Jessica Tse

Environmental Issues

Since the turn of the 20th century, the use of electricity has been an essential part of the U.S economy. This source of electricity by coal fuels provides enormous amount of inexpensive, reliable power as supplies of oil and natural gas diminish. By the mid 1990’s, coal fueled power plants produced about 55% of electricity generated in the U.S. . Furthermore, the International Energy Agency predicts that fossil fuels will account for 85% of the energy market by 2030. As the demand for coal continues to rise, environmental problems rise along with it. One of the main concerns regarding coal burning as fuel is that the main green house gas, carbon dioxide, is emitted into the air which is associated with global warming. Fortunately, modern technologies and environmental laws have greatly reduced coal fuel’s impact on the environment with goals such as doubling the efficiency of power plants or halving carbon dioxide gas emissions.


One such modern method to reduce environmental effects is to capture and sequester carbon dioxide. First, carbon dioxide must be captured through methods such as post-combustion, pre-combustion and oxy-fuel combustion. After the capture of CO2, the coal-fired plants need to be stored underground. In order for carbon dioxide to be stored properly, coal-fired plants have to be located near geological sequestration. In most cases, the best areas for carbon dioxide storage are underground formations of sedimentary rock with pores filled with brine. Additionally, the sites would lie need to lie at least 800 meters under the surface and far below any source of drinking water. The reason for 800 meters is because at this depth, it pressurizes the CO2 to be nearly as dense as the brine it replaces in the geologic formations. According to The National Energy Technology Laboratory, over 40 percent of existing U.S coal generating capacity is already located directly above potential geologic sequestration sites. By improving the technologies of current coal power plants and positioning future plants near geological fit site, billions of tons of CO2 can be permanently sequestered.
While storing carbon dioxide may seem like a straightforward solution to environmental problems, there are two main risks associated with sequestration: gradual and sudden leakage.
Gradual leakage is simply carbon dioxide returns of greenhouse gas to the air. In contrast, sudden leakage of large, rapid release of the gas may have worse consequences than not to store it at all because high concentrations can kill. For example, a natural disaster occurred in Cameroon at the results of carbon dioxide that seeped into the bottom of Lake Nyos which rest on top of a crater. One night in 1986, there was an abrupt overturn of lake bed which released between 100,000 and 300,000 tons of CO2 in a few hours. Since the gas was heavier than air, it flowed down two valleys and asphyxiated 1,700 nearby villagers and thousands of cattle. Despite the risk of carbon dioxide leakage, sequestration is extremely effective with comprehensive research and planning. In order for coal plants to obtain a license for storage, regulators will have to determine that the site may only have gradual leakage at very slow rates and for sudden leakage to be extremely unlikely. Capture and storage is an efficient method towards the goal of halving gas emissions.

For the goal of halving carbon dioxide gas to be successful, various stakeholders must take essential steps. In the near future time frame of three to seven years, coal fueled power plants should begin further research and development and raise funding for modifying power plants for carbon sequestration. Moreover, the government must decide how long storage should be maintained. At present, environmental ethics and traditional economics give different answers. From an environmental ethics point of view, they would want the solution which minimizes the impact of today’s activities for future generations. For instance, environmental ethics authorities may refuse to certify a storage project that is estimated to retain carbon dioxide for only 200 years. On the other hand, if the authorities were guided by traditional economics, they may approve the same project by arguing that there will be superior carbon disposal technology in two hundred years. The most critical time for improving coal fueled power plants are the next incoming years, as licensing policies shape the future of carbon dioxide capture and storage.

Education Issues

In recent decades, natural scientists, social scientists, and educators have been diverging on their ideas of environmental education. Before the 1960s, environmental education was mostly the study of nature study or outdoor activity. The idea of conservations was generally limited to discussions of preserving natural areas and protecting endangered species, particularly birds and mammals. Since then, environmental education has shifted away from teaching how ecological systems operate to how economic, social, and civil systems are creating environmental problems. As a result, this shift in emphasis increased in advocacy in environmental education, especially energy efficiency. However, this shift in concepts is not enough alone. Often, implementation of energy efficiency methods is not carry out because of lack of knowledge. By helping people to understand and to control their energy use, this may play a significant role in energy conservation.

In the time frame of the next couple decades, environmental literacy plans should be developed to create a statewide strategy for implementing environmental education opportunity in school. The literacy plan will connect existing schools, stakeholders and outdoor programs to state learning standards. First, for environmental education to be effective, K-12 school curriculum should incorporate environmental education at an early stage. Environmental education should not be treated separately from other areas of our studies, but as an inclusive part of reading, science, art and other concepts. For instance, children may learn about energy efficiency not only by constant reminders of turning off electricity when not in use but perhaps through science fair esque concepts such as basic projects of how electricity use and the amount of energy it takes. Not only will children learn about the importance of natural resources but they will also gain firsthand experience which may shape their future career paths and life later on.

The idea of environmental education must be continue from K-12 to higher education. Colleges should emphasize the significance of outdoor and field work experience in addition to general education and area of focus. The direct results from field work are an important environmental learning experience that can be applied in practice later on in their careers. In order for environmental education to succeed, changing the perspectives of education is not enough. The aspect is citizen perspective and empowerment is extremely crucial. Just as how environmental education should not be treated separately from other areas of studies, environmental education should also be incorporated into our daily lives. Citizens must be environmentally educated in order for public advocacy to succeed. For instance, the U.S. government is investing in coal-fueled, zero emissions power plants. The facilities propose to capture greenhouse gas carbon dioxide that is emitted when coal is burned for electricity generation. Without tax payer’s money and support, this project would not have been made possible. Another example of the significance of environmental education is consumer’s choices. Hundreds of power plants are not needed today because the world has invested in much more efficient refrigerators, air conditioners, and motors than were available two decades ago. With a better knowledge of foundation, citizen advocacy can accelerate the advancements made towards coal plants.

















Works Cited
 Dietz, Thomas, and Paul Stern, eds. New Tools for Environmental Protection: Education, Information, and Voluntary Measures. Washington DC.: National Academic, 2002. Print.
&#61607; "Dirty Coal Air." Sierra Club. Web. 1 July 2009. <www.sierraclub.org/cleanair/factheets/power.asp>.
&#61607; Mappin, Micheal. Environmetnal Education and Advocacy: Changing Perspectives of Ecology and Education. Ed. Edward Johnson. London: Cambridge UP, 2005. Print.
&#61607; Pacala, S., and R. Socolow. "Stabalization Wedges: Solving the Climate Problem for the Next 50 Years with Current Technologies." Science 305 (2004): 968-72. Print.
&#61607; Socolow, Robert, and Stephen Pacala. "A Plan to Keep Carbon in Check." Scientific American (2006): 50-56. Print.
&#61607; Socolow, Robert. "Can We Bury GLobal Warming?" Scientific American (2005): 49-55. Print.
&#61607; Socolow, Robert, S. Pacala, and Jeffrey Greenbelt. "Solving the Climate Problem Technologies Available to Curb CO2 Emmissions." Environment (2004): 8-19. Print.