Natural gas is also being used up quickly. At today's rates of consumption, natural gas may last a little longer than petroleum. When people have removed all the oil and natural gas from the earth, they will have used up the "easy energy" supplied by nature. After that, they will have to use such solid fuels as coal and oil shale, which are not as easy to be removed from the earth. Coal, is the most plentiful fossil fuel and it is expected to last more than 200 years.
As fuels become scarce, their price goes up. Many people then call for price controls on these sources of energy. But large numbers of economists believe that rising energy prices encourage energy producers to broaden their exploration and dig deeper for deposits. Scientists might investigate new sources of energy. These economists also believe that higher fuel prices cause people to use energy more carefully and efficiently. However, we must eventually find new sources of energy.
The production, transportation, and use of fossil fuels all affect the environment. Oil spills are a big problem associated with the environment. Oil spills pollute the ocean, contaminate beaches, and kill wildlife. Burying oil pipelines requires changes in the environment, such as the clearing of trees along the route. Underground coal mines can cave in and can release dangerous gases. Strip mining has caused land erosions. The burning of coal and oil pollutes the air with nitrogen oxides and sulfur dioxide. Nitrogen oxide and sulfur dioxide can react with moisture in the air and fall to earth as acid rain, which pollutes our lakes and rivers. Automobile fuels rank as a leading source of air pollution. .
Even the cleanest fossil fuel produces carbon dioxide when it burns. Carbon dioxide is a harmless gas. But when it builds up this gas in the atmosphere may something called the greenhouse effect. Carbon dioxide, like glass in a greenhouse, allows sunlight to warm the earth but prevents heat from escaping back into space.
