True we have ANWR up in Alaska that could produce enough fuel to power most of the vehicles in the country. Then we have the coasts of california, we do not drill there because oil rigs are ugly... what is this one big fashion magazine? "Ya I heard that England is now 2 inches smaller in the waist while the USA has acne from oil rigs!" We live in a time where people want beauty and want their SUVs that are large enough to count as a small apartment.
We need to stop blaiming our government for our own stupidity!
The human race is speeding towards an unhealthy point. We are becoming children that want and want and want while not caring for the consequences! No one likes the look of oil rigs especially not in California where the "stars" live. I can understand idolizing these people for being good at what they do but causing shortages of fuel because they cannot stand the sight is stupid.
Then we have the situation off ANWR. If we open it then we will kill and maybe wipe out species of animals unique to the area. Have we not figured out we are the reaper? So many animals are already gone why kill more? Not to sound like a PETA member, because I am not, I am thinking logically here.
My main point in all of this though is that we have done this to our selves. Most families in my neighborhood have at least 3 cars. 1 for each parent then one for the teenager. Some have more but only one has less. This trend is wide spread of much of America. Our abuse on oil, not only forein but local as well has caused this. The local incident is referred to as the Scandal at Tea Pot Dome.
We must not believe government can fix everything with a wave of a hand. We must be smart, we must be cooperative, we must be diligent.
I know I have ranted yet I feel strangely better knowing that is out of me... if you disagree with me then that is who you are and as this is the 21st century I can accept your view so long as you know the facts. If you feel like you want to please reply to me. No slandering my name or insulting others just clean debate.
Ya, they have endangered wildlife and it can be affected by poaching, logging and such. But the "impact" of oil drilling is a joke.
It's really just a some environmentalists that basically hate humans more than they love nature. And more so it's some people with money to make. Limiting supply is a great way to do that.
Check www.thomas.loc.gov to see debates on it in Congress (there's a search feature too, if that helps). They go avoid all the reasons and show both sides, unlike the 1 sided views people usually hear. But really a solid environmental side opposed to oil drilling barely even exists; it's not that there aren't environmental Congressmen, there just aren't any good arguments for it that go too far beyond "no, don't, let's save the wildlife." But all that amounts to a hill of beans if you don't vote on Congressmen accordingly and write to show your support. Ignore the campaign slogans and just read a couple debates involving the politicians you're considering. Just a couple of those will give you 100 times more information than "Vote for me to get better X." Even public TV debates are pretty lax on details.
However it is not cost effective and with where we are at right now these implements will almost certainly not be used. As for barren Alaska, that is a misconception, where ANWR is located there is actually a refuge for a reason, it supports life quite well.
As for hate humans more then animals here is a line from many anti drillers "If so few of us wish to see the animals at least kept in mind then yes we must be crazy for those not willing to do something to keep man from being the global killer." Think on that please.
With respect to the world oil price impact, projected ANWR oil production constitutes between 0.4 and 1.2 percent of total world oil consumption in 2030, based on the low and high resource cases, respectively.1 Consequently, ANWR oil production is not projected to have a large impact on world oil prices. Relative to the AEO2008 reference case, ANWR oil production is projected to have its largest oil price reduction impacts as follows: a reduction in low-sulfur, light (LSL) crude oil2 prices of $0.41 per barrel (2006 dollars) in 2026 in the low oil resource case, $0.75 per barrel in 2025 in the mean oil resource case, and $1.44 per barrel in 2027 in the high oil resource case. Assuming that world oil markets continue to work as they do today, theOrganization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) could neutralize any potential price impact of ANWR oil production by reducing its oil exports by an equal amount.
Link to source.
$1.44 per barrel - divided by 42 gallons in a barrel, means a reduction in price of crude oil of three cents a gallon.
And it will take ten years to start drilling - covered in the same report. That's a best case estimate by the way, and the price estimate is based on the most generous resource and production figures.
Why is it that everyone believes gas prices can be cured?
True we have ANWR up in Alaska that could produce enough fuel to power most of the vehicles in the country. Then we have the coasts of california, we do not drill there because oil rigs are ugly... what is this one big fashion magazine? "Ya I heard that England is now 2 inches smaller in the waist while the USA has acne from oil rigs!" We live in a time where people want beauty and want their SUVs that are large enough to count as a small apartment.
We need to stop blaiming our government for our own stupidity!
The human race is speeding towards an unhealthy point. We are becoming children that want and want and want while not caring for the consequences! No one likes the look of oil rigs especially not in California where the "stars" live. I can understand idolizing these people for being good at what they do but causing shortages of fuel because they cannot stand the sight is stupid.
Then we have the situation off ANWR. If we open it then we will kill and maybe wipe out species of animals unique to the area. Have we not figured out we are the reaper? So many animals are already gone why kill more? Not to sound like a PETA member, because I am not, I am thinking logically here.
My main point in all of this though is that we have done this to our selves. Most families in my neighborhood have at least 3 cars. 1 for each parent then one for the teenager. Some have more but only one has less. This trend is wide spread of much of America. Our abuse on oil, not only forein but local as well has caused this. The local incident is referred to as the Scandal at Tea Pot Dome.
We must not believe government can fix everything with a wave of a hand. We must be smart, we must be cooperative, we must be diligent.
I know I have ranted yet I feel strangely better knowing that is out of me... if you disagree with me then that is who you are and as this is the 21st century I can accept your view so long as you know the facts. If you feel like you want to please reply to me. No slandering my name or insulting others just clean debate.
First off, there are oil rigs on the California Coast and many inland wells also, like Elk Hills and all around L.A.
You should learn what your talking about before making blanket accusations.
As a former oil operator I'll help you take a look at some actual numbers. In 2003 it cost $7/barrel to pull it out of our grounds. Even if the production cost had increased by 500% (which it hasn't) that is still only a cost of 35/barrel. In the mid east it costs half that to extract, in hard to reach places like North Sea or Siberia it could cost 2-3 times our cost... which is still only 70/barrel at the very most expensive spots in the world.
There is no excuse other then greed for oil to cost $140+/barrel.
Also, building new rigs or drilling ANWR takes years to get online, plus ANWR is a high cost zone like Siberia. It might be worth it right now, but in a year or two once we are done with our wars of conquest and oil drops to a reasonable price, ANWR won't make financial sense and it will just end up a colossal waste of money.
But I feel we are on the same path because of your comment:
There is no excuse other then greed for oil to cost $140+/barrel.
This was the point I wanted to make, sometimes I cant do short and to the point.
There is no excuse other then greed for oil to cost $140+/barrel.
I think you are right. Right now, energy futures markets are "dark"- that is, there is no governmental regulation or oversight as there are in other markets. This "darkness" allowed Enron to manipulate energy prices in California to artificially drive up prices (and so we get the term "Enron loophole"). No one knows what the speculators are doing regarding oil futures- it may be innocent, or maybe there is manipulation going on. In any event, I suspect that if there was a credible threat to close the Enron loophole and have some oversight, it would prompt the speculators to sell off, and thereby drop oil prices. That being said, any price drops would be relatively temporary as actual world demand is still increasing dramatically.
Personally, I think the future of automobiles is hydrogen/electric. Electric motors are more efficient and better performing than internal combustion engines, and hydrogen offers the ease and convenience of quick fillups. As one of GM's "Project Driveway" hydrogen fuel cell drivers, I have some unique experience and perspective in this regard. Right now, using the least efficient means of hydrogen production (on site electrolysis), the cost at the pump would be approximately $8/kg (with no subsidies). While a kg of hydrogen is roughly equivalent to a gallon of gasoline, I realistically get more than twice the mileage (43 mi/kg) of the gasoline variant Chevy Equinox SUV (~20 mpg). So the equivalent cost is more like $4/kg. Using the most cost effective means of hydrogen production (natural gas reformation), the cost would be approx. $3/kg ($1.50 equivalent).
GM is ready to roll more of these cars out, but it has to be done hand-in-hand with the roll-out of refueling infrastructure. We are starting to see some of this- Shell just opened up California's first retail hydrogen station. There is also one in Washington DC. Honda is starting to roll out 200 hydrogen cars in Southern California. My stations are in White Plains, NY, and Ardsley, NY (with new ones opening soon in the Bronx and JFK Airport in Queens).
GM and Shell project that the cost to put a hydrogen station within 2 miles of everyone in the top 100 US cities would be approx. $12B (a bit more than ExxonMobil's 1Q 2008 profit).
Its exciting stuff!
- Eric