Posts Tagged by offshore drilling
Obama Opening up East and Gulf Coasts to Offshore Drilling — by Bill Paul
| April 1, 2010 | Posted by BillPaul under Renewables - Business |
Yesterday’s announcement by Obama that he’s opening up East and Gulf coasts to offshore drilling is very good news, insofar as it will drive increased visibility of the imperatives for renewable energy. Coming on the heels of Obama’s announcement of federal loan guarantees for new nuclear power units, this now sets the stage for a strong administration push for climate change legislation by the fall — not that it will be called that, given how politically-charged that phrase has become. Obama is giving more moderate Republicans, especially SC Sen. Lindsey Graham, what they want and need to support a bill that is expected to include, for the first time ever, some sort of cap on carbon dioxide emissions. Exactly what that cap will look like and which companies and industries it will impact most will be the source of a lot of political haggling in the weeks and months to come.
In short, what everyone thought was dead, at least for this year, now seems very much alive. With healthcare out of the way, climate change legislation (which they’ll probably call energy legislation) should become the new buzz in Washington. On Wall Street, everyone’s going to wonder how this will affect different companies and industries, which is where we come in.
Separately, take a look at this recent Reuters story, specifically in the 3rd paragraph the mention of growing “institutional interest” in alternative energy. This too is good news.
Offshore Drilling – An Environmentally Friendly Idea?
| August 1, 2009 | Posted by Craig Shields under Renewables - Politics |
Isn’t it common knowledge that offshore oil drilling represents a danger to the ecology of our oceans and beaches? And aren’t the oil companies the only ones with enough greed and callous disregard for the environment that they would suggest the validity of this process?
No.
Ironically, there are cases in which offshore drilling actually improves the health of the environment by reducing the volume of the natural seeps of oil and methane, which cause enormous (though not manmade) damage to the plants and animals that live in certain regions.
Readers may wish to learn about SOS California, a non-profit organization dedicated to reducing the environmental impact of natural gas and oil seep pollution on our ocean, our beaches, and our air quality. This group, co-founded by my friend Bruce Allen, points out that massive amounts of natural oil and gas seepage pollution is coming from offshore Santa Barbara California’s coastal areas. He points out that since Native Americans first arrived in coastal California, approximately 800 million barrels of oil have seeped into the coastal environment. Allen notes that peer-reviewed reports document the connection between existing Santa Barbara offshore oil production and natural seepage pollution reductions over the last 20 years and the larger natural seepage pollution reduction potential through expanded offshore oil and gas production.
According to SOS California, the tax revenues that would come from such an effort would reduce the deficit signifcantly, or fund massive efforts in the directio of renewable energy. In any case, I encourage readers to lean more about this subject, and join the cause.
