Blog #10 Oil

Angela Ferr

3.31.11

SOC-202-01

One of the main components to the human destruction of the world is oil. Throughout our history, we have killed plants, animals, the environment, as well as each other for oil. Through our mistakes, we have even killed off whole areas of habitat and a lot of the animals that lived there. The most recent big oil spill was 2010 at the Mexican Gulf. BP caught on fire and sank. They were not able to immediately close it, and because of that, huge amounts of gallons of oil leaked into the sea. The pollution caused by the huge spill caused severe damage to the marine life and loss and disruption to coastal regions.

One of the really known oil spills was the Exxon oil spill in 1989. They dumped 40 million gallons of oil off the coast of Alaska that has not and will not dissolve and the area will continue to be polluted and polluting for many years to come. It is seen all over the globe, such as Spain in 2002. In 1991, Saddam Hussein destroyed over 700 oil wells and released over 1 million gallons of oil into the Gulf. This caused a dense chemical cloud that killed hundreds of people due to respiratory problems. It also contaminated the water, polluted beaches and killed thousands of the animals.

This isn’t just a problem that is seen throughout the world, it is also seen a lot throughout the last 2 centuries. There are accidental spills as well as spills on purpose. I believe that if we found a reliable alternative to energy than oil, we can solve multiple problems. We can solve the conflicts between countries, save a lot of animals and their habitats, save the environment and save human lives. We do have alternate sources for energy today, such as wind and solar energy, but they aren’t as reliable or as popular as oil is now. There are some that are trying to find alternate ways for energy, including former president Bill Clinton. He has a foundation for college students who have ideas for multiple things including alternative ways of getting energy. He gets these college students together with big companies and people who have a lot of money to invest into these ideas, and they make it come alive. Helping out in ways like this is a good way to get your ideas heard and make a difference.

http://www.350day.org/environmental-disasters-caused-by-man/