The standoff in the Strait of Hormuz has reminded the world that its entire economy runs on fossil fuels, from the fertilizer that grows your food to the polyester shirt you're probably wearing right now. But is there a way to loosen the death grip of petrochemicals on our daily existence?
While we've got a pretty good idea how to wean transportation off imported oil - electric cars, trains, and bicycles, we're looking at you - swapping out the endless list of petrochemicals that underpin modern life is a whole other beast. According to the International Energy Agency, chemicals made from oil and gas account for 90% of all raw materials. They are, as the IEA puts it, “intimately engrained in our daily routines: toothbrushes, carrier bags, food packaging, mobile phones, computers, carpets, clothes, furniture… and these are just the items we see every day.”
Petrochemicals represent 14% of global oil demand and 8% of fossil gas demand, yet the IEA calls them a “blind spot” in the global energy debate. Associate Professor Stuart Walsh, a resources engineer at Monash University, notes that crude oil and petrochemicals are in “just about everything we interact with every day. It’s almost hard to enumerate them because they’re so ubiquitous.”
Fertilizers, plastics, and textiles are the biggest culprits, gobbling up 70% of total petrochemical demand. With Middle East conflict disrupting supply chains, driving up prices, and shining a spotlight on alternatives, the question becomes: what are our options?