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UNI-verse Oil: Pump more—or—Use less and find other options
UNI-verse Oil: Pump more—or—Use less and find other options | Oil: Pump more—or—Use less and find other options |
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| by William Atkins | |
| Thursday, 03 July 2008 | |
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Page 3 of 3 Short-term solution to oil crisis The May 17, 2006 article “How to kick the oil habit” states, “Members of Congress embarrassed themselves recently trying to soothe the nation's energy anxiety. Their proposals ranged from an investigation into oil companies allegedly fixing prices, to slipping $100 under every taxpayer's pillow. The mantra of the moment appears to be: "There is no quick fix to rising gasoline prices." "Well, there is a quick fix. In one decisive act, the government could save in excess of 50 million gallons of gasoline a day - that's more than a billion barrels a year, which is more than the US imports annually from the Persian Gulf. The magic solution? Lower the national speed limit to 55 miles per hour." The article continues to say that engines run more efficiently, on average at 55 miles per hour. The difference of 20 miles per hour—from 55 mph to 75 mph—reduces engine efficiency by about 25%. The article continues, “The laws of physics do not always make for pleasant policy. Ask former president Jimmy Carter, who endorsed a 55 mph limit when upheaval in the Middle East led to an oil crisis in the 1970s. The public groaned, then kicked him out of office, along with the policy. Lowering the speed limit did reduce demand and it did help cut gasoline prices. For policy-makers the key question has always been: at what point does the benefit outweigh the pain?” The article concludes with, “There is just one flaw in this plan: the ordinary consumer is the only one who pays. In the interests of fairness, industry would have to play its part, too. President Carter achieved this in 1975 by passing a law forcing US car makers to establish an average fuel efficiency standard across their fleet of 27.5 miles per gallon (11.7 kilometres per litre) within a decade. Known as the Corporate Average Fuel Efficiency (CAFE) standard, it has been fixed ever since. It shouldn't have been: if the standard had tightened over the years in step with progress in engine design, inching up to, say, 33 miles per gallon today, the nation would be saving 2 million barrels of oil a day. There could be an incentive too for manufacturers to improve an engine's sweet spot to make it run more efficiently at 75 mph." "President Bush's diagnosis is that "the nation is addicted to oil". He should remember that it takes bold action to kick an addiction." Besides lowering the national speed limit, the country needs to “enforce” that speed limit. Today, an U.S. interstate highway with a 65 miles per hour speed limit is regularly driven at speeds well in excess of 65 miles per hour. Those excessive speeds are driven not by a few people, but nearly all drivers. These excessive speeds add to our problems with oil. The fate of the United States is in the hands of its citizens. The fate of each country in this world is also in the hands of its citizens. If we are too impatient and don't drive slower, we will find ourselves in even worse problems. If we drive slower, we still have oil problems, but we have more time to solve those problems. Other short-term fixes are also possible, like car pooling, taking public transportation, walking/bicycling, keeping car tires inflated properly, regular maintenance of cars, and many others. Remember ... It is our choice!
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