Should the studies on climate change possess validity, then numerous human activities have altered the atmosphere of the Earth for the worse. Several among these activities categorize under the macrocosm of transportation. As a species, the human race continues to create and produce, which may contain threatening consequences based on these reports. Inside the category of transportation, every subcategory seems to partake in this, including automobiles, aircrafts, shipping, and railways, among countless others. Fortunately, various people and organizations have attempted to decrease the emission of greenhouse gases, or GHGs, in transportation-related technology and energy. When it comes to paying for these eco-friendly additions, …show more content…
These fuels can take multiple shapes and forms, from coal to gas to oil. As the primary sources for fuel, fossil fuels run nearly everything, ranging from houses to vehicles to electricity. Unfortunately, this would explain why fossil fuels hold a responsibility for human-caused climate change, as they power a significant number of GHG emitting methods of transportation. When it comes to climate change, transportation has appeared to have a massive impact. Based on reports in 2013 from the US Environmental Protection Agency, or the EPA, transportation has created 27% of the emissions, next to electricity at 31%. Despite not contributing the largest amount of emissions, the category, according to the EPA, has increased further than any other sector from 1990 to 2013. Of the subcategories in transportation, lightweight vehicles have appeared to emit the majority of the greenhouse gases at 60%. This sector is rivaled only by medium-duty and heavy-duty vehicles at 23%. In addition to the different fossil fuels that emit GHGs in the atmosphere, different types of gases are used. The leading gas is carbon dioxide, or CO2, with a whopping 96% of the emissions. The closest competitor is hybrid-fiber coaxials at 3%, based on the EPA’s reports. In addition, different types of transportation have appeared to affect the environment in different ways. In the sector of automobiles, the climate could be affected in different categories, from
Case Background: - In transportation industry, one of the biggest challenge is how to deal with carbon dioxide emissions and how to reduce the energy. According to the Natural Resources Canada, one third of the greenhouse emission is because of transportation industry.
Three quarters of emissions in 2004 were coming from road traffic (Woodcock, p.1930, 2009). Emissions used from transportation are forecasted to increase from the year 2007-2030 by about 80% according to studies done by James Woodcock who is currently studying climate change and health from car fuels (Woodcock, p.1930, 2009). This is due to the fact that the emissions from vehicles are increasing significantly and are higher than any other energy fragment (Woodcock, p.1930, 2009). The only way to lower this percentage is to decrease the number of individual automobiles on the road and increase the number of public transit systems, starting long distance walking to work or school, carpooling or even biking to destinations. These principles would
An urgent issue, climate change is undoubtedly a sweeping global dilemma of paramount importance. Though most people are aware of this fact, many either choose to ignore it, or acknowledge it, but take no action against it. Those who do choose to take action usually attempt to combat climate change by using the methods that are most commonly discussed: becoming more energy efficient, recycling, and reducing emissions through using more sustainable transportation. Though these actions are helpful, they are not the most efficient way to counter climate change.
“1 gallon of gas =24 pounds of global warming emissions” (UCSUSA). Many of the people in our world today don’t understand just how much The Automobile affects us, our lives, and the world we live in. Undoubtedly, the invention of the car has changed our perspective on the different technology created over the past years. However, cars are some of the leading factors towards one of the largest ongoing problems occurring in our world today. That problem goes by the name of global warming. “Since 1990, Transportation has been one of the fastest growing sources of U.S. GHG” (U.S.D.T), otherwise known as Greenhouse gasses. In which most of us know; global warming affects our health, environment, weather, and ultimately our lives. It is a
The second largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in the United States is related to transportation, the burning of oil to produce energy in a combustion motor. The combustion process inside of engines is what produces the carbon matter that is emitted into the air through the exhaust system on gas-powered vehicles. Gas-powered transportation is accountable for 24 percent of the global carbon emissions; this should not come as much of a surprise given the amount of urban sprawl that is being seen in the United States and across the globe. In the past decade, the Environmental Protection Agency, the United States government, and major car manufacturers have been working in conjunction to find ways to provide a “greener” form of transportation (EPA, 2011). This has included testing the use of hydropower, ethanol, natural gas, biodiesel, and electricity as a means of powering vehicles, which has led to the introduction of hybrid vehicles. Hybrid vehicles run on electricity and gasoline, the byproduct of oil that is generally used in the engine combustion process of vehicles (U.S. Department of
Every day, millions of Americans turn on the engines of their cars and drive to school or work. What these people do not realize is that the vehicles they operate greatly pollute the planet. According to the Environmental Protection Agency’s recent website post, “Environmental Impacts from Automobiles”,
Climate change and transportation play a big role and it is important to be concerned for our future generations. The use of gasoline cars is a major producer in carbon dioxide emissions, although they are not entirely responsible for it—they play a role in it. Other form of transportations like buses and taxis also contribute to carbon dioxide emissions. The total amount of carbon dioxide emissions from an average car is seventy six percent which comes from usage of a vehicle containing gasoline. Efficiency has increased by twenty percent in regards to electric motors, especially when it comes to their wheels using no power when the car is at rest. Car ownership will increase and with this, improvements in technology could be a vital
Climate change can be defined as a significant change in the “average weather” of any given region sustained in the long-term and can be caused by Earth 's dynamic processes, external forces including variations in sunlight intensity, and also by human activities (USEPA, 2014).
The transport sector is one of the main global consumers of fossil fuel related energy in the world. Unfortunately fossil fuel is non-renewable source of energy and the production of oil has been fluctuating in the recent past. At the same time, combustion of petroleum related fuel release greenhouse gases such as carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide that destroy the ozone layer and result to further environmental degradation. Therefore to work
Transportation is the number one thing we consumers do that harms the environment. Transportation causes the highest amount of environmental damage overall - nearly half of the toxic air pollution and more than a quarter of the greenhouse gases traceable to household consumption. Over time, however, sales of trucks, vans and SUV's went from 16% market share to over 50%. One big auto manufacturer even shelved their work of the last three years, spent updating their most popular selling economy car, so they could spend the money getting SUVs to market faster.
Take a deep breath and imagine it is Sunday morning. The birds are chirping, the air is crisp with freshness, and the sun is radiating at a perfect temperature of 62 degrees. The coast is a 6-minute drive away, and this is the perfect day to take a short journey to the rocky shore and splash in the water. However, there is one problem, an action such as driving to the beach front will almost certainly contribute to the destructive effects of climate change. Due to this claim, is it then morally obligatory to not go on this Sunday morning drive in an effort to prevent greenhouse gas emissions?
The global climate system is complex and its response to future anthropogenic greenhouse gases and to climate change adaptation, is often poorly understood. Climate change is an area where modeling in the framework of complex adaptive systems can improve our knowledge both with respect to the internal structure and adaptive mechanisms of climate and our capacity for designing efficient climate adaptation policies. Modeling of these systems includes a dynamic system consisting of transition equations describing the evolution of state variables characterizing the natural system, such as CO2 concentrations in the upper and lower atmosphere and in the oceans, and state variables characterizing the economic systems, such as physical capital and knowledge. The complex adaptive character of the system implies that the dynamic system will be nonlinear and nonconvex, will allow for nonlinear feedbacks and multiple basins of attraction, will evolve both in the temporal and spatial dimension, and will be influenced by forward looking optimizing economic agents (Xepapadeas, 2010).
Greenhouse gases come from such mainstays of modern life as electrical power plants, automobiles, and heavy industry. Growing consumption of fuel by less efficient cars and light trucks suggests that motor vehicles may soon overtake industry as the largest source of gases suspected of causing global warming by effectively creating a greenhouse around the Earth. Many people do not want to decrease their standard of living by reducing their consumption of fossil fuels. These people do not realize that if they reduce their consumption, there will be a reduction in the amount of greenhouse gases. If this does not happen and global warming continues, the long-term effects may be catastrophic.
Oil majors are caught in a dilemma between being reactive or proactive in facing the rising urgency of climate change mitigation. Action on global warming mandates leaves oil companies no choice but to divest their assets in the carbon-intensive oil industry and shift their interest to low-carbon energy portfolios, their corporate strategies will have to either gamble on maximizing short-term profits in oil production while facing increasing climate change risks, or adapt their strategies in response to such risks and gain the advantage of a head start in low-carbon economy. This study examines an array of drivers in an attempt to model oil majors’ behaviour in addressing climate change, and what incentives that would trigger a shift in their interest towards a greener energy portfolio. In doing so, the study creates synthesis for each of these factors in case-specific situations for a number of the biggest oil majors. These factors include internal, regional and economic drivers that are examined in literature historically, as well as a contemporary perspective on surfacing challenges such as the declining Energy Return on Energy Invested ratio, especially for unconventional oil production, and what the implications will be for the oil industry.
Truck transportation has been the backbone of freight movements in the United States and across the globe for decades. While utilizing trucks is an economical way to move freight for short hauls of less than a 1,000 miles, there are high environmental and infrastructure costs for utilizing this mode of transportation. According to Lowe, road transportation’s use of energy resources rose 103 per cent in the period since 1970 (2005). Additionally, Lowe points out that road transportation’s emission of green house gasses, “increased by 76% between 1971 and 1989” (Lowe, 2005, p. 112). Furthermore, road transportation is the largest polluter in the industry. It utilizes “over 80% of the total energy used in the transport sector and contributes over 75% of its total CO2 output (Lowe, 2005, p. 113). Finally, freight transportation by heavy vehicles causes pavement damage at significantly higher rates than passenger traffic (SSTI, 2011).