Let's Talk About Oil

[ltmurdoch.livejournal.com]

  

And here's a video of a guy who claims that there's more oil in ANWR than in all of Saudi Arabia but "they" (the government) refuses to let us have it. http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=3340274697167011147&hl=en

My first reaction to this guy is "He's a nutcase." Mainly because for 6 years we had an oil man as president and a rubber-stamp Republican legislature and nothing happened. But I don't want to dismiss this guy without a little more evidence. I'd like to hear what you all think.
 

Comments

[blueduck37.livejournal.com]

ANWR is a Republican scheme.

Basically they went to destroy one of our largest wildlife refuges for the possibility that we might strike some deep oil reserves... even though experts say that a) what's likely under there would last us only about a year, and b) it would have little to no effect on domestic oil prices.

We need to be moving away from oil consumption not digging ourselves in deeper.

[ltmurdoch.livejournal.com]

I agree that we should move away from oil, but it might make sense to use oil from our own territory as a "bridge" to a new energy era, rather than sending all our wealth overseas to places that breed terrorists. And we could use the extra money to develop more efficient solar and hydrogen technologies.

[blueduck37.livejournal.com]

it might make sense to use oil from our own territory as a "bridge" to a new energy era, rather than sending all our wealth overseas to places that breed terrorists

Not when it means destroying a wildlife refuge for what would amount to (at best) a drop in the bucket in terms of our annual oil consumption. That's a long-term destruction for a very short-term gain.

we could use the extra money to develop more efficient solar and hydrogen technologies.

What extra money? Any money gained from destroying ANWR would go to the oil companies, not the U.S. government. We do need more $$ for renewable energy research and the best way to get that is to remove the tax breaks and subsidies the U.S. government has been giving to the oil business for many years. The Democrats tried to pass something to do just that last year, but the Republicans killed it.

And with McCain and his BFF Hillary Clinton pandering with this 'gas tax holiday' garbage (which is a disaster in terms of energy and oil policy), it should be said that gas taxes actually should be higher, not lower. Again, that'd be a short-term pain, but a long-term gain.

The problem with American leadership now is that we're not willing to make short-term sacrifices for long-term benefit. Everyone's thinking is so myopic and greedy.

[latenightapathy.livejournal.com]

The USGS estimates that there is likely about 5.7 billion barrels of recoverable oil in ANWR, going up to, in the highest estimates, 16 billion barrels. Nowhere near Saudi Arabia.

And also, ANWR is not even our best bet for oil production. The Bakken Formation/oil fields in Montana/Dakotas, are estimated to have between 270-500 billion barrels of oil. This figure would rival Saudi Arabia's proven reserves, I think, but is much more difficult to get since a lot of it is encased within rock. Also, Saudi Arabia is really closemouthed about exact figures for its oil fields, so the Bakken discovery might actually give us more than them, in theory, if it's developed, if we're smart about things, and if the USGS is correct.

[blueduck37.livejournal.com]

PS- Lindsey Williams is hardly a expert on anything.

[ltmurdoch.livejournal.com]

I can't take this guy seriously when I watch him. He keeps saying "I'm gonna tell you things that will scare the hell out of you." and he never gets around to saying anything substantial. He couldn't follow a logical train of thought if his life depended on it. Also, did you see the audience to whom he's speaking. Not exactly the movers and shakers of the world.

So, while it's hard for me to take him seriously, what's interesting is that I can't find anything online that effectively debunks what he's saying. At least not from any kind of credible source. I'd think that someone with expert knowledge of this subject would want to put out a "Lindsey Williams is full of shit and here's why" report before this conspiracy theorist's virus spreads too far.

[latenightapathy.livejournal.com]

First of all, he's a Baptist missionary who talked to "a man" who "worked" at the oil fields, not ran them. The source I used for my above figures (DOI Budget Estimate 2007 (http://www.doi.gov/budget/2007/data/pdf/07SenateTestimony.pdf)) says that reserves in the North Slope are nothing like what he claims, and mention only "research" about natural gas. Also, from what I have read (which, granted, isn't much) you wouldn't use natural gas to pump oil out; it's usually CO2. I've only been able to get through 10 minutes of this so far, but it doesn't sound very believable, what with the mystery guy and the conspiracy theories.

[dioderm.livejournal.com]

Quite some time ago, I tried looking up how much oil is in ANWR and where, and I found.... almost nothing from any reliable sources. The amount of media pundits and opinionists talking about ANWR completely overwhelms any actual research done about the place.

Does anyone know of any real resources regarding how much oil is in the ground there? I mean more than "experts say that..." articles, I mean some oil industry guy poking at the ground with whatever they poke oil fields with and trying to come to a conclusion whether it's worth drilling or not?

[latenightapathy.livejournal.com]

The USGS estimates I provided above aren't good enough?

[dioderm.livejournal.com]

That kind of thing is exactly what I was looking for. Sorry for the big hole in my eyes that I somehow missed it. Thank you!

[madscience.livejournal.com]

Assume for a minute that there is that much oil in the ANWR. We still can't drill it because it'll destroy a pristine natural habitat and increase consumption, hastening global climate change. People need to get their fat asses out of their SUVs and walk.