Michael Rosenthal

(9/2020) In the course of writing Real Science articles, I try very hard to stay away from political positions, but in writing about environment it has become impossible to do so. The current administration’s policies day after day for almost four years have had negative effects on the environment, and we will discuss some of them here.

A very seriously dangerous gas released into the environment is methane, a simply structured molecule consisting of one carbon atom and four hydrogen atoms, CH4. In the previous administration the President developed rules to limit methane emissions into the atmosphere. Methane is a ‘greenhouse gas,’ one that contributes to global warming and has other toxic climate and health impacts. The current administration recently canceled these rules, despite the fact that the large oil and gas companies of the United States considered them reasonable and were willing to cooperate in the new policy.

The growth in natural gas extraction over the last twenty years has had a strong positive impact on our ability to move away from the burning of fossil fuels such as coal because it releases only about half the carbon dioxide that coal burning emits. Coal is the worst fuel as far as environmental impact goes. These benefits can be lost, however, if leaks in the fuel production process allow methane to enter the environment uncombusted. If I were still teaching college chemistry, I would tell my students how practically useful studying chemistry is in understanding political and environmental issues. Hooray for the liberal arts and sciences! But I digress.

A study group called The Global Carbon Project found that methane emissions have increased almost ten percent in the last twenty years, and a leading cause is this methane leakage from the energy sector. Specifically methane emissions from drilling and transporting the fuel were up some 17 percent in this period. Though some drillers work hard to capture these methane emissions, it appears that other drillers are less responsible and do not work to contain the leaks.

The rules instituted in the previous presidential administration cost industry dollars, but responsible companies readily accept that expense, realizing that long-term protection of the environment is so very important. Isn’t it a fact of human nature that some folks are more responsible than others? That in my mind is the reason that environmental protection laws must be passed and seriously enforced. The greedy and irresponsible, by no means the whole industry, can do a lot of damage. Such a consistent nation-wide law overrides the patchwork approach that would come if regulation were determined state-by-state. One of things that is so obvious in day-by-day news is the difference in approach to regulations between the previous and the current administrations. I believe, regardless of your political affiliation, one should support the policy that considers long-term effects and supports the maintenance of a stable planet Earth. It’s the only planet we’ve got.

This issue brings back memories of my childhood in Youngstown, Ohio, a city that was a leader in the nation’s steel production. The economy was good, and my family and friends prospered because of it. But always in the background was the water and air pollution that came from weak regulation of the industry. The Mahoning River actually once caught fire! The cause was industrial emissions dumped into the river that were flammable. Air quality was always a problem, especially near the steel mills and their related industries. All that is gone now. The mills have closed.

The economy of Youngstown is different, the population is much smaller, and air and water pollution is down. If this history, where science and economics intersect, interests any of you readers, I recommend several books about Youngstown, especially Steeltown U.S.A. by Sherry Lee Linkon and John Russo (University Press of Kansas, 2002). They are the cofounders and co-directors of The Center for Working-Class Studies at Youngstown State University. I can’t help but digress a bit. There is also a fascinating book entitled Crimetown, U.S.A, The history of The Mahoning Valley Mafia from 1933-1963 by Allan R. May. There is a relationship. The steel industry’s economic impact made organized crime a profitable profession.

As if that isn’t enough to trigger environmental depression there has been a surprising record high found in June in the amount of greenhouse gases actually in the air. The amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the air in May hit an average of 417 parts per million. This is the highest monthly average ever recorded in human history! To some extent this finding is surprising, because the pandemic impacts have led to a steep drop in greenhouse gas emissions in general. It isn’t just human consumption that determines the total amount of CO2.

It also comes from processes in the forests and oceans, such as El Nino and record high use of fossil fuels. Wildfires and deforestation also lead to increases in CO2 as do the long-term effects of many years of previous emission. The increase in the last year slowed, but not enough to relax and stop being concerned. Experts say that levels will not decrease until human activities change so much that more greenhouse gases are removed from than are added to the atmosphere. And if that isn’t enough to depress you, CO2 can remain in the atmosphere for up to 1,000 years!

We’ve written in the past about nuclear energy, its pluses and its minuses, and events that have taken place in the industry. The United States, I remind you, has a very good record on nuclear safety. My family and I lived in southern Maryland near the Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Facility, and it has had an impeccable safety and production record. Nuclear reactors, like college professors, eventually get old and tired ( a little joke!), and they have to be retired. The Unit 2 reactor at Indian Point Center on the Hudson River near New York City is closing for good, as well as Unit 3, which closes in April 2021. This plant generated a quarter of the electricity used in New York City and Westchester County, where the plant is located.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has already renewed and extended (as of September 2019) the operating licenses from 40 to 60 years for 90 of the 98 operating United States nuclear reactors. There is consideration of renewals for up to 80 years of operation. There is not a universal agreement in the nuclear industry across the world on how many years a nuclear reactor can be productive and safe.

New energy producers such as natural gas and increased energy production efficiency will provide the necessary electricity upon the nuclear closings. When we lived in Dutchess County, New York, for 19 years, we frequently passed by the Indian Point facility. When we lived in St. Mary’s County, Maryland for 19 years, we passed by the Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Plant almost daily. In that period there was never a serious malfunction occurrence at either plant.

Read other articles by Michael Rosenthal