Kuwait. A country in the Middle East. Most know of it because of the 1991 war that resolved its independence. Aside from the vast reservoirs of oil that lie underneath its frontier, it is mostly a desert country. Dry, little vegetation, less potable water.
Yet, this tiny country covering a scant 17,818 square kilometres supports more than 3.5 million residents and workers. Where the natural vegetation would support less than a person for every square kilometre, the energy in the buried petroleum supports on average 196 people for every square kilometre. This is all the more amazing in that most people live in cities and forsake the inhospitable desert.
How does this energy allow such a high artificial population density? Indirectly, the people of Kuwait rely upon the profit from selling oil to provide for food. Directly, the energy desalinates water, produces electricity, and, most pleasurably, conditions the air to more comfortable temperature and humidity levels.
Is it enough? Never. This summer they expect shortfalls of energy and water. $27 billion dollars will be marked to providing for new resources (1). Provisions of 10,000 MW and 1,438 million litres of potable water, resulting from the local stores of energy, are not enough. Yes, Kuwait has a large reserve of petroleum. But what will the millions of people do after they exhaust the petroleum and there is no food and no water? Maybe rather than trying to increase the production demand upon energy, the people of Kuwait should look to the future and plan a society that can exist with much less energy.
| Desert |
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| Desalination |
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