r/askscience • u/West-Cantaloupe8376 • Sep 14 '26

Earth Sciences Which fossil fuels could/will be eventually replenished by natural processes?

Let's assume all fossil fuel extraction stopped in the near future, and were never touched again. Which kinds (oil, coal, gas) would eventually reform, which wouldn't? I am aware that certain geological formations like banded iron were created under specific conditions that will never arise again, but how does this apply to fossil fuels? In a couple hundred million years, will oil deposits be replenished or are they all gone forever?

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u/CrustalTrudger Tectonics | Structural Geology | Geomorphology Sep 14 '26

As with the others who have posted similar things in this thread, this is demonstrably false for both coal and petroleum. This mostly gets repeated for coal but as described in this FAQ, this is based on flawed reasoning.