The International Energy
Agency projected in 2012 that a shale-oil boom would catapult the United States
over the state of Saudi Arabia as the world’s largest oil producer by 2020. In
the words of the Wall Street Journal, the global energy map was “being redrawn
by the resurgence in oil and gas production in the United States.” Although the
United States would benefit in the period from the trajectory, the drawbacks
should not be ignored. In fact, the trend could be harmful in the long term if
preparedness for a world without oil is put off as a consequence.
