Petroleum and the environment.
REFLECTION
Hydrocarbons are chemical compounds offering many advantages. They can be used as fuels (for the generation of heat or electricity), lubricants and solvents.
Consumers are almost universally aware of the postulated scientific linkage between Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions and Global Warming (Climate Change). CO2 is the GHG emitted to the atmosphere in the largest quantities by human activity, which in turn is largely the result of the use of Fossil Energy. Hence, in the 1990s the Kyoto Protocol was created under the auspices of the United Nations, to bind nations that were the largest emitters of CO2 to controlling and reducing their emission.
Environmental risks such as ozone depletion, air pollution and global warming are the result of the world’s growing consumption of fossil fuels. That’s the reason why scientific research today focuses on the advantages of, but also on alternatives to fossil fuels.
When it comes to efficient energy production, fossil fuels are considered a reliable energy source. Still, the burning of fossil fuels causes a number of environmental problems. Renewable energies are therefore considered a realistic alternative.
It is important to note that the world's current proven reserves of crude oil are running at about a 40 year supply, with the majority of reserves found in the Middle East. This creates issues to do with the sustainability of energy supply. No doubt, more oil will be found as new technologies and new oil fields come into play, but it is important to keep in mind that oil is a depleting resource, and as a new source of liquid fuels, CRH is very beneficial to the security of global liquid fuel supply, particularly given that CRH energy is renewable, unlike crude oil. Furthermore, by creating new and diverse sources of supply from CRH production locations all over the world, there will be no particular concentration of CRH supply, representing geographic diversification. These are some of the ways in which CRH energy contributes to energy security and sustainability.
Together, coal, oil, and gas contribute to the overall societal cost of anthropogenic climate change. The ultimate burden of climate change on the world economy has been variously estimated; in the worst-case scenario (a global average temperature increase of five or more degrees Celsius), the economy simply would not survive.
As fossil fuels become more scarce and expensive, international conflict over remaining supplies, especially of oil and gas, is likely to become more heated—a trend already clear in the South China Sea and Central Asia.
The replacement of fossil fuels with alternative sources of energy is clearly necessary, but presents the world with an unprecedented technical challenge.