President Donald Trump and his administration are forging ahead with shortsighted energy policies, as described in the Aug. 20 Monitor article “U.S. says conserving oil not vital.” Whereas the concern of “peak oil” has taken a back seat as new technologies have expanded our ability to tap into oil sources, the International Energy Agency estimates that the 4.5 trillion barrels still underground will meet global oil demand beyond the 21st century. What about the 22nd century? What about the grandchildren of our grandchildren?
To produce one gallon of gasoline, 98 tons of prehistoric buried plant material is required, plus heat, time and pressure. Producing coal is more problematic. Ninety percent of the coal we burn today was produced during the Carboniferous Period, during which there were no microbes that could ingest lignin and cellulose, the key wood-eaters, so that fallen trees did not decompose but were instead converted to coal, again with time, pressure and heat.
So eventually we will run into a scarcity of fossil fuels. And before that, they will become more and more expensive, so that poorer people around the world will be unable to access them. But all this discussion avoids the topic of fossil-fuel-induced climate change, that is digging up millions-year-old stored carbon, burning it and disposing of it into our thin atmosphere.
Turning the page in the Aug. 20 Monitor, we can read: “The data behind growing wildfires,” where the links between climate change and increased fire duration and intensity are clearly delineated. The disconnect between the current administration and science is unfathomable. If you care about our descendants, vote in November to restore scientific integrity in our elected officials.
SUSAN SHAMEL
Hillsborough