FOSSIL FUELS - Energy: What Everyone Needs to Know - page 39

or gaseous material in or on the Earth's crust in such forms that economic extrac-
tion is potentially feasible. This Table also shows the present yearly consumption
and the lifetime of proven reserves in years. Unconventional resources could ex-
tend the lifetime of oil, gas, and coal by a factor of 5-10, but their extraction will
involve advanced technologies, higher costs, and possibly serious environmental
problems.
Table 4.1 Fossil fuels reserves and consumption
How unevenly distributed are reserves of fossil fuels around the
world?
Oil and gas reserves are heavily concentrated in the Middle East: 56.6% for oil and
40.6% for gas, as shown in Table 4.2 . In contrast, coal reserves are more evenly
distributed: 29.8% in North America, 33% in Europe and Eurasia, and 31.4% in the
Asia Pacific region. Coal is almost completely absent in the Middle East.
Table 4.2 Fossil fuel reserves in different regions of the world (in percentages)