Saturday, April 15, 2006
Thoughts on Oil and the Artric National Wildlife Refuge
Just wait, when the going gets tough, and I am sure it will, we will get every drop of oil that we can pump out of the earth. So yes, one day the oil industry will be in ANWR, as well as offshore California, offshore Florida and every other precious oil bearing place.
The longer we hold off on drilling in those areas - the better the oil exploration and production technology will be. With hopefully reduced damage to the environment.
After all that oil is:
* Fossil carbon waiting to warm our climate
* Money in our subterranean petro-bank
Are there items that we make today from oil, and can only be made from oil, that have become vital to our lives? For example medicines, plastic valves used to replace heart valves, oil for bearings... Perhaps we should save the ANWR oil for those purposes and use it over the centuries?
Ha Ha Ha... I really doubt that.
Our society is infantile. Now, now, now! Who cares about the future? The next quarter, the next NASCAR race, the next paycheck. Long term thinkers may wonder about their kid’s college education or their retirement.
Today in the Madison paper, on page A7, there was a tiny story on global warming. The huge team of scientists that participate on the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) came out with a statement that in the next 100 years temperature would increase by five degrees (so far we have seen a one degree increase), sea level would rise, and millions would starve as the planet dries up and cereal crop production declines.
Who cares right... after all did you hear who was kicked off "American Idol".
And what happens if we use much of that cereal crop to make ethanol or biodiesel?
The First World drive or Third World starve quandary is coming at us.
The longer we hold off on drilling in those areas - the better the oil exploration and production technology will be. With hopefully reduced damage to the environment.
After all that oil is:
* Fossil carbon waiting to warm our climate
* Money in our subterranean petro-bank
Are there items that we make today from oil, and can only be made from oil, that have become vital to our lives? For example medicines, plastic valves used to replace heart valves, oil for bearings... Perhaps we should save the ANWR oil for those purposes and use it over the centuries?
Ha Ha Ha... I really doubt that.
Our society is infantile. Now, now, now! Who cares about the future? The next quarter, the next NASCAR race, the next paycheck. Long term thinkers may wonder about their kid’s college education or their retirement.
Today in the Madison paper, on page A7, there was a tiny story on global warming. The huge team of scientists that participate on the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) came out with a statement that in the next 100 years temperature would increase by five degrees (so far we have seen a one degree increase), sea level would rise, and millions would starve as the planet dries up and cereal crop production declines.
Who cares right... after all did you hear who was kicked off "American Idol".
And what happens if we use much of that cereal crop to make ethanol or biodiesel?
The First World drive or Third World starve quandary is coming at us.
# posted by niels : 4:25 PM
