THE DAY THE WELLS RAN DRY

THE DAY THE WELLS RAN DRY.

By Matthew Lucas Beckett

“Oil is what we need,” said The Senator from Texas in 2037. “We must keep drilling. We must drill more out of Saudi Arabia, drill what is left in what was once A.N.W.A.R. and drill deep in the ocean. Let's have no more of this namby pamby 'save the planet' crap. It's our planet, and we have the right to do to with it as we will. Even the responsibility to do so.”
“But Senator, if we keep drilling and nothing else,” someone in the audience began.
“What?” he interrupted. “Some polar bears will die?” It could not be clearer that he regarded this as a matter of less than zero importance.
“No,” said the same person. “Eventually all of the oil will be gone and if we don't have something else ready, we'll really be in trouble.”
The senator scoffed and spit into his water glass but clearly felt no further response was warranted at all.
And drill they did. In The Middle East, production increased tenfold with a surge of U.S. dollars. In Alaska drilling proceeded at a rate like there was no tomorrow. And deep water drilling continued at a rapid pace as well, as well as everywhere else on the planet where oil was to be found.
Energy and gas prices remained low as oil poured in from all over the world and all felt comfortable and secure in their lifestyles. With modern technology, the environmental impact was less than some had feared.
“But it is still there,” said the head of a major environmental organization. “And we shouldn't ignore it.”
But people did ignore it. “We have cheap gas and cheap energy, why complain?”
“What are a few polar bears next to our needs?”
And similar comments, and as most of what environmental impact there was was below the surface, those not specifically looking for it did not see it, and so wished 'those other people' would stop whining.
And so, on the whole, the situation was positive because our energy supply was secure and flowing, but then. . .

The drill stopped. . .
“What's wrong?” asked the supervisor. Then she groaned. “It can't be broken, AGAIN?”
“No ma'am,” said the drill operator.
“Well then?” she replied, puzzled by this lack of detail. “What's the problem?”
“It's just all gone, ma'am,” the operator replied.
“What's all gone?” she asked impatiently.
“The oil,” he replied. “I got the very last little bit and now the well has just gone completely dry.”
“It can't have,” she said, then shoved him aside to see the truth, only to find that what he had said was the truth. “It has gone dry,” she whispered in astonishment. “It's bone dry. We'll get no more oil from here. Well, there are still other places.”

But in Saudi Arabia and A.N.W.A.R. and even in the deep water drilling off the coasts. . .

“The well 's just gone dry, Sir.”
“There's no oil left where we're drilling .”
“There's nothing left to drill for”.
And as all of the world's oil wells went completely dry, panic began to set in world wide.
“We've only got what's already up left and we've got no more to get and we haven't thought of alternatives. What are we supposed to do now?”
Well, of course panic set in in full. And with panic, chaos.
“Take the children and head for...I don't know, but away from here,” John told his wife Ann as he saw a mob of wild looking people approaching their house with weapons, for he did keep a private oil reserve. When morning arrived, John was dead and his reserve no longer private.
“Why are you taking gas from my car??” Jack demanded of someone he found doing so.
“So that I can drive my bus and make a living,” said Sam.
Only the appearance of Jack's young daughter then averted a major confrontation. But all of this was only the beginning, when an actual energy CRISIS came, it would be even worse.

By midwinter all of the already drilled oil was used up.

“My it's chilly this February,” said Max as he and his wife Dana huddled together for warmth. They were both very old and with no heating because there was no fuel to power it when it dipped below zero in March, they died. All of those who lived in parts of the country that really got cold who were already fragile died, and those who didn't were still most uncomfortable. Of course the only transportation for most was their feet, except for those few lucky enough to have animals, although of course animal and people needed food, but since there was now no way of transporting food, those that could found a way to live off of what they had, and those that couldn't died.
Soon it was every man, woman and child for themselves, society civil or otherwise having collapsed, and all those left wished that alternative fuels had been further explored as the world descended into total perpetual chaos, following the day the wells ran dry.