How the Fossil Fuels Started
Between roughly 360 and 66 million years ago, vast amounts of plants and algae lived and died but were not fully decomposed. This was partly due to low-oxygen conditions in swamps, wetlands, and ocean basins, which slowed decay. Another key factor was that many plants, especially trees, had evolved to form cells containing lignin, a polymer that fungi and bacteria were unable to break down efficiently. As a result, large amounts of plant material accumulated.
Over time, these thick layers of dead organic matter were buried by sediments. Heat and pressure acting over millions of years transformed it into coal, oil, and fossil gas. An enormous store of energy was built up underground.
A Vicious Trap
Around that virtual campfire, it dawned on me what a vicious trap this is, and I got furious about the setup on this planet. It was like the Earth said with a skewed grin:
– Hi, here is almost endless energy. When you have figured out how to use it, you have a few generations to realise that carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas, then build global institutions and stop yourself from burning it all. Or we all die. Good luck!
It took me a few weeks to calm down after this experience, make sense of it, and forgive both us humans and the planet.
I Forgive the Planet
We are doing today what those plants did back then: we use all available energy to grow and don’t circulate resources. And at the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, we didn’t know better. We were just happy to become modern, get a car and a washing machine, and fly on holiday trips. So, we are now burning sunlight gathered over 300 million years, in just a few hundred years.
However, I think we humans are doing very well, considering the circumstances. We are figuring out the science of climate change, forming global institutions, and moving towards green energy. It’s far from enough, and we must take a giant evolutionary leap to deal with our future on planet Earth.
And I also forgive the planet; it’s not easy to set up a fair energy resource for your first cultural revolution.