release of micro particles into the atmosphere. There are secondary filters by the name of HEPA (High Efficiency Particulate Ai) filters that are slightly worse than the UPLA filters.

A secondary method includes the use of non-renewable energy sources like solar panels for example. They are a perfect alternative since,” The cost of new solar PV and onshore wind energy installations has fallen by 3-10% annually since 2010 to reach parity with fossil fuel facilities. And, in doing so, has removed a hurdle for investment in developing nations as well as developed countries.” (Rodriguez, 2020) The cost has dropped, and they are easy to build. On top of this, the sun,” reaches the Earth’s surface with about 86 PW (0.086 EJ) per second, which is about 4500 times more than humanity’s demand (about 600 EJ/year).” (Agnieszka, 2021) Harnessing this power would provide an enormous uplift in substitution and future pollution abatement.

There is also hydroelectric which utilizes flowing bodies of water. The water exits through the dam in a downwards position which rotates turbines thus creating power. This also helps to backup water which can serve as a gateway to other bodies of water in different directions. A third substitution method lies in the use of wind powered turbines that can be setup anywhere with a considerable amount of wind like mountains, oceans, and even mountain gaps.

These three sources produce the energy that we need, but how are they converted and processed for our daily use? A power inverter is what makes this possible. They create alternating current which should not be confused with direct current.

For example, Alternating Current is a form of electric current that reverses the direction of its energy over a certain period. Since alternating current flows in two directions, it can travel over greater distances. This makes it a useful beneficiary for powering large machines and a greater number of homes.

Compared to alternating current, direct current can only flow in one direction. Alternating current can flow multidirectional between its source compared to direct current that can only flow forward from its source. All small appliances, used in day-to-day situations, require the use of direct current. Most of the power plants, and excess energy sources around the world, create electricity in the form of alternating current, but there are a couple of energy sources that do the opposite. Wind and Solar power produce dc current which must convert into ac before it is useable.

Therefore, alternating current and direct current both have their fundamental uses. Alternating current is better over longer distances and larger machinery, while direct current is better for home appliances with noticeably greater efficiency.

All the solutions mentioned represent valuable efforts against the harmful effects of coal. These contributions along with a decreasing use of coal, contribute to a central goal of cleansing the earths atmosphere.

Conclusion

Our need for power is a never-ending growth that cannot recede from its current state. While non-renewable resources serve as an abundant source of fuel, they are prone for destruction and damage due to their release in chemically health concerning emissions. They cannot continue given the mass number of alternatives that exist in the world today. No more deaths, and health related issues, should occur from coal given our current means of technological advancements. Industrial growth revolutionized the world as we know it today, but the time has come for a substitution regarding the convenience of ordinary people, developing countries, and the atmospheric environment.

Word Count: 2,171

Peer Reviewed by: Cindy Shangani

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