Giving up oil

Like eternal sunshine or perpetual motion, a world beyond oil is something that sounds delightful but implausible. Society has become so addicted to the black stuff that the habit seems permanent. But if that turns out to be true then all the bold talk about tackling change means little. Technologies such as carbon capture and fuel efficiency may reduce the harm that oil use causes – but any gains will be wiped out by economic growth around the world. As David Miliband argued in a speech yesterday, “the goal could not be clearer: for reasons of energy security and climate security, take the carbon out of our fuel supplies”.

guardian