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Is Oil Evil?

December 12, 2007

PT.1 1. Is your personal consumption of oil part of the problem?
PT.2 2. What impact does oil have on our environment?
PT.3 3. Are there any viable energy alternatives?
PT.4 4. Is there a connection between oil and violence in the Middle East?
Sources
Contributors

PT.1 1. Is your personal consumption of oil part of the problem?

[By Joy and Rasha - Dec. 13, 2007]

Of course our personal consumption of oil is part of the problem! If you think about it, we use a lot of oil everyday in our entire life. Although we may not admit that we are using so much oil, many of us know about the problem, but for some reason, it still exists. Why do you think that this is still an issue? You will be alarmed to find that many of us in the U.S. use up around 20,730,000 barrels of oil. We use a car to go anywhere we want… school, stores, or a friend’s houses…so the oil consumption starts to add up very fast. Also, if you haven’t noticed, many buildings are spread far apart, so it requires more oil to drive from one place to another. Next, we use oil on a daily basis, other than from driving cars. As surprising as it may sound, oil is used to make plastics (plastic bags), as well as rubber (tires and shoes), and clothes (polyester and nylon). So, the oil from all these materials tends to add up, and since we use so much of these materials, we use a lot more oil than we think. As you can see, our consumption of oil plays a MAJOR part in this problem.

http://www.rmi.org/images/articles/Breakthrough/MOVE_TransportationUses2.gif

PT.2 2. What impact does oil have on our environment?

[By Joy and Rasha - Dec. 13, 2007]

Most of you guys have probably heard of global warming, air pollution, and water pollution. But have you guys ever thought about the source of it all? Oil has various impacts on the environment, and definitely leads to these two problems: water pollution and air pollution. Oil can affect water pollution by extraction, transportation, and consumption. During extraction, oil may spill into the water while oil is being drilled. Transportation is when ships with large amounts of oil release water that contains water mixed with oil. This next one is probably the most familiar to us, and it is called consumption. This includes all the cars and trucks we drive every day, and the machineries that we use. The leakage from all these vehicles and machinery eventually reach the water. Also, sad that it is, oil impacts the marine life. When there is an oil spill, many animals are poisoned by the oil. Air. We all need air to live, so how are we damaging it rather than protecting it? Well, when oil is burned it produces carbon dioxide which destroys the ozone layer. The basic concept is that the ozone layer protects us from the sun’s radiation. So, when the ozone layer is destroyed, the sun’s radiation seeps through the layer and ends up harming us (UV rays). As you may probably know, this is what we call global warming. The consequences of this are huge. If we keep on doing what we are doing now, much of the polar ice caps will melt, leaving poor innocent creatures helpless. If the polar ice caps melt, then the sea level will increase, and all the changes will be play a part in the severe weather. Many of you may not want to know this, but a lot of the global warming is our fault. Some of it is because cars, which burn oil that produces carbon dioxide. So then everyone in the U.S. are making the situation worse than it already is. Therefore, having seen the proof, it is obvious that oil has a negative impact on our environment.

fjdklfjdkjfj (Below) Otters Covered in Oil...

(Above) Bird covered in oil...

http://www.bio.davidson.edu/people/vecase/Behavior/Spring2005/

Spring2005/Dresser/otters%20in%20oil.jpg http://www.chemgapedia.de/vsengine/media/vsc/en/ch/16/uc/images/oiledbird.jpg

Now here's an animation that symbolizes the affect of oil on marine animals:

PT.3 3. Are there any viable energy alternatives?

[By Joy and Rasha - Dec. 13, 2007]

Luckily, we have many other alternatives that we can use, instead of oil, such as:

Solar energy: energy that comes from the sun either directly or indirectly. The sun releases rays which are then transformed into useable energy. The sun is a constant and reliable energy source because it can never run out, and that is why it could be a good replacement for oil.

Wind energy: energy that is formed by the wind's movement. There are wind turbines that turn the wind energy into electricity. The wind is safe and is renewable, which means that it can be used again and again, and it does not cause any damage to the environment.

Hydropower: energy formed by moving water. The energy formed by the moving water can be turned into electricity as well by hydropower plants. Like wind energy, hydropower is safe and renewable.

Hydropower:

http://www.dosomething.org/files/u10/hydropower.jpg

Biomass energy: energy from the sun that is stored in dead plants and animals. Biomass releases chemical energy when it is burned. But biomass energy can be converted into useable energy such as ethanol. Biomass is safe because it is renewable.

Geothermal energy: energy that is formed from the heat of the earth. Electricity can be formed using geothermal power plants. Geothermal energy can also be used directly or they can be used in geothermal heat pumps. This way, less energy will be used. This alternative is safe because it does not pollute the environment.

Geothermal Power Plant:

http://www.greenpeace.org/raw/image_full/international/photosvideos/photos/GeothermalenergyReykjavik.jpg

Ocean energy: energy provided from the ocean. Many of you may not know what this is or that it may not have even existed, but that is because the idea is still being tested. There are three ways that energy can be formed by using the ocean. There is wave energy, where energy is formed by the movement of waves and a generator. Also, there is tidal energy. This is when tides are trapped in reservoirs and then released to create motion in the water, which will then power the generator, and energy is formed. Finally, there is the ocean thermal energy conversion (OTEC). It all begins with the difference of temperature in the ocean, since the surface of the ocean is warmer than the bottom of the ocean. Because of that, there are power plants built to create energy from the difference of the temperatures of the water. Overall, ocean energy is safe for the environment, and it is renewable.

Ocean energy:

http://www.e3-inc.com/images/1.jpg

This YouTube video talks about the ocean energy, so you can at least get an understanding of what it actually is and how the whole thing works. It shows what ocean energy is, where and it comes from, and how it is used. The video also talks about OTEC which you have briefly heard of from above. ENJOY!

These are some of the many alternatives that are being formed today. There are still some that need more planning such as ocean energy. But many of them, including wind energy, are being used more often in countries like Germany. Also, another achievement mankind has created are hybrid cars. Hybrid cars are just like normal cars, but they use less oil because they have something called an electric battery. But this is just the beginning. Today there are many scientists working hard on finding better and much cheaper solutions to protecting the environment. Germany has played a big role in finding such solutions. Here’s a link that shows how Germany’s doing by using the alternative energy sources: http://www.worldchanging.com/archives/001789.html. This website has tons of informations about Germany and its advances in alternative energy. Apparently, it seems like that they have set up a law about renewable energy. What's amazing is that Germany is known for its biggest achievements, such as building the world's largest solar power plants and the most windmills. The website also talks about renewable energy as a big investment for the future. So basically, the website gives us an insight of what's to come in the future.

PT.4 4. Is there a connection between oil and violence in the Middle East?

[By Joy and Rasha - Dec. 13, 2007]

Yes, there is a connection between oil and violence in the Middle East. Much of it is related to greed one way or another. For example, there is the Yom Kippur War and the Arab Oil Embargo. What happened was that in 1973, during Yom Kippur (a Jewish holiday), the Israelites were attacked by a combined force of Arab countries in the Middle East. Many countries in the Middle East didn’t like Israel, so they attacked them many times. But Israel happened to be supported by outside countries such as the United States, and with the extra help, they managed to win or at least come to a draw every time. However, since Yom Kippur is a day of atonement, many people are distracted with religious rituals, giving the Arab countries a good chance to attack. Also, the Arab countries did not want countries such as the U.S. to support Israel, so they distracted those countries as well by completely stopping the supply of oil (Arab Oil Embargo). So following the supply and demand perspective, if the supply decreases and the demand is high, then the price will increase. This happened to the oil in all the countries that supported Israel, and their economies, especially the U.S.’s, went down. Another example of oil and violence is related to Iraq and Kuwait. Basically, Iraq was an oil-rich country, as well as Kuwait. But because of Iraq’s greed, there was much destruction in that area. Saddam Hussein, Iraq’s leader at that time, decided to attack and destroyed many of Kuwait’s oil fields. Eventually, Kuwait was able to rebuild many of those destroyed oil field, so they were okay. Looking back at these two examples, you could clearly see that there was much violence in the Middle East due to the demand of oil.