Peak Oil

“If we look to the immediate future, I think that there’s issues far bigger than Government coming down the tracks... It seems to me that we’re now at Peak Oil production globally so we’re entering the age of scarcity...It’s not until oil hits €200, €250, €300 a barrel that people will accept it...”

Eddie Hobbs


“when demand outstrips supply around 2014 or 2015. There won’t be enough oil and gas by the middle of the next decade.”

Christophe de Margerie  CEO of Total, September 2009

What would happen if the recent rises in petrol prices kept happening? The price of petrol got higher and higher. Could you afford to drive your car? Could you afford the rise in food prices from our reliance on imported food? Could you afford to keep your house warm in the winter? Have you got a transport system in your town that could take the change?

A constant rise in oil price is what will happen when we reach Peak Oil. Peak Oil is when our oil reserves reach a point of highest production and start to lead into a permanent dip in production resulting in a continual rise in the price of oil. Many experts believe that this has already happened and prices will not drop again. The major energy groups and many leaders in the oil industry itself believes that it will happen in this decade.

Oil depletion does not just mean a rise in petrol prices. Our plastics, our pharmaceuticals and our fertilisers for food production are all created using crude oil. Indeed just about all our everyday products and services depend on oil and will rise in cost. With the growing economies in Asia looking to get their share of oil and its byproducts there will be even more demand on these scarce resources.

Carbon emissions from fossil fuels are adding to Global Warming which is already showing it’s effects in the Third World. We can no longer so heavily depend on a depleting resource that is destroying our planet.

“The Age of Cheap Oil is over; shortages could occur as early as two years in the West. No government is  prepared:--”

Faith Birol  Chief Economist,  International Energy Agency,  April 2011 

 


Why haven’t I heard of this before?

Good question. There are a number of reasons. One being that up until recently governments relied on reports from the International Energy Agency (IEA) which based it data on estimates from the markets. In 2008 it changed it’s approach to study oil fields, it now estimates we would need another four Saudi Arabia’s to just meet current demand after the expected depletion in the next twenty years. People are slowly awakening to this crisis and are now looking for solutions.

Scientists are working on alternatives but no alternatives out there can meet the complete reliance we have built on the easy energy supply of oil. The only real solution is to look at ways we can cut down on our energy usage in society.


“The oil crunch will be worse than the credit crunch”

Jeremy Leggett  UK Task Force on Energy,  April 2011 


The good news is there is something you can do...

We can look at ways that we can cut down our reliance on oil.  And the solutions are simple. In Ireland we rely too much on food imports from abroad when we have plenty of local farmers selling better quality produce. The money we give to these farmers not only puts money into the economy it cuts down on the oil used in transportation and also cuts down on carbon emissions.  Why not look at the labels on your food and buy local? Ask your shops, supermarkets and restaurants to buy local. Go to local markets. Even better grow your own vegetables. It doesn’t take much to grow a few vegetables, fruit bushes or herbs in the garden or an allotment and the fresh taste is just delicious!
Look at how you can make your house more energy efficient with solar energy. Look at public transport alternatives. Cycle or walk to the shops rather than taking the car (it’ll even keep you fitter). Write to local politicians to improve public transport and cycle lanes in your area.

 


“Gas is running low...”

Amelia Earhart  (before she disappeared forever)