What are the environmental consequences of the increasing demand for energy ?

solution:

(i) Burning of fossil fuels to meet increasing demand for energy causes air-pollution.

(ii) Construction of dams on rivers to generate hydro-electricity destroys large ecosystems which get submerged under water in the dams. Large amounts of methane (which is a greenhouse gas) is produced when submerged vegetation rots under anaerobic conditions.

In order to reduce energy consumption

(i) Fossil fuels should be used with caution to get their maximum benefit

(ii) Energy efficient devices such as pressure cookers, compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs), etc. should be used

(iii) The devices/machines used for energy conversion should be maintained or repaired regularly in order to keep them efficient

(iv) We should use electricity or any other source of energy judiciously as ‘energy saved is energy produced’-