Solar is finally supplanting fossil fuels

Humanity no longer has many responsible options for the generation of power. Only fifty years of fossil fuels remain and without a practical energy policy, the world is doomed to progressively damaging climate-related weather events. Just this weekend, Hawaii experienced their first hurricane in more than a quarter century. Japan, a nation in the northern hemisphere, recorded record high temperatures and multiple deaths. But that’s just two of the more publicized examples. The time has come for renewable energy and the consequences for continuing to ignore the scientific evidence could be much worse than anything we've seen so far. There is no longer any sensible motivation to continue to drill in environmentally sensitive areas. Solar panels are now cheaper than ever and new solar technologies guarantee cheaper and more efficient power for the future. Fossil fuels have been a major part of man’s “progress” during the past century. Environmental damage created by these fuels make them a very poor investment for humanity. Fortunately, the world seems to be waking up to the viability of solar energy.

How do we define fossil fuels?

Fuels that have been created from the fossilized remains of prehistoric plants and animals are called fossil fuels. Burning these fuels is the root cause of the pollution and environmental damage that is one of the prime motivators of solar energy.

Coal

Coal is a hard, black colored rock-like material made up of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen and a varying amount of sulfur. Coal contributes to around 35% of the total energy generated in the world. However, coal mining is very dangerous to coal mine laborers and to the public in general. The myth of “clean coal” is being pushed by President Donald Trump in spite of overwhelming scientific evidence that no such thing exists. The environmental record of coal mining is truly disgraceful.

Oil

Oil was formed from the remains of sea animals that perished millions of years ago. Oil is formed by hydrogen and carbon atoms. Oil supplies around 23% of the total energy produced in the world. Oil contributes mightily to pollution worldwide and is principally responsible for the horrible air quality seen in the urban areas of India and China.

Natural gas

Natural gas was made from the remains of sea animals that died many years ago; the gas formed was trapped in the rocks undersea. Natural gas supplies about 21% of the total energy produced in the world. From these statistics, it is clear that most of the present day energy demand is met by consuming fossil fuels. In fact, nearly 86% of the global demand is met by fossil fuels; another eight percent is met by nuclear energy and the remaining six percent is met by renewable sources of energy.

Disadvantages of fossil fuels

There are many obvious disadvantages associated with the usage of fossil fuels. A brief summary: When fossil fuels are burned in excess amounts they cause the discharge of greenhouse gas (CO2). Greenhouse gases make the earth absorb more heat and therefore increase the earth's temperature. This effect is called the greenhouse effect. With ocean drilling for oil, there are chances of oil spills which could influence the aquatic life in the ocean. There have been numerous occasions of spills in the recent history and oil companies are remarkably lax in dealing with environmental concerns. Fossil fuels also give birth to pollution which not only affects humans but the aquatic world as well.

There has never been a better time to install a solar energy system!

Please visit our solar blog to find out more about the benefits of going solar.

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