When household budgets are tight because of expensive necessities, luxuries get pared down. What does this mean for cities, when so many are reliant on tourism as a major economic driver? Keep energy trends in mind when planning - and make sure there are other industries in the mix.

How are rising oil prices affecting the summer tourist season and cities that depend on vacationers? The news isn't all bad, especially for destinations that cater to local and regional tourism. The long term trends are indeed shifting, however, with unclear prospects for business travel and the tourist dollars it generates.

This excerpt of Daniel Lerch's presentation at the Spirit of Red Hill Valley 2007 lecture in Hamilton, Ontario, categorizes some of the short and long term challenges that peak oil will present to local governments. A good introduction for colleagues who may have heard of peak oil but don't associate it with local issues.

Cities everywhere are looking for ways to deal with high fuel costs. In Missoula, the city's vehicle maintenance superintendent is approaching the issue with ingenuity, efficiency, and strict rules enforcement.

Schools across the country are looking for ways to economize on their fuel bills. In Minnesota, one school district will be moving to a four-day school week. Mississippi's athletes will be traveling to fewer games. Every little bit counts as administrators seek to balance programs and the rising cost of busing.

During the gas crisis in 1979, there were riots at the pumps in places like suburban Levittown. While there haven't been riots due to prices in the U.S. yet, there have been protests both in the U.S. and abroad, and riots in some countries.

Huntington Beach Mayor Debbie Cook writes about her city's dependency on cheap oil and the services that will suddenly become much more expensive as gas prices rise. There are countless services that local government provides to residents: streets, curbs, gutters, tree trimming, sewers, street sweeping, water, parks, community centers, emergency services, senior services including meals on wheels. All of these are energy intensive and mean local government is extremely vulnerable to supply disruptions and high costs.

With gasoline climbing toward $4 a gallon, police officers around the country are losing the right to take their patrol cars home and are being forced to double up in cruisers and walk the beat more. Some police think it helps them do their job better.

Despite the building boom in the United Arab Emirates, cement companies there are facing lean times and closing their factories, leaving builders to source their projects on the black market. While the price of cement has been capped, the price of inputs - notably natural gas - have not. The higher prices of imported or black market concrete force building costs ever-higher.

Higher gas prices push up transportation costs, which means higher costs for most goods. In the Richmond, Virginia area, the results are being felt everywhere, from the pizza joints to the school buses.