Prior to 1840, America (and the rest of the world) was a highly agricultural, rural, wood burning society. Manual labor powered the economy, including slavery in many parts of the world. This is as the civilized world had operated essentially since the dawn of agriculture. Beyond the limited usage of windmills and hydropower, energy usage had changed little since the time of Christ. From an energy standpoint, we should rightly view the time prior to 1840 as the "Energy Dark Ages".
Between 1840 and 1910, railroads were king -- powered by Old King Coal. Coal powered the Industrial Revolution, long before electricity or automobiles were common. For the first time in history, fast transcontinental commerce was possible. In the 1850s, my ancestors moved from their family farm in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia to virgin Iowa prairie. The railroad came to Iowa in the 1850s and connected those Midwestern family farms to the booming railroad hub of Chicago. The family farm was forever changed by the railroad and the emergence of John Deere, Sears Roebuck and other suppliers of implements that gradually made farming less and less manual work.
This map illustrates the dramatic impact of railroads in the Midwest in the 1850s:
Source: http://www.econ.barnard.columbia.edu/~econhist/papers/Margo_w14640.pdf
In the late 1800s, electrical power began to emerge. By the turn of the century, the internal combustion engine was born along with a new petroleum derivative previously thought worthless: gasoline. But from 1840 to 1910, coal's usage continued to grow until it peaked near 1910 at 76.8% of our energy consumption.
After 1910, petroleum usage exploded as automobiles became more and more common. Oil was also used for electrical power generation but the 1970s energy shocks led to a resurgence of coal consumption -- but this time for electrical power generation and not for transportation or industry. Coal had powered the 19th century's transportation needs but oil quickly became the 20th century's transportation fuel of choice. All the while, America became increasingly more and more urban as farmers were able to produce more with less effort (manual labor, that is) to feed the growing urban populations. Fossil fuel energy made all of this possible by supplying enough energy to keep up with the needs of an ever evolving economy.
So the history should be clear. We have much to be thankful for. The benefits of fossil fuels have thus far outweighed the costs (oil spill, anyone?). But fossil fuels are nonrenewable and by definition unsustainable. We cannot rely on them in perpetuity. We should regard them as a great gift that has enabled us to get to where we are today. As with any great resource, we should be wise stewards of the gift. We should not curse the gift, nor should we recklessly waste it. In time, we will move to renewable energy... but the key words are "in time". It took decades for coal and oil to get established and it will be decades before renewable energy is widespread and viable. It will be on a timeline dictated by circumstances and technology as they evolve and not artificially inflamed climate hysterics.
2 Response to America: The Blessings of Fossil Fuels
One point is that the increase in coal and the increse in petroluem usage was brought about by need not politics. I do belive that a lot of the "renewable" energy will be brought about by politics. We will still be using oil and gas in 100 year but it will most likely be in the context of coal. Example: Originally used for transportaation but now used for power.
Need, not politics, is certainly driving the usage of coal and oil in the developing world, i.e. China and India. It's human nature -- we always adapt in order to survive. Even if the climate alarmists are right, human history proves that humans always adapt to climate changes. Native Americans settled this hemisphere in search of greener pastures, chasing game during the last Ice Age. Humans will continue to burn oil and coal as long as the economics make sense. Renewables will only take over the market when the technology gets to the point that the economics make it a better choice than oil or coal.
I think my next post will be about all the revenue the Feds get from OCS royalties versus all the risk that coastal states like Louisiana take on for OCS drilling. While I agree that BP alone is responsible for this spill, it should be pointed out how much money the federal govt has made over the decades from OCS royalties. Money that would have been spent on foreign oil and added to massive debt we already own to China. Stay tuned...
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