HOW FOSSIL FUELS AFFECTED OUR LIVES?

For decades, fossil fuels have played an essential role in human activities such as electricity generation, home heating, transportation fuel and plastics and the reason is fossil fuels are relatively cheap. They are simple to discover and manufacture, and there is a plentiful supply. Furthermore, there is infrastructure in place to distribute them affordably. However, as raw material supplies decline, the cost of locating new sources of raw materials rises.

For example, in recent weeks, the geopolitical conflict between Russia and Ukraine has led fuel and gas prices to soar because Russia is the world’s largest producer of petroleum and natural gas. Vietnam is partly affected by the conflict as imports from Russia account for 3,73% of the value, which increased the price to 70% during this time. In addition, the benefit of fossil fuel is abundant supply. Fossil fuels have been used for 250 years but an expanding population causes fossil fuel resources insufficient. Since Vietnam is a developing country, the use for petroleum products has risen sharply, from 11.2 millions tons in 2005 to 17.5 million tons in 2010. Therefore, Vietnam should need a strategy for the sustainable development of the nation’s energy resources.

On the other hand, the burning of fossil fuels leads to some problems such as health risks, pollution and global warming. When fossil fuels are burned, sulfur dioxide and carbon monoxide can be released into the air causing multiple health issues such as heart disease, cancer, asthma and premature death. Especially long-term coal dust exposure can lead to lung disease. It is estimated that each billion kWh of coal-fired energy is expected to result in 24.5 deaths or 225 instances, major sickness, as well as over 13,000 other health issues. In the second place, methane and carbon dioxide emissions from power plants, gasoline-burning vehicles, cement production, and other industrial operations trap heat in the atmosphere, resulting in a recent rise in global temperatures. G7 leaders have made decisions to keep the global temperature rise to no more than 1.5degrees C by phasing out coal use. These rich countries also desire to assist poor countries in adapting to climate change. The G7 will stop supporting new thermal power plants in poor nations and contribute up to 2.8$ billion in subsidies to help these countries phase out usage of this fuel. Last but not least, fossil fuels cause air pollution. When sunlight mixes with nitrous oxide and another volatile organic component in the atmosphere, smoke is created. Nitrous oxide is a common exhaust gas produced by automobiles, industry, and coal-fired power plants. Volatile organic compounds are emitted from gasoline, paints and solvents. Therefore, most newly industrialized countries suffer from smog. According to the Air Quality Index (AQI), air pollution in Vietnam is PM2.5 which is currently 5.6 times higher than the value based on WHO’s annual air quality guidelines.

In conclusion, it is seen that the disadvantages of fossil fuels outweigh the benefits. Vietnam cannot fully depend on these resources for life, the government should consider renewable resources as a long-term solution.