Good piece, right to the point, but you might google the term “de-materialization of the economy”. Its a curious phenomenon that suggests the opposite is actually occurring. While the deregulation of oil and gas is cause for concern, one of the major reasons why there is such a push for it currently is because the per capita demand for such resources is actually decreasing which reduces the price and provides a greater incentive to find cheaper and easier to reach sources of these fuels. This is not in support of these actions, but rather as a way to view it through a different lens, as a sign of progress (almost).
In some industries aggregate demand for raw materials is being reduced. Consider a Radio Shack catalog from thirty years ago. It was filled with dozens of devices that have all been replaced with a single device that fits in your pocket. As a result, consumers have “everything they need” in a single devices that was produced using fewer total resources than the camera, answering machine, telephone, television etc they may have purchased decades ago to fill the same gap.
De-materialization is a new and interesting concept that may alleviate some of your fears. Agriculture has been a prime example of this for nearly a century. Technology has led to an explosion in yields that allow humanity to produce more food using less acreage. Consumer good are headed in a similar direction.
Here is the episode from my favorite podcast that goes into some detail:
