Energy Insecurity and Air Pollution
Discuss about the Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics Theories.
Energy insecurity affects several environmental factors. These factors have to do with climate change, air pollution, land degradation and the availability of the quantity and quality of water (Lefèvre, 2010). While producing energy in whichever form, the process ultimately causes changes in the climate. Substantially climate change is an energy insecurity concern not because of the effects of natural calamities on power plants but also the effects of the same on other global sustainability issues like food security, health, and environmental conditions (Hernandez, 2013). Comparing the amounts of carbon emissions as a result of producing energy in relation to the population of the people staying in a region producing energy, say coal energy, the emissions have doubled over the past twenty years (Winzer,2012). This possesses a threat to the ozone layer and in turn causing global climate change.
Air pollution is a critical issue of energy insecurity in two ways, one outdoor pollution vitiates human health causing an increase in hospital admissions, two, indoor pollution as a result of using stoves in the houses causes deaths of the inhabitants of the house. Outdoor air pollution is brought about by energy production and consumption and comprises of about eighty percent sulphur dioxide (SO2 ) emissions, seventy percent of nitrogen oxide (NO2) emissions and eight percent of particulate materials all which emanate from the transport and energy sector( Seinfeld and Pandis,2016). According to the international energy agency, air pollution has increased as a result of industrialization, widespread vehicle use, over-reliance on coal to produce electrical energy and most industries operating near residential areas (Zannetti, 2013). The World Health Organisation, air pollution takes a considerable toll on a country’s GDP and health care expenditures.
Energy production has substantial effects on the quality and availability of water globally. According to the United Nations, the agricultural sector is the world’s largest user of fresh water but the energy sector comes in second with productions like hydropower, thermal power and nuclear power contributing to almost 10% to 15% of the world’s water consumption (Hanjra and Qureshi, 2010). Additionally, the United Nations estimates that the amount of water that evaporates from reservoirs is more than the joint freshwater needs for both households and industries (Bakker, 2012). This roughly accounts for 25% global water use. In the research conducted by the United Nations, it concludes that hydroelectric dams greatly play a part in water loss in the world, especially for the tropical regions.
Effects of Energy Production on Water Availability
Just like air pollution, quality and availability of water and climate change, the connection between energy insecurity and land degradation is critical. Energy production affects land use in several ways. This includes conversion of forests into plantations for energy crops, access points to dams, oil and gas facilities which ultimately cause deforestations (Harvey and Pilgrim,2011). Research has it that 15% of changes in land use is caused by deforestation for fuelwoods and for energy crop plantations.
Energy insecurity affects the social wellbeing of a community in several ways. These ways center on the sustainability of human health and survival. The major social impact of energy insecurity is that on human health. Due to air pollution, most people are vulnerable to contracting airborne diseases. Gases such as carbon dioxide and Sulphur dioxide cause deaths due to suffocation. According to research, breathing pollutes air puts most people at a risk of contracting asthma and other respiratory infections. Carcinogens are the most elements of air pollutants; living in such places puts humans at risk of suffering from cancer. Toxins released into the air get into plants and water sources, once animals feed on the contaminated plants and water, the toxins travel to us up the food chain.
Energy production affects the climate, over the past centuries toxic greenhouse gases have been released into the atmosphere due to industrial activities, deforestation to produce energy and burning of fossils to produce energy ( Bickerstaff et.al 2013). Much as some amounts of the greenhouse gases play a significant role in making the climate warm and human-friendly, the concentrated toxic gases pose a threat to the global climate. Carbon Dioxide and methane are the typical examples of the greenhouse gases (GHGs) which are produced due to energy production activities and pose a great threat to the global climate. Changes in global climate have led to the extinction of animal species and as well cause a threat to human survival.
Energy production causes disruptive effects on local communities. This is because; once the government taps a resource in a specific place the people living in that area will have to be resettled from their original homes to other new locations. This will affect their normal lives since they will have to start living a new way of life. In case they are not moved out of the place, there will be a strain for the limited infrastructures with the technicians and experts who are brought to work on the resource. The strain on the available resources for a community affects the lifestyle of the people since they will have to adopt a lifestyle that they are not used to.
Energy Insecurity and Land Degradation
Globally, energy insecurity has various economic implications. Energy production immensely affects agricultural production in the tropical regions. Given that a higher percentage of the world’s population earns a living through agricultural production, energy production has effects on the economic livelihoods of various communities. Given the effects of energy production on water availability and quality, it is evident that in scenarios where the water available for agricultural production is used for energy production, the agricultural sector is greatly affected. Deforestation for the urgency of energy production affects the forest covers. Geographically forests are water catchment areas, once destroyed; the water catchment areas are directly affected, meaning that the levels of water in water bodies will be affected as well (Blum and Legey, 2012). Lack of water for agricultural production affects those economies, which entirely rely on crop and animal production to sustain their economies which all narrows down to energy production.
Energy production has a positive economic impact as well. This is because it creates jobs in many countries, which have energy production plants. Creation of employment opportunities makes the country economically stable since its gross domestic product is likely to increase. An increase in the GDP consequently leads to a rise in the standards of living of the people of a specific nation, making them live a sustainable livelihood.
Ethical Issues connected to Energy insecurity.
The two major ethical concerns over energy insecurity include:
Does the society affected negatively by the changes in climate due to energy production have the mandate to claim for damages against the parties who benefit from producing and using energy?
In the situation or relocating communities in order to create space for energy producing plants, is there a global fund to compensate the relocated communities?
Ethical Theories to support the Ethical Concerns.
Several theories are formulated to explain different phenomena in the world. These theories explain the situations, impacts of such situations and the different ways in which the situations can be mitigated. In relation to the above ethical concerns, the relevant ethical theories that relate to the same are the polluter pay principle and the beneficiary pay principle. Under the polluter pays principle, there is the need for the relocated communities to be compensated for being moved out of their original homes (Caney, 2010). This call for prior planning before setting up an energy production plant in an area.in the plan, there should be some amount of money put aside to be used in the form of compensation to the affected parties. By creating such a kitty, the social well-being of the relocated community will not be adversely affected. This calls for conducting a study survey of the people living in the area to ensure that the allocation is proportional to the amount of wealth that a person had before being moved out since it would be unethical to pay someone $3000 over a place that has a worth of $6000. Ethics attributes for fairness as such the kitty put aside for the relocation expenses should be such that the lives of the affected people are equal to their past lives or even better than it.
Social Impact of Energy Insecurity
With reference to the beneficiary pay principle, the parties who benefit from energy production activities need to give a hand in form of payback to the society (Butt, 2014). Under corporate social responsibility, a firm should take care of its immediate surroundings; this includes the people living in that area. With relevance to this theory, industries as well as countries, which benefit from the produced energy, need to pay back in the form of building a nation, which relies on renewable forms of energy as opposed to non-renewable sources of energy (Apergis and Payne,2010). While developing such modes of energy production, the industries should campaign for production of clean energy, the energy that does not affect the well-being of the society.
Energy insecurity poses both economic threats and opportunities. The major threat that is because of energy production is the conflict likely to arise over control of the energy resources and sources. The conflict might be between superpowers, which might lead to war, and enmity between such states. In most occasions, the real owner of the energy resource is a small country whose economy is controlled by industries from developed nations who expect to develop more by exploiting the resources most of which are in Africa. In case there is no change in the existing dominant international security paradigm that stress on powers and competitive relations between nations, there is a likelihood of existing of a conflict between superpowers(McGowan, 2011). This as well might be due to global energy shortages or a threat of exploiting energy reserves by a rival. The conflict as well can be between certain cartels and the local community, in such situation, loss of lives and property is likely to occur. In the past years, the world has seen some countries in the gulf fight over control of oil mines; this has seen most people lose their lives, homes, and property.
The most possible opportunity obtained from energy production is the ability of nations to be more industrial since there would be plenty of energy that would be used to boost economic growth (Lin et. al, 2011). Economic growth will lead to an increase in the GDP of the countries producing the energy, which will channel down to improving the standards of living of the people of the country producing energy. Tapping such opportunities will be useful since according to the beneficiary pay principle, the yield from energy production will be used to better the lifestyles of the people in that specific country producing energy.
Economic Impacts of Energy Insecurity
In a quest of overcoming the unethical issues connected to energy insecurity, there is the need to adopt sustainable measures, which will see to it that the energy produced is clean and used efficiently. Ethics as well call for the development of methods to produce clean energy, the energy that does not affect the society’s well-being. In so doing, there is the need for emphasis on green energy campaign, which will articulate for production of energy, which does not affect the environment. The most efficient way will be to adopt the use of renewable energy as opposed to non-renewable energy (Tugcu et.al, 2012). Much as these modes of producing energy is expensive, the world needs to adopt modes of technology, which are cheaper since the ultimate goal of these methods will be to make the world able to sustain all modes of lives in it.
Developed countries as well need to cut on their levels of greed, they should not invade developing countries and tap into their energy reserves since this will ensure equality between countries and give all countries an equal bargaining front when it comes to the fight of maintaining an energy sustainable universe without necessarily having to wage wars against each other. Failure to compensate the relocated communities is unethical; the companies, which relocate people, need to compensate such people handsomely in order to make them able to live a sustainable life in their new homes.
In conclusion, the issue of energy insecurity is a global sustainable issue that needs to be looked upon in a way that it does not affect the world and the people living in it. People need to devise ways of producing more clean energy and using the energy efficiently without wasting. People as well need to develop technology, which articulates for using clean energy as opposed to carbon-based energy since it has immense effects on the environment.
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