As you know, our world is heavily dependent on fossil fuels for meeting our energy needs. In Chapter 6 of Contemporary Environmental Issues, you have read that there is concern about the possibility of reaching a peak in oil production, and even coal and natural gas will eventually run out. (Next week, in Chapter 7 of the textbook, we will read about an even more pressing reason for no longer relying on fossil fuels: global climate change.) Chapter 8 of Contemporary Environmental Issues introduces a variety of possible alternative energy sources, including nuclear power and many renewable options like wind power and solar energy. Next week, you will be participating in a collaborative project aimed at developing an alternative energy plan for a particular community – the details of which won’t be revealed until then. For now, let’s all pool our research into what possible energy choices might be able to help us move away from fossil fuels.

Identify two alternatives to fossil fuels that is currently available. Discuss the barriers that keep these alternatives from replacing coal, oil, and natural gas as our primary means of energy. Discuss the role that government plays in ensuring a transition to these renewable alternatives in a post-carbon world.