At the start of the 19th century, the world's eyes were opened to the newly discovered electrical energy. From then on, technology developed. We are now in the 21st century and electricity is an integral part of everyday life. Each corner you turn, you see one form or another of electrical ingenuity. However, with the coming of new technology, comes an increasing global issue. That issue is climate change.
Climate change has become such a serious problem that it threatens the sustainability of every ecosystem in the planet. Many people around the world don't understand how the generation of electricity contributes to climate change: they never ask themselves the question, how do we get electricity?
Currently around the world, many companies use fossil fuels to produce electricity. In the big power stations, they burn coal and other fossil fuels, so they can extract the heat energy. They then convert the heat energy into mechanical energy, and then into electrical energy. This is called an energy chain. This method does create electrical energy, however it doesn't produce as much energy as you may at first think. During the conversion process, energy is lost naturally. Therefore you would need a lot of coal in order to produce enough energy, for example, to power a city. As a result, the more coal they burn, the worse climate change becomes.
As you probably already know, to get coal you need to mine it. However since coal forms over thousands of years, we will eventually reach a point where it will be in short supply. When this time comes, the planet will face some serious issues. Think about it; these days you use electricity for almost everything. Without it everyone would be lost.
The use of coal to generate electricity is cheap and effective, however, it is highly damaging to our environment. When the coal is being burnt, smoke spreads through the atmosphere containing large amounts of co2 (carbon dioxide). this specific gas is a large factor in the cause of climate change, (global warming).
The cause of climate change doesn't just come down to the burning of coal, there are many other factors, natural and man-made. Take for example, a car, it needs petrol to run, doesn't it? Petrol is a known by-product of fossil fuels, which a non-renewable energy source. Therefore it will not last forever.
Our society needs new ways of generating electricity without harming our natural environment and that is in constant supply. Renewable energy is said to be "the next big thing" when it comes to the generation of power.
