Larry Bud
from the article, "Eating Fossil Fuels" which you can read here
In the United States, 400 gallons of oil equivalents are expended annually to feed each American (as of data provided in 1994).7 Agricultural energy consumption is broken down as follows:
á 31% for the manufacture of inorganic fertilizer
á 19% for the operation of field machinery
á 16% for transportation
á 13% for irrigation
á 08% for raising livestock (not including livestock feed)
á 05% for crop drying
á 05% for pesticide production
á 08% miscellaneous8
Energy costs for packaging, refrigeration, transportation to retail outlets, and household cooking are not considered in these figures.
To give the reader an idea of the energy intensiveness of modern agriculture, production of one kilogram of nitrogen for fertilizer requires the energy equivalent of from 1.4 to 1.8 liters of diesel fuel. This is not considering the natural gas feedstock.9 According to 2001 until June 30 2002 the United States used 12,009,300 short tons of nitrogen fertilizer.10 Using the low figure of 1.4 liters diesel equivalent per kilogram of nitrogen, this equates to the energy content of 15.3 billion liters of diesel fuel, or 96.2 million barrels.
Of course, this is only a rough comparison to aid comprehension of the energy requirements for modern agriculture.
In a very real sense, we are literally eating fossil fuels.
from www.lifeaftertheoilcrash.net:
Because petrochemicals are key components to much more than just the gas in your car. As geologist Dale Allen Pfeiffer points out in his article enbreastled, "Eating Fossil Fuels," approximately 10 calories of fossil fuels are required to produce every 1 calorie of food eaten in the US.
The size of this ratio stems from the fact that every step of modern food production is fossil fuel and petrochemical powered:
1. Pesticides are made from oil;
2. Commercial fertilizers are made from ammonia, which is
Gas: The good 'ol days 2237Thats not the percentage of US oil use that goes on agriculture. Doesnt have to be done that way if that no longer makes sense. Which doesnt necessarily have to...
made from natural gas, which will peak about 10 years
after oil peaks;
3. With the exception of a few experimental prototypes, all
farming implements such as tractors and trailers are
constructed and powered using oil;
4. Food storage systems such as refrigerators are
manufactured in oil-powered plants, distributed across
oil-powered transportation networks and usually run on
electricity, which most often comes from natural gas or
coal;
5. In the US, the average piece of food is transported
almost 1,500 miles before it gets to your plate. In
Canada, the average piece of food is transported 5,000
miles from where it is produced to where it is consumed.
In short, people gobble oil like two-legged SUVs.
It's not just transportation and agriculture that are entirely dependent on abundant, cheap oil. Modern medicine, water distribution, and national defense are each entirely powered by oil and petroleum derived chemicals.
In addition to transportation, food, water, and modern medicine, mbutt quanbreasties of oil are required for all plastics, all computers and all high-tech devices.
Some specific examples may help illustrate the degree to which our technological base is dependent on fossil fuels:
1. The construction of an average car consumes the energy
equivalent of approximately 27-54 barrels, which equates
to 1,100-2,200 gallons, of oil. Ultimately, the
construction of a car will consume an amount of fossil
Gas: The good 'ol days 2241Anthony Matonak Even before I saw that SkyWeb Express site a year or two ago, I personally had this dream of a similar automated rail system. My idea...
fuels equivalent to twice the car's final weight.
2. The production of one gram of microchips consumes 630
grams of fossil fuels. According to the American Chemical
Society, the construction of single 32 megabyte DRAM
chip requires 3.5 pounds of fossil fuels in addition to 70.5
pounds of water.
3. The construction of the average desktop computer
consumes ten times its weight in fossil fuels.
4. The Environmental Literacy Council tells us that due to
the "purity and sophistication of materials (needed for) a
microchip, . . . the energy used in producing nine or ten
computers is enough to produce an automobile."
When considering the role of oil in the production of modern technology, remember that most alternative systems of energy - including solar panels-solar-nanotechnology, windmills, hydrogen fuel cells, biodiesel production facilities, nuclear power plants, etc. - rely on sophisticated technology.
In fact, all electrical devices make use of silver, copper, and-or platinum, each of which is discovered, extracted, transported, and fashioned using oil-powered machinery. For instance, in his book, The Lean Years: Politics of Scarcity, author Richard J. Barnet writes:
To produce a ton of copper requires 112 million BTU's or the
equivalent of 17.8 barrels of oil. The energy cost component
of aluminum is twenty times higher.
Nuclear energy requires uranium, which is also discovered, extracted, and transported using oil-powered machinery.
Most of the feedstock (soybeans, corn) for biofuels such as biodiesel and ethanol are grown using the high-tech, oil-powered industrial methods of agriculture described above.
In short, the so called "alternatives" to oil are actually "derivatives" of oil. Without an abundant and reliable supply of oil, we have no way of scaling these alternatives to the degree necessary to power the modern world.
