Our series Eco HomeLife Explains aims at explaining terms, concepts, and ideas around sustainability in a concise and easy-to-understand way. In this edition, we shine a light on the cons for fossil fuels.
Fossil fuels feature large in most discussions about sustainability and climate change. So if you’re interested in this topic, understanding what they are and why continuing to use them is bad for our environment is vital.
That’s why we decided to explain why they have a huge environmental impact in this edition of Eco HomeLife Explains to give you all the facts you need to know. So let’s start with…
What Are Fossil Fuels?
Fossil fuels are natural resources that have formed millions of years ago and are located deep in the earth’s crust. As the name suggests, these resources are made of the fossils of plants and animals that once inhabited our planet.
As these fossils decomposed underground they turned into the three natural resources we call fossil fuels today: natural gas, oil and coal, according to the Smithsonian Ocean website.
They all contain energy in the form of hydrocarbon compounds, the material plants and animals are made of. When they are burned, the energy is released and can fuel various machines and heat our homes.
While humans have used fossil fuels for thousands of year, their use on a large scale only started with the industrial revolution. Initially, coal was the main resource that was used in the early 19th century, according to Our World In Data.
In the latter half of the century, the use of oil started and in the last decade natural gas joined the former two as an energy source.
The data reported by Our World In Data shows that from the 1950s onwards, fossils fuel consumption has taken off, and has increased eight-fold since then. And while the use of coal is decreasing, oil and natural gas use is on the up.
The Cons Of Using Fossil Fuels
So what is the problem with using these natural resources? There are actually quite a few:
- Non-renewable energy source – once they are all gone, that’s it
- Environmental impact of extraction of fossil fuels – extraction poses risk to the environment on several levels
- Extracting and burning fuels produces carbon dioxide emissions – these are directly responsible for global warming and climate change
- Fossil fuels are responsible for pollution – such as oils spills or acid rain
- Environmental impact of fossil fuel-based materials – materials such as plastic or synthetic ingredients
Let’s look at these 5 disadvantages in more detail.
Non-Renewable Source
Unlike renewable energy sources, such as wind or solar, fossil fuels will run out at some point. Once we have extracted all the coal, oil and natural gas that’s in the earth’s crust, it’s gone.
And with it taking millions of years to create them, we’ll have to wait a very long time to have a new set of fossil fuels to use. How long exactly theses energy sources will last is very difficult to say.
It depends largely on the continuous levels of consumption and extraction. But one study estimates that oil and natural gas will run out by 2042, while coal will be be depleted by 2112. (Shafiee and Topal, 2008)
So no matter all the other negative impacts of fossil fuels, and there are many, at some point soon, we will run out of these resources. This makes switching to renewable resources a necessity.
Extraction Has Huge Environmental Impact
Because these fossils are buried deep underground, extracting them isn’t a simple job, and involves various intrusive processes. As a result, extraction has various impacts on our environment.
- Loss of habitat – the areas where drilling or mining takes place become inhabitable for wildlife, which leads to biodiversity loss (Butt et al., 2013).
- Contamination of natural environments – Extraction of all types of fossil fuels cause contamination of ecosystems, including water pollution, air pollution, and soil pollution (Govorushko, 2013)
- Extraction produces huge amounts of waste – this waste needs to be disposed of and is responsible for deforestation, disturbance of biological resources, erosion, and degradation of water resources. (Ortega-Ramirez et al., 2022)
- Transportation is responsible for more pollution – spills and leaks can cause water, soil and air pollution (Barbir et al., 1990)
As you can see, the cons of fossil fuels are there right from the start, but it doesn’t stop there.
Responsible For Greenhouse Gas Emissions
One of the driving forces behind climate change is global warming, which in turn is caused by greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. These gases stop heat and light from the sun being reflected back, and thereby increasing the earth’s temperature. (Anderson et al., 2016)
According to the UN, the energy industry is responsible for 35% of global greenhouse gas emissions, making it the biggest contributor. Given that 80% of global energy and 66% of electricity is generated by fossil fuels, that’s no surprise.
Other industries that are reliant on these resources also contribute to emissions. The petrochemical industry, uses 14% of oil and 9% of gas produced globally, and therefore being a major contributor of GHG emissions. (Yan et al., 2024)
Fossil fuels are used to create a wide range of products, such as petrochemicals, plastic, fertiliser and synthetic ingredients.
Extracting, transporting, refining, and burning fossil fuels are all responsible for carbon dioxide emissions, as well as other greenhouse gases.
Scientists have been very clear about the need to keep remaining fossil fuels in our earth, if we are to achieve the target set in the Paris Climate Agreement.
A study from 2022 has estimated that we have to leave 40% of currently developed reserves unextracted, if we are to stay with in the 1.5°C target. (Trout et al., 2022)
This makes it very clear that we have to act urgently to reduce our reliance on these non-renewable resources.
Responsible For Pollution
We have already mentioned that fossil fuels release a huge amount of greenhouse gases, especially carbon dioxide at all stages: extraction, refining, transportation, and combustion.
But these aren’t the only airborne pollutants that are attributed to fossil fuels.
It’s estimated that 85% of all harmful airborne pollutants are generated by them, especially sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxide. Other pollutants include black carbon, nitrogen and sulphur dioxides, mercury, and other volatile chemicals responsible for ground-level ozone. (Perera, 2017)
These pollutants are harmful to our environment as well as us humans, especially children.
The airborne pollutants can also reach our waterways, where they can transform into different harmful chemicals causing water pollution. For example, carbon dioxide will combine with water molecules and becomes sulphuric acid. (Chaudrhy and Malik, 2017)
We already have said that leaks and spills, such as oil spills can also cause water and soil pollution, with catastrophic consequences for the environment and wildlife.
Fossil Fuel-Based Materials
While fossil fuels are mostly seen as energy sources, they are also used to make materials, such as petrochemicals, which in turn are used to produce synthetic ingredients of all kinds, and also plastic.
The manufacturing of these materials include many energy-intensive processes, which produce carbon emissions. (Gabrielli et al., 2023)
And it’s not just their production that causes problems. Most of these petrochemicals make their way into our ecosystems, many in form of synthetic ingredients used in cleaning products, personal care products, and even our food.
Once in our environment, many of them are harmful and toxic to wildlife. (Wirtu 2024)
According to CIEL, over 99% of plastic is made of fossil fuels, which is a huge amount. And we know how harmful this material is to our environment.
It can take hundreds, if not thousands of years to break down (Chamas et al., 2020), and as it breaks down slowly it releases toxic chemicals and microplastics (Wojnowska-Baryla et al., 2022).
But plastic can be recycled, right? Well, some of it yes. But because plastic can only be recycled 2 to 3 times before it degrades too much, this is only postponing the issue not solving it.
Besides, globally only 9% of plastic is recycled, which means most of it ends up in landfill or as litter in our environment.
Microplastics are another huge problem. They are now so prevalent that they are found every where, including in animals, plants, and us humans. (Baalkhuyur et al., 2018, Hernandez-Gonzales et al., 2018, Provencher et al., 2020, Liu et al., 2024, Zhang et al., 2024, Massardo et al., 2024, Saha et al., 2024, Zantis et al. from 2022)
This clearly shows that we don’t just have to switch to renewable energy sources, but we also have to find solutions that will enable us to move away from fossil fuels entirely.
Can There Be A Fossil Fuel-Free Future?
I truly believe that the answer to this question is yes. But it needs political will to achieve it. Countries have to put policies in place to incentivise the switch to renewable energy sources for both businesses and households.
At the same time, there is a need to phase out the use of fossil fuels in all areas, including heating, transport, and material production.
We also need governments to prioritise renewable resources, such solar and wind power. All this won’t come cheap, but the alternative is a climate catastrophe that will likely cost much more, not just financially but also in human lives.
The main focus for change lies with governments, industries and big businesses, as they are the ones that can make the fundamental changes we need.
However, we all can make a difference. Changing to heat pump heating systems in our homes and to electric vehicles, if household budgets allow.
If not, we can do other things to reduce our carbon footprint:
- Using our petrol cars less – walking, cycling and using public transport as much as possible
- Saving energy – invest in energy efficient appliances, light bulbs, insulating our homes, only using what we need
- Reducing our consumption – we all buy too much, whether this is clothes, gadgets, ornaments, etc.
- Reducing waste – moving away from disposable and single-use items, and starting to repair, reuse, and repurpose and recycling as much as possible of what remains
- Move away from plastic – this material is everywhere, but if we try we can reduce the amount of plastic we use
- Buy eco-friendly products – so many things we use are bad for the environment, but often there are sustainable alternatives
These measures might seem small, but if we all adopted them their impact would be huge. So join the green revolution and do your bit for a greener future for our children.
