Fossil Fuels
Fossil fuels
Oil
1) Oil is produced in Middle Eastern countries, Saudia Arabia accounting for 13.1 per cent of the world total, America 16.5 per cent and Africa 12.1 per cent. Although the Middle East has a lot of oil reserves not much is consumed. North America, Europe and Eurasia consume a lot of oil. This is due to the countries being MEDCs so they will need more fuel as the demand is higher. 2) The factors which cause oil prices to increase are from supply shocks (the OPEC oil embargo in 1973-74, the Iranian revolution in 1979, Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait in 1990). The current high price situation is mainly due to rising demand. 3) Global peak oil production-The international Energy Agency expects peak oil production somewhere between 2013 and 2037, with a fall by 3 per cent a year after the peak. The United States Geological Survey predicts that the peak is 50 years or more away. However, the Association for the Study of Peak Oil and Gas (ASPO) predicts that the peak of global oil production will come as early as 2011. In the USA oil production peaked in 1970, this shows no one exactly knows when it will reach its peak. 4) The possible consequences of the supply of oil declining in the future are that we rely on fossil fuels for our cars etc. The decline of oil will result in oil prices increasing, this means that food prices will also increase as transportation costs increase retail prices. Fossil fuels will need to be replaced by renewable energy, but the problem with that is that they’re not reliable.
Coal
1) Coal is important as a fuel because the global coal consumption is roughly 5 billion tons a year, with China burning the most. China’s coal needs will be doubled by 2025 to satisfy factories and consumers worldwide, consumption will rise by 56%. 2) Burning fossil fuels releases carbon dioxide which contributes to global warming. Burning coal emits harmful wastes such as carbon dioxide, sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxides,
Oil
1) Oil is produced in Middle Eastern countries, Saudia Arabia accounting for 13.1 per cent of the world total, America 16.5 per cent and Africa 12.1 per cent. Although the Middle East has a lot of oil reserves not much is consumed. North America, Europe and Eurasia consume a lot of oil. This is due to the countries being MEDCs so they will need more fuel as the demand is higher. 2) The factors which cause oil prices to increase are from supply shocks (the OPEC oil embargo in 1973-74, the Iranian revolution in 1979, Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait in 1990). The current high price situation is mainly due to rising demand. 3) Global peak oil production-The international Energy Agency expects peak oil production somewhere between 2013 and 2037, with a fall by 3 per cent a year after the peak. The United States Geological Survey predicts that the peak is 50 years or more away. However, the Association for the Study of Peak Oil and Gas (ASPO) predicts that the peak of global oil production will come as early as 2011. In the USA oil production peaked in 1970, this shows no one exactly knows when it will reach its peak. 4) The possible consequences of the supply of oil declining in the future are that we rely on fossil fuels for our cars etc. The decline of oil will result in oil prices increasing, this means that food prices will also increase as transportation costs increase retail prices. Fossil fuels will need to be replaced by renewable energy, but the problem with that is that they’re not reliable.
Coal
1) Coal is important as a fuel because the global coal consumption is roughly 5 billion tons a year, with China burning the most. China’s coal needs will be doubled by 2025 to satisfy factories and consumers worldwide, consumption will rise by 56%. 2) Burning fossil fuels releases carbon dioxide which contributes to global warming. Burning coal emits harmful wastes such as carbon dioxide, sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxides,