Energy DisastersBy Dodi Thomas - October, 2010

Energy production and distribution is a dangerous business. Although energy is needed to power everything from washing machines to manufacturing plants, they can be deadly and environmentally destructive . Such disasters as natural gas pipeline explosions, off-shore oil rigs malfunctions, nuclear stack leaks, and coal mines caveins can cost lives and millions of dollars in restoration of businesses and communities.

Energy Production

Almost all energy production and use involves some form of pollution of our environment.

Each different source of energy, from fossil fuels to nuclear, pollutes in a different way and to a different degree. Just how much pollution and what type of pollution is acceptable and which source of energy should be used has generated a lot of controversy.

Energy Pollution

Elbe River fuel storage tanks

Pollutant (air) Environmental Effects

Carbon Dioxide (air) Global Warming Nitrous Oxides (air) Smog Particulate or Dust (air) Causes lung cancer

and other lung ailmentsPollutants such as nitrous oxides help to create

smog and haze

Coal and Power Plants

Pollutant Environmental Effects

Radioactive Waste Difficult to dispose of

(liquid or solid)Radiation Leaks (air) Radiation poisoning

and increased risk of

cancerHeat Emissions (water) Causes growth of

algae and kills marine life.One very large leak in the Soviet Union allowed

radioactive material to contaminate a considerable area, which is still unusable today.

Nuclear Power Plants

Renewable Energy

Solar and Wind EnergySolar

Solar energy is provided by the light energy that comes from the sun. There are a number of ways to harness this energy.

Wind Wind energy is the

kinetic energy contained in the movement of a mass of air molecules. The wind can be used to turn a turbine, which can then produce electricity using a generator.

Energy is a necessary part of human existence. We need energy to live, to heat our homes, to run our cars, to power our stereos, and to continue to develop our entire human civilization on this planet.

So it is necessary to continue to find ways to generate or produce energy from various sources that will not pollute our environment.

In Conclusion

Give a hoot, don’t pollute

http://www.foxbusiness.com/markets/2010/09/07/factbox-energy-disasters-americas/

http://www.fi.edu/guide/hughes/energypolution.html

Sources