What Will We Drive When There Will Be No Fossil Fuels Left?
September 22nd, 2010Been to the gas station recently? Was it hard on the wallet? It must have been, what with the recent trend of oil prices skyrocketing. Our government is pretty much powerless to stop this ongoing trend, because oil supplies around the world are depleting, and it may not be long before we spend at least $5, or maybe even $10 or more per gallon to get our cars gassed up. It is now more important than ever to find an alternate source of fuel, since the world’s oil supplies may be running out for good in due time. As a response to this ongoing oil crisis, many governments have been promoting gimmicks such as hybrid cars, but the effects haven’t been to obvious yet.
All alternative fuels have their pros and cons, but determining the best alternative to fossil fuels depends on the right balance of these pros and cons. Cars that run on electric power do not emit any harmful emissions but they are less powerful and need frequent recharges. Using compressed natural gas is another alternative, but like electric cars, automobiles that run on this gas aren’t too powerful and can only carry so much gas in the tank - not to mention, the tank itself is quite costly. Hydrogen powered cars are shaping up to be the best alternative, but aren’t quite the best yet due to a lack of filling stations and a lack of proven safety records.
We’re not exactly trying to preach here, but developed countries should do their part by conserving existing resources and developing fuels for the future instead of using the national budget to fund senseless wars or send men and women off to dangerous space missions. For if we have no fuel how will we fill up the space shuttle and the jet planes that fight wars? We could also encourage more Americans to take up cycling as an alternative means of transport. Or if you want to go really extreme, maybe we should go back to riding horses and carriages just like in the 19th century and earlier days.
It would be a weird, but interesting sight to see parking lots with area for horses, or men and women in business attire riding horses to work like Paul Revere, Billy The Kid or other figures of bygone eras.
Let’s face the fact that there is a good chance we may soon be living in a world without oil, and we may soon need to consider the viability of cars as opposed to horses or bikes.
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