The Personal Website of Mark W. Dawson

Environmental Impacts of Energy Utilization

In the movie "Apollo 13", shortly after the explosion on the spacecraft, the engineers on the ground are discussing the problems they are having. One of the engineers' pipes in that none of these problems are as nearly as significant as the loss of power (energy). Without solving the power problem, the astronauts would die. And so, it is with all energy, for without the proper amount of energy or the proper utilization of energy, nothing can happen in modern society.

Today's modern technological society is built on energy. It is the energy that lifted us out of a labor-intensive agrarian society into an industrial society and then into our technological society. Indeed, inexpensive and plentiful energy is the primary driver that lifts all societies from poverty into prosperity. There is no rich low-energy nation, just as there is no poor high-energy one. Consequently, we must all be cognizant about energy production and utilization to maintain and expand our technological society and to lift humanity out of poverty and despair.

Energy is produced by the consumption of fuel that produces electrical or mechanical power. But not all fuels are equal, as some fuels have more energy potential per mass than other fuels, which is referred to as Energy Density, while other fuels have more energy stored in a given system or region of space per unit volume which is referred to as Power Density. Some fuels require larger conversion facilities to produce energy, known as space requirements, and all fuels have environmental impacts of obtaining the fuels, the power conversion of the fuel, the utilization of the energy produced, and the disposal of the waste as a result of this process.

The fact is that the energy density of fuels, their power density, space requirements, and waste disposal determine the environmental impacts of the fuels. All things created by humans are subject to breakdowns and failures, and some of these breakdowns and failures can result in the death, ill health, and endangerment of persons, as well as the ruin or destruction of natural environs or personal property. So too, it is with obtaining fuels, the power conversion, the utilization of fuels, and the waste disposal of all forms of energy generation and utilization that have environmental impacts.

Environmental impacts are the price we pay for the growth of mankind. The need to feed, clothe and house people requires that we exploit our natural resources to fulfill this need. The need to make life better and more comfortable and to rise above poverty into prosperity requires abundant energy. Even agrarian societies needed energy to function, an energy consumption which had environmental impacts of deforestation to provide heat and croplands, as well as fire to produce the crude implements of agriculture and the materials to create clothing and housing. To be fully human, unshackled from short lives, brutishness, and nastiness of life without or with limited energy requires that we consume energy from the Earth's natural resources.

The book "Apocalypse Never: Why Environmental Alarmism Hurts Us All" by Michael Shellenberger summarizes the best-available science and debunks the myths repeated by scientists, journalists, and activists on environmental impacts and the fear tactics they utilize to advance their goals. Michael Shellenberger has been fighting for a greener planet for decades. He helped save the world's last unprotected redwoods, and he co-created the predecessor to today's Green New Deal. He led a successful effort by climate scientists and activists to keep nuclear plants operating, preventing a spike of harmful emissions and environmental impacts by other types of electrical generation. "Apocalypse Never is an extremely important book," says historian Richard Rhodes, who won the Pulitzer Prize for The Making of the Atomic Bomb. "Within its lively pages, Michael Shellenberger rescues with science and lived experience a subject drowning in misunderstanding and partisanship. His message is invigorating: if you have feared for the planet's future, take heart."

Some environmental activists, scientists, and journalists have now responded to Apocalypse Never to defend environmental myths, including that humans are causing a sixth mass extinction and that climate change is making natural disasters worse. Anyone who hopes to seriously evaluate Apocalypse Never for its scientific accuracy must-read Apocalypse Never, including its over 1,100 endnotes, which comprise 100 pages of the 400-page book.

No book about the environment in recent memory has been praised by a wider and more prestigious group of scientists than Apocalypse Never. It cannot be dismissed. And yet, that is what many of the critics of Apocalypse Never appear to want potential readers to do. But in their haste to misrepresent the contents of Apocalypse Never and make personal attacks, critics reveal that they fear people will read the book and discover the truth for themselves.

Michael Shellenberger is also the Founder and President of Environmental Progress (EP), which was founded to achieve two goals: lift all humans out of poverty and to save the natural environment. Michael Shellenberger believes, with a scientific and economic basis, that these goals can be achieved by mid-century — but only if we remove the obstacles to cheap, reliable and clean energy."  

If you care about the environment and care about the people of the world, Apocalypse Never is a must-read.