According to an article in the online British paper The Independent, peak oil will happen in just four short years.  What does this mean?

Peak oil is a theory. The definition of peak oil is the date when the peak of the world’s conventional oil production is reached.  After this point production enters a step decline.  The result is obvious.  Catastrophic shortages, soaring prices, and devastated economies are just some of the results.

Pushing this point further, I would state that we are already beyond peak oil in a purer since of the idea.  In the United States, we currently consume more gas than we refine.  Simply logic dictates that we only have a matter of time before price escalates to an unbearable level.  Gas prices force a downturn in the U.S. economy which in turn has a ripple effect through out the  world.

I haven’t been impressed with the solutions I am seeing in the press.  Ethanol as a substitute for gasoline seems to only move the problem momentarily from gas to fresh water.  Where are the scientific minds on this one.  What happened to the fuel cell drive, highly affordable electric cars?  When was the last time we have had a life changing advance in the science of batteries?

It doesn’t matter when we reach peak oil, four years or forty years. We need to stop worrying about the money and start coming up with solutions that can be mainstreamed soon.  I hope industry isn’t waiting on government or the consumer to wake up to an oil drained planet.  One is to worried about the war in Iraq, the other is to worried about getting a tan, to worry about the future.  I will let you decide who is worried about what.