News from July 2005

New Mexicans Propose Alaska-Style Payday

With New Mexico awash in oil and gas money, many activists and state legislators are looking for ways to spend the extra hundreds of millions. Gov. Bill Richardson, who says the state is looking at $1.1 billion in additional revenue over the next five years — much of it oil and gas money — wants [...]

Get Ready for Return of the Bad ’70’s

In 1973 we saw human behavior at its worst. The Arab oil embargo created panic. People feared that they wouldn’t be able to get their next gallon of gasoline, so they did what people do: They lined up at gasoline stations to get theirs. Everyone was topping off their tanks. Fistfights broke out when people [...]

Peak Oil and the Curse of Cassandra

Poster’s Comments: How is peak oil like Y2K? According to Jamais Cascio, those who warn the public peak oil will succeed in raising awareness. Because of their success, the author writes, they will be ridiculed when most people believe there was never a problem in the first place.

Link to essay on worldchainging.com

BP shuts refinery for repairs -agency

HOUSTON (Reuters) – BP Plc shut a gasoline-producing fluidic catalytic cracking unit on Sunday at its 460,000 barrel per day (bpd) refinery in Texas City, Texas, for maintenance repairs, according to a notice filed with Texas environmental regulators.

It was unclear from the notice filed with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality if the shutdown of FCCU No. 2 was related to an explosion at the refinery on Thursday that forced the plant to cut production.

A BP spokesman was not immediately available to discuss refinery operations.

Reuters

Uzbekistan and America’s Future Conflicts

As of next year, Central Asia will have come fully online to Western energy markets, as twin oil and gas pipelines linking the Caspian sea to Turkey will begin to deliver. By this time, the world will likely finally understand that US foreign policy, known to be energy focused, is intent on more than just [...]

L.A. Alternative-Energy Fees to Rise

Despite mandates to boost renewable power sources, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power gives the Los Angeles Unified School District a discounted rate to delay its alternative-energy program and plans to charge other large customers more for generating their own electricity, the Daily News has learned. Beginning in January, the DWP will charge [...]

What is Peak Oil?

In the online community discussing the implications of peak oil, there is a growing recognition that awareness is not building fast enough to affect the types of societal changes that will be necessary to weather the coming storm. As I have learned the hard way, just saying “peak oil” is not enough.

So as a way of helping us sharpen our message to the uninitiated of what “peak oil” is, let me explain my point of view:

Peak Oil is not the end of oil but rather the end of cheap oil. Cheap oil is what fueled the economic and population booms of the 20th Century.

Peak Oil NYC

Indonesia to stay as full OPEC member

Indonesia, Asia-Pacific’s only member of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), has decided to remain a full member of the cartel, an official at energy watchdog BPMIGAS said today. Indonesia’s declining oil production has left it unable to meet its OPEC quota, and it became a net importer of oil for several months [...]

Study: Hurricanes Getting Stronger

Is global warming making hurricanes more ferocious? New research suggests the answer is yes. Scientists call the findings both surprising and “alarming” because they suggest global warming is influencing storms now — rather than in the distant future. However, the research doesn’t suggest global warming is generating more hurricanes and typhoons. The analysis by climatologist [...]

Isfahan plant will restart nuclear activities tomorrow-Iran

Iran’s Supreme National Security Council announced on Sunday that the Isfahan plant will resume tomorrow Monday, sensitive uranium conversion activities. Mahr News Agency quoted an informed source as saying that an official note in this regard, will be sent tomorrow to the UN nuclear watchdog IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency).

…..

It added, this came after a meeting held by the Supreme National Security Council earlier today. (end) jy.

Kuwait News Agency