BEGINNING OF CRISIS

The 1970s Energy Crisis was a series of gasoline shortages in the 1970s due to various Cold War era conflicts in the Middle East. This Disruption of oil exports hurt more than just the United States, ex: Europe, Australia, and Canada. Outside of gasoline, the lack of oil circulating also impacted the production and manufacturing industrudry. of most goods. This crisis caused a massive recession in much of the western world and showed the need for an oil regulatory board.

SO WHAT HAPPENED ?

.....Basically alot of shit....Cold War,The Establishment of OPEC in 1960 Arab Nationalism, and Environmental Legislation.

Environmental Legislation: The spike in the 1960s and 1970s of crude oil lead to a nationa wide call for environmental legislation. President Nixon enacted the National Environmental Policy Act which established a ten year plan to focus on environmental protection and conservation. This plus President Ford enviormental legislation put it more strict requirements on energy production which in turn increased costs for industries. (COUGH COUGH..held them accounatble). In order to meet the rigorous standards set by the legislation and pay for new equipment, energy companies increased costs because they suck and are greedy. Cold War: After World War One, the Middle East began a systematic decolonization with many nations becoming independent from their European colonizers. The United States and the Soviet Union were engaged in the Cold War and oil is a necessary part of any military or technological innovation which caused the Middle East being an area they both ere after.
OPEC: After alot of drilling in oil producing countries like Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Venezuela. Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, also known as OPEC was formed and worked on raising oil prices.

LASTING IMPACTS

In 1979 there was a revolution in Iran that caused a sudden and dramatic change in leadership. The Shah of Iran, who was significantly backed by then United States government, was overthrown during this revolution in favor of a new religious leader, Ayatollah Khomeini. The Iranian Revolution was disruptive but didnt actual cause oil supply dramatically at first, many Americans began panic buying up gasoline did.

The large oil discoveries in the Middle East and southwestern Asia, and the peaking of production in some of the more industrialized areas of the world gave some Muslim countries unique leverage in the world, beginning in the 1960s. The 1973 and 1979 crises, in particular, were demonstrations of the new power that these countries had found. The crisis taught the United States and other countries were forced to become more involved in the conflicts between these states and Israel leading to peace initiatives such as the Camp David Accords.

Since the 70s there be a movement toward energy reform, efforts were made to stimulate domestic oil production as well as to reduce American dependence on fossil fuels and find alternative sources of power