Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
So far we have seen that the overall impact of fossil fuels on our environment is tremendously positive.
But let's step back and ask this: Why are we concerned about our environment? Why are we concerned,
say, about pollution? Of course, most fundamentally we desire human flourishing but in particular we de-
sire human
health.
Therefore, in looking at fossil fuels and environmental quality, it's important to look at
not just how they help us transform our environment for the better, but also how they help us transform
ourselves
for the better through health technology.
Let's look at the trends: infant mortality, mortality under five, malnutrition, and life expectancy.
Figure 7.2: Health Trends Improving Across the Board and Around the World
Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators (WDI) Online Data, April 2014
Every one of these graphs represents a collection of real people, many of whom have been recently em-
powered by energy and many of whom who are suffering every day for lack of it.
World life expectancy at birth has gone up from sixty-three in 1980 to seventy in 2012. The child mor-
tality rate on the planet went down from 115 to 47 per 1,000 live births. Infant mortality declined from 80
to 35 per 1,000 live births in the same time period.
25
The incidence of tuberculosis, an infectious disease
that particularly threatens poor people with little access to modern medicine, has declined from 147 per
100,000 population in 1990, when the World Bank's record begins, to 122 in 2012.
26
Malnutrition, defined
by the percentage of children under five with significantly below average weight or height for their age,
has been constantly decreasing at a significant rate since 1990.
27
Access to electricity and improved wa-
