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The Impact of the Oil Industry on the Natural Environment essay
The Impact of the Oil Industry on the Natural Environment essay
Effects of oil spills on terrestrial ecosystems
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Crude Impact is a documentary created by James Jandak Wood in 2006. His film talks about the connect between humans, oil, and the environment. He informs the viewer that our dependency on oil is the reason for increasing human population growth. Wood also talks about the negative effects oil has on our health and the environment. Because of the United States dependency on oil, it causes great stress to foreign relationships. Wood’s film uncover the truth about oil and informs the audience of its dangers.
The major problem that the production and use of oil have the environmental is it continuous release of carbon dioxide into the environment. Through the combustion of fossil fuel, carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere. This, in turn, causes drastic effects to the climate, known as climate change. Climate change causes severe weather and droughts. Hurricane can increase in intensity and flooding can become a major issue. Global warming also happens, which causes more heat, smaller ice caps, and the shutting down of the global ocean conveyor belt. The global ocean conveyor belt is what keeps Europe warm and Antarctica cold. If the global ocean conveyor belt stop working, it can cause an ice age. This can possibly cause the next mass extinction.
Leading up to humans’ use of oil
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In Ecuador, one billion of its rainforest’s oil was extracted by Texaco. Texaco used foreign land as a way to not practice the regulations that are enforced in the United States. After extraction, Texaco dumped the waste into the environment and it contaminated the rainforest. The waste is known to contain carcinogens and the carcinogens were released into the native people’s water supply. The native people became ill and many developed cancer. In addition, according to the film, this was done deliberately by Texaco to save money on
In conclusion, Oil impacted social change over time, which helped us grow as a society. If you took my proposal into consideration I would really appreciate it. My proposal is going to have all of the factors of Oil and how oil has change our state. After reading the documents that you have given me I was able to answer question “What story should be told”. As H.L hunt always said “money is just as way of keeping score”. - H.L
Exxon/Mobil, one of the nation’s leading oil producers, has its main refinery located in Beaumont, Texas. Each year, the residents of Beaumont/Port Arthur have to contend with the 39,000 pounds of pollution spewed each year by the Exxon refinery. Exxon’s emissions are 385% above the state refinery average. In 1999, the Texas Natural Resources Conservation Committee (TNRCC) allowed the plant to increase their emissions, without allowing the public to have a say in the matter. Interestingly, 95% of the people living near the plant are of African American descent and are in the poverty range. Some believe that this, along with the lack of education in the area, allows Exxon to get away with such high emissions. Residents in nearby neighborhoods have been complaining of headaches, nausea, eye, and throat irritation for years. Since 1997, Mobil has repeatedly violated health standards in its emissions of two key air pollutants: sulfur dioxide and hydrogen sulfide, These “rotten egg” smells are so strong, one can smell it through a car driving past the refinery. After numerous complaints and one record of a refinery worker becoming unconscious because of the fumes, the EPA awarded Exxon with a $100,000 environmental justice grant in October of 1998. Hopefully, Exxon has put the money to good use and cleaned up their emissions.
The United States has had several scares throughout its history in terms of oil, most turn out to be over exaggerations of a small event. However, these scares highlight a massive issue with the U.S. and that issue is the U.S.’s dependence on foreign oil. Why does it matter that our oil should come from over seas? In a healthy economy this probably wouldn’t be as relevant, but the U.S.’s economy is not exactly healthy at the moment. There are 4 things that I would like to address: what the problem is, how it affects us, what some solutions are, and what solutions I feel are best.
In ancient times Babylonians used oil as mortar, Native Americans used oil as a topical medicine, and, before electricity, oil was used to create light. Mankind has been dependant on oil as a resource for generations. It has influenced growth, warfare, and technological advancement, but what if mankind were to run out (Alois)? The possibility of this eventuality was first vocalized by M. King Hubbert who introduced the notion of “peak oil.” When global oil production “peaks” it reaches its greatest output level and then permanently declines (Hubbert). There is much debate as to whether this “peak” exists, has already been passed, or will be passed in the near future. Despite the debate there is one undeniable fact; there is a finite amount of oil since it is a non renewable resource. Considering a sudden systemic collapse of all oil production seems unlikely, oil will probably be replaced gradually. This loss of oil could be positive; possibly less CO2 would enter the atmosphere and global warming may be stalled. However, the success of this transition away from fossil fuels will be largely dependant on the ability of developed nations to manage their time. If the US, or any other nation, is going to be successful, they need to start now.
They use these natural resources to enrich themselves, natural resources such as mountains are increasingly becoming more destructive as they are destroyed for their natural resources which many governments tend to use them for financial gains. Natural resources such as coal and natural gases are the best examples of the way co-operate world destroys natural resources. With the rivers and lakes they deposit wastes from their industries, chemical wastes which in-turn kill the marine life which are supposed to be used to feed humanity and to preserve nature. Klein further warns that these issues are a total disaster to humans themselves as she gives a statistics of how these affects pregnant women, she says that mothers living in the affected areas where there are natural gases deposits are 30 percent most likely to conceive babies with congenital heart defects than mother who lived from areas with no reported gas wells or gas
As we have come to know, the Huaorani people are among the fiercest hunting and gathering tribal people in the Ecuadorian Amazon. For a time they lived in complete isolation up until the 1950s when Evangelical Christian missionaries sought to convert them to Christianity. Since then, they have become an endangered people as the Christian missionaries had opened the gate to other forms of Western exploitation such as the crude oil company threatening their way of life. Most Huaorani say that they regret the day they have even come in contact with the Christians as many Huaoranis have contracted certain diseases that they are not immune to such as polio. The development of cancer is another major disease that has been brought on by the constant polluted air and water from the oil spills and crude exhaust from the oil companies. With the ongoing threat of Western development tarnishing their way of life, the Huaorani people continue to struggle for survival.
Wright, R. T., & Boorse, D. F. (2011). In addition to the rise in prices, another negative aspect of the U.S. dependency on foreign crude oil is the risk of supply disruptions caused by political instability in the Middle East. According to Rebecca Lefton and Daniel J. Weiss in the article “Oil Dependence Is a Dangerous Habit” in 2010, the U.S. imported 4 million barrels of oil a day, or 1.5 billion barrels per year, from “dangerous or unstable” countries. The prices at which these barrels are being purchased are still very high, and often lead to conflict between the U.S. and Middle Eastern countries. Lefton and Weiss also add that the U.S. reliance on oil from countries that are dangerous or unstable could have serious implications for our national security, economy and environment....
In 2007, the courageously hopeful President of Ecuador, Rafael Correa, announced the pioneering Yasuni ITT Initiative to the General Assembly of the United Nations ("What is the Initiative?"). It was a groundbreaking plan to save the unexploited ITT oil reserves (“What”). The initiative asked the world to donate $3.6 billion to Ecuador, in order to subsidize half of the profits the country would have gained if they opted for oil exploration (“What”). Regrettably, this visionary proposal to fight climate change recently failed in August 2013 (Associated). Ecuador only managed to collect $13 million and $116 million in pledges, which was not enough to continue this project (Associated). The Yasuni National Park, an ecological biosphere that contains two uncontacted tribes and plenty of wildlife, will slowly be destroyed by allowing oil drilling (Hill). While the drilling will boost the economy, it will strip the park of all its natural glory and disregard past exploitations of the land.
" Oil is the life blood of our modern industrial society. It fuels the machines and lubricates the wheels of the world’s production. But when that vital resource is out of control, it can destroy marine life and devastate the environment and economy of an entire region…. The plain facts are that the technology of oil-- its extraction, its transport, its refinery and use-- has outpaced laws to control that technology and prevent oil from polluting the environment…" (Max, 1969). Oil in its many forms has become one of the necessities of modern industrial life. Under control, and serving its intended purpose, oil is efficient, versatile, and productive. On the other hand, when oil becomes out of control, it can be one of the most devastating substances in the environment. When spilled in water, it spreads for miles around leaving a black memory behind (Stanley, 1969).
GreenPalm (2015) states how ‘the removal of acres of rainforest threatens the rich biodiversity’ in the ‘ecosystems’. Highlighting the risks of the cutting of the oil palm trees to produce the palm oil to both the environment and also the organisms which live within the areas, as certain species in the areas of the clearing of land, mainly with the palm oil ‘exported from Indonesia and Malaysia’ according to Say-No-To-Palm-Oil (2015), face possible extinction. There is still however ways in which the production of palm oil can be sustainable to the environment, as palm oil is essential for the use by humans because of the containment of the nutrients and also with the production of foods and
The destruction of this forest releases 340 million tons of carbon per year according to the World Wildlife Foundation, or WWF, which in turn causes climate changes everywhere around the world. Undiscovered species can hold the key to curing a plethora of diseases, but if those species become extinct, those keys are lost forever. If nothing is done to prevent this, the world’s treasure trove of bio-diversity will cease to exist, creating irreversible damage to not only the South American people, but also the rest of the world. Conversion of the tropical forest into cropland and pasture began a long time ago in Ecuador, before its secession from Spain. Their major crop was cocoa, which was grown along the waterways to be exported as their main source of trade.
“Pollution is the major disadvantage that is formed due to fossil fuels. When burnt they give out carbon dioxide, a green housed gas which is the main aspect of global warming.”(conserve-energy-future.com) That is an environmental hazard. Drilling can be inconsistent because some places may have a lot of oil, and some places do not. Sometimes if there is too much oil there can be a blow out. People also drill on their properties just for money, and some drill just to see if they have oil for money. Doing that is inconsistent. Gas prices rise and cause tension between nations. “Middle-east countries have huge reserves of oil and natural gas and many other countries are dependent on them for constant supply of these fuels.”(conserve-energy-future.com) Gas prices rise and some people cannot afford gas...
The effects of using fossil fuels are starker than their timelines. Humans release approximately two billion metric tons of pollution annually, mostly from the burning of coal, oil, and natural gas; this pollution is destroying our environment and the ozone layer. Ozone and smog damage forests, crops, and other plant life, and reduces visibility. Other pollutants have the same
Fossil fuels are an important part of life. When you turn on the lights, watch TV, or take a shower, the electricity that you are using is being generated by fossil fuels. The three types of fossil fuels are coal, crude oil, and natural gas. They all take millions of years to form, so they are considered to be “non-renewable”- eventually, the fossil fuels will all be used up. One dangerous biological effect of using fossil fuels is ocean acidification. Extracting and transporting fossil fuels can also be very dangerous. Environmentally damaging accidents such as groundwater contamination, land subsidence, and oil spills occur frequently. Global warming is another possible environmental effect. Fossil fuels have a crucial role in modern society, but since they are non-renewable and dangerous, we should reduce our dependence on them and explore alternative energy sources. Wind energy, hydroelectricity, and solar energy are some examples of renewable fuel sources. There are also many things that people can do everyday to save energy (and, in turn, conserve fossil fuels).
It is unfortunate that within the past 100 years our worlds' economy has driven itself into a deep hole with the reliance on a "black gold" called oil. Since its discovery, it has been purified to produce many different forms of energy such as light, gasoline and more. Since technology has enabled mankind to discover more capable methods of transportation, mankind has exploited its power over nature and produced machines such as the combustion engine. In combustion engine's, oil explodes to move machinery, and emits a very toxic byproduct called CO2. Carbon is incredibly dangerous to the earth's atmosphere, and erodes huge holes in the ozone layer of our earth. This erosion causes global warming and climate change that is permanent and irreversible. The impact of global warming will not only ...