essay
laurave05
22449237_250206_jimenez_ed.pdf
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Laura Jimenez 22449237 250206
9840 Stover way
Wellington Fl, 33414
Dear student,
Our evaluation of your assignment revealed that you have plagiarized a significant portion of your work
on this assignment. The content you included in your exams was located online here:
https://www.ucsusa.org/clean-energy/coal-and-other-fossil-fuels/hidden-cost-of-
fossils#.WuIzg4jwabj
Plagiarism, whether intentional or accidental, is considered a violation of Penn Foster’s Code of Conduct
as defined in your student handbook. You have therefore earned a 1% or F for this assignment and
must now submit a retake of the exam. Your retake should be a wholly original work written by you
that employs correct Modern Language Association (MLA) citation and documentation. This violation
will also be reported to the Academic Review Committee.
Please note that if you do not show significant improvement in this area, you will earn a 1% for your
retake as well. Part 5: Writing With Sources of your textbook covers plagiarism and citation and
documentation. You may also find help online at Penn Foster’s online writing center, The Writer’s Block
here: http://pflibrary.pennfoster.edu/writersblock/citationanddocumentation.
Please refer to the Penn Foster English Plagiarism Policy in the Course Resources section of your English
course. If you have questions, contact an English instructor at 1-888-427-1000 or
Sincerely,
English Instructor
Penn Foster College
Alternative energy
In a world that is dependent on the easiest, cheapest conveniences of energy, most
Americans seem to be blind even to see the solutions presented to us. One of the biggest
problems the world has faced in the recent times is the dilemma of alternative sources of energy.
This topic has sparked a heated debate among members of the general public with people having
varied opinions regarding the use of alternative energy. A lot of disagreements have ensued as to
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Laura Jimenez 22449237 250206
9840 Stover way
Wellington Fl, 33414
what sources are the best. The merits and demerits considered. But all of the energy sources have
one thing in common. Both have major advantages juxtaposed against their disadvantages which
put them over other alternatives. In the midst of all the arguments and disagreements are two
energy sources that are sustainable and that can be thought of as alternative energy to fossils
fuels-solar and wind power. This paper discusses the demerits of fossils fuels juxtaposed against
the merits of renewable sources of energy while weighing the balance for the best option. This
paper is based on the premise that renewable sources of energy (Solar and wind power) carry far
less negative impacts at competitively affordable prices and therefore should be considered as
the best alternatives to fossil fuel.
It is evident that burning of fossil fuel has been one of the major causes of some of the
greatest problems that the earth is facing today. Of the many environmental and public health
risks associated with burning fossil fuel, the most critical with regard to its potential
irreversibility and universal consequences is global warming. We have all purchased gasoline or
paid a utility bill; the money paid directly out of our pockets for energy from oil, coal and natural
gas represent the direct cost of fossil fuel. But these expenses may not reflect the aggregate cost
of fossil fuel to the society as a whole or each one of us individually. The hidden costs of fossil
fuels known as externalities are not represented in their market price regardless of the
serious impacts to our environment and health. Sometimes externalities are easy to see for
example land degradation, pollution and sometimes not so obvious like the cost of cancer or
asthma or even the impacts due to the rise of the sea level.
Commented [ED1]: What you’re doing here is called patchwriting, and it is a serious form of plagiarism. You have used words and phrases from your source, rearranging sentences and substituting words and phrases here and there. You have not cited the source for these ideas with correct and comprehensive in-text citation, but even if you had done so, this would be plagiarized. When you paraphrase from a source, you must do so entirely in your own words and sentences. You may not use a source’s pattern of development, but rather must develop your own, unique argument. I have marked the paragraph below to show you what this looks like in practice, so you can see what I mean. Note that in many places you have used all of the source’s words or all but one or two.
Commented [ED2]: Of the many environmental and public health risks associated with burning fossil fuels, the most serious in terms of its universal and potentially irreversible consequences is global warming. In 2014, approximately 78 percent of US global warming emissions were energy-related emissions of carbon dioxide. Of this, approximately 42 percent was from oil and other liquids, 32 percent from coal, and 27 percent from natural gas https://www.ucsusa.org/clean-energy/coal-and-other-fossil- fuels/hidden-cost-of-fossils#.WuIvyYjwabh
Commented [ED3]: We’ve all paid a utility bill or purchased gasoline. Those represent the direct costs of fossil fuels; money paid out of pocket for energy from coal, natural gas, and oil. But those expenses don’t reflect the total cost of fossil fuels to each of us individually or to society as a whole. Known as externalities, the hidden costs of fossil fuels aren’t represented in their market price, despite serious impacts to our health and environment.
Commented [ED4]: Externalities are sometimes easy to see, such as pollution and land degradation, and sometimes less obvious, such as the costs of asthma and cancer, or the impacts of sea level rise.
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Laura Jimenez 22449237 250206
9840 Stover way
Wellington Fl, 33414
At every stage of the fossil fuel supply chain, a cost is accrued. Extraction activities can
generate water and air pollution and harm the environment as well as people's health. Fuel
transportation from the wells or mines can cause air pollution and lead to serious spills and
accidents. Upon burning, the fuels emit toxins and emissions that lead to an unsustainable
increase in the earth's temperature levels. The waste products are not left out either; they too are
hazardous to the environment and public health. Understanding these consequences is important
in the evaluation of the impacts of fossil fuels and its cost to the society.
Extraction
Majorly two main methods are used to extract fossil fuels from the ground: Drilling and
Mining. Mining is preferred in the extraction of solid fossils for example coal, by scraping,
digging or otherwise exposing buried substance. Drilling is used in extracting liquid or gaseous
fossils like oil and natural gas. Both of these carry serious environmental and health impact. The
most serious cost of mining is the safety and health threat it poses to the miners. According to
mines safety and health administration, every year, many coal miners are injured, and some even
lose their lives on the job. In the year 2010, 29 lives were lost in an explosion at the upper Big
Branch coal mine in West Virginia (MHSA, 2011). Apart from the site dangers associated with
mining, coal mining has been cited to be one of the causes of some chronic diseases. Among
these illnesses is black lung disease which between the years 1990 and 2000 has been cited as the
primary possible cause of death to about 10,000 former miners (Epstein et al., 2011).Another
significant cost of mining is adverse impacts on the environment. Mines gradually subside and
can even collapse affecting subsurface as well as surface flows. Mine fires are a common
Commented [ED5]: I will not continue to mark each passage. This is patchwritten from: https://www.ucsusa.org/clean-energy/coal-and-other-fossil- fuels/hidden-cost-of-fossils#.WuIzg4jwabj
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Laura Jimenez 22449237 250206
9840 Stover way
Wellington Fl, 33414
occurrence which is also another threat to human life. Acid mine drainage in underground mines
pose long-term effects on the environment. The US environmental protection agency EPA once
said that if mines are not managed properly, rainwater can flow through them becoming acidic
dissolve heavy metals like mercury and lead. The resulting drainage flow is detrimental to plant,
animal and human life (EPA, 2015).
Oil and gas drilling
The health and environment cost of offshore and onshore oil and gas drilling are unseen
yet in most cases, yet they are very significant. The impacts of unconventional methods of
extraction for example use of hydraulic fracturing have attracted much attention, but all of the
methods used to extract gas and oil carry several hidden costs. During the extraction of oil and
gas, the underground water trapped in the geological formation is exposed and brought to the
surface. This water contains dissolved heavy metals, radioactive material and hydrocarbons on
concentrations that make it unsustainable for pan, animal and human use and it is difficult to
dispose of safely (EPA, 2015).
Drilling wells disturb a large amount of land, processing facilities, human settlements,
wildlife, pipelines and access roads. Habitat fragmentation and noise are also common which
then harm wildlife and natural habitats. One study found that the Powder River basin sage grouse
had declined by 82 percent between the years 2001 and 2005 and this had been linked directly to
the coal bed methane production of the area (Taylor et al., 2012)
Global warming emissions
Commented [ED6]: I will not continue to mark each passage. This is patchwritten from: https://www.ucsusa.org/clean-energy/coal-and-other-fossil- fuels/hidden-cost-of-fossils#.WuIzg4jwabj
Commented [ED7]: I will not continue to mark each passage. This is patchwritten from: https://www.ucsusa.org/clean-energy/coal-and-other-fossil- fuels/hidden-cost-of-fossils#.WuIzg4jwabj
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Laura Jimenez 22449237 250206
9840 Stover way
Wellington Fl, 33414
The emissions from natural gas do not only occur when they are burnt as fuel at home or
in industries. The full impact of global warming also includes methane emissions from pipeline
transportation and drilling wells. Methane which is the major component of natural gas had been
cited as being much more potent greenhouse gas compared to carbon IV oxide. It is 34 times
more probable and effective in trapping in a time scale of 100 years and about 86 times more
effective in a times scale of 20 years 16.Field measures and preliminary studies confirm that the
so-called fugitive emissions range from 1-9 % of the total lifecycle of gas emissions. Methane
emissions must be reduced to about 3.2 percent or lower for natural gas factories to have lower
lifecycle emissions of greenhouse gases than coal 17. Drilling too produces methane. Although
the gas can be captured and used as fuel or energy, in most cases, it is always burned or released
into the atmosphere. Burning the gas converts it to carbon IV oxide which reduces the impacts it
has but in the long run it additional gases are still released into the atmosphere. According to the
World Bank estimates, 5.3 trillion cubic feet of natural gas if burnt every year globally, which is
equivalent to about 25 percent of America's total consumption. This generates about 400 million
tons of unwanted emissions (18).
Fuel transportation
Depending on where the fuels are extracted and where they are supposed to be used, at
least the resource will in most cases have to be transported across long distances. This also
comes with its fair share of problems and is an avenue for catastrophic occurrences. For
example, transporting coal and oil requires huge, river barges, water transport and trucks, and
rail. These vessels use fossil fuels for motion, therefore, making it a double tragedy.
Commented [ED8]: https://www.ucsusa.org/clean- energy/coal-and-other-fossil-fuels/hidden-cost-of- fossils#.WuIzg4jwabj
Commented [ED9]: https://www.ucsusa.org/clean- energy/coal-and-other-fossil-fuels/hidden-cost-of- fossils#.WuIzg4jwabj
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Laura Jimenez 22449237 250206
9840 Stover way
Wellington Fl, 33414
Renewable energy such as solar and wind power carries far less negative impacts at
highly competitive prices. These are self-sufficient and renewable sources. Once installed these
sources need little to no maintenance. Solar energy takes little space compared to wind. However
the maintenance and installation cost of wind is a bit cheap compared to solar, and the energy
product is comparatively more. These two compared to most other sources have the smallest
impact on lives and the environment. Other fairly good sources are geothermal and hydroelectric
since they are reasonably cheap and have minimum impacts on the environment compared to
fossil fuels. They both rely on Earths natural processes and are self-reliant.
The best alternatives would be solar and wind energy. Solar represents the biggest
amount of energy that reaches the telluric ecosystem of the earth. About 100,000 trillion watts of
solar beams hit the earth's surface and is converted into other forms of energy. This resource is
huge since it is about 6500 times the global energy consumption by humans (13.7 trillion
watts).This resource has however not been harnessed to the fullest since currently, only 1 percent
of it represent the potential it has in the production of electricity under renewable sources. Japan,
China, and the USA are at the top of the list of the countries that have harnessed this resource.
Taiwan and China are the two major solar producing nations in the world with a 60 percent
market share.
Wind is also another good alternative. The resource can be tapped virtually anywhere
where the flow of wind is reliable and will continue to be useful for many years with little
problems. While wind farms consume huge tracts of land, they do not take up unreasonable
Commented [ED10]: You will need to cite sources in this paragraph.
Commented [ED11]: This information requires citation.
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Laura Jimenez 22449237 250206
9840 Stover way
Wellington Fl, 33414
space compared to mines and other sources like hydroelectric power. Besides, wind power does
not degrade land compared to fossils fuels.
Conclusion
While different energy sources have their merits and demerits, some are generally better
sources compared to others for varied reason. Some can produce a lot of energy so quickly while
others could be more consistent. Some are highly environmentally unfriendly while others are
sustainable sources. Renewable alternative energy to fossil fuels such as wind and solar carry
few negative impacts, yet they are convenient and dependable. Burning fossil fuels have serious
negative impacts on local communities, the global climate, and ecosystem. The majority of the
impacts of the fossil fuels are not removed from the electricity and fuels we purchase and remain
hidden within private and public health expenditures, emergency relief fund, military budgets
and the degradation of the sensitive ecosystem. We may not pay for the cost of the loss of fragile
wetlands or chronic disease when we purchase gasoline –but the resulting costs are real.
Works cited
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). 2015. Abandoned mine drainage. Washington, DC.
Online at https://www.epa.gov/polluted-runoff-nonpoint-source-pollution/abandoned-
mine-drainage, accessed on 10th April 2018.
Commented [ED12]: https://www.ucsusa.org/clean- energy/coal-and-other-fossil-fuels/hidden-cost-of- fossils#.WuIzg4jwabj
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Laura Jimenez 22449237 250206
9840 Stover way
Wellington Fl, 33414
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). 2015. TENORM: Oil and gas production wastes.
Washington, DC. Online at https://www.epa.gov/radiation/tenorm-oil-and-gas-
production-wastes, accessed on 10th April 2018.
Epstein, P. R., Buonocore, J. J., Eckerle, K., Hendryx, M., Stout Iii, B. M., Heinberg, R., &
Doshi, S. K. (2011). Full cost accounting for the life cycle of coal. Annals of the New
York Academy of Sciences, 1219(1), 73-98.
Global Gas Flaring Reduction Partnership (GGFR). Global Gas Flaring Reduction Partnership
(GGFR): Improving energy efficiency & mitigating impact on climate change.
Washington, DC: The World Bank. Online here, accessed on 11th April 2018.
Mine Safety and Health Administration (MHSA). 2011. US Labor Department's MSHA cites
corporate culture as the cause of Upper Big Branch Mine disaster. Press release,
December 6. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Labor. Online at
http://www.msha.gov/MEDIA/PRESS/2011/NR111206.asp, accessed on 11th April 2018.
Taylor, R. L. et al. 2012. Viability analyses for the conservation of sage-grouse populations.
Prepared for the U.S. Bureau of Land Management. Online at
http://www.powderriverbasin.org/assets/Uploads/files/cbm-studies/PVA-Sage-Grouse-
FinalReport.pdf, accessed on 12th May 2018
What is alternative energies.2008? General Reference. Expanded academic ASAP database in
Penn foster’s digital library.University of Utah Department of Civil and Environmental
Engineering .
Online at https://alternativeenergy.procon.org/view.answers.php?questionID=001246,
accessed on 14th May 2018
