Pipelines and Priorities

On November 10 Reuters reported on the US government's decision to postpone Keystone XL's (Canada to Texas) oil pipeline which many environmentalists argue that one of the most damaging effects would be in the Nebraska tar sands ecosystem area, as a direct result from the project.


While there are arguments on both sides, the concern for the government and investors is the approximate $7 billion cost to the project and how any delay would disrupt the progress and possibly force parties to scrap the project. Countering this argument is not difficult to do. 


We were spending approximately $720 million a day according to 2007 research done by Nobel Prize winning economist Joseph E Stiglitz. The National Priorities Project research, states that *budget spending in Iraq and Afghanistan amounted to $797.3 billion and 459.8 billion respectively in the 2011 FY. Thus it is a difficult sell, that a mere $7 billion would force governments or corporations to scrap the Keystone XL project; given there appetite for the black gold.


Why should this project be delayed? Based on US consumption of oil that is a tough one to answer.  How many US residents are prepared to make significant reductions in their consumption of oil and oil/petroleum based products– in this economy, not many is the likely answer.


Reason for Pause
The Department of Energy in May 2011 conference stated that they recorded the highest levels of CO2 emissions ever; yet another indicator to be concerned about is the fact that seven the 7 billionth human was born on October 31st.  Each of these indicators tells us indifferent ways, that exploitation of nonrenewable energy sources (petroleum, coal, and nuclear) will be in greater demand if we extrapolate these records.


Further slowing the pace of the Keystone XL project will allow more time to review the riffs of the project from an economic standpoint.  Externality costs are the unmentioned cost to things like the environment; they look less from the revenue-generating perspective and more at the human and eco-welfare perspective.  


Perhaps a truly progressive idea would be to initiate a campaign similar to a campaign against smoking.  It  would pre-use the projected cost of the environmental impact (after a reliable assessment); allocate those funds for the campaign, and educate people about the cost these externalities (i.e., the environment as well as human health).


If we look back at the advent of fossil fuels as a source of energy for human consumption, it seemed like a really good idea; at the time developing societies required faster moving parts to grow.  Lack of such growth meant in some cases (and still does) either you grow or are conquered.  The difference in knowledge today however is that we can anticipate certain factors; we have a better understanding of the impacts.  The infrastructure and mindsets in the past, did not have the capacity to think forward in these terms.  Thomas Edison (quote below), was an exception.  Today is quite different; we know more about the limited resources and about what certain numbers mean.  Being proactive through conservation and preservation would serve well, the quality of life to all living things.


It is easier to not to say who is right and who is wrong, but what is the best decision to make from were we are going forward.  The best minds in the world always seem to have sound reasoning on their side.




*Chris Helman: Senior War Analyst at National Priorities Project; over a decade of war analysis and research.
* We are like tenant farmers chopping down the fence around our house for fuel when we should be using Nature's inexhaustible sources of energy — sun, wind and tide. ... I'd put my money on the sun and solar energy. What a source of power! I hope we don't have to wait until oil and coal run out before we tackle that.

• In conversation with Henry Ford and w:Harvey Firestone (1931); as quoted in Uncommon Friends : Life with Thomas Edison, Henry Ford, Harvey Firestone, Alexis Carrel & Charles Lindbergh (1987) by James Newton, p. 31

BP Live Stream Deepwater Horizon Repairs

Deepwater Horizon live video stream link

How Much Oil is Out There OCS

by Scotland Willis

If one were to capture the accomplishments of the current Administration over the last year and compared them to previous Administrations, here's what your list might look like(accomplishments); And before you decide that you have no more interest in political discourse, the purpose is not to gloat over President Obama's accomplishments, or even to carry on about politics; no, the numbers are much more interesting than any of that.

So a few quick facts based on data produced by government resources which experts count on and defer to for decision making; but not before we look at the flaw of President Obama's latest interest in off shore drilling. This means that executive and congressional restrictions would be removed that prevent offshore drilling in the outer continental shelf (OCS). Whoa, where did that come from? This is likely a more passive response that what most environmentalists feel would be appropriate.

As the Huffington Post put it "He(president Obama) cited the need for this move to meet short-term economic needs and a longer-term, clean energy future." This is highly questionable, so back to the numbers. According to 2008 figures, the United States consumes about 19.5 million barrels of oil every day. These numbers come from a federal agency, not a environmental watch group. Estimates from the U.S. Department of the interior say that is 0.5-1 billion barrels(Bbbl) of oil in the Mid Atlantic area and 0.03-0.15 billion barrels of oil in the South Atlantic. Stick with me.

At best collectively this represents 1.15 billion barrels of oil. We are almost home. Now if you divide that by the rate of consumption you end up with results that look like this... really complex but hang in there. Total amount of usage this oil will yield by removing these restrictions is...58.97 days. One must agree that this not only qualifies as "short term economic needs", it could easily qualify for extremely short term economic needs. If you are shaking your head in disbelief, there is an open invitation to research these numbers for yourself. I love to be proven wrong, it means that someone else is doing their homework; but then you would also have to train the Energy Information Administration.

It is important to keep in mind that they will also explore natural gas in these same areas; but it is critical not to overlook the obvious as well as the counter productive. Natural gas will yield significantly higher numbers about 11.7 trillion cubic feet( tcf ) about half of what we consume in a year in the U.S. Overall in the United States we consumed 22,227,000,000,000 (twenty-two trillion-two hundred-twenty-seven-billion,) cubic feet of natural gas in 2008. It shows up third behind coal and oil in terms of CO2 (carbon dioxide) output at 5,300 metric tons, but is expected to overtake coal CO2 by 2030.

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Imagine

Imagine a place where no student struggles where their dreams last forever and none ever busts their bubble

Imagine if on the Horizon no Deepwater blew, if the ocean was still clean and still looked brand new
Imagine if safety truly existed for all, young women, girls and boys not getting raped but being exalted

Imagine if Darfur was just a land of peace where women, men and children were just our brethren to the East

What if Kosovo were not a reality, no suffering, pain or useless brutality and if Hitler in Germany never killed, millions of people, blood whole and not spilled; in Sudan, South Africa, Watusi and fate how on Earth could we live in a world full of hate.

Imagine if conflict were just a word,
that never found a way into our vocabulary
and were replaced with exponential power even just in a third
of what we feel when we know the meaning of sanctuary.

Imagine if politicians did more than represent, a fiction of what people hope really wanted, might they then make a dent.
Imagine if the land we cherish so much were more than economic and political clutch, more than a place for esoteric foods for people with a fetish or elitist broods.

Can you imagine what it is like to breathe clean air, to live a life of laughter and not despair
Imagine how many lives we could have saved if we to treat people like humans and not like slaves

Imagine banks that worked like a friend, lending helping hands without making you bend

Imagine if energy were something we protected without exploiting resources using the pipes we erected.

Imagine valuing life in a way that there was no dollar value to make you feel like you'll pay. Would we finally live life and knowing freedom comes our way.

Imagine that Katrina had never occurred, where the voice of people could still be heard; egregious acts and lack there of, acts are just a performance, blood requires a glove.

Imagine if Palestinians and Israelis knew no war, imagine what women, infants and children died for.

Imagine if you your gender or race didn't matter, if people cared for people, if there were never homeless on the streets feeling sadder

Imagine if hugs, I love you, and kiss were just pure; and that law suits and malfeasance existed no more.

Imagine Edison's belief in natural resources
where coal, nuclear and oil were not power forces

doubt and despair are inimical traits take time to imagine take time to wait
It is not how soon things can come to an end, sometimes its just how you begin- and how you can continue which takes time and makes friends

Imagine that I never had to think like this, cause the world that we lived had more thoughts with more bliss.

Deepwater Horizon Disaster

by Scotland Willis

The ongoing disaster as a result of the fire on oil rig Deepwater Horizon, in the Gulf of Mexico, should be of major concern for consumers of fish, environmentalists, scientists, and President Obama. Public health implications when such events occur, seem to be easily forgotten as a result of distancing ourselves from the event; this event should remain present in our decision making, regarding food consumption and our energy choices for the United States. 2009 data from the Department of Agriculture research shows that in the United States, Americans consume 743,858,000 pounds of fish and another 240,113,000 pounds of lobster, clams and other crustaceans.

On April 20, 2010 the oil rig Deepwater Horizon exploded resulting from an oil leak. The spill occurred between 30 and 50 miles offshore from Louisiana's coast, and is currently under investigation. Estimates indicate that the rig, operated by BP Global(for crude oil production) was spewing 700 thousand gallons of oil a day into the Gulf Region, according to the AP.

Corporate Response

According to a BP press release 32 spill response vessels were deployed to the area including a barge capable of skimming 171,000 barrels per day and an additional 175,000 on standby. This seems adequate to capture the 700 thousand gallons a day if that is in fact accurate. They also announced that 100,000 gallons of dispersants are on site, having received approval from the U.S. Coast Guard. BP's forecasting suggest that the spill will remain offshore. The largest oils spills in history range from the Gulf War at 1,400,000 tons to the Exxon Valdez at 35,000 tons, and Deepwater Horizon appears to be moving in that direction.

Government Action
As a part of the U.S. Department of the Interior, the Mineral Management Service(MMS) is also working with the U.S. Coast Guard to assess and deploy emergency response to this oil spill. The MMS is responsible for managing everything from renewable energy to gas and oil, and minerals for the United States; part of that management includes emergency responses. Ilene Angelico appears to be overseeing the gulf region as the emergency point person for this particular oil disaster.

Ownership

After attempting to contact BP directly, the calls were redirected to a Houston office to a recording in direct response to the oil spill; the calls were once again redirected to a Transocean spokes person. After speaking briefly with Guy Cantwell responsible for communication, it was discovered that Transocean, the worlds largest drilling contractor, was responsible for drilling the well.

Oil rigs are somewhat like airlines in that rigs are leased by investment groups because of large expense. The rig was built by Hyundai Heavy Industries Shipyard in South Korea; it is owned by Transocean Ltd. and leased to BP Global. BP's annual report shows sales and revenue of $239 billion dollars; producing 5.9 million barrels of refined oil a day in 2009, and an interest in 16 refineries around the world. BP also has investments in renewable energy .

Deepwater Horizon has now collapsed and is approximately 5000 feet below the sea. The platform was 396 feet (121 m) long and 256 feet (78 m) wide and designed to drill in water depths of up to 8,000 feet (2,400 m). Maximum drill depth was 30,000 feet (9,100 m).

Environmentalist Reprisal

On March 31, 2010, President Obama and the Secretary announced the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Oil and Gas Strategy as part of President Obama’s comprehensive energy plan for the country. The Department is pursuing a strategy for exploring and developing oil and gas resources on the OCS. This accident will lead to great concerns, and leveraged arguments for environmental and marine scientists. The fallout from this accident regarding the ecological impact and food consumption in the Gulf region, has yet to be determined. It is likely that there has been extensive damage which will impact that area for years to come, with the slick less than 30 miles off shore.

Oil disasters are important to understand and keep on our radar because of the ecological impact and threat to the environment overall. Since the fish we consume is exposed to the waste products we produce and fossil fuels we use, understanding what is happening regarding the impact of products or amenities that provide a lifestyle we enjoy in the U.S, these issues should at bare minimum, be an active concern for everyone.