The state of play and future of fossil fuels
- Department of Energy, Washington, DC (United States)
The economic strength of the United States depends on its use of fossil fuels-coal, oil, and natural gas. Today, more than 85 percent of the nation`s energy comes from boilers, furnaces, and internal combustion engines that rely on these fuels. Coal supplies more than 55 percent of our electricity, oil accounts for more than 99 percent of the fuel used for transportation, and natural gas provides approximately one-quarter of the energy consumed in the United States. Fossil fuels will continue to provide the greatest share of the energy required to keep our economy strong well into the next century. Recent forecasts by the Department of Energy`s Energy Information Administration (EIA) project that, even with significant increases in energy efficiency and marketability of renewable energy resources, 88 percent of our national energy supply will be supplied by fossil fuels by the year 2015. Even in a world with increasing appreciation for the environmental and health costs of energy use, fossil fuels are not {open_quotes}fuels of the past.{close_quotes} While fossil fuels are finite energy resources, the Unites States-after more than two centuries of consumption-still has enough coal and natural gas to last for decades, if not centuries. Even large quantities of crude oil remain in US fields; in fact, for every barrel of oil produced in the United States, two barrels have been left in the ground, creating a hugh target for new exploration and production technology. This article examines three of the most significate factors in the nations future ability to tap secure domestic energy resources: environmental concerns, regulatory restructuring, and technological progress.
- OSTI ID:
- 478385
- Journal Information:
- Natural Resources and Environment, Vol. 11, Issue 3; Other Information: PBD: Win 1997
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Coal: The bridge to future world energy sustainability
Can a Nuclear-Assisted Biofuels System Enable Liquid Biofuels as the Economic Low-carbon Replacement for All Liquid Fossil Fuels and Hydrocarbon Feedstocks and Enable Negative Carbon Emissions?