This book unravels the mysteries of current energy crisis and argues that solutions to global warming will come only from knowledge-based technology development. Discussed here are the reasons why petroleum operations are not sustainable, how each practice treads an inherently implosive path, and how each spells irreversible damage to the planet's ecosystem. Fossil fuel consumption is not the culprit, this book explains; instead, the practices involved from exploration to refining and processing are responsible for the current damage to the environment. Critiquing current practices, while necessary, is insufficient. Therefore, this book focuses on long-term solutions that should "green" all of the petroleum industry's practices, from management style to upstream to downstream. The discussion here follows two recently developed theories: the theories of inherent sustainability, and of knowledge-based characterization of energy sources. Together they show why current practices are fundamentally flawed and why new proposals to salvage efficiencies offer little hope for remedying the situation. From a scientific approach, this book approaches global warming and its apparent relationship with petroleum operations, and provides detailed analysis of greenhouse gas emission ranging from pre-industrial and industrial ages to the golden petroleum era. A newly developed theory is included which shows that carbon dioxides from some sources do not contribute to global warming. Here - for the first time - carbon dioxide is characterized based on various criteria such as the origin, the path it travels, isotope numbers and age of the fuel source from which it is emitted. This book offers unique solutions to overcome major obstacles by developing genuinely green technologies that satisfy the new sustainability criteria, are highly efficient, and produce zero waste. Various energy technologies are ranked based on their global efficiency in this book, and it also compares petroleum operations with other energy development technologies, including solar and biofuel energy systems. * Characterizes -- for the first time -- carbon dioxide based on various criteria such as the origin, the path it travels, isotope numbers and age of the fuel source from which it is emitted * Discusses the theories of inherent sustainability and of knowledge-based characterization of energy sources to demonstrate why current practices are fundamentally flawed * Provides detailed analysis of greenhouse gas emission ranging from pre-industrial and industrial ages to the golden petroleum era * Offers unique solutions to overcome major obstacles by developing genuinely green technologies that meet the new sustainability criteria, are highly efficient, and produce zero waste * Focuses on long-term solutions that should "green" all of the petroleum industry's practices, from management style to upstream to downstream