I'm not sure what kind of bicycle or train Max Oakes (Letters, PE 24/02/10) uses.
The last I checked most bicycles need oil, and more so in the current spate of wintry weather
- but see Green Oil for a more environmentally friendly alternative at www.green-oil.net. Most trains I've travelled on in the past few months seemed to run on diesel, which I believe comes from oil. I'm also pretty sure that the production of even passive houses needs oil-derived products at some stage, even if just to get the white vans of the contractors to the site.
I think what his letter shows is that global infrastructure is so heavily reliant on oil that its loss will have more far-reaching effects than most of us are aware of. Preparations for its loss need to be made more urgently on both personal and societal levels.
Steven Hammer, Edinburgh
© PE Publishing, March 2010
