Reduce the National Speed Limit to 55

688 Words2 Pages

The world oil reserves are rapidly diminishing and are only expected to be sufficient to meet world demand for the nest 25 years, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. In 2010 the United States consumption rate of petroleum was 19.15 million barrels per day, accounting for 22% of the world's petroleum usage. Climate change and health related problems caused by CO2 emissions can be greatly curtailed by a change in our transportation habits. With the world's resources being rapidly depleted by over consumption; is it a depleted world our children will become heir to?

Lowering the national speed limit to 55 mph has many benefits, foremost of all is an increase in fuel mileage and a decrease in fuel consumption. In 1974 due to the Arab oil embargo, congress enacted a national speed limit of 55 mph, resulting in a 2% decrease in highway fuel consumption, or a saving of 167,000 barrels of oil a day. Giving the increase in the number of cars on the highway today, lowering the speed limit would result in an even greater saving.

A reduction in oil consumption, would also mean that less oil would have to be drilled for. No one, including scientist know for sure what drilling and the removal of oil from the earth's interior is doing to the planet. Logic would suggest that when you remove a liquid or a solid from an interior, changes will occur to the exterior's surface. Why is there oil and gas in the earth's interior? Could it be natures way of lubricating the earth, like we do with our machines to keep them running smoothly? Scientist and other who study the make up of the earth can only speculate at these questions, but without real knowledge, forth coming dangers will only be recognized in hindsight. Every year t...

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... them to live on.

Works Cited

“About Oil Shale” Oil Shale & Tar Programmatic EIC, n.d., web, 26 August 2011

Alter Lloyd, “Lowering the Speed Limit To 50 mph Could Reduce CO2 By 30%” Tree Hugger, 6 October 2010, web, 250August 2011

Denning Dan, “Oil Shale Reserves, Can Oil Shale Change The World” The Daily Reckoning, n.d., web, 26 August 2011

“Do we have enough oil worldwide to meet our future needs?” U.S. Energy Information Administration, 12 April 2011, web, 24 August 2011

“How Much Oil do the United States Consume Per Year” U.S. Energy Information Administration, 6 June 2011, web, 24 August 2011

The Associated Press, “Warner: Reduce speed limit to save gas?” POLITICO, 4 July 2008, web, 25 August 2011

Vidal John, “Nigeria's agony dwarfs the Gulf oil spill. The US and Europe ignore it” guarding.co.uk, The Observer, 30 May 2010, web, 26 August 201

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