1. What is environmental economics?

2. What is oil made of?

3. Where do we get most of our oil?

4. Difference in cost of regular, hybrid, and electric cars.

5. Significance of peak oil

6. Growing gap

7. Cost of gasoline

8. Why are we dependent on oil?

9. Oil spills

9. Debate about off-shore drilling

Definition:

Issues that include the costs and benefits of alternative environmental

policies to deal with air pollution, water quality, toxic substances, solid

waste, and global warming.

Natural Resources—Oil

Scientists believe that:1. Resources, such as oil, are limited and should not be wasted. 2. The harmful environmental and health effects of producing economic oil should be included in their market prices.3. We should encourage environmentally beneficial and sustainable forms of economic development.

What is oil made of?

• Crude oil is formed over millions of years by tiny plants and animals such as plankton.

• It is held in tiny spaces in underground rock, like water in a sponge.

• 1 liter of oil= 5 weeks of hard human labor

Who do we get our oil from?

• Approximately 40% of America's oil comes from domestic oil fields in states like Texas, Alaska, and California. Some of this oil is actually sold to other countries, such as Japan. The other 60% of the US oil supply is from foreign sources.

• Canada, Saudi Arabia, Colombia, Nigeria, Angola, and Iraq all contribute sizable amounts to the US oil supply. America also imports oil from Kuwait, Norway, the United Kingdom, Venezuela, Equatorial Guinea, and Algeria.

Crude Oil Imports (Top 15 Countries)(Thousand Barrels per Day)

Country Aug-10 Jul-10 YTD 2010 Aug-09 YTD 2009

CANADA 1,933 2,055 1,981 2,002 1,924MEXICO 1,158 1,174 1,119 1,057 1,119SAUDI ARABIA 1,080 1,033 1,071 707 1,010

VENEZUELA 974 1,016 929 1,007 995

NIGERIA 942 1,143 1,010 877 700ANGOLA 472 374 410 352 484ALGERIA 374 353 329 404 257COLOMBIA 346 381 331 260 256RUSSIA 334 367 296 221 263IRAQ 281 430 467 500 460KUWAIT 251 189 208 148 171BRAZIL 249 315 280 269 334ECUADOR 236 200 191 131 202UNITED KINGDOM 121 200 146 72 110

CONGO (BRAZZAVILLE)

98 44 78 37 45

Total Imports of Petroleum (Top 15 Countries)(Thousand Barrels per Day)

Country Aug-10 Jul-10 YTD 2010 Aug-09 YTD 2009

CANADA 2,483 2,534 2,543 2,523 2,468

MEXICO 1,282 1,289 1,253 1,159 1,228

SAUDI ARABIA 1,132 1,053 1,086 729 1,042

VENEZUELA 1,022 1,084 1,006 1,070 1,117

NIGERIA 985 1,174 1,041 917 740

RUSSIA 786 719 620 505 636

ALGERIA 565 518 504 551 479

ANGOLA 484 374 419 364 494

COLOMBIA 372 404 359 269 282

VIRGIN ISLANDS 339 239 257 223 292

IRAQ 281 430 467 500 462

UNITED KINGDOM 266 351 290 225 247

BRAZIL 251 332 301 275 352

KUWAIT 251 189 210 148 174

ECUADOR 242 205 194 131 206

Cost of regular cars vs. Environmentally friendly cars

• The initial cost of a hybrid car is generally $3,000 - $6,000 higher than a similarly-sized conventional vehicle, but there are post-purchase savings that may off-set the initial outlay.

Countries by carbon dioxide

emissions

Peak Oil

• The world was endowed with approx. 2 trillion barrels of conventional oil and we have consumed about ½.

Cost of gas over the years

Products made from petroleum• One 42-gallon barrel of oil creates 19.4

gallons of gasoline. The rest (over half) is used to make things like:

• Solvents Diesel fuel Motor OilBearing Grease• Ink Floor Wax Ballpoint Pens Football Cleats• Upholstery Sweaters Boats Insecticides Lipstick• Bicycle Tires Sports Car Bodies Nail Polish Fishing lures• Dresses Tires Golf Bags Perfumes• Cassettes Dishwasher parts Tool Boxes Shoe Polish• Helmet Caulking Petroleum Jelly Transparent Tape• CD Player Faucet Washers Antiseptics Clothesline• Curtains Food Preservatives Basketballs Soap• Pill Capsules Antihistamines Purses Shoes• Dashboards Medicine Footballs Laptops

Why do we depend on oil?

Exon Valdez Oil Spill (1989)

• The Exxon Valdez tanker ship hit a reef near Alaska in 1989. • It spilled somewhere between 10 million and 30 million gallons of oil into

the ocean and they couldn't clean it up. • To help prevent spills, by 2015, all supertankers in U.S. water will be

required to have two hulls. • The inner hull is the lining of the ship's oil tanks. The outer hull is the part

in the ocean. The air space between the inner and outer hulls makes an oil spill much less likely.

Steven Wereley of Purdue University estimated that since the Gulf oil spill

there has been an average of one Exxon Valdez Spill every 2.4 to 3.5 days.

Map of Oil Rigs in the

gulf of Mexico

Water currents in the Gulf of Mexico

More effects of the BP Oil Spill• After paralyzing Louisiana's commercial fishing industry, it is

threatening Florida's $60 billion tourism business. • In the six weeks since the explosion that killed 11 workers and

started the leak, wildlife officials said at least 491 birds, 227 turtles and 27 mammals, including dolphins, had been found dead along the US Gulf coast.

• BP has estimated a 40 billion dollar cost for its overall spill response. • Many workers in the fishing industry (specifically shrimpers) are

losing or have lost their jobs. • Obama administration lifted the moratorium on deepwater drilling

in Texas last month. • About $1 billion of the United States’ GDP is attributed to fishing in

the Gulf area along with $13 billion in tourism and $11 billion in oil.

Oil in the environment• Oil waste dumping, production pollution, and spills destroy

the surrounding wildlife and habitat.• The effects of oil on marine life are cause by either the

physical nature of the oil (physical contamination and smothering) or by its chemical components (toxic effects and accumulation leading to tainting).

• The animals and plants most at risk are marine animals and reptiles; birds that feed by diving or form flocks on the sea.

• The gulf, specifically, accounts for about 1/5 of the country’s oyster production and 75 percent of the shrimp production.

• Agricultural damage and effects on clean water

THOSE IN FAVOR OF OFFSHORE DRILLING

• It will lessen dependency on foreign countries for natural resources

• A majority believes that the potential economic benefits outweigh the potential harm to the environment

• It helps create jobs• If we reach sustainability with our own oil reserves

we can THEN explore alternate sources of energy without risking the loss of a major source of oil

Oppose drilling

• Dolphins go down in population because they breathe in oil when they come up for air

• Accidents such at the 1989 Exxon spill and the 2010 BP spill may occur

• We will spend so much time focusing on oil that we will once again fall into a dependency for that resource

Now May-10 Aug-08 Jul-08 Jun-08

Strongly Favor 26% 27% 52% 46% 48%

Mildly Favor 23% 30% 22% 23% 25%

Mildly Oppose 17% 16% 11% 12% 15%

Strongly Oppose 34% 25% 13% 18% 12%

How Do You Feel About Increased Drilling For Oil And Natural Gas Offshore In U.S. Waters?

Survey conducted in June 2010

Benefits of off shore drilling

• Oil is the most obtainable, efficient, and cheap source of energy

• Obama’s oil plan changeshttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/03/31/drill-barack-drill-obama_n_520523.html?show_comment_id=43663308#comment_43663308

Day 2 discussion questions• Based On What You Have Heard Or Read, Do You Favor/Oppose Obama’s

Proposals To Develop Alternative Sources Of Energy And Reduce The Amount Of Oil And Other Fossil Fuels That Are Produced And Used In The U.S.?

• Do You Think That Proposals To Develop Alternative Sources Of Energy And Reduce The Amount Of Oil And Other Fossil Fuels That Are Produced And Used In The U.S. Would Increase/Decrease The Number Of Jobs In The U.S.?

• Do You Think That Proposals To Develop Alternative Sources Of Energy And Reduce The Amount Of Oil And Other Fossil Fuels That Are Produced And Used In The U.S. Would Make Life Better/Worse For The Next Generation Of Americans?

Work Cited• Altheus, Dudley, and Vincent Bonner. "Oil Production Cases." Oil Production and

Environmental Damage. American Unviersity, Washington DC, n.d. Web. 5 Nov. 2010. http://www1.american.edu/ted/projects/tedcross/xoilpr15.htm .

• "BP Oil: when everyone knows your name, but nobody likes you." The opposite of wrong. DMCA, n.d. Web. 4 Nov. 2010. <http://opedcartoons.com/2010/05/19/bp-oil-when-everyone-knows-your-name-but-nobody-likes-you/ >.

• "Crude oil and Total Petroleum Imports Top 15 Countries." U.S. Energy Information Administration. Department of Energy, 28 Oct. 2010. Web. 4 Nov. 2010. <http://www.eia.doe.gov/pub/oil_gas/petroleum/data_publications/company_level_imports/current/import.html>.

• "How the U.S. Uses Oil." Time For Kids. Energy Information Administration, n.d. Web. 3 Nov. 2010. <http://www.timeforkids.com/TFK/media/teachers/pdfs/2003S/030221WR1.pdf>.

• "Oil Consumption (most recent) by country." Nation Master. N.p., n.d. Web. 2. Nov. 2010. <http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/ene_oil_con-energy-oil-consumption>.

• "Peak oil primer." Future Proof Kilkenny. N.p., 14 Oct. 2008. Web. 5 Nov. 2010. <http://futureproofkilkenny.org/?page_id=110>.

• Peckham, S. "Discussion Page for the BP Oil Spill in the Gulf of Mexico.” Community Surface Dynamics Modeling System. CSDMS Facility, 1 July 2010. Web. 1 Nov. 2010. <http://csdms.colorado.edu/wiki/Talk:Marine_Discussion>.

• Szabo, Patrick. "BP Gulf Oil Spill--Impact on America's Environment and Economy.” suite101. N.p., 7 June 2010. Web. 3 Nov. 2010. <http://www.suite101.com/content/bp-gulf-oil-spill--impact-on-americas-environment-and-economy-a246061 >.

• Werner, Johannes, Andy Goddard, and Jason Busto. "Oil spill not .a concern.Yet." Cuba Standard. Jason Busto, n.d. Web. 3 Nov. 2010.<http://www.cubastandard.com/2010/05/01/cuban-government-expert-oil-spill-not-a-concern-yet/>.

Works Cited (continued)• “Where the US gets its oil from." Consumer Energy Report. Consumer Energy Report, n.d.

Web. 7 Nov. 2010. <http://www.consumerenergyreport.com/research/crude-oil/where-the-us-gets-its-oil-from/ >.