Fossil fuel

A fossil fuel[a] is a carbon compound- or hydrocarbon-containing material[2] formed naturally in the Earth's crust from the buried remains of prehistoric organisms (animals, plants or planktons), a process that occurs within geological formations.

Reservoirs of such compound mixtures, such as coal, petroleum and natural gas, can be extracted and burnt as fuel for human consumption to provide energy for direct use (such as for cooking, heating or lighting), to power heat engines (such as steam or internal combustion engines) that can propel vehicles, or to generate electricity via steam turbine generators.

[3] Some fossil fuels are further refined into derivatives such as kerosene, gasoline and diesel, or converted into petrochemicals such as polyolefins (plastics), aromatics and synthetic resins.

[6] Natural carbon cycle processes on Earth, mostly absorption by the ocean, can remove only a small part of this, and terrestrial vegetation loss due to deforestation, land degradation and desertification further compounds this deficiency.

[7] Although methane leaks are significant,[8]: 52  the burning of fossil fuels is the main source of greenhouse gas emissions causing global warming and ocean acidification.

[10][11] Recognition of the climate crisis, pollution and other negative impacts caused by fossil fuels has led to a widespread policy transition and activist movement focused on ending their use in favor of renewable and sustainable energy.

[23] Aquatic phytoplankton and zooplankton that died and sedimented in large quantities under anoxic conditions millions of years ago began forming petroleum and natural gas as a result of anaerobic decomposition.

The resulting high temperature and pressure caused the organic matter to chemically alter, first into a waxy material known as kerogen, which is found in oil shales, and then with more heat into liquid and gaseous hydrocarbons in a process known as catagenesis.

The invention of the internal combustion engine and its use in automobiles and trucks greatly increased the demand for gasoline and diesel oil, both made from fossil fuels.

The energy for the Green Revolution was provided by fossil fuels in the form of fertilizers (natural gas), pesticides (oil), and hydrocarbon-fueled irrigation.

Burning coal, and to a lesser extent oil and its derivatives, contributes to atmospheric particulate matter, smog and acid rain.

[9] Climate change is largely driven by the release of greenhouse gases like CO2, and the burning of fossil fuels is the main source of these emissions.

[44] This includes contributing to the extinction of species and reducing people's ability to produce food, thus adding to the problem of world hunger.

These materials are used in a wide variety of applications (see Fly ash reuse), utilizing, for example,[clarification needed] about 40% of the United States production.

Environmental regulation uses a variety of approaches to limit these emissions; for example, rules against releasing waste products like fly ash into the atmosphere.

He also claimed there is still cause for hope, anticipating the US plan to join other large emitters like China and the EU in adopting targets to reach net zero emissions by 2050.

These health effects include premature death, acute respiratory illness, aggravated asthma, chronic bronchitis and decreased lung function.

[64] While all energy sources inherently have adverse effects, the data show that fossil fuels cause the highest levels of greenhouse gas emissions and are the most dangerous for human health.

[75] In 2019, Saudi Aramco was listed and it reached a US$2 trillion valuation on its second day of trading,[79] after the world's largest initial public offering.

Or they may be free or cheap negative externalities; such as air pollution or climate change due to burning gasoline, diesel and jet fuel.

[84] The International Energy Agency says: "High fossil fuel prices hit the poor hardest, but subsidies are rarely well-targeted to protect vulnerable groups and tend to benefit better-off segments of the population.

[90] Because of their wealth and the importance of energy, transport and chemical industries to local, national and international economies, these lobbies have the capacity and money to attempt to have outsized influence on governmental policy.

[92] The American Petroleum Institute is a powerful industry lobbyist for Big Oil with significant influence in Washington, D.C.[93][94][95] In Australia, Australian Energy Producers, formerly known as the Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association (APPEA), has significant influence in Canberra and helps to maintain favorable policy settings for Oil and Gas.

Since oil fields are located only at certain places on Earth, [ 19 ] only some countries are oil-independent; the other countries depend on the oil-production capacities of these countries.
Net income of the global oil and gas industry reached a record US$4 trillion in 2022. [ 27 ]
After recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic , energy company profits increased with greater revenues from higher fuel prices resulting from the Russian invasion of Ukraine , falling debt levels, tax write-downs of projects shut down in Russia, and backing off from earlier plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. [ 28 ] Record profits sparked public calls for windfall taxes . [ 28 ]
The Global Carbon Project shows how additions to CO 2 since 1880 have been caused by different sources ramping up one after another.
Global surface temperature reconstruction over the last 2000 years using proxy data from tree rings, corals, and ice cores in blue. [ 42 ] Directly observational data is in red, with all data showing a 5 year moving average. [ 43 ]
Annual CO 2 emissions by region . This measures fossil fuel and industry emissions. Land use change is not included. [ 50 ]
Deaths caused as a result of fossil fuel use (areas of rectangles in chart) greatly exceed those resulting from production of renewable energy (rectangles barely visible in chart). [ 60 ]
Bloomberg NEF reported that in 2022, global energy transition investment equaled fossil fuels investment for the first time. [ 67 ]
As of 2021, 1,300 institutions possessing US$14.6 trillion have divested from the fossil fuel industry. [ 70 ]
Fossil-fuel subsidies per capita, 2019. Fossil-fuel pre-tax subsidies per capita are measured in constant US dollars.