The rapidly industrializing world has seen an exponential increase in demands for oil in the past few decades. Often termed as the "black gold", oil is an essential component in the lives of individuals, corporations and the government. In the US alone, approximately $1 billion is spent each day on oil. With the emergence of other industrializing nations such as China and India, the oil extraction rate has reached an astonishing 1, 016 barrels per second, amounting to a whopping 1 billion barrels a year. Our over-reliance on oil and its various forms is manifested in its high price of $US 200 per barrel. A slight reduction in oil supply can result in severe economic downturns, disturbances in food production and distribution, as well as conflicts within countries. Although there do exist countries which are turning to alternative sources of energy to ease their over-reliance on oil, majority of the world is still largely dependent on oil- and this does not look set to change in the near future.
The availability of oil greatly determines the state of the economy of the world. Many newly industrializing economies (NIEs) are importing increasing amounts of oil from oil-rich stats to fuel their bustling industry and economy. China, for example, has had a 30% increase in oil imports from African states and Venezuela in the past two years. In addition, many Middle Eastern countries like Saudi Arabia and United Emirates have strong and rich economies because they have a lot of oil. As the demand for oil continues to skyrocket, these countries will be able to thrive by providing this natural resource. There are also countries that process raw materials from oil, and oil is a major source of their income. Situated at the crossroads of international sea and air roads, Singapore is particularly reliant on the processing and refining of crude oil at its offshore islands. If oil runs out, the economy of the world would be in a complete paralysis. This is most evidently seen in the 1973 oil crisis, when the world tumbled into a deep recession due to the low supply and thus, high prices of oil.
Our over-reliance on oil can also be seen through our food system. The many processes involved in food production before it is finally served and consumed requires the use of cheap crude oil. Vast amounts of oil are used as raw materials and energy in the manufacture of fertilizers and pesticides, and as cheap and available energy at all stages of production: from planting, irrigation, feeding and harvesting, to processing, distribution and packaging. In addition, oil is essential in the construction and repair of equipment and infrastructure needed to facilitate this industry, including farm machinery, processing facilities, storage, ships, trucks and roads. The industrial food supply system is one of the biggest consumers of oil. To transport 1 calorie of lettuce across the Atlantic, 127 calories of energy is required. Evidently, a reduction in oil would cause the processes of food production of food to come to a halt, and this would result in global hunger. It is alarming to note that even the most basic thing to keep our population alive is so heavily dependent on oil.
The need for oil in many countries has even translated into conflicts and violence between nation states. A casual glance at the last few decades of history suggests that oil exporting states such as Iraq, Venezuela and Iran have an unfortunate habit of getting involved in international conflicts. During the Iraq war, the United States justified their invasion of Iraq in 2003 and occupation of Iraq as an operation to find weapons of mass destruction and to stop the oppressive regime in Iraq. However, many experts believe that this was more of energy security, as Iraq is an oil rich nation and the US wants to keep the oil flowing into their economies. There are even speculations of a World War III in which the world would fight over the remaining limited supply of oil. Our willingness to kill our own kind for oil is more than enough to prove that we are over-reliant on oil.
While it is irrevocable that the world is heavily dependent on oil, we must not forget that there do exist countries that acknowledge their over-reliance on oil and are slowly but gradually reducing the need. Currently, there are alternative sources of energy, like hydroelectric energy and solar energy that are used by some countries to cut emission rates from the combustion of oil. In Canada and some parts of America, hydroelectric power is used as a source of electricity. Norway, on the other hand, earns a high spot for being first to the world's largest solar production plant, owned by REC Group. They have also pledged to become carbon neutral by 2030, mainly through funding green projects abroad and reducing driving and flying at home. All these technologies and the fact that countries are in the pursuit of alternative sources of energy goes to show that some parts of the world is trying to reduce their dependence on oil. However, such actions are only taken by a minority of the countries in the world, especially by developed countries which have the financial resources to undertake researches on alternative sources of energy. Oft-times, developing countries lack the technology to venture into such alternative resources and they continue to deplete the limited supply of oil.
Oil is becoming a universal commodity and it seems hard to reduce our dependence on oil. The oil supply is expected to peak in a few years' time before it starts to fall drastically. If we do not take any action to reduce our reliance on oil, the world would plunge into a perilous state of entropy. The threat is real, and we need to do something about it now, before the ticking time bomb is finally triggered off.
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YO BOONCHOONG!!! Never knew you could write such intellectual essays haha. I like the entropy thing in your conclusion. ;)
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