Fossil fuels destroy ecosystems, threaten human rights and impact public health at every stage of their production. From the search for new fossil fuel supplies, to massive infrastructure projects, to refining which poisons neighbouring communities and finally consumption which releases CO2 and other greenhouse gases that cause global warming, every phase of fossil fuel production is loaded with hidden costs.
In the process of refining petroleum into gasoline, plastics and other products, oil is delivered to the refineries where local residents face the repercussions of environmental pollution, including unusually high rates of asthma, cancer, and other pollution-related illnesses.
The overall problem with energy is not mobilizing enough of it but containing the environmental consequences of its use.