It also approaches the entire economic output of our nation for one year. Using the entire strategic petroleum reserve would barely dent the impact, and there is little hope that we'll be able to produce more oil at home compared to the rest of the world. Given our current oil consumption pace, the question is not if the next oil price shock will come, but simply when. The only surefire way out of our destiny is to find viable alternatives to oil. There is another equally compelling reason for action.
Oil is a fossil fuel that emits carbon dioxide and other pollutants when burned.
It is a cause of lung-searing air pollution that triggers ozone action days in Chicago and other urban areas. The resulting weather changes, farming disruptions and spread of diseases may have grave and very expensive impacts. At the celebrated 1992 Earth Summit in Brazil, industrial nations including the U.S. listened to the climate scientists and pledged to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by 2000. We adopted primarily voluntary programs to reach that target, but it has become clear that the effort will fall far short. Now the President has committed the U.S. to presenting a new plan for reducing greenhouse gases at an international negotiating session later this year.