Fanciful Tales from the Polluters

Oil is the the most valuable commodity in international commerce and major producing firms like ExxonMobil, Chevron, and Shell regularly top lists of the world’s most profitable enterprises.  Still, these companies are not just employing conventional legal and corporate tactics to protect their position, they’re mounting a propaganda assault of their own, claiming that fossil fuels are an essential factor in eradicating poverty and achieving a decent life on this planet. Instead of retreating, the major companies have gone on the offensive, extolling their contributions to human progress and minimizing the potential for renewables to replace fossil fuels in just about any imaginable future. Improbable as such claims may seem, they are being echoed by powerful officials around the world. Once upon a time, the giant carbon companies like Exxon sought to deflect environmental attacks by denying the very existence of climate change or the role of humans in causing it - or at least by raising the banner of “uncertainty” about the science behind it.  They also financed the efforts of rogue scientists to throw doubt on global warming.  While denialism still figures in the propaganda of some carbon companies, they have now largely chosen to embrace another strategy: extolling the benefits of fossil fuels to human well-being. The vision into which the energy corporations are presenting still entails sinking incredible resources across much of the planet into fossil fuels, ignoring the catastrophic warming of the planet.  They offer it, of course, as a glowing dreamscape of a glorious future though a nightmare is what should come to mind.

Carbon-producing nations like Russia and Saudi Arabia or the representatives of American energy-producing states like Texas and Kentucky are intent on ensuring that any path to a carbon-free future will, at best, be long and arduous. The oil, gas, and coal companies are selfishly pursuing mega-profits at the expense of the climate, the environment, our children and grandchildren, and even possibly a future of any reasonable sort for humanity as a whole.  Basically the big energy companies have said, “We’re going to wreck the planet, we don’t care what you say, we think we can, and we dare you to stop us.”

The fossil fuel industry are the nucleus of a global system of wealth and power that drags down democracy and perpetuates grotesque planetary inequalities.  They're big enough that you can buy off politicians.

The cornerstone of their claims is that ever-increasing supplies of energy are needed to sustain economic growth and ensure human betterment, and that fossil fuels alone exist in sufficient quantity and at affordable enough prices to satisfy rising international demand.  “Forecasting long-term energy trends begins with a simple fact: people need energy,” an Exxon report asserts.  “Over the next few decades, population and income growth -- and an unprecedented expansion of the global middle class - are expected to create new demands for energy.” Some of this added energy, Exxon acknowledges, will come from nuclear and renewable energy. Exxon estimates 67% will be provided by fossil fuels. Of the 201 quadrillion BTUs in added energy required by the developing world between now and 2040, predicts Exxon, 148 quadrillion, or 74%, will be provided by fossil fuels. Africa, for example, is expected to witness a 103% increase in net energy consumption between now and 2040, with 83% of that increase supplied by fossil fuels.

Without fossil fuels, this argument holds, there can be no economic growth because we have not found, through technology or other means, another fuel that can substitute for the role that oil plays in transportation. Natural gas is equally essential because it is the world’s fastest-growing source of energy and a key ingredient in electric power generation. Nor will coal be left out of the mix.  It, too, will play an important role in promoting economic growth, largely by facilitating a rapid increase in global electricity supplies.  Despite all the concern over coal’s contributions to both urban pollution and climate change, Exxon predicts that it will remain “the No. 1 fuel for power generation” in 2040. Without carbon-based fuels economic growth will screech to a halt and the world’s poor and disadvantaged will stay immersed in poverty, is the case for the defense. We are to shed a tear (fossil fuelled humanitarian tears, that is) for the fifth of the world without access to electricity. The blame can be placed upon the fact renewable sources of energy like wind and solar power are just not up to the task of providing the necessary extra energy needed to sustain economic growth and propel billions of people into the “middle class”.  The problem is that wind and solar are more costly than the fossil fuel alternatives and so are not growing fast enough to meet rising world demand. Renewables are also said to be problematic as they provide only intermittent sources of energy -- failing at night and on windless days -- and must be bolstered by other fuels to ensure uninterrupted energy output.

The oil and gas and coal corporations will generated on a massive scale a message that only by continued reliance upon their industries can the whole world enjoy the American Dream and prosperity for all. Their vision is all a lie. There is no reassuring future of carrying on business-as-usual and that there will actually be more for all.There is no mention of horrific droughts, colossal super-storms, or mass migrations of desperate people seeking to flee devastated areas. Croplands will wither and  coastal cities will flood. Preventing these catastrophes will involve sustained and dedicated effort by all those who truly care about the future of humanity and trusting less in the PR departments of vested interests and heeding more the wisdom of the scientists. 

Adapted from here