Peak Oil Task Force Report - City of Bloomington - State of Indiana

MITIGATION GOALS & STRATEGIES
Following are some general steps we can collectively take to mitigate the economic effects
of peak oil while fostering a healthy and prosperous post‐peak local economy.
All of these steps are classified as “short‐term” simply because we need to take these steps
very soon to mitigate the effects of peak oil. However, once instituted, the presumption is
that these initiatives will only become stronger in the long term.
SHORT­TERM STRATEGIES (1­5 years)
1. Promote economic relocalization.
Rising petroleum prices will result in increasing costs for importing goods into the
community from outside and for exporting goods from the community elsewhere. We
should start to work now toward relocalization. Relocalization aims to build communities
based on the local production of food, energy, and goods. That Bloomington must and will
undergo a significant relocalization at some point is assumed in other sections of this
Report, particularly the chapter on Sustenance. Because of this tendency, we think that
Bloomington businesses which are able to replace distant suppliers with local and regional
suppliers, and distant markets with local and regional markets, might ultimately tend to do
better than businesses that are unable to manage such a transition. 35 As globalization is an
energy‐intensive system of exchange and production, it is extremely vulnerable to high
energy costs and shortages. Economic relocalization should be considered necessary for
community economic security.
35 It should be noted, however, that extreme price volatility might hamper efforts at relocalization as
individuals or businesses encouraged to produce for the Bloomington market because of high transportation
costs could suddenly find themselves priced out of that market very quickly if transportation costs plummet.
Moreover, if government rationing or fuel allocation policies are introduced that give priority to freight
transportation the cost of importing goods into Bloomington from elsewhere could remain low much longer
than if no such priority exists.
Report of the Bloomington Peak Oil Task Force
30