THE MASS FLUX OF NON-RENEWABLE ENERGY RESOURCES THROUGH HUMANITY

The global energy supply for humanity relies significantly on non-renewable energy sources (crude oil, coal, natural gas, and uranium). To understand dynamics of non-renewable energy resource flux through humanity, it is necessary to reconstruct a budget showing total quantity of energy resources available prior to exploitation, resource consumption over time, and its relation to global population. The total quantity of resources prior to exploitation may be estimated by summing all consumption over time and adding that to remaining ultimately recoverable reserves (RURR). For non-renewable energy resources, this quantity was 7.15 x 10¹⁸ grams. Energy consumption was analyzed for the period 1800 – 2014 using data from the U. S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) and World Energy Production, 1800-1985 to determine the balance between non-renewable energy resources consumed and remaining ultimately recoverable reserves (RURR). Results indicate total energy consumption grew exponentially 3.3% per year from 1800 – 1980 but growth was linear from 1980 – 2014. Total non-renewable energy resources consumed through 2014 were 6.04 x 10¹⁷ grams and total RURR of energy resources were was 6.55 x 10¹⁸ grams. As the per capita allocation of these resources (i.e. the non-renewable energy resource flux through humanity) continually declines owing to resource consumption and increasing population, the total time to resource exhaustion depends critically on scenarios of consumptive growth combined with population growth.