Let's stop acting like we can only blame BP or oil producers or the "corporatist" Federal government for the oil spill in the gulf. Sure, you can criticize the feds for a lack of oversight, and you can blame BP for cutting corners and not taking the steps necessary to ensure safety. But they are not the only ones complicit in this disaster. The fact is, we are all complicit.
According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the United States consumes 19,498,000 barrels of oil per day. Our gasoline consumption stands at 8,989,000 barrels/day, or 378 million gallons. These are the numbers at the heart of the disaster. Because while it is easy to blame whomever you feel like blaming for their various roles in the disaster, the fact is nothing will change until we change. There will be other spills, there will be continued off shore drilling, because we demand it. Whether we care to admit it or not, we demand our daily oil fix. And I'm not trying to shirk my share of responsibility. I drive just as much as anyone else. But until we are willing to confront the destructive effects of the way we live, the problem facing us will never be solved.
How many of us don't drive? How many use only public transportation or ride a bicycle? If you do, I commend you, because you have done far more than I. But if you do not, you will need oil whether we drill off shore or not. I understand opposition to off shore drilling, and I'm inclined to agree with it. But the oil has got to come from somewhere, because we're just not ready to give up our oil addiction. No matter how great the fuel standard is on your vehicle, you still need oil. Even if you drive a hybrid, you still need oil. You could drive an electric vehicle, or one that runs completely on biofuels, but those models are more of a luxury at this point than the norm. But this is where the attention should be. Let's have a real conversation about how we live, about how our way of life is doing incredible damage to our planet.
I had hoped that, eventually, the oil spill would serve as a wake-up call, as a way to start this conversation. But it seems like no one is inteested in that. It's easier to fall back into tired arguements-corporations are bad, the government is too strict. Let's say the government took over oil rigs, or at leat took them away from BP. That would feel good, but it would still fail to address the problem. The oil is sill needed! And as long as it is, what's the difference in how we get it?
I think some people have seen this as a defense of off shore drilling, which it is not, but let me put it this way. Some have said that off shore drilling is inherently worse than other ways of extracting oil. All oil destroys the planet, because all oil is dirty. The U.S. gets 20% of its total oil imports from Canada, and that oil comes from oil sands. Okay, oil sands aren't going to spill into the ocean and do great damage. But making liquid fuels from oil sands requires energy for steam injection and refining, and the process as a whole generates two to four times the amount of greenhouse gases per barrel of final product as the production of conventional oil. If combustion of the final products is included, the so-called "Well to Wheels" approach, oil sands extraction, upgrade and use emits 10 to 45% more greenhouse gases than conventional crude. This is my point. Any oil is ruins the planet. So, instead of debating how we get oil, we should debating how to stop using oil.
The response to this diary has been fascinating, and I thank all of you, even those who have insulted me. Many comments have come from people who have changed the way they live, or who don't drive often. Again, I thank you. You deserve credit for taking these steps. Others have taken this diary a bit too literally, as if I have suggested they were on the rig and caused the disaster personally. There's no doubt BP screwed up, and there's no doubt the government screwed up. But that's only one part of the issue. The bigger part of the issue is finding a way to stop using oil. It won't happen any time soon, but if we adopt a comprehensive energy policy, we can make significant strides toward making it a reality.