Peak Oil

[herme3]

When do you believe the production of oil will peak and then start to decline? Since oil is a limited resource, I think it will definitely happen someday. I recommend that you visit http://www.dyingcivilization.org for some basic information about this problem. I think the most interesting part is how ethanol and the other alternative energy sources are not currently able to replace fossil fuels, which is the opposite of what many people think.

 

After you understand the issue, you can visit http://www.lifeaftertheoilcrash.net for a more detailed explanation of the problem. The web site has a lot of text to read, but I think it is all very interesting.

 

I found another web page at http://www.prisonplanet.com/archives/peak_oil/index.htm that claims the whole idea of peak oil is a scam. The page claims that oil is actually a renewable resource instead of a fossil fuel, but the government is lying so they can "invade our lives and order us to sacrifice our hard-earned living standards."

 

Anyway, what is your opinion about the peak of oil?

[JesuBungle]

I think in 2012, our oil shipments from the planet xenxor90 will stop coming in and we will have to go to war with them:rolleyes:

[Sisyphus]

There's no question that oil production will peak, if not as soon as the doomsday people predict than at least within the 21st century. When it does, the world economy will change a great deal, and it will probably be a major economic blow. However, I don't believe in the "collapse of civilization" alarmism. Energy production will shift, there will be more attention paid to renewable sources, and in the meantime there's plenty of coal and nuclear power and the like to act as a safety net. How well civilization survives will depend on how seriously we take preparation now, and the nations that are already trying to ween themselves off oil will be greatly rewarded for it later in this century.

[herme3]

There's no question that oil production will peak, if not as soon as the doomsday people predict than at least within the 21st century. When it does, the world economy will change a great deal, and it will probably be a major economic blow. However, I don't believe in the "collapse of civilization" alarmism. Energy production will shift, there will be more attention paid to renewable sources, and in the meantime there's plenty of coal and nuclear power and the like to act as a safety net. How well civilization survives will depend on how seriously we take preparation now, and the nations that are already trying to ween themselves off oil will be greatly rewarded for it later in this century.

 

I completely agree with you. However, I'm not really sure how we will be able to survive without cheap oil. At first, I thought ethanol was ready to replace oil once it was depleted. However, I did some more research and realized that it just isn't going to work. Go to http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/2006/08/21/8383659/index.htm and read about how it would affect the food supplies.

 

Although coal and nuclear could keep the electricity going for a while, I'm not sure how they could help with transportation. I don't think you could put a nuclear reactor into a car. Also, electric cars would cause all sorts of problems. When it is very hot outside and everyone has the air conditioners running, electric companies warn that the power plants are being pushed to the limit. In many places, especially California, there are frequent blackouts because there is not enough electricity being generated. Can you imagine what would happen if everyone went home and plugged in their cars each day?

 

I don't see how our civilization would survive without transportation. Even if you live in a city, most of the products you depend on are transported from other places. Also, fossil fuels are required for farm machinery and fertilizer production. Without these fossil fuels, I think a lot of people would starve to death. Check out http://www.fromthewilderness.com/free/ww3/100303_eating_oil.html and you will see how important oil is for our food supplies.

[Sisyphus]

I agree that cars are a bigger problem, and I don't see how "car culture" could fail to take a major hit. At the very least, I think we'll see a de-suburbanization, with population once more shifting to dense cities with efficient and effective mass transit. The way I see it, we're only dependant on cars because we've allowed ourselves to become so, and this can be undone. Hardly any New Yorkers own cars, for example, because a) everything is close together and you can usually walk, and b)everything is close together, which makes mass transit exponentially more efficient and useful.

[Sayonara]

How many times is this thread going to be posted?

[Pangloss]

Amusingly, as I understand it, no source of oil has ever run dry in the entire history of oil production. Individual wells stop producing, but the sources themselves just become "unproductive" due to higher accessibility costs.

 

Logically you have to look at the amount of oil as finite, but look at how the higher price of oil has turned Canada's shale production into a legitimate (and very profitable) source. Look at how that higher price has already driven not only hybrid sales, but also interest in new/improving technologies like hydrogen and ethanol.

 

Maybe I'm an optimist, but I think it's great that society is finally becoming motivated to change.

[insane_alien]

solar could also take a bit of the load off our power stations. like, all ne homes have a couple of solar panels on them, doesn't need to be all that big(say 1kW per home)thats a megawatt less power needed per 1000 homes during the day

[Cap'n Refsmmat]

How many times is this thread going to be posted?

Apparently, quite a few:

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