Is Oil Evil?

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

Okay, so one thing that I notice when I go to big cities in Europe is how small the cars are. In Paris, everyone has a little smartcar that looks like it can only fit one person. And there are also tons of people on motorcycles. I was talking to our airport shuttle driver and he said this was because there is so much traffic. It is much easier to manuver a small car or motorcycle than a hummer. And small cars also use much less gas. Since gas is more expensive in Europe, especially in big cities, it is much more economical to have a small car or a car that runs on something other than gasoline. In Saint Pertersburg, many people use public transportation. There are trolleys, buses, trams and the subway. On the busy times of the day like the morning and afternoon, it is so crowded in the subway that you can't even find something to hold on to in the trains. Now, of course even if I wanted to I couldn't take the subway because we don't have one. In Michigan, most families have more than one car, which means they end up paying a lot of money for gas. But, if there was a subway system, maybe families would have fewer cars and would pay less for gas and would polute less.

But, the point is that it all adds up. My personal consumption is a problem because everyday I'm in a car driving somewhere, and using oil. Many people carpool, but it is for the convenience of the parents rather than to save oil and protect our environement. For there to be a big change in the demand of oil, many people would have to change their lifestyle. Buy different cars, use different fuels and so on. And it would be hard to convince everyone to change.  Giedre L. 12/10/07

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

Oil can have many dangerous effects on the environment. Because the barges and pipes that carry oils are not always secure, oil spills happen frequently. They spill into oceans, rivers and land. Sometimes, terrorists may spill oil on purpose. Oils kills plants easily, because it coats their leaves and stems. The pants then cannot exchange gases and they die. Oil can also get into soil, making it toxic and impossible for plants to grow in it. The animals that are most affected my oil are marine mammals, such as dolphins and whales. With birds, the oil gets into their plumage and that means that water can get into the bird and it can drown. Also, when birds preen, they ingest the oil and die. Fish are effected too because the oil can clog their gills, and then they can't breathe. When there is a large ammount of oil, sea turtles cannot get to beaches to lay their eggs. Oil can also be dangerous for people. Sniffing gasoline is a also way for people to get high. Giedre L. 12/10/07

good website about oil spills 

PT.3- Are there any viable energy alternatives? 

                    When we think of energy alternatives to oil, don't we only think of fields of corn? Well actually, many people aren't aware that ethanol is not the only feasible substitue to oil, and in fact, there are inexpensive ways to run our cars also. In the U.S. government, the department that handles most of the energy issues is called the Department of Energy. They've come up with some efficient ideas to turn our course of self destruction around. One such idea is called bioenergy. Bioenergy is when they use renewable organic matter to electricty, fuels, heat, chemicals, and other materials that will hopefully help us in our battle. Ethanol is part of bioenergy, but perhaps the gases emitted by the large-scale factories of ethanol producers will have a negative effect on the environment, and soil erosion due to the large crops grown will be a problem. But, other bioenery alternatives include biodiesel, which is made up of vegatable oils, animal fats, and even recycled cooking greases, and this diesel has a very low effect on the environment. Also, the United States is trying to rely on its large amount of coal to produce low-cost, environmentally effiecient energy alternatives. Coal will be the center of the United State's power house when we finally figure out how to keep the emmisions of coal from leaking out into the atmosphere, and several groups are working on that problem right now. Nuclear energy will also hopefully be a big alternative in the future. Right now, it is our country's largest source of emmision-free electricity. Solar powered, wind powered and water powered technologies continue to be the way the United States is going for their energy and environmental-friendly needs.

The Astrolab: World's first solar electric hybrid car-- from a french company named Venturi

 The Mercedes Smart Crosstown Hybrid Car: DiamlerChrysler's two seater that proves that you can still look awesome while saving the environment too!

Some more super cool new hybrid cars can be seen at this website! Take the time to look at these outerspace-like vehicles.

                    Many other countries are trying to take steps forwars into a more natural future also. England, for example, is started looking at wind power as an alternative, but soon found that their time was better invested in furthering nuclear energy ideas. For a while, Australia had been one of the world's leaders in hazardous emmisions of greenhouse gases, and now, they are taking steps towards a brighter future, such as hydroelectricity, cogeneration(simultaneous production of heat and power) among others. All around the world, people are seeing the benifits of hybrid cars, and even simple ideas like putting in energy-effecient light bulbs to save the earth, and in the people's minds, their wallets!

~Eshanka J.

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

                    Every where, people are asking the same question about the violence in the Middle East. Could this violence possibly have anything to do with their area's oil rich countries, or is it just other problems? From some people's viewpoints, they feel that the whole Iraq War has to do with the oil supply in the regions our troops are in, and we just wanted to make sure that our oil would still be safe. They beileve that the war is unneccessary, since we are just causing more hazardous areas around that region, and the gas prices don't seem to be decreasing. Also, those people believe that we are just making situations worse inside places that we are occupying right now, such as Iraq. Many people are getting hurt, and some of the natives think that our presense there has only made conditions worse, so their motives for terrorism increase, and an outbreak of violence results in worse conditions for living in. Another idea to think about is that the oil may be causing disputes throughout the people living near those areas. Disagreements on where to spread the oil can always lead to violence, especially since some terrorist groups think that supplying the U.S.A. with their major source of oil is an action against their people. When highly fanatic opposing viewpoints clash, controversies will almost never be settled without terrible acts of violence.

                    Another opinion of how the oil is connected with the viloence occuring in the Middle East, is that the oil rich companies or families may be funding the terrorist groups there. With the suffiecient funds, the terrorists see no limit in their goals, which is actually a pretty scary thought. Since our country seems to be the biggest oil-guzzler of them all, are we actually funding the very group that we are fighting?

~Eshanka J.

Contributors: Eshanka J. and Giedre L.

Sources:

1. http://webstar.postbulletin.com/agrinews/287261338159807.bsp
2. http://www.arkansasrenewableenergy.org/bioenergy/altfuels.html
3. http://www.energy.gov/index.htm
4. Other sources can be found by clicking on the links posted in the articles above.

 Create your own educational wiki!HelpPublic, not yet premium Privacy Policy RSS