Tag Archives: oil

Power density of biomass, wind, & solar take too much land to replace fossil fuels

Posted on May 7, 2018 by

Volumetric versus specific energy density for selected energy carriers. Source: Palmer, G. 2020. Energy storage & civilization: a systems approach. Springer. Preface. Vaclav Smil writes “The fact that wind, solar, and biomass have incredibly low energy density per square meter … Continue reading →

Posted in Alternative Energy, Biomass, Coal, Hydropower, Natural Gas, Oil | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Richard Heinberg on why low oil prices do not mean there is plenty of oil, EROI, collapse

Posted on April 5, 2018 by

[ Yet another wise, thoughtful, and wide-ranging essay from my favorite writer of the many facets of a civilization about to decline as it is starved of the fossil fuels that feed it.  Although the topics are quite varied, Heinberg … Continue reading →

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Oil theft around the world: Cartels and exploding donkeys

Posted on April 4, 2018 by

Preface. Oil thefts cost Nigerian oil producers at least $18 billion a year. In Mexico, cartels spend only $5-8,000 to tap into pipelines and withdraw “unlimited” amounts of gasoline, and did so 7,000 times in 2016, resulting in $1 billion … Continue reading →

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U.S. Senate 2014 Freight rail service: improving the performance of America’s rail system

Posted on December 14, 2017 by

Preface. This Senate hearing is mainly full of oil and grain industry leaders bashing the rail industry and asking Senators to do something about it. But the railroad industry is four times more energy efficient than trucks, and not guilty … Continue reading →

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Minerals and War from Ugo Bardi’s “Extracted”

Posted on September 5, 2017 by

Preface. This is an extract from Ugo Bardi’s book “Extracted”.  He makes the case that once we were able to forge metal weapons was when predatory nations began to invade one another to gain resources like coal to make more … Continue reading →

Posted in Mining, Peak Coal, Peak Critical Elements, Peak Oil, Peak Precious Elements, Ugo Bardi, War | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Minerals and War from Ugo Bardi’s “Extracted”

Responding to arctic oil spills

Posted on August 26, 2017 by

Preface. It is nuts to put oil rigs in an area with such vast amounts of ice on the move, and all the additional dangers listed below. No wonder there’s little to no drilling.  It’s too expensive to keep oil … Continue reading →

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Richard Heinberg: Will the US really be a major energy exporter?

Posted on July 23, 2017 by

[ I read this the day it was published (January 16, 2017) at resilience.org here, but thought it would be interesting to post in the future to see if the EIA predictions were as optimistic as Heinberg and Hughes thought … Continue reading →

Posted in How Much Left, Natural Gas, Oil & Gas Fracked, Richard Heinberg | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

Energy as a weapon: Implications for U.S. policy U.S. House hearing 2006

Posted on April 2, 2017 by

[ My favorite quotes from this session: Mr. Lynch: E.F. Schumacher said in 1964: “There is no substitute for energy: the whole edifice of modern life is built upon it. Although energy can be bought and sold like any other … Continue reading →

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How Much Oil is Left?

Posted on December 23, 2016 by

The Power of Exponential Growth: Every 10 years we have burned more oil than all previous decades Preface. There is a lot of oil left. The problem is, most of the remaining oil is unconventional, which needs a lot more … Continue reading →

Posted in How Much Left, Oil, Peak Oil | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Energy Security: Historical perspectives and Modern challenges. Senate hearing 2009

Posted on December 17, 2016 by

[ In this hearing former President Carter was brought in by the Senate to help them cope with the energy crisis.  Carter said that no one but the President can educate the public about the energy crisis and  “explain to … Continue reading →

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