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Question & answer: 'energy independence' may be a hollow slogan, but 'energy security' is something we can achieve. Separating fact from fantasy, Steven Hayward shows how.

Article Excerpt
1 What is energy independence?

It's usually a synonym for energy self-sufficiency--the idea of the United States supplying all, or nearly all, of its own energy needs. The public reacts enthusiastically to the idea in polls, which is why every president since Richard Nixon has announced independence as a distant goal.

We seldom hear self-sufficiency lauded in connection with other essential goods, like automobiles, airplanes, food, or medicines. The U.S. currently imports about one-fourth of its timber-required for building homes and printing newspapers, books, and magazines. But we don't hear calls for "ending our dependence on foreign timber."

2 What about energy security?

Energy security generally means reducing dependence on politically unstable sources like the Middle East or Venezuela.

3 Why do some people think we should worry more about where we get our energy than about where we get other important resources?

The short answer is OPEC, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries. From the first oil shock of the 1970s, American consumers have disliked the fact that Middle Eastern oil exporters can manipulate prices by acting as a cartel. In addition, there's political concern that American oil purchases from corrupt Arab and Muslim countries may be funding terrorism. These concerns have been extended to Venezuela, Nigeria, and other shaky or erratic regimes, which could cause disruptions in supply.

There are some large misperceptions behind this popular view. Much of the public, for instance, believes we get most of our oil from Saudi Arabia and other politically troubled nations. In fact, in 2005, the most recent year for which the Department of Energy has statistics, the U.S. imported 5 billion barrels of oil, with only 11 percent coming from Saudi Arabia. As Figure 1 shows, our leading foreign supplier is Canada, which provides about 16 percent of our imports, and Mexico is second, at 12 percent. The other major sources are, in order, Saudi Arabia in a virtual dead heat with Venezuela; Nigeria; and Iraq.

4 How much oil does the U.S. itself produce?

About 1.9 billion barrels, or a little more than one-fourth of what we use. Together, the United States, Canada, and Mexico currently provide a majority of U.S. oil consumption.

5 How secure is our energy supply today?

In some ways, more secure than it was in the 1970s. The proportion of imported oil has doubled in the last 30 years, but the U.S. economy is less vulnerable to oil price shocks caused by supply disruptions, as we...