What can be done about the future oil shortage?

Answer 1

"oil" shortage... is the wrong way to word the question..

maybe the question should read

what can be done about the furture of fuel shortages..

ok that one is easy.. in the United States we have not build a refining plant in what 35 to 40 years... but we have shut down about 2 dozen.. as time goes on your usage will go up... but if you are not making any more than you will have shortages...it doesnt mean you have a shortage in the oil end of it.. you just didnt make enough of it.

Answer 2

There needs to be major policy change. It isn't just oil, but coal and natual gas, although not as in dire need of running out as oil, still will follow soon behind, and if they had to pick up the slack from declining oil production, they would decline at an accelerated rate.

Here are the start realities of where we are... BP the oil company (beyond petroleum) is spending $8 Billion over the next 10 years on alternative reasearch. In terms of money spent its a joke. When our government is spending a trillion (1,000 billion) over 5 years on a war in Afghanistan and Iraq that has alot to do with oil security, that money could be better spent on this type of reasearch.

It is going to take governemtn spending of the size we saw pumped into the space program in the late 60's for a couple of decades with smart tax incentives by the legislation to get people to make energy effecient and carbon neutral decisions.

Technology like hydrogen batteries for cars seem good at first, but the production of hydrogen needs to made better, today its made with natural gas, which just makes it a derivative of a fossil fuel.

People will have to learn to be energy effieicent. Homes will have to change, If every old fashioned lightbulb was changed for a compact florescent or LED fixture the US would cut power consumption by 20%.

According to the Hirsch report we have to react 20 years in advance of the oil shortage to have a clean transition to a new power supply.

What will that supply be? it won't be one thing. a combination of old technologies of Coal, hopefully made clean and natual gas. Wind, Solar, Wave, Geothermal, microbial (see craig venter), hydrogen, nuclear, and maybe with some breakthroughs fusion in our lifetimes.(talking about the youngins here.)



The biggest thing is oil is a portable fuel, think about it one gallon pushes your hummer 16 miles, what else is that dense and small that can move your car that much.

Answer 3

alternative fuels, people like these hydrogen cells or some such thing. Whole lot of cars will need to be scraped or modified. Possible now to get around in machines without oil but is not economically worth while, one day we won't have much choice.

Answer 4

conserve and search for alternatives and actual replacements.

Answer 5

ethanol....made from sugar cane