Natural Apex: Defining a National Energy Policy for the Next Decade
by In the years to come, essential raw materials from crude oil and arable farmland to clean air and fresh water will be in short supply. Wealth among nations will be more accurately measured by access to natural resources and raw materials than by the value of goods produced and services available. Based on shortages of essential raw materials, sustained prosperity of some nations is only achievable through deliberately depriving other nations of theirs. Animosity between nations will trigger debilitating resource skirmishes around the world, which no nation will win. Willingness by the United States to assume a leadership role in solving an imminent global crisis by assessing the impact of dwindling natural resources, analyzing alternatives from natural resource conservation to increased use of renewable resources and reliance on green technologies, and then executing a national energy policy defined from a truly global perspective is urgently needed. The stakes have never been higher.
The last quarter century was a time of tumultuous change, but also a time of unparalleled global growth and prosperity. Political, economic, and social barriers in place for decades were swept away by cooperative liaisons established among industrialized and emerging nations, with the foundation of a global economy evolving through innovative thinking and rapid adoption of new technologies such as the worldwide Internet. This was a time of unprecedented global wealth, nurtured by an abundant supply and seemingly endless availability of natural and human resources. It was truly the best of times.
The decades to follow will be a more challenging time, however, with wealth among nations measured differently than before. Continued prosperity of industrialized and emerging nations will be measured more by access to limited natural resources than by the value of finished goods produced or types of services available. It will be a time when “back to basics” austerity replaces the “sky’s the limit” philosophy prevalent throughout the latter twentieth century.
Although a consensus of opinion that the world faces some type of resource or energy shortage within the next few years is gaining acceptance, no great sense of urgency to deal with it in a coordinated manner is apparent. For example, there are meaningful initiatives aimed at energy conservation, such as replacing incandescent light bulbs with more efficient fluorescent lighting and reducing dependence on foreign oil by growing corn for ethanol production, and marginal ideas such as inflating automobile tires to their recommended air pressure. There is also growing public awareness that more energy could be saved by increasing the efficiency of electric power generation and transmission system infrastructure, leveraging technology to control residential and business lighting and air conditioning, and encouraging widespread acceptance of telecommuting. As no good deed goes unpunished, however, an increased reliance on telecommuting negatively impacts the travel, airline and hospitality industries.
While increased awareness is a step in the right direction, ad hoc actions are not elements of a coordinated energy strategy. A detailed and cohesive national strategy requires considerable planning and cooperation between private industry and government to succeed. And the longer the delay in developing and implementing the needed plans of action, the more costly and time-consuming a meaningful strategy becomes.
Back to Basics
Americans regard a high standard of living and uninterrupted prosperity as inalienable rights. However, issues of maintaining access to, and availability of, basic commodities threaten continued growth and prosperity taken for granted in the United States and throughout the industrialized world. Such issues are shared by developing nations as well, but viewed from a different perspective. They believe that while their own standard of living is improving, the standard of living enjoyed by large industrialized nations is maintained at their expense.
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