One of the biggest arguments against using hydrogen as an alternate source of energy is that it costs a lot more than energy derived from fossil fuels—coal, oil, and natural gas.
But what's the real cost of using these sources of energy once damage to the environment has been factored in?
Two researchers calculated that the annual cost of powering Earth with coal, natural gas, and petroleum is about three trillion U.S. dollars—or $15.58 for each gigajoule of energy generated from these traditional fuels.
Akira Fujishima, chairman of the Kanagawa Academy of Science and Technology, and T. Nejat Veziroglu, based at the University of Miami, are the researchers behind the calculation. They presented their findings today at the International Conference on Materials for Hydrogen Energy in Sydney, Australia.
Their reckoning takes present rates of energy consumption and factors in the cost of declining air and water quality, the impact of global warming on insurance premiums, and the declining quality of life.
By contrast, they say, if the world switched to energy from solar hydrogen it would cost just $13.55 per gigajoule. This is because such energy would mean significantly lower greenhouse-gas emissions, no ozone depletion, no acid rain, much lower pollution—and a higher quality of life.
The environmental cost associated with using fossil fuels "is not paid by companies," Veziroglu said. "It's paid by people through higher insurance premiums and health costs.''