Insight and inspiration in turbulent times.
Has OPEC misled us about the size of its oil reserves? The short answer is probably. The long answer is that currently, there is no way to know for sure.
The next question we should ask is: Does it matter? The answer is most definitely yes.
“Everybody’s got a plan until they get punched in the mouth.” — Mike Tyson
“That’s a pithy way of saying where our country, perhaps the developed world, is at right now,” notes author James Howard Kunstler. We’ve blown past the mileposts for global peak oil, says Kunstler in his new book, Too Much Magic: Wishful Thinking, Technology and the Fate of the Nation, and we expect technology to save us.
The summer holidays brought no relief on oil prices with Brent climbing back to $115/barrel. Sanctions on Iran and hurricane Isaac are having an effect, but recent reports from Barclays Capital and Citigroup point to more fundamental issues.
The USGS recently released new EUR numbers for all shale gas plays in the country and the numbers were significantly lower than operator claims. Interestingly, this same phenomenon is playing out in shale oil as well.
This animation sums up the key challenges facing our global society of credit crisis and resource scarcity and describes a path we can take to a happier life, now and in the future!
This animation sums up the key challenges facing our global society of credit crisis and resource scarcity and describes a path we can take to a happier life, now and in the future!
-The energy-water nexus, 2012 edition
-Treading water
-The U.S. Drought and Electricity Generation
-US and EU must change biofuel targets to avert food crisis, says Nestlé chief
The extraordinary hype surrounding this industry has been impressive to say the least. It has clearly been a public relations exercise of disproportionate scale compared to what the wells are actually producing. That should have been our first clue. Methinks they doth propound too much.
Starting next week longtime Energy Bulletin author Kurt Cobb will have his posts regularly featured in The Christian Science Monitor on its new “Energy Voices” blog. The highly respected Monitor has a century-long tradition of reasoned, thoughtful journalism which has earned it seven Pulitzer Prizes and many other awards. Its global reach–it stations writers in 11 countries–will bring a large new audience in contact with Kurt’s work on peak oil.
Today’s post is the first installment of a six-part series which will introduce key concepts and ideas to this new audience. (Hint: good also for forwarding to skeptical friends and family!)
A weekly update including:
-Oil and the Global Economy
-The Middle East
-EU
-Quote of the week
-Briefs
-Shell Wins U.S. Permit To Prepare For Arctic Drilling
-Gazprom puts giant Shtokman Russian Arctic gas project on ice over costs
-Cold Hands, Determined Hearts
-Peak oil returns: the “unconventional oil” bubble may well pop in Arctic waters
-The Demise of the Car
-Yep, High Speed Rail Will Slash Emissions
-Citizen Crosswalks in Paris [video]
-California Cyclists Are About to Get Three Feet of Breathing Room
-With Funding Tight, Cities are Turning to Green Infrastructure
