Insight and inspiration in turbulent times.
•China cracks down on emissions to combat choking smog •China’s first coal-to-gas plant soon to pump gas to Beijing •China’s smog reduction plan could add to water stress and boost emissions •China Faces Gas Shortage after Cutting Coal Consumption •China’s oil demand to 2020 •Beijing slashes car sales quota in anti-pollution drive •Shale Gas Revolution Not Coming To China Anytime Soon •China faces a long battle for blue skies
Most of the easy energy is gone. Are we heading for a dead end?
Since it began producing oil in earnest in 1956, Nigeria has become the poster child for the environmental, social, and economic devastation that can be wrought by unfettered fossil fuel production.
Things do not have to run out to become unavailable. They can simply be priced out of reach for most people. That’s where we are headed for many basic resources, and that has implications for the stability of the global system which we’ve built.
Energy independence. It’s so easy to say, but oh so hard to actually accomplish, which is why the United States has been a consistent importer of oil since the late 1940s.
Perhaps the most important energy story on the planet right now is the precarious situation for fuel rods stored in a damaged building at the Fukushima nuclear power station. However, there is another story beyond the immediate danger that tells us something about how we think about risk.
•Study Revises Estimate of Methane Leaks from U.S. Fracking Fields•Experts: Fracking Methane Leakage Study Financed by Gas Industry With Partner, EDF, is Deeply Flawed •The Oil & Gas Industry’s Fractured Fairy Tales
In his new book Snake Oil, Richard Heinberg takes on overblown claims from both the oil and gas industry’s salesmen–its top executives, industry trade groups and PR firms–and its shills–fake think tanks, paid consultants, and captive analysts who are often quoted and interviewed (mistakenly) as independent experts.
Energy round-up: breaking through the government’s fracking mantra
At the end of the 20th century, Argentina started exporting gas to Chile, a mirage of the gas possibilities in this country. Both Argentina and Chile believed that the supply was going to be increasing forever.
What would you expect them to say? That’s the question you should ask whenever spokespersons for the oil and gas industry (or fake think tanks funded by the industry or analysts whose bread is buttered by the industry) announce a new find that is going to be a "game-changer.”
Never let the facts get in the way of a good story. That’s the credo of the oil and gas industry as it continues to lobby for increased oil and natural gas exports from the United States.
