By Eliav Malone
We are running out of time.
This line is usually in movies that are about zombie apocalypses or the end of the world, but now it applies to the real world. We are running out of time. The earth is heating up at a faster and faster rate; we are still trying to fix the damage done to the ozone layer; and thousands of species are in danger of extinction. You may be thinking, who would do this? But it’s you. It’s me. It’s your neighbor. It’s your friends. It’s your family. It’s those in power, and those who are not. It’s all of us.
With the help of fossil fuels, or nonrenewable resources, humans are polluting the earth at a rate never before seen by life. Fossil fuels are oil, natural gas, and coal. These resources take millions of years to form and cannot be used twice, this is why they are called nonrenewable. Their cleaner, friendlier siblings are renewable resources: solar energy, wind energy, geothermal energy, and hydraulic energy. These resources never run out, so we don’t have to worry about that. They are now cheaper to use than nonrenewable resources and are cleaner for the environment than fossil fuels. Yet, nonrenewable resources remain the largest source of energy for humans.
But, it can’t be that bad right? It won’t affect the environment that much right? I’m sorry, but we are too late for that. Since the Industrial Revolution in the late 1800s, nonrenewable resources have been used to power machines and products that make human life easier. But while all this energy was being used and life was getting easier, millions of tons of greenhouse gases were building up in the atmosphere, which would pose a problem in the near future. Also, to get these beloved fuels, which are far under the earth’s surface, drilling needs to happen. This drilling destroys landscapes and habitats, takes down forests, and pollutes water supplies. So, yeah we are too late to claim that the use of fossil fuels has not caused harm to the environment.
Nearly every human around the world uses fossil fuels on a daily basis. And that adds up to a scary amount of pollutants (billions of tons). Pollutants are released when fossil fuels are burned and large amounts of Carbon dioxide, are released. CO2 is one of the Greenhouse Gases. Some of the Greenhouse Gases are CO2, water vapor, methane, and nitrous oxide. Greenhouse gases are gases that get stuck in the atmosphere and allow infrared rays to come into the atmosphere but don’t let them out. The results is the air in the troposphere becomes much warmer and, according to NASA, will cause extreme weather, rising sea levels, the extinction of species, and the destruction of millions of homes and lives. With trillions of tons of oil and coal use in the last hundred years, and the CO2 concentration in the atmosphere at the highest amount ever, even more “end of the world scenarios” will have the chance to occur.
The question that still remains is why? Why don’t we use renewable resources if we know that fossil fuels are harmful to the environment?
Renewable resources are not burned, so nitrogen and CO2 are not released. They cannot be spilled and kill animals, unlike nonrenewable resources. Also, they are unlimited! They won’t run out for billions of years, and when they do, we will already be long gone. On the other hand, nonrenewable resources will run out in 50-250 years, according to the BBC . The only reason that we don’t use renewable resources seems to be that we are just lazy. We don’t want to change, and we believe it will be “too hard.”
But let’s make it easy. We can take it one small step at a time. To limit your use of nonrenewable resources, you can walk, bike, or even take a bus to work/school. Try to limit your use of power. For example, instead of burning up fossil fuels, keep the lights off and let the sun be your light during the day. Even try to install solar panels on the roof of your house as a way to get your major source of energy, while lowering your carbon footprint. If that is too expensive then try to convince your town officials to put solar panels on public buildings. This will make a huge difference.
This fight to save the earth is not against zombies or alien invaders, it is against ourselves and how willing we are to change to keep the world safe for future generations. To keep fighting this fight, remember what Native Americans said to tell others about the importance of the environment: We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children.
This essay was one of three winning submissions to an op-ed writing contest in Ms. Bodnar’s 8th grade honor’s science class.
