Stories tagged with "california"

The US Offshore Drilling Argument: The Debate Between "Starting Now" and "Waiting a While"

Posted by Gail the Actuary on June 30, 2008 - 9:00am
Topic: Supply/Production
Tags: american petroleum institute, anwr, california, florida, offshore drilling, original, peak oil [list all tags]

Offshore drilling is again in the news, with many saying we shouldn't drill now. Drilling will take more than 10 years for most of the oil in question. I believe that we need to start the process now, partly because the expected impact of peak oil will make drilling in future years much more difficult, and partly because technical advances within the petroleum industry have helped overcome some previous objections to drilling.

Locations of concern include coastal waters such as those near Florida; the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) (beyond state coastal areas); and the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR).

The views in this article are my own, particularly the peak oil views. Many of the comments about technical issues are based on discussions with the American Petroleum Institute (API). I recently participated in an API bloggers conference phone call on the subject of "Exploration and Production." We talked about offshore drilling and ANWR. A listing of the people involved can be found here, and a transcript of the call can be found here.

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People in Glass Houses

Posted by Robert Rapier on November 4, 2006 - 11:38am
Topic: Policy/Politics
Tags: california, ethanol, oil companies, politics, proposition 87, vinod khosla [list all tags]

VentureBeat, a Silicon Valley-based site that focuses largely on venture capital (and venture capitalists), has been hosting a series of essays on California's Proposition 87, which will be voted on next Tuesday. The owner of Venture Beat, Matt Marshall, recently contacted me and asked if I wanted to provide some "No on 87" essays in response to Vinod Khosla's series of "Yes on 87" essays. My response to Matt was that I am ambivalent about passage, and so would not write a "No" essay. However, he said that if I wanted to write on alleged misinformation coming from the "Yes" camp, then that would be OK as well.
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Breaking Down Prop 87

Posted by Robert Rapier on September 12, 2006 - 9:12am
Topic: Policy/Politics
Tags: california, oil companies, politics, proposition 87 [list all tags]

Introduction

California's Proposition 87 promises to reduce oil consumption in California, at no expense to the consumer. I am quite sympathetic to the goal of reducing petroleum dependence. This is a goal to which we should all aspire. But I have my doubts that the promises being made by the Proposition 87 campaign can be kept. I also dispute many of the claims made by the Prop 87 proponents. Finally, I have a problem with the way the oil industry is being portrayed in order to win support for this measure.

[editor's note, by Prof. Goose] Don't forget the reddit and digg tip jars if you enjoy the piece.

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Addressing Proposition 87 Criticisms

Posted by Robert Rapier on September 5, 2006 - 10:55am
Topic: Policy/Politics
Tags: alternative energy, california, oil companies, politics, proposition 87, vinod khosla [list all tags]

Background

Voters in California will go to the polls in November to decide the fate of Proposition 87, also known as the Clean Energy Initiative. However, the ramifications of this proposition have the potential to be felt nationwide. I have previously written a pair of essays on Proposition 87 that you can find here and here. My position is not so much that I am against Prop 87, and I am certainly not against the intent of Prop 87. But I do have concerns about the proposition, which are explained in my previous essays.

In response to my essays, Dr. Ana Unruh Cohen, former Rhodes Scholar and the Director of Environmental Policy at the Center for American Progress, asked if I would mind posting a rebuttal from her. Ana is certainly no stranger to the Peak Oil debate; her father was the person who got me seriously interested in the subject. I think most of us share a desire that we pursue responsible energy policy, and I believe that through a civil airing of diverse ideas we can better determine just what constitutes responsible energy policy. One of the things I find most enjoyable about debating these issues is that it gives me an opportunity to learn from others, and my views can evolve as a result of the things I learn. With those things in mind, I am happy to offer up her rebuttal to my previously mentioned essays on Prop 87.

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More thoughts on Prudhoe Bay

Posted by Heading Out on August 8, 2006 - 10:41am
Topic: Supply/Production
Tags: bp, california, china, corrosion, prudhoe bay, saudi arabia [list all tags]

As the situation up in Prudhoe Bay has become clearer, over the course of the day, and thanks to information that has appeared in comments, it might be worth an attempt at summarizing some of the issues.

To begin with, thanks to Westexas, the cause of the corrosion appears to be known.

And a tip of the hat to Mike A for an UPDATE, I have moved into the post on these bacteria. (8:35 AM)
And (10:35 AM) I also added a note on where Platts suggests the relief supplies might come from. It gives an idea of the global nature of the business. I also add a comment from the Oil and Gas Journal that perhaps I got out too far by assuming that the new corrosion was the same as the old.

[editor's note, by Prof. Goose] EIA says Prudhoe Bay back to normal after January (thanks Darwinian).

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Heat over the heartland

Posted by Heading Out on August 2, 2006 - 9:53am
Topic: Environment/Sustainability
Tags: biofuel, california, dust bowl, mid-west, new york, temperatures [list all tags]

Grin - well I have been remarkable quiet and well behaved for perhaps a bit too long! And it may be that the heat is getting to me, since the heat wave that struck California last week is now hitting the East Coast. Now in the process it is still passing the Great American Fly-over Zone, where all those ethanol producing corn crops are busily growing - or not, since many of the states are having a drought. But, as was pointed out in comments, this will have more effect next year, than this. However, my mischief button was pressed when I heard a reporter saying that it was hotter than it has been in the region since 1936, during the dust bowl days. So, being one of them curious folks, I went to take a look. If you have read my earlier post along these lines you might not want to look below the fold.
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Living Large in Exurbia

Posted by Dave Cohen on March 19, 2006 - 9:32pm
Topic: Miscellaneous
Tags: california, exurbia, fastest growing counties, florida, phoenix, sprawl, suburbia, texas, us census bureau, virginia [list all tags]

Love him or hate him, I doubt many Peak Oil adherents think that Jim Kunstler is wrong about the unsustainability and gloomy future of America's sprawl culture.


View It And Weep -- Figure 1

It started for me this week when National Public Radio did a series of stories about Phoenix Grows and Grows (audio) which according to the latest US Census Bureau statistics, is now the fifth largest city in America. But we're not talking about suburban sprawl. The hottest new demographic is the growth of Exurbia, the suburbs beyond the suburbs.

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More on Natural Gas

Posted by Heading Out on November 21, 2005 - 9:48am
Topic: Supply/Production
Tags: california, drilling rigs, natural gas, texas [list all tags]

Jerome a Paris has an excellent summary article on natural Gas, with some impressive, though discouraging, graphs of production.  He cites two sources that are worth following up in their own right.  There is a pdf on California by David Maul, which has, in slide 10, the grim picture of the declining life of annual gas discoveries.

He also cites a paper on Texas production that covers much of the story from that part of the world.  Put together they emphasize how hard folks are having to scramble to keep us afloat in natural gas.  With decline rates of up to 45% the supply is critically dependant on new drilling and with smaller and smaller fields being tapped and lasting shorter periods of time, this is not a game with a foreseeable happy ending. (Thanks for the pointer jkissing)
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