My expected audience for this paper should generally be all Americans as we have become over dependent on oil and its products in every aspect of our lives. The fact that oil supplies will not last forever is enough for us to stop and take notice. However my specific audience are professionals who understand and are invested in the path over dependence of oil and its products will lead America and how important it is to find a viable alternative. My secondary audience should already be concerned about the hike in fuel prices and the thought of transportation without cars. American life today is so intertwined with non-renewable resources that oil producing countries are in the driver’s seats with regards supply and pricing of their oil products. America needs to wake up and harness other sources for energy use or our over dependence on oil and gas will have a drastic negative impact on America.
Effects on America
There are ample dividends that come about from the use of natural resources. Trees could be used to absorb carbon dioxide and therefore the planting of more trees could help our environment and could also be used as a form of fuel. This in itself could reduce our dependence on fossil fuels. Acquiring fossil fuel also affects our environment negatively on many levels as we damage our habitats when we drill into the ground to get these fossil fuels. Because fossil fuels must be burned to produce the energy needed, their use releases dangerous acidic emissions into the environment. Pollution is a big problem in America as we see almost 40% of bodies of water are too polluted to be good for fishing, swimming and at times aquatic life. Finding an alternate source for energy would not only give the earth the time it needs to replenish these natural resources but it would also make our environment safer by cutting back on pollution.
How therefore does America’s utilization of an alternative source of fuel affect the economy? One of the greatest ways this could help America would be in our business of purchasing energy from other countries. Research has shown that most of the oil producing countries has dictatorial leaders whose main aim is to build an empire via the sales of these products. America would be able to stand her ground with regards her stance of democracy without having to come back and trade with such nations because of our over dependence on oil and its products. It also strengthens our dollar as the dollar has been weakening over time and the use of foreign oil is one of the major reasons. A weakened dollar affects our economy in many ways. Sourcing for and getting our own alternative energy sources would create jobs for more Americans. Recently President Obama decreed that he would work towards reducing America’s over dependence and addiction to oil (Bailey 8). While many critics have called this a pipedream claiming that it would not be achievable with the time frame he has given, his’ however is the mind-set we need to have if we plan to snatch America away from her dependence of oil which would only lead to her own detriment. There are many other alternatives that America could look into and these alternatives could be cost effective. As it had been said, “the Stone Age did not end because people ran out of stone; it ended because people found something better.” The same should be said about oil.
Our Dependence on Oil
Our economy and long term growth is linked to our reliance on foreign oil. A lot of money is spent by the United States on a daily basis purchasing oil products abroad as opposed to investing those same funds at home. National security is threatened by our burning of oil and creation of global warming. Many of the countries that do business with America with regards oil and their products are listed in the list of countries that were dangerous or unstable. Our national security is therefore put at a risk when we get into business with these lands because we get oil from them. Another concern that America has to endure because of her dependence on oil is climate change that comes about as a result of burning of oil to produce energy. Climate change can displace millions of people and to a lesser extent destabilize governments. Tsunamis have come upon us as a result of these climate changes and many countries are suffering from the effects. Today we import oil from BP, Shell, ExxonMobil, ConocoPhillips and Chevron. These companies get oil from unstable countries like Nigeria, Saudi Arabia and Colombia. The Pentagon and the CIA in a bid prevent threats to national security are working on climate change. They created a Center on Climate Change and National Security to do just that.
Profiting From the Status Quo
The big oil companies will rather the status quo not be tampered with and that America remains dependent on these unstable states by purchasing oil from countries like Syria and Nigeria. A company like Chevron made a profit of over $20 billion with nearly half of its imports coming from these countries in 2008 (Rebecca Lefton). The same can be said for other big oil companies like ExxonMobil, BP and ConocoPhillips and they would rather things stay the same from a business stand point. These reasons now shed a better light on why such companies lobby to prevent clean energy from taking off. The bitter truth remains though that clean energy can help the economy bounce back and we just need to take a stand and keep at it.
If America wholly adopts policies that will reduce pollution that comes about via global warming and seriously pursue clean energy, there will be an uptick in the nation’s economy. The money sent abroad to purchase oil and its products could be diverted back into this very economy by investing in clean energy technology and innovation. This would help create more jobs while also reducing the pollution that comes from global warming. Many research analysis centers like the Center for American Progress Analysis have stated that revenues in the billions could be generated over the decade through clean energy provisions (Rebecca Lefton). This investment in an economy via clean energy would strengthen our national security and improve our economic stability.
Energy Independence
There are many ways we can reduce our over dependence on foreign oil and one of the most common ways can be seen in our use of transportation. Most of our energy consumption comes via cars and majority of that is on personal vehicles. If we can make changes to the way we power our cars from the traditional foreign oils to American batteries and American made fuels, we can greatly reduce that dependence. (Steven Chu – Nobel Physicist) Most of the world petroleum reserves available today are state owned by countries that have the power to affect supply and demand. Most of these reserves are located in countries that have unstable governments and the money they receive through this trade is used to forge their dictatorial plans (Bettinger, et al 3). There have been many reasons stated above why we need to stop our dependence on foreign oils and create alternative source of power for our cars and automobiles.
America has always been seen as a pace setter and this is a tag attached to her as a result of being a world leader. If America can successfully gain energy independence by moving away from dependence on foreign oils, other nations will be bound to follow suit. While such an act will help in the protection of our national security while adding a boost to our economy, we can also be able to show via our actions that we don’t tolerate dictatorship but rather celebrate democracy.one of the most important benefits however from such an act would be the protection and safe guarding of our natural habitat and environment. Although there have been some critics that have claimed that such a move would drastically affect the global economic interdependence and create a political isolation for America, I do not believe this view to be true and see them as just being circumstantial. If we never take a step to try such drastic measures for the drastic times we find ourselves in, we may never have the expected breakthrough we desire and may very well be on our way to losing our world as we know it. Energy independence will only come about if we produce enough alternative energy to warrant a reduction in our dependence on foreign oil and such an action on our part will only propel other nations to take note and follow suit.
America consumes over 20 million barrels of oil daily and the purchase of this oil affects the nation’s economic coffers (Holdren 7). Developing large scale alternative fuel would free money that could be used to better the economy while also creating new jobs that will help the citizens (Keith Crane). Such an economic stimulus may only be compared to the one seen during the Second World War when the civilian work force mobilized themselves in a bid to aid the war effort.
Food’s Dependence on Oil
The food sector relies on crude oil in their processing of modern food. This unfortunately is happening at a time when we should be wise enough to realise that whatever contributes to global warming is a deterrent to our society but this has not stopped the food sectors from increasing supply chains that increase emissions. Large food systems depend on fossil fuels for their processes from irrigation to the manufacture of fertilizer and farm machinery. Ironically though the food industry is also one of the industries that suffers greatly as a result of disruption of climatic cycles that come about through global warming caused by greenhouse gases (Norman Church). The various treats that could come about through global warming are only worsened by increasing of gas reserves and finite oil consumption. This action and reaction practice by the food industry only makes oil dependence and environmental degradation a vicious cycle.
In the 60s the discovery of oil and gas peaked and today more than half of that oil is located in the Middle East (Shah 9). Today the world’s dependence on oil and gas is so much that it is estimated that we will run out of reserves in 2040 if we keep using oil at the rate we do today. As the Middle East began to gain more control of the market changes began to appear in the price as they began to dictate demand and supply ratios (Norman Church). This forthcoming crisis will disrupt economic and political stability unless we do something about the soon to be historic problem. The most common uses of energy today are transport, heating and food and if this depletion does take place, poorer nations will be affected the most.
This is where organic food comes in as they use less energy consumption than the conventional systems. While the preparation of organic foods greatly reduces emission, its importation and transportation does cause emissions of carbon dioxide. Food production is mainly oil powered from the pesticides and fertilizers to farming implements and transport systems. As population grew so did the need for food increase and with that dependence on oil also increased. Oil is required for more than just food and transportation and unless we find alternative sources of energy the world as we know it will someday ground to a halt as a result of depletion of oil .
Conclusion
Globalization means that when no country suffers, no matter how distant or remote, other countries get affected as well as no country suffers in isolation anymore. The problem with oil and gas will be a global problem that will cause a global decline affecting everything from food to transportation to the habitat and ultimately the economy. There are many benefits to finding an alternative source of energy. These benefits are
Economic – the cost of energy producing elements will be reduced and the funds that would have been otherwise pumped into oil producing nations can be utilized in the country.
Environmental – the ecosystem is preserved as the quality of the air is improved.
National Security – the prospect of conflict from oil and gas resources is greatly minimized.
The above is just an example of how alternative energy sources could help our economy, environment and security. There are many other examples out there that attest to the fact that America will be better off finding and utilizing alternative sources of energy. Not only will more of her citizens be gainfully employed but her ecosystem will be a safer place to live in. America as a world power need to take a stand and work towards reducing her over dependence on oil and gas.
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