How American and British towns and cities are preparing for peak oil
Peak oil is the point in time when the maximum rate of global petroleum extraction is reached, after which the rate of production enters terminal decline. This is expected to happen at the midpoint of depletion, that is, when only half the oil that will ever be produced has been consumed, and the other half is still underground.
When oil production starts to decline, the economic impacts will be dramatic. Economic growth is largely dependent upon a growing oil supply. The International Energy Agency has forecast oil demand to expand at a rate of 1.3% annually over the period 2004-2030. This is likely to lead to large spikes in the oil price along with the price of gas and electricity which are closely linked on financial markets.