Earth Science: Geology, the Environment, and the Universe

Chapter 25: Earth Resources

Problem of the Week

Crude Oil Supplies – How long with they last?

Solving the problem:

Add the oil reserves on the map

**Note: The map is presented in British units, so the number of barrels is given in units of "thousand millions." This is equivalent to the U. S. billion. The figures on the map can be translated so that 64.4 thousand million = 64.4 billion.

United States: 64.4 billion barrels

South America: 95.2 billion barrels

Europe: 19.1 billion barrels

Africa: 74.8 billion barrels

Former Soviet Union: 65.3 billion barrels

Asia Pacific: 44.0 billion barrels

Middle East: 683.6 billion barrels

Total: 1046.4 billion barrels

Divide this amount by the yearly amount used worldwide.

1,046,400,000,000 (proven oil reserves) / 23,443,000,000 (yearly use worldwide) = 44.6 years

Discussion Topics:

Oil, as a nonrenewable resource, is one of the most heavily used of the fossil fuels. Much of the world’s oil supply is located in Middle Eastern countries. Because the United States consumes a great amount of this oil, we are dependent on the supplies from these countries. This can be a good starting point for discussions on the current political situation or the efforts to develop alternative energy sources.

References:

1. Proved Oil Reserves. 2000.


2. Glencoe Earth Science: Geology, the Environment, and the Universe. p.658.
   Figure 25-4