Event will offer options to relying on oil

This time last year, the meaning behind the words "peak oil" was just as foreign to Reinette Senum as it was to many other Nevada County residents.

But following a day-long conference on the topic in May that was organized by Senum, a small, but growing movement has formed. The goal? To educate and inform other Nevada Countians about what they can do locally to minimize the impact of limited world oil reserves - or peak oil.

The movement goes by the name of Apple, which is an acronym for "Alliance for Post Petroleum Local Economy," and it is comprised of about 20 to 25 residents who have met on a weekly basis for the past six months.

On Nov. 15, the group has planned what Senum calls its "coming out event" at the Center for the Arts in Grass Valley.

Renowned speaker and peak oil educator Richard Heinberg will share views on the topic, including the most recent evidence regarding when oil reserves might peak, the likely consequences, and what can be done both locally and internationally.

He is the author of "The Party's Over: Oil, War and the Fate of Industrial Societies," and "Powerdown: Options and Actions for a Postcarbon World" - two books that detail likely scenarios either if action is taken or if it is not.

Members of Apple will also set up booths to educate residents about the small steps they can take to tackle the problem. Booths will include information on energy, transportation, food and water, and health and preparedness.

"It's the little, tiny small things," Senum said - creating a neighborhood garden or organizing ways to help local farmers get excess food to food banks or homeless shelters.

It is also letting people know about ways to make Nevada County less reliant on natural gas, said Rick Hartman, a member of Apple's core group.

This could be through wind power, as Plumas County is now doing, or it could be through informing residents about state money available to relieve the high cost of solar installation.

Ultimately, Senum and Hartman said, it's about making this area self-sufficient bit by bit so it's not as susceptible to a decline in oil availability, which both Senum and Hartman agree is an inevitability.

"It's not if, it's when," Senum said.

"If you have community control, you can act on a dime," Hartman said.

The group experienced a surge in interest following Hurricane's Katrina and Rita, after which Americans across the country learned the need for communities to take care of themselves.

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To contact staff writer Brittany Retherford, e-mail brittanyr@theunion.com or call 477-4247.

Know and go

WHAT: Richard Heinberg on "Peak Oil, How It Will Change Your Life"

WHEN: 7 p.m., Tuesday

WHERE: Center for the Arts, Grass Valley

TICKETS: $15 each at Yabobo, Book Seller, BriarPatch, Love Shack Records, www.thecenterforthearts.org, and at the door.

INFORMATION: Contact the Alliance for a Post-Petroleum Local Economy, or APPLE, via e-mail at info@apple-nc.org or call 265-3014.