As we all know, more than 80% of the world’s energy supply is derived from fossil fuels like oil, gas, and coal, resources that have powered human progress since the Industrial Revolution. These resources have powered everything from industries such as manufacturing, transportation and healthcare to modern conveniences like our cell phones and flat-screen televisions.
Why then are these valuable resources taking so much heat if we use them to run and even improve our everyday lives? We use fossil fuels to run our vehicles, to heat up our homes, and to light up our world. We all agree those are good things, but some folks claim using fossil fuels in this way, no matter how much it improves our lives, is ultimately damaging the Earth. However, there may be more good in it than just having enough energy to endlessly scroll Instagram, but even so-called climate change and warmer temperatures can spell benefits in some instances.
So, I ask the question: Could it even be possible that climate change – often so bemoaned by climate activists who insist hotter temperatures will lead to the end of humans’ time here on Earth – actually be beneficial?
Let’s look at some unexpected benefits of climate change.
A Danish climate expert concluded that climate change in poorer countries between the years 2001 and 2019 reduced cold-related neonatal deaths by 30 percent. In a study by Nature magazine, the study’s purpose was to determine how much climate change has contributed to the burden of neonatal mortality. Exposure to extreme temperatures can cause serious damage to the health of newborn infants. The study found that 4.3 percent of neonatal deaths in the years between 2001 and 2019 were associated with “non-optimal temperature”. On average, 1.5 percent were heat-related deaths while cold-related deaths were 2.9 percent, nearly double.
People talk about the negative effect of fossil fuels and how it has impacted our environment and the animal life, but before fossil fuels became prevalent people were stripping whale blubber for oil. Whaling business factories became very successful in the 18th and 19th centuries. Whaling was at its worst in the years 1920 and 1986, when more than a million whales were killed commercially for their blubber. By using fossil fuels for oil, we help to preserve the whale population, something environmentalists would applaud.
Scientists have determined the slaughtering of whales caused a long-term decline in primary production, which caused several negative effects including increased carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and led to disrupted food webs, disrupted ocean balance, and disrupted nutrient cycles. Whaling has slowed down significantly because of the use of fossil fuels. Moreover, the reduction of whaling saves the whales, the environment, and helps the marine life significantly. Furthermore, the 1.5 million whales on Earth can each store an average of 33 tons of carbon in their bodies, keeping it out of the environment and potentially causing damage.
It’s inevitable that fossil fuels and other sources of energy are going to have environmental impacts, but getting rid of over 80 percent of the world’s energy would be extremely damaging. It would have detrimental impacts on transportation, industries, and everyday modern life.
Manufacturing and transportation of products could be more expensive because of the costs to build solar panels and electric vehicles. What’s more, a lot of land is required to make room for solar panels.
A better path forward and boon to the environment might be using a balance of different energy suppliers. It’s a fact that fossil fuels aren’t going away, but they do emit billions of metric tons of carbon gases into the atmosphere every year, so, theoretically, if the whale population increases and there is a reduction in offshore drilling, the continued use of fossil fuels could happen.
In the ongoing debate over fossil fuels, it’s easy to overlook their benefits because of some environmental challenges they’ve created. But it’s important to consider the whole picture as best we can, including the fact that they make our modern world possible and have other unexpected benefits. From contributing to better outcomes for some neonatal babies and contributing to saving the lives of carbon-storing whales and limiting the negative effects of whaling on marine life, it might make sense to consider the not-so-obvious good fossil fuels do for our environment when discussing potentially moving away from them as an energy source.
Oil & Gas Industry Blog: Vive La Frack! 