What about Energy? The Election is over, but the Issues Remain

For at least 30 years, U.S. leaders have been deeply concerned about the nation’s dependence on foreign oil. Yet, we are just as reliant now as we were in 1973.

That year, the U.S. experienced a major oil shortage that caused gasoline prices to double and folks to wait in line at the pump. Saudi Arabia had cut off oil exports to the United States since the U.S. was aiding Israel in an Arab-Israeli battle in the Gaza Strip. The crisis caused President Nixon to announce energy independence as the new national goal. (Sound familiar?) He challenged the nation to be completely self-sufficient by the end of the decade, which would have been 24 years ago.

Why is energy independence so difficult? And what can we do to become self-sustaining?

Freaky facts

Here are some of the reasons that it’s so hard for the U.S. to become independent from foreign oil:

• We use a lot of oil: The U.S. population makes up just 5 percent of the world’s population, but we consume 25 percent of the world’s oil supply.
• We don’t produce the amount of oil that we use: The U.S. produces a little less than half of the oil it consumes. It imports the larger half from abroad, mainly from the Persian Gulf Region.
• 17 percent of U.S. oil is imported from Canada, 13.5 percent from Mexico, and 12 percent from Venezuela.
• We don’t have enough oil to sustain us in the long- term: If the U.S. were forced to rely on its own oil production and reserves, it would run out of oil in four years and three months.

There’s no quick fix to the energy question.

There is no miracle solution to the U.S. energy crisis. Rather, a healthy energy policy will combine a variety of initiatives.

But what about...ANWR?

Some say that drilling in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) would make the U.S. more energy independent. This area, located on Alaska’s North Slope, may contain as much as ten billion barrels of oil. That’s a lot, but even if these projections are correct, this resource would meet only 3 to 4 percent of our oil needs, which means we’d still have to import a great deal of oil.

For more on ANWR, click here.

But what about...converting to coal?

Coal can be converted to gasoline, and it’s still abundant in the United States. Some say that developing coal as an alternative fuel source could help the U.S. meet its own energy needs.

However, coal pollutes. Burning coal produces carbon dioxide, the gas that causes global warming. Scientists have experimented with storing carbon dioxide; The New Yorker reports that a Norwegian company, Statoil, has been inserting about a million metric tons of CO2 per year into a North Sea aquifer. But researchers are skeptical of this approach; they fear that stored gas could easily leak into the atmosphere.

For more on global warming, click here.

But what about...renewable energy?

Power generated from the sun, the wind, and the waves could begin to replace petroleum and natural gas. But these forms of energy are somewhat unpredictable. Solar panels don’t work well when it’s cloudy, nor do windmills when it’s calm. And right now, these forms of electricity are much more expensive than electricity generated by coal or gas.

Renewable energy must be developed much further before it can take the place of oil.

But what about...fuel efficiency?

Requiring auto manufacturers to make more fuel efficient vehicles could be a great help to our oil troubles. The Corporate Average Fuel Efficiency Standards haven’t changed much since 1986. They are currently 27.5 miles per gallon for cars and 21 mpg for light trucks (SUVs fall into this category).

More fuel efficient vehicles could easily save a million barrels of oil a day, roughly what drilling in ANWR would produce.

However, the auto industry is reluctant to make the change. Consumers and federal regulations will probably have to force the transformation.

For more on fuel efficiency standards, click here.

But what about...rising oil prices?

As oil prices go up, Americans’ gasoline consumption goes down. When gasoline compromises our budgets, we drive less and buy more fuel efficient cars. Some say that raising the price of fuel would help to conserve oil.

But Americans seem to feel entitled to cheap gasoline. Even though our gas is "expensive" at two dollars a gallon, it is still a bargain when compared with other nations, where gas can easily cost more than five dollars a gallon.

What’s the solution?

Although there is no cure-all, some combination of the above ideas may result in lesser dependence on Mideast oil.

History tells us that depending on the Middle East for our lifeblood oil is risky. Yet our energy situation has changed little since Nixon announced his commitment to energy independence. We must dialogue with each other and our leadership about possible solutions and then work together to make them happen.

What do you think?

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Article Posted on: 11/10/2004