ASIGN5_SMT312 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

ASIGN5_SMT312 - Essay Example Energy costs take 8% of the GDP of the United States. The United States is conducting a geological survey to evaluate its oil reserves. OPEC refers to organization of the petroleum producing Exporting countries. This is a cartel of twelve countries namely United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Ecuador, Venezuela, Iran, Qatar, Libya, Nigeria Kuwait, Angola, Iraq and Algeria. The headquarters of OPEC are in Vienna. They hold regular meeting represented by member countries oil ministers. In 2008 Indonesia withdrew from the group due to its declining reserves. The countries with the most coal reserves in the world are the United States, Russia and China respectively. There are about 847 billion tones in the world. These are enough deposits to last the entire world for the next 130 years at the existent level of production. A survey conducted by the United States Geological Survey show areas around Arctic Alaska, Amerasia, East Greenland Rift Basins in North America have large deposits tar sand. It’s estimated that 84% of gas and oil production would take place off shore. Like any non-renewable energy source tar sand affect the environment. When being mined toxic chemical infiltrate rivers and other water bodies. In addition because of the high carbon emission it causes deforestation. Most of time a large section of trees, bushes, top soil are cleared thereby causing environmental degradation. The oil crisis in 1973 emanated when the then Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting placed an oil Embargo on the United States of America. It came about after the United States supplied Israeli with military equipment during the Yom Kippur War. The embargo was placed on October 1973 to march 1974 (Campbell, 89). 16 The 1979 oil crisis which is also known as the second oil crisis resulted from the Iranian Revolution. Massive protests that led to the fleeing of Mohammed Pahlavi, Shah of Iran, also disrupted the county’s oil sector