What is Oil?

Crude oil is a naturally occurring, flammable liquid consisting of a complex

mixture of hydrocarbons of various molecular weights and other liquid organic

compounds that are found in geologic formations beneath the Earth’s surface.

Oil is a nonrenewable resource that takes millions of years to create.

Nonrenewable resources are things that can run out, or be used up. Oil, like

natural gas is a fossil fuel. All fossil fuels are nonrenewable resources. Also

oil is like an orange and yellowish color.

How was Oil Formed?

Oil was formed millions of years ago when tiny plants and animals died

and sank to the bottom of shallow seas. Then, sand, clay and silt (lots of tiny

pieces of rock) covered the thin layer of dead plants and animals. The dead

organisms began to decompose (break down). Then this process repeated itself

when more dead organisms covered the rocky layer, and then more sand, clay

and silt covered the new layer of organisms. Over a long, long time, enormous

amounts of pressure built up, causing the bottom layer to become very hot.

Under this pressure, the clay, sand and silt formed into rocks and the

decayed animals and plants between the rock layers turned into a dark, heavy

liquid – oil! Oil is a result of millions of years of decay, pressure, and heat.
 Where is oil located?

Oil is found in the shallow seas. Oil is in 31 states and in the U.S coastal

waters. In 2009 50% of U.S oil production came from Texas, Alaska,

California, North Dakota, and Louisiana. Petroleum products refined from

crude oil fuel almost 33% of Canada’s total energy needs. Slightly more than

70 per cent of the crude oil produced in Canada is refined into transportation

fuels – gasoline and diesel for cars and trucks, kerosene for jet aircraft and

fuel oil for ships. Other energy uses include domestic and industrial heating,

fuels for industrial purposes and generating electricity.

How is oil used?

There are many uses for oil. Oil contributes to the creation of fuel, paint,

detergent, trash bags, and many other things. The most common use of oil is

in fuel for automobiles; almost anything with an engine requires fuel to run. It

is also used for Fuel, Plastics, Rubber, Soap, Toothpaste, Deodorant,

Clothing, Machines that Makes Paper, Toothbrush.

When did the oil industry begin?

The intricacy of petroleum to American life in the early 21st century would

have shocked 19th century users of "Pennsylvania rock oil." Most farmers who

knew about oil in the early 1800s saw seeping crude oil as a nuisance to

agriculture and water supplies. These observers were not the first people to

consider the usefulness of petroleum, which had been a part of human society

for thousands of years. However, its value grew only when European-

Americans offered the resource their commodity-making skills. Crude oil was

found and used in some fashion in various locales throughout the world.

However, the area credited with first noticing petroleum is a mountainous area

in western Pennsylvania, nearly one hundred miles north of Pittsburgh. The oil

occurring along Oil Creek was named initially for the Seneca people, the native

inhabitants of this region of North America at the time of European

settlement. However, there were earlier users of this same sup

Why is oil
important to our economy?

Oil is important for our community and economy because we use oil for

different things. We need oil to fuel our cars. We also need oil to make

plastics, garbage bags and other things. Oil is important to the economy

because it is used in massive quantities. Most plastics are derived from

petroleum, as well as makeup and even some clothing. What we purchase most

often affects how the economy functions.

Advantages and Disadvantages

Although oil can be very helpful to us in many ways, it can also be very

harmful. Whether on land or in water, when oil is spilled, it has a great

effect on our lives. Oil spills affect us by polluting our resources such as

water. Water pollution from oil spills harms animals and ecosystems. Oil spills

can also interfere with the normal working of power plants because many of

them require a continuous supply of clean seawater. The power plants draw in

seawater to use as a coolant. And polluted water clogs machinery. Another

major problem with oil is the air pollution that it creates when burned. Oil is

one of the major causes of smog, a type of air pollution. Smog is create when

coal or heavy oil are burned in places like power plants, industrial plants, and
cars, releasing toxins into the air. Smog consists mostly of a mixture of dust,

different types of gases released in the burning and water vapor. It’s really

just a very dirty cloud, but it is very bad for our health. Today, pollution

from oil and other dangerous substances is hurting our air. Although oil

provides us with fuel and energy, we need to limit our use of it because there

is a limited supply and its use pollutes the environment.

Environmental impacts of oil

The environmental impact of using oil includes the impact from the

searching, drilling, pumping, refining and transporting the oil before

the end user gets it. The environmental impact of the oil industry

includes the land use, waste management and groundwater and air pollution

from the production and refining process. Carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas,

and other harmful gases and waste materials are produced. The oil may be

transported vast distances by tanker and pipeline, adding to its impact on the

environment. Accidents, like as oil spills causes additional damage to the

ecology. And the end user then usually burns it, adding more carbon dioxide to

our greenhouse gas layer and contributing to global warming.

THE END