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Whither peak oil at Rudd's 2020 Summit?

By Michael Lardelli - posted Thursday, 10 April 2008


But there is not the faintest mention of the inevitable limitations imposed by declining oil production, even in the background paper which will, presumably, structure the debate.

At least they are still going to discuss the all important population issue under, "Population, sustainability, climate change and water" (although it will be fascinating to see whether they actually discuss what a sustainable population might be for Australia rather that simply the best way to cope with the never-ending increase in numbers as promoted by housing industry lobbyists).

The delegate list seems surprisingly devoid of people who are aware (at least publicly) of peak oil issues. I spotted Ian Lowe (Emeritus Professor of Science, Technology and Society at Griffith University) on the list and one glimmer of hope might be the inclusion of Greg Bourne, the former CEO of BP Australasia who tossed in that job to head the Australian arm of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF-Australia) although his views on future oil availability may be too optimistic. However, nobody I can identify as a peak oil "activist" is present. I can see none from ASPO-Australia, although I know some applied to attend. (The Australian Medical Association also failed to get a delegate - one might have thought they could contribute to the topic, "A long-term national health strategy".) As a transport engineer with whom I have contact commented:

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I find the list of attendees frustrating in several respects. There are some very good economists (e.g. Garnaut and Quiggan) and some genuine climate experts (eg Pearman) but a lot of political figures … and virtually nobody with a technical background in transport. I'm not saying the world should be run by engineers and scientists but this is a technically complex problem and yet there are virtually NO technical experts on infrastructure in that whole group in my opinion. They seem to assume that the only possible solutions will be economic policies which achieve political support.

What are we to make of this?

Is the exclusion of peak oil a reflection of the ignorance of our political leaders or an intentional decision? One thing we can be certain of is that the Australian Labor Party is keenly aware of the issue. Andrew McNamara, who is currently Minister for Sustainability, Climate Change and Innovation for the Queensland state Labor government and who headed their Oil Vulnerability Taskforce has been enlightening the rest of the Labor party for years now.

When I asked my local federal Labor member whether she was aware of the peak oil issue she told me how Andrew had been keeping her well informed. For what it is worth I have also heard third-hand rumours of confidential preparations for a liquid fuels crisis here in Labor-run South Australia (where we only have an average of 10 days fuel in reserve and thus rely on "just-in-time" deliveries by ship from Singapore).

So it seems that the current federal Labor government has, unsurprisingly, placed political popularity before the good of the nation and has decided to ignore this issue publicly for as long as possible. The 2020 Summit is all about a bright and optimistic future for Australia under the visionary leadership of Kevin Rudd. Peak oil is an exceedingly nasty spanner in the works of that sunny future and allowing it to raise its voice at the summit is something that the Ruddites, with their "economic conservative" image, must be keen to avoid.

I believe it is time for peak oil activists to stop waiting for the politicians to openly address this issue. The best way to get the Australian Labor Party to talk energy decline is to force them to - let's get out and demonstrate on the steps of state and federal parliaments and demand to know what their plans are to handle the decline of oil! (And this time we will not accept answers like compact fluorescent lightbulbs, subsidised oil exploration or geothermal electricity that we so often receive in form-letter replies to our correspondence with our parliamentary representatives.) Even just a few people with some media contacts could have a surprising effect - let's try it and see!

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About the Author

Michael Lardelli is Senior Lecturer in Genetics at The University of Adelaide. Since 2004 he has been an activist for spreading awareness on the impact of energy decline resulting from oil depletion. He has written numerous articles on the topic published in The Adelaide Review and elsewhere, has delivered ABC Radio National Perspectives, spoken at events organised by the South Australian Department of Trade and Economic Development and edits the (subscription only) Beyond Oil SA email newsletter. He has lectured on "peak oil" to students in the Australian School of Petroleum.

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