Article | 2002
Energy Security: It Takes More Than Drilling
This editorial in the Christian Science Monitor describes how America can become more secure through energy efficiency measures and renewable energy sources. Energy security is not possible simply by drilling for more oil. The authors argue that domestic energy systems aren’t secure unless they’re designed to make large-scale failures impossible and local failures benign. Unfortunately, the United States’ extraordinarily concentrated energy flows invite a devastating attack. The authors describe the difficulty with supplying a significant amount of oil with American oil reserves, and the security risks inherent in transporting oil from a single pipeline in Alaska.