The year is 2200. The world is experiencing a shortage of fossil fuels. Oil reserves are almost completely consumed and it is becoming impossible to find new sources of fossil fuels. Unprepared for this event to occur, the United States has no alternative options. Due to oil shortages, living standards worsen. Heat in homes, in supermarkets full of food, and in transportation, all basic necessities taken for granted, will be depleted because fossil fuels are used to power almost everything. The key to preventing this future is renewable energy. Unfortunately, support for the use of renewable energy is weak and ineffective. Unless the United States commits to researching and promoting the use of renewable energy to consumers, converting from fossil fuels to renewable energy will no longer be an option. The large-scale use of fossil fuels, particularly coal, began with the industrial revolution. in England. Industries/corporations first used coal as the main source of energy to power their factories, and it became even more popular when railroads began. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, “…by the early 20th century, coal had become the primary fuel in the United States, accounting for nearly 75 percent of the nation’s energy needs.” Soon after, demand for newer, cheaper fossil fuels, such as oil and natural gas, became high. Energy Supplies, Sustainability, and Costs, by Sandra Alters, states that oil was used as the main fuel source to heat homes and offices, and gas powered an increasing number of cars (57). “Oil pushed aside coal as the world's primary fuel, just as coal had replaced wood,” says Tom Mast in Over a Barrel: A Simple Guide to the Oil Shortage (15). Most Americans didn't care... half the paper... either. CSS03-11.Clay, Rebecca. “Renewable Energy: Empowering the Developing World.” Environmental Health Perspectives 110.1 (2002): A30. GreenFILE. Network. March 30, 2014. "Energy supply". World Book Advanced.World, 2014. Web. March 25, 2014Mast, Tom R. Over a Barrel: A Simple Guide to Oil Shortages. Austin: Hayden, 2005. Print. "Oil Embargo, 1973–1974 - 1969–1976 - Milestones - Historian's Office." Oil embargo, 1973-1974. US Department of State, 31 October 2013. Web. 06 April 2014. Smil, Vaclav. "The long, slow ascent of the sun and the wind." Scientific American 310.1 (2014): 52. Complete MasterFILE. Network. March 30, 2014."What governments must do."Living Green. World, 2014.Web. March 25, 2014."US Energy Information Administration - EIA - Independent Statistics and Analysis." US Energy Information Administration (EIA). U.S. Department of Energy, n.d. Web. March 25. 2014.