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

Preface
Our society is reaching a turning point. Very soon, perhaps already, a key energy and
material resource will reach a historic transition. This point, known as “peak oil,” will
usher in a new age – of declining capacity to supply society with an energy source
unmatched in energy density, net energy return, scale, and ease of use.
Peak production has occurred before in fields, regions and nations – the United States
offering the most famous example – but now we stand poised to peak globally. Because oil
is a finite, non‐renewable resource, a worldwide decline in production is inevitable.
Peak oil will necessitate many changes in society. It is difficult to imagine how we can
continue a transportation‐intensive culture without this key resource. Similarly, most of
industrial agriculture relies on fossil fuel inputs. Indeed, oil is a feedstock of a truly
massive array of products. And economic growth, entailing ever‐greater throughput of
materials and increasing consumption, has depended on expanding energy availability.
The consequences of oil production decline are therefore serious. It may be difficult to fully
grasp and acknowledge the implications. Can the future be so different than today? Ten
years ago, few would have predicted the collapse of a paramount blue chip institution such
as General Motors. And few astute political commentators would have predicted the
election of an African American President of the United States. The collapse of the former
Soviet Union and the rise of global communications via the internet are also testaments to
rapid change in a very short time.
The changes implied by peak oil are immense, and thus will require preparation and
planning commensurate with the size of the problem.
The transition to a post‐peak oil world will likely entail the shortening of commercial and
trade supply lines and the relocalization of essential community needs, such as food
production. Products that require little oil in their composition and manufacturing will be
favored. We will have to develop and employ new technologies that are both
environmentally benign and based on renewable resources and energy. There will also be
a need for skills that have been neglected in the age of cheap energy, and knowledge
thought to be outdated and obsolete. Prosperity may take on new meaning – from a simple
metric of accumulated money to a broader meaning of community well being, security, and
commonwealth.
On the most basic level, peak oil, climate change, and a host of other environmental crises
require that we recognize and live within the limits of our biosphere. This is the challenge
and opportunity that we have before us today. We hope that this report contributes to a
prosperous and resilient future.
Dave Rollo
Chair, Bloomington Peak Oil Task Force
Report of the Bloomington Peak Oil Task Force i