Fossil Fuels

Why doesn’t more communication translate into greater consensus about the world’s problems?

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On the surface one would think that the revolutionary advances in worldwide communications–made possible first by the telegraph, then by the telephone, the radio, the television and now by the Internet–would lead to a broad consensus on such issues as climate change and resource depletion. Almost everyone now has nearly instant access to the latest scientific information on these issues. Yet, no consensus has emerged, at least not one strong enough to bring about definitive action.

Peak oil denial: another curious contribution

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Apparently, we Peak Oil advocates are “fleecing the inherently gullible.” Who knew? The author didn’t get around to explaining just how we do so, although he did offer a hint that our “headline-grabbing, money-making blockbusters” are the culprits. (What have I been missing? Woulda been nice if Richard Heinberg, Chris Nelder, Sharon Astyk, Kurt Cobb, Chris Martenson, and others clued me in on how they’ve made their millions and millions of dollars fleecing gullibles. I’ll keep checking my email.)

Don’t count on revolution in oil supply

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This is a guest post by Sadad al-Huseini, now a petroleum consultant and formerly executive vice president of Saudi Aramco for exploration and production, and is a response to the recent article in PIW (Petroleum Intelligence Weekly) by Leonardo Maugeri on his new study Oil: the Next Revolution, challenging his optimism about future oil supplies.

Pic pétrolier : deux vice-présidents de Total répondent à Oil Man

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English summary: Total has agreed to present on my blog its scenario on world future oil production. No peak oil in sight according to Total, provided the industry puts on stream 45 Mb/d in the next 15 years. How can this tremendous task may be achieved ? Huge uncertainties remain in this unpublished scenario.

La direction du groupe Total a accepté de présenter ici son scénario sur l’avenir du pétrole. Selon elle, aucun déclin des extractions ne s’annonce à l’horizon… à condition de développer d’ici 15 ans l’équivalent de la moitié de la production mondiale actuelle ! Comment réussir pareil tour de force ? De vastes zones d’ombre subsistent dans ce scénario inédit. [excerpt]

Considerations of Chinese demand growth

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There are many parts of the country where these interconnections and improvements to the infrastructure are still going on. As those changes occur, the increasing use of power-driven vehicles continues to rise, and with it the need for increased supply. The risk of exacerbating popular unrest if that change were to stop is just one reason why it is bound to continue, and with it China’s continued need for additional supplies of all forms of fossil fuels.

Running on empty: big airlines in big trouble

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Most people living in our modern industrial society take air travel for granted. We think very little about hopping on a plane and travelling around the world for little more than a couple of weeks wages. As jet fuel prices bounce along with the price of crude however many airlines are increasingly struggling to break even. Fuel prices now account for 35 percent of operating costs compared to 15 percent a decade ago. The future of the global aviation industry is in big trouble.

Mother: Caring for 7 Billion (documentary film review)

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The documentary takes a penetrating look at overpopulation, what fuels it and why the world has become complacent about the issue after making a good start in addressing it during the late 60s. The film dispels some key myths about overpopulation – chief among them the belief that it’s long been solved – even if it stops short of admitting the inevitability of a world population crash as the Earth’s resources deplete. And it conveys its message in an engaging, visually immersive style that finds just the right balance between hard facts and ordinary human involvement.