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A century ago, when Henry Ford was mass-producing automobiles, most of the fuel for Americas cars came from places like Oklahoma and Texas. Today, oil for our cars and other things that use petroleum comes from places like Venezuela and Iran. In fact, our country is now dependent on a group of nations called the Oil and Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). They have the power to set the price of the oil we import and the price is inflating rapidly. In 1997, the cost of oil was $ 14 per barrel. Now, it is more than $ 60 per barrel.
An even greater problem is that many of the OPEC nations have a strong hatred towards the United States. We now depend on the unstable governments of Hugo Cover (Venezuela) and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (Iran) who have made many threats to America and our way of life. Our national debt has increased and security has been threatened because of our relationship with OPEC nations. In fact, because of our oil payments, some countries have enough money to create large nuclear arsenals that they could point toward us. An oil crisis would hurt everyone in the United States. Our transportation system, manufacturing companies and some power plants use petroleum.
Many products we use everyday, like plastics, nylon and rubber come from petroleum. Without oil, we might have to go back to the days of the horse and carriage. It is clear that Americans want a change in US energy policy. A study by Yale University found that more than 90 % of Americans think America's dependence on foreign oil is a serious problem. They want their government to show leadership by finding ways to get away from this dependence. One alternative to depending on foreign oil is to use petroleum produced in the United States.
Geologists say there are still large reserves of crude oil in the Gulf of Mexico, off the California coast and in Alaska. However, due to environmental laws we cannot drill these large quantities of crude oil in our own backyard. An area that has great potential for domestic oil production is Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR). According to geologist this area, which is the size of South Carolina, can produce trillions of barrels of crude oil. Less than 0. 5 % of the landmass in that area would be impacted by oil production.
Environmentalists believe that this is a pristine area that should not be disrupted by man. They worry about the many different species of animals that live there such as caribou, wolves and polar bears. However, an indigenous people called the Inuit, inhabit the area and they support drilling. One part of this bill would be to change environmental policy to allow drilling in areas like ANWR with the permission of park and wildlife officials and the indigenous people.
They know the most about the land as well as the animals and plants that live there. They should have a say in how the land is used. Another part of this bill would be to develop and promote the use of ethanol as a fuel. Even if we tap into reserves of oil in places like ANWR, someday we will run out of petroleum.
Ethanol has great potential as a fuel for us. It is produced from renewable organic materials like corn, soybeans, sugarcane and grass plants. America is one of the leading producers of all of these crops. In fact, US farmers have the potential to produce much more than they are today. The government already supports the use of ethanol. It has helped companies and groups of farmers build ethanol plants here in Missouri.
A law already exists saying that by 2036, gasoline powered vehicles may not use 100 % gasoline. Ethanol can be an important answer to our fuel problems. This backyard fuels policy will provide a way for the United States to become more self-sufficient with its energy. We will be able to drill for oil and develop ethanol from our lands. This will allow us to slowly cut off dependence on unstable and hostile OPEC nations. Also, we will be supporting our own farmers and energy companies instead of raising our national debt.
With less national debt, government and private funds can be used to make sure drilling is done in a safe way and impacted areas are restored quickly. In the long term, our economy will be stronger and our people will be safer and more secure. Bibliography Alaska State Senator Al Adams Favors Oil Development. 1997. 18 December 1997. web American Made Energy Oil, Ethanol and the BIG Energy Picture. 2006. 30 August 2006. < web > ANWR map. 2006. December 11, 2006.
org / docs /CloseupofareaIII. pdf> Buried treasure: Access needed to federal reserves. 2006. 4 December 2006. < web > History and analysis: Crude oil prices. 2006. 17 December 2006. < web > Missouri corn online. 2003. 26 September 2003. < web > Oil and dependence: An NPR special report? Can America break free from foreign oil? 2006. March 4 - 7, 2002. < web > Petroleum History. 2006. 15 Dec. 2006
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Research essay sample on Crude Oil Foreign Oil
