Struggling to keep a lid on oil crisis

John D. Rockefeller’s Cleveland refineries launched the Oil Age.

A superhighway in China may end it.

Almost 150 years ago, barges plied the Cuyahoga River ferrying black gold for oil lamps. There was no turning back. Cheap, plentiful crude would power cars, mold plastics, birth the suburbs and grease the path to a prosperous American century.

Much of today’s world slides along that same industrialized path. A 52,000-mile superhighway system is under construction in China. Millions of prospering Chinese browse auto showrooms looking for a new lifestyle based on crude.

But recent spikes at gas pumps worldwide hint that, for the first time, oil won’t come cheap. Analysts and traders alike suspect we are on the verge of demanding more oil than we can produce.

Cleveland Plain Dealer

(This was the front-page story in today’s Cleveland Plain Dealer, and the first of a periodic series called “Crude Awakening.” This article is quite lengthy, had lots of graphics showing the peak oil problem, as well as a listing of Internet resources that included PeakOil.com)

CRUDE AWAKENING

Struggling to keep a lid on oil crisis

Sunday, May 29, 2005

Chris Seper and John Funk

Plain Dealer Reporters

Link to lead story:

http://www.cleveland.com/energy/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/news/1117359235209313.xml&coll=2

The Cleveland Plain Dealer’s Link to Peak Oil internet resources:

http://www.cleveland.com/energy/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/news/1117359282209310.xml&coll=2

Submit Peak Oil and other energy-related news ideas to The Plain Dealer:

http://www.cleveland.com/energy/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/news/1117359228209313.xml&coll=2