The End of Suburbia

A few days ago I posted an article about peak oil, or rather, the global denial of the phenomenon.

Since then I saw the documentry - The End Of Suburbia.

One of the scariest movies i've ever seen, ever. And it didn't seem like scare-mongering.

Here's why. According to the film:

• A scientist named Hubbart predicted using all sorts of calculations that oil in the US had reached it's peak in the 70s. After this oil would not run out, but be more difficult and expensive to get. He was laughed at and discredited. And then they realised he was right, and the oil crisis of the 70s occured.
• Now most of the world's oil is in the middle east. And that same scientist has predicted, using the same methods, that the WORLD supply of oil will peak in the next 10 years, if it hasn't peaked already. Enter our next fuel crisis.
• This means no more cheap gas. Gas goes up many many many times the cost it is now - and what else does this mean?
• Living in a suburb, far away from where you work, becomes nonsensical.
• No longer will you see that ceasar salad from california. that 3000 mile salad goes by-by, along with most other distance foods.
• so we eat from local right? the big problem is we've overfarmed our soil, and we produce the volume of crops we do using oil-based fertilizers and oil-based pesticides. And i mean LOTS of the stuff. this does not bode well.
• we will be poorer. recessions and depressions on the horizon. yay.

So why is it not gettng any attention? According to the film, there's really little alternative. There's nothing that matches cheap oil. Electric cars won't save you- in most areas electricity comes from a fossil fuel. Hydrogen cars won't save you. Nuclear is expensive energy. At the moment, with existing technology - there's really nothing we can do, and the best thing to do is pretend it isn't coming.

The film makes other off the cuff predictions like how controling the remaining oil will be paramount, moreso than it is now. In fact, they attribute this imminent oil crisis to the current Iraq adventure. If there will be a world war in the near future, this is why it will be - possibly between the Chinese and the US over control of the last reserves of bubbling crude. Oil that is.

"Afghanistan and Iraq are the two opening engagements in what are bound to be a long series of wars and international contests over the remaining oil in the world, and over 60 percent of that oil is located in places where people don't like us very much," says Kunstler.

ON the plus side, the film predicts we'll be forgetting our green lawns and planting vegitables, putting up solar panels, and windmills. And windmills are pretty.

If we can't save the world - perhaps there's something you and I can do to be that pig in the brick house when the wolf comes to the door. I'm just not sure what that is yet - so please leave a suggestion at the sound of the tone.