Coal, Oil and Gas are called “fossil fuels”, because they have been formed from the fossilised remains of the prehistoric plants and animals. They provide around 66% of the world’s electrical power, and 95% of the worlds total energy demands which includes heating transport, electricity generation and many more uses. Coal is crushed to a fine powder before being burnt, and the oil and natural gases can be burnt as they are. They burn the fuels as they are so that it can heat up water, so that the water will turn to steam. The steam then turns turbines and the turbines turn the generators. In that way, electricity flows and can be used. Afterwards, the steam is released into the air, and that is what is commonly seen coming from the huge towers at the power plants. However, this steam is also carrying chemicals and other pollutants etc. That come fro the fuels being burnt also come out within the steam from the boiled water. The advantages of using this method, is that you can produce lots of energy at one time, which makes it a lot cheaper. It isn’t difficult transporting oil and gas to the stations. Gas-fired power stations are very efficient. And you can build a power station anywhere as long as you can get the fuel to the station. However, the disadvantages of using this method are relatively big-Pollution, a major factor of this method. When burning the fuel carbon dioxide is made. This contributes to the ‘green house effect’ which is resulting in global warming. Mining coal is very dangerous and strip mining takes away land and destroys areas. The station must have a continuous supply of fuel, due to the fact that the fuel burns very quickly, so a constant supply is needed to keep the levels of productivity up, and so enough electricity can be made with the demand that is needed today. Also, it is not a renewable energy source, so once it’s gone ... It’s gone. Even though, more fossil fuels are being made, but they will only be useable in a million years or more. So it is sensible to say that every twenty years, our consumption of fossil fuels doubles (ever since 1900). So it seems that the “cons” are bigger that the “pros”. So in the end it seems better to be using renewable energy sources