Oil, oil everywhere...

The BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico has now been with us for almost 70 days. And yet we see no real end in the near future. The latest from BP is that they won't have the "relief" wells drilled and operational until August. Taken at their word, that's a long time to wait for "relief". In the meantime, a very large and diverse - and already threatened - ecosystem is being slowly destroyed. All the while having ripple effects ranging from land, air and sea wildlife to hundreds of local businesses all along the gulf states. While there are plenty of facts that are not being publicized, plenty of others are readily available. Scenes of oil soaked birds cover the internet, TV and print; YouTube videos of infested beaches; videos and blogs from divers near the spill and the relentless video feed from the leak itself all bombard us. So much so that we may be getting desensitized to it all. Let's look back at another oil related disaster - the Exxon Valdez. An undeniably devastating event that was in the news daily. But it isn't now. However, a quick search will show you that it is anything but forgotten. The EPA has a standing study for the area to see how it is recovering and what is and was affected. The latest report, taken 20 years after the spill, shows that there is still oil present in the bay and that the ecosystem in that area is still very fragile. Remember that when you realize that this BP spill has already released about four times as much oil into the ocean as Valdez did.
One of the many lessons for us to learn here is the future of our world. The longer we depend upon nonrenewable, fossil fuels, we will continue to endanger the world in which we live. Does that mean we need to completely cut our dependence on fossil fuels, completely change the way we live and switch over to renewables in the same manner that we would switch from Wal-Mart to Target? Yes and no. We do need to seriously cut our dependence on fossil fuels. Said best by Lisa Margonelli at TEDxOilSpill, "We need to stop fooling ourselves that we can have a green world without reducing our use of oil." However, the plastic that makes up solar panels comes from oil. The metals involved had to be mined from Earth. The materials had to be shipped to their locales (most of us don't know how to make our own solar panels, but look it up - it's easier than you think). The circuitry involved in making renewable energy "smart" includes metals that are toxic when leaked into our soil, water or air.
The fact is, we need to learn a balance between the industrial age, the technological age and the sustainable age. Which is where my company motto came from: "Humanity in Harmony with Habitat"
This is the only Earth we have, let's learn how to live with it not just on it.