Energising Degradation

One of the several gas stations found in Trinidad's urban districts.

            "Fill me up," a quote you would hear several times a day in this spot. This gas station in Tunapuna is one of many located in the urban centers of Trinidad. Its purpose is to provide the fuel needed by hundreds of commuters on a daily basis. Towns and cities have served to increase the use of energy not only by the means depicted here but also by all other aspects of urban life. This has lead to environmental harm due to the way this energy is obtained and how much is used.

            Automobiles, buildings, neon lights advertisements and people all use energy, and one thing is common between all these, they are highly centered in urban zones. The means of the majority of energy production comes from burning fossil fuels. In Trinidad, this is not different, especially since it is a producer of natural gas. This point is particularly important, as energy cost in the country is quite cheap due to subsidies. Hence, wasting of energy is quite prevalent and has thereby lent to increased degradation.

            Overall, the main impact of the overconsumption of energy is the emission of greenhouse gases, which lead to global warming and subsequently climate change. Urban areas have been found to perpetuate this trend due to the number of activities that require energy. Apart from this, automobile use and industrial processes also produces other harm air pollutants when burning fuel for energy. These gases are emitted into the atmosphere leading to urban smog (Dodman 2009).

            Trinidad's inefficient use of energy has been well documented. In an Express article, the country's energy intensity index, which indicates how much energy is used to produce $1 of GDP, was found to be 4.8. Consequentially proving how wasteful Trinidad really is especially when compared to Barbados's index that is five times less at 0.9 (Renwick 2012). Therefore, the effects noted would be very substantial especially in the urban hubs where most of these moneymaking processes occur.

For more on this article see:

http://www.trinidadexpress.com/business-magazine/T_T_s_wasted_energy-162821396.html

            Overall, urban growth has lead to increased energy consumption in the country. Therefore, there is quite an apparent need for service stations such as the one depicted. However, such overuse of energy is adversely affecting the environment.

                                                                     References

           Dodman, David. 2009."Urban density and climate change." Analytical Review of the Interaction between Urban Growth Trends and Environmental Changes Paper 1.

            Renwick, David. 2012."T&T's wasted energy." Trinidad Express, 17 July. Accessed 22 March 2014. http://www.trinidadexpress.com/business-magazine/T_T_s_wasted_energy-162821396.html.