Fossil Fuel Dependency and Americans | SOC120 - Sociology | University of Phoenix | Lena M. Ward | 10/9/2011 |

America’s primary sources of energy come from fossil fuels such as coal, oil, and natural gas. The cost of using fossil fuels includes labor cost to mine for coal or to drill for oil, labor and material cost to build plants to generate and transport coal and oil to plants; these hidden costs are included in electricity bills or in the purchase price of gasoline. However, some costs are not included in utility or gas bills, and they are not paid for by companies that produce or sell these energy sources (Payne, Dutzik, & Figdor, 2009). This external cost creates additional problems; such as, health issues related to the air pollution caused by the burning of coal and oil, the damage to land from coal mining and to the miners from lung disease, environmental problems like global warming, acid rain, and water pollution including national security cost to protect foreign sources of oil. This pricing system hides the true costs of fossil fuels which results in damage to human health, the environment, and the economy (Payne, Dutzik, & Figdor, 2009). This paper will examine each hidden cost and evaluate their effects to enlighten individuals on the true cost of America’s dependency on fossil fuels. America’s dependency on fossil fuels began innocently enough with the start of the Industrial Revolution. These changes were small at first with the invention of machines that replaced the hard labor of hand tools. Next were new sources of energy to power the new inventions which replaced the muscle of man and horse. Last were the factories which could produce products at a faster rate and required a smaller labor force. The industrial revolution grew slowly as each year brought new inventions and better manufacturing process. As these changes were incorporate and standardized life became much easier, life expectancy increased. People began having more free time to pursue social entertainment. Education became the norm and women were presented with more opportunities than before. As time progressed new innovations in science and technology brought forth even more changes in social welfare, health, and communications. People were no longer tied to one place but could travel to other cities and states and even across oceans. These new inventions required new sources of energy to power them such as those found in fossil fuels. Fossil fuels formed hundreds of millions of years ago before the time of the dinosaurs (Rockwell, 1998). At this time the land was covered with swamps fill with huge trees, ferns, and other leafy plants. All fossil fuels are the result of organic material covered by layers of sediment over the course of millions of years. The three most popular forms of fossil fuels are coal, natural gas and oil (Iowa Public Television, 2004). Coal is a fossil resource that is composed of mostly carbon and coal reserves are located all over the world. In the United States, coal is used to generate more than half of all the electricity produced and is also used as a basic energy source in many industries, and as a heating fuel (Iowa public Television, 2004). Natural gas is the gas component of coal and oil formation. It is used in the industrial and commercial heating and cooking, and increasingly to fuel electricity generation. Natural gas is either found mixed in oil or is released from coal. Wells for natural gas are drilled in underground reservoirs of porous rock. When it is removed from a reservoir, natural gas can be pumped to a processing station for the removal of liquid hydrocarbons, sulfur, carbon dioxide, and other components or stored in large caverns underground until it is needed (Liu, L., Cheng, S. Y., Li, J., & Huang, Y. F., 2007). Oil comes from crude oil, which is a mix of hydrocarbons with some oxygen, nitrogen, and sulfur impurities. Crude oil reserves are found all over the world, but the Middle East alone has about 63 percent of the known reserves. Most of the oil consumed in the United States is used in transportation while the rest goes to industrial, commercial, and residential uses. Crude oil is not only produces a range of fuels, but also ingredients for plastics, inks, tires, pharmaceuticals, and many other products (Liu, L., Cheng, S. Y., Li, J., & Huang, Y. F., 2007). Eighty five percent of the energy produced in America is derived from fossil fuels and since the early 1970’s up to today America is keenly aware that fossil fuels reserves are slowly being depleted; therefore it is imperative that America develop a serious national climate and energy policy. Past and present lawmakers in Washington appear to be busy solving this problem but results show little headway has been made in the control of climate and energy changes. This is because to solve this problem many areas will need to be addressed at the same time, such as, transportation systems, fuels, power production, land use, energy efficiency improvements, and vehicles. These changes are possible but to implement these changes America first needs to stop spending energy dollars on foreign oil (Pinchot & Weaver, n. d.). The diagram shown below outlines the world’s energy supply in 2004. With the world supply of fossil fuels dwindling is it more important than ever to begin moving towards renewable sources because of the time and effort involved in changing over.

Figure 2- (Goldemberg, 2007) Another problem that stems from America’s dependency on fossil fuel is the purchase of oil from dangerous or unstable countries which in turn finance and sustain unfriendly regimes. These regimes that benefit from this economical resource rarely share the revenues with the people in their region resulting in economic hardship and tension (Lefton & Weiss, 2010). This reliance on oil creates a danger of fuel price shocks or shortages if supply is disrupted. The diagram below shows the amount of oil imports in 2008 including the countries from where the source of oil originates. As one can see America’s foreign policies are more about protecting these valuable resources to ensure a steady supply and less about how these countries pose a threat to America.
Figure 1 - (Lefton & Weiss, 2010) It is vital that America find alternative sources of energy to reduce our dependency on foreign oil because to continue import oil from volatile countries poses a serious threat to national security. We only need to look at Iraq; the continued attacks by insurgents on the United States military and civilians (National energy security and reliance on foreign oil, 2009). The major oil companies are the most vocal opponents of increasing America’s energy independence. A majority of the oil purchased by the major oil companies come from countries such as Saudi Arabia, Colombia, Iraq, Nigeria, Mauritania, Congo, Chad, and Algeria; countries who have a history of instability and violence towards America. In 2008 Chevron purchased almost half of their oil from these countries, whereas ExxonMobil purchased 43 percent of their oil from these countries. With profits ranging from 52.7 billion to 23.9 billion it is no wonder that the big oil companies are doing everything in their power to maintain America’s dependency of fossil fuels (Lefton & Weiss, 2010). Replacing America’s dependency on fossil fuels with clean renewable energy sources is necessary to national security because it reduces the financing of volatile governments and regimes that pose a threat to America. Renewable energy sources such as wind, solar, and biomass provide clean, reliable energy, which mixed with other forms of energy will lessen the United States reliance on imported oil and ensure national energy security for the United States (National energy security and reliance on foreign oil, 2009). These forms of renewable energy show great promise, but together they will change what we know about supplying energy for our needs well into the future. As technology continues to improve the cost of renewable energy will drop becoming more competitive with other sources of energy (National energy security and reliance on foreign oil, 2009). America’s fossil fuels dependency contributes to another growing problem; the environmental impact in our air, land and seas. America is an industrialized society that generates an increasing amount of waste. This waste is either released into the atmosphere, dumped into our water supply or buried in the earth. The pollution of the atmosphere is primarily caused by the combustion of fossil fuels in energy conversion devices used in commercial and industrial manufacturing and vehicles (Payne, Dutzik, & Figdor, 2009). Air pollution is a primary concern to many people; the white haze which is seen over many large cities is smog. Simply put smog is made up of gases emitted from the burning of fossil fuels that are trapped in the ozone layer surrounding the Earth. Human exposure to ozone can produce shortness of breath and, over time, permanent lung damage. Research shows that ozone may be harmful at levels even lower than the current federal air standard. Air pollution can also affect the land which grows the world’s food supply. In addition, the farm equipment and pesticides used to produce crops also contributes to air pollution thereby decreasing the yield of the product grown. Fossil fuel usage also produces particulates, including dust, soot, smoke, and other suspended matter, which are respiratory irritants and may contribute to acid rain formation (Gohlke, J. M., Thomas, R., Woodward, A., Campbell-Lendrum, D., Pruss-Ustun, A., Hales, S., & Portier, C. J., 2011). Over the last 150 years, burning fossil fuels has resulted in more than a 25 percent increase in the amount of carbon dioxide in our atmosphere. Carbon monoxide is a gas formed as a by-product during the incomplete combustion of all fossil fuels. Cars and trucks are the primary source of carbon monoxide emissions (Rockwell, 1998). Exposure to carbon monoxide can cause headaches and place additional stress on people with heart disease. Scientists predict that if carbon dioxide levels continue to increase, the planet will become warmer in the next century. Temperature increases can result in a variety of impacts. In coastal areas, sea-level rise due to the warming of the oceans and the melting of glaciers may lead to the inundation of wetlands, river deltas, and even populated areas. Altered weather patterns may result in more extreme weather events (Rockwell, 1998). America is at a crossroad for it continued energy needs; the supply of fossil fuels available is dwindling and with no solid plans of renewable sources there will be nothing to take its place. Rising urbanization is expected to continue along with the need for steady energy sources. These urban areas also are a major contributor to the depletion of the environment because of the waste produced. The continuation of our current energy-related habits is ignoring the signs and the damaged caused by fossil fuels (Pataki, D. E., Alig, R. J., Fung, A. S., Golubiewski, N. E., Kennedy, C. A., McPherson, E. G., Nowak, D. J., Pouyat, R. V. & Romero Lankao, P., 2006). The government must actively seek permanent alternative fuels and develop new techniques to combat the implications on the environmental, economic, and political components of our society. In the meantime, however, it is important to recognize that the shift to non-fossil fuels will likely be a slow process because fossil-fuels cost less than current renewable sources (Pataki, D. E., Alig, R. J., Fung, A. S., Golubiewski, N. E., Kennedy, C. A., McPherson, E. G., Nowak, D. J., Pouyat, R. V. & Romero Lankao, P., 2006). To enable a smoother transition to renewable energy in the future, America should start to make a conscious effort to be more energy-efficient.

References
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