"The last 40 years have seen wide variations in estimates of fossil fuel resources and reserves in the world, and in individual countries. Interest was triggered in part by Malthusian concerns about population growth, although many of the works were and continue to be misquoted and misinterpreted. Others (M.K. Hubbert, Colin Campbell) have viewed fossil fuels as a fixed resource, independent of technology. The spectre of massive fuels shortages has faded in recent years with development of novel resources (e.g. oil sands, shale oil), discoveries of far more natural gas than had been thought (shale gas), and the very real possibility that suitable technologies will be developed for the extraction of oil from oil shales (different than shale oil), gas from methane hydrates, and economical liquids conversion from coal or sources of organic carbon (perhaps accompanied by CO2 capture).

Fossil fuels are a vital economic base for Canadian industrial strength as the vast oil sands are being developed by mining and in situ thermal methods (steam injection).

However, debate continues as to the amount of oil in the ground, and there is a lack of acceptance of a single authoritative source. Indeed, different authoritative sources provide different estimates...."

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