Why should I worry about saving energy when it will last forever?

Question

Why should I worry about saving energy when it will last forever?

Answer 1

People worry because it gives off carbon dioxide which is bad for us and it wastes money. Below there is a story about Global Warming. Your welcome!

Global warming -- a gradual increase in planet-wide temperatures -- is now well documented and accepted by scientists as fact. A panel convened by the U.S National Research Council, the nation's premier science policy body, in June 2006 voiced a "high level of confidence" that Earth is the hottest it has been in at least 400 years, and possibly even the last 2,000 years. Studies indicate that the average global surface temperature has increased by approximately 0.5-1.0°F (0.3-0.6°C) over the last century. This is the largest increase in surface temperature in the last 1,000 years and scientists are predicting an even greater increase over this century. This warming is largely attributed to the increase of greenhouse gases (primarily carbon dioxide and methane) in the Earth's upper atmosphere caused by human burning of fossil fuels, industrial, farming, and deforestation activities.

Average global temperatures may increase by 1.4-5.8ºC (that's 2.5 - 10.4º F) by the end of the 21st century. Although the numbers sound small, they can trigger significant changes in climate. (The difference between global temperatures during an Ice Age and an ice-free period is only about 5ºC.) Besides resulting in more hot days, many scientists believe an increase in temperatures may lead to changes in precipitation and weather patterns. Warmer ocean water may result in more intense and frequent tropical storms and hurricanes. Sea levels are also expected to increase by 0.09 - 0.88 m. in the next century, mainly from melting glaciers and expanding seawater . Global warming may also affect wildlife and species that cannot survive in warmer environments may become extinct. Finally, human health is also at stake, as global warming may result in the spreading of certain diseases such as malaria, the flooding of major cities, a greater risk of heat stroke for individuals, and poor air quality.

Climate change is very likely having an impact now on our planet and its life, according to the latest installment of a report published by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). And the future problems caused by rising seas, growing deserts, and more frequent droughts all look set to affect the developing world more than rich countries, they add. The report is the second chapter of the IPCC's Fourth Assessment -- the most comprehensive summary yet of research into the causes and effects of climate change. To read more, visit Effects of climate change tallied up.

Factors

Greenhouse Gases

The increase in greenhouse gases caused by human activity is often cited as one of the major causes of global warming. These greenhouse gases reabsorb heat reflected from the Earth's surface, thus trapping the heat in our atmosphere. This natural process is essential for life on Earth because it plays an important role in regulating the Earth's temperature. However, over the last several hundred years, humans have been artificially increasing the concentration of these gases, mainly carbon dioxide and methane in the Earth's atmosphere. These gases build up and prevent additional thermal radiation from leaving the Earth, thereby trapping excess heat.

Solar Variability & Global Warming

Some uncertainty remains about the role of natural variations in causing climate change. Solar variability certainly plays a minor role, but it looks like only a quarter of the recent variations can be attributed to the Sun. At most. During the initial discovery period of global warming, the magnitude of the influence of increased activity on the Sun was not well determined.

Solar irradiance changes have been measured reliably by satellites for only 30 years. These precise observations show changes of a few tenths of a percent that depend on the level of activity in the 11-year solar cycle. Changes over longer periods must be inferred from other sources. Estimates of earlier variations are important for calibrating the climate models. While a component of recent global warming may have been caused by the increased solar activity of the last solar cycle, that component was very small compared to the effects of additional greenhouse gases. According to a NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) press release, "...the solar increases do not have the ability to cause large global temperature increases...greenhouse gases are indeed playing the dominant role..." The Sun is once again less bright as we approach solar minimum, yet global warming continues.

HUMANS MADE THIS MESS AND WE ARE THE ONLY ONES WHO CAN CLEAN IT UP! SAVE THE WORLD! SEA LEVELS WILL RISE, MORE INTENSE HURRICANES, AND DIRTY AIR! RECYCLE: PAPER, PLASTIC, AND BOTTLES! *YES WE CAN STOP GLOBAL WARMING!*

Answer 2

When I was growing up we used to drink from the garden hose, and I remember adults saying, "Go ahead, there's plenty more where that came from."

Now I know that this isn't necessarily true.  I live now in Southern California, and a major earthquake could sever the aquaduct that delivers a fair amount of the water to our area.  My area does have other sources of water, including an underground aquifer, and above-ground reservoirs that would buy time until repairs could be made.

Your claim that energy will last forever is simplistic.  There will always be some sort of energy available -- the sun shining in the sky everyday is testimony to that -- but right now we rely overall on sources that are finite and exhaustable. Conserving energy helps those supplies last longer, and buys us time to develop other energy sources, such as wind, solar, geothermal, etc.

So why should you worry?  One should always be concerned for the future.  Why do most of us sock away money for retirement?  We don't want to live miserably, should we be able to enjoy a long life.  So, assuming you want to live long and prosper, as it were, you should save energy as a means of ensuring a more prosperous future.

Answer 3

if that would like energy from the sun of from the forces of nature .............

Answer 4

People worry about saving energy. They worry because if we don't save energy the fossil fuels, coal, and other will get burnt more than usual. That is what causes many bad things to the environment. It is important to save energy. The less energy you use the less money you pay and the less C02 coming. It might be costing more than usual also.

Hope I answered your question good.

Answer 5

Wind and solar energy will last forever but fossil fuels take millions of years to make and at the rate we're using them they just won't. People are also switching to other forms of energy because coal and oil are so expensive, so if fossil fuels are expensive and we conserve oil we will save money.

Answer 6

Energy is infinite. it only converts to one form to another. but the problem is our source is been depleted we need to locate new source or else ? we might regret it !