Fossil fuels are made from the remains of living things like plants and animals that were trapped under deposits and buried deep in the earth millions of years ago. These ruins were compacted and fossilized over time, yielding carbon-rich fuels like coal, oil, and natural gas, which are some of the planet’s natural resources. Over the years we have used enormous amounts of fossil fuel which has led to a declining supply and increased demand.
Since it takes a long period of time to form, we can’t just wait for additional fossil fuels to generate. Additionally, we are using these fuels at a phenomenal rate, which means that reserves are depleting quickly. It’s not only that they’re depleting that makes them such a poor source of energy, though. When fossil fuels are used, a lot of CO2 and other hazardous gases are released, which causes a lot of social and environmental issues and contributes to global warming. Despite the fact that fossil fuels were created millions of years ago, humanity have only been using them as fuel for a little over 200 years. But since then, we’ve used a tremendous amount of fossil fuels, raising the question of when they will run out.
Our current oil reserves are predicted to run out by 2052 if we don’t discover any new oil reservoirs. The increase in oil demand in 2018 was 1.3%, nearly twice the average yearly rate over the previous ten years. Our oil stocks are depleting more quickly than those of our other fossil fuels since demand is mostly driven by the transportation sector.
According to the most recent edition of the IEA’s World Energy Outlook 2022, the global energy crisis brought on by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is bringing about significant and long-lasting changes that could speed the switch to a more secure and sustainable energy system. These new initiatives aid in driving global clean energy investment to more than $2 trillion a year by 2030, an increase of more than 50% from now, according to the WEO’s Stated Policies Scenario, which is based on the most recent policy settings worldwide. The upside for coal from the current crisis is temporary in this scenario as renewables, sustained by nuclear power, see continuous advances. A peak in global emissions is consequently attained in 2025. The 2020’s see a significant reorientation of the global energy markets as nations adapt to the disruption of Russia-European flows.
The energy crisis was caused by our reliance on fossil fuels, and if we continue to rely on them, we risk further escalation of the problem to the point where there is no turning back. But it’s not surprising that fossil fuel companies don’t want to contribute to the solution given that the present energy crisis has led to record profits for them. The continued expansion of fossil fuels is incompatible with keeping global warming below 1.5°C, and the fossil fuel industry’s short-term concentration on profits could lead to further climate instability. We have witnessed and lived the impact of climate crisis over last several years and it has been dreadful. While most countries have already set their targets some are still lagging behind and need to speed up before more damage is done.