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Senate backs Alaska oil drilling
by Palindrome at 3:59 pm EST, Mar 16, 2005

] The US Senate has voted to allow a plan that opens up a
] remote wildlife refuge in the northern state of Alaska to
] oil drilling.

] Senators voted 51-49 against an amendment which would
] have struck the measure from the federal budget.

] The plan has long been a key part of President Bush's
] energy plan, as a means to reduce US reliance on imports.
] Democrats and some Republicans have opposed the plan,
] arguing that the wilderness should be left untouched.

] New Mexico Republican Pete Domenici said before the vote
] that the refuge had the country's "most significant
] onshore production capacity".

] But Massachusetts Senator John Kerry, who proposed the
] amendment, said there was no way the US could drill its
] way out of its energy crisis.

] Correspondents say there is not much interest among the
] oil companies in drilling in the refuge, as its economic
] potential no longer seems promising.

These are the statistics on the area

] Area: 19 million acres, the size of North Carolina
] Home to 45 types of mammal, including polar bear and
] caribou, and 180 species of bird
] Oil potential: Up to 16 billion barrels

the vote is scheduled later this week

RE: Senate backs Alaska oil drilling
by janelane at 6:41 pm EST, Mar 17, 2005

Palindrome wrote:
] ] Area: 19 million acres, the size of North Carolina
] ] Home to 45 types of mammal, including polar bear and
] ] caribou, and 180 species of bird
] ] Oil potential: Up to 16 billion barrels
]
] the vote is scheduled later this week

Everyone manages to ignore that ANWR currently only has proven reserves on the order of 4,446 million barrels (2003).* Thus, with the domestic petroleum demand averaging 20.5 million barrels per day in 2004**, this leaves us with ~215 days worth of oil in Alaska which would be AWFULLY FRICKING USEFUL if we ever got cutoff from our precious imports that, coincidentally, supply 56% of our daily consumption today*** and 68% of it by 2025****.

Of course, there's _no_ harm in simply hoping that drilling techniques and technology will magically improve in the somewhat near future and be able to capture that other 11.5 million barrels (which would, again, make hardly ANY dent in fuel flow model since that would only last 4.4 years if we somehow retained a trade deficit of only ~50%). So, we know both that domestic production is falling (exclusive of ANWR)*****, evergreens and permafrost don't like drilling machines, and the Gulf is a shitty place to send troops to protect our gluttonous consumption. What, then, is the solution? Reduce consumption. Luckily, hybrids are taking off despite the fact that Bush persists in phasing out the hybrid tax credit while blowing smoke up the ass of Big Oil under the guise of national security.

{/soapbox}

-janelane

*http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/oog/info/state/ak.html
**http://www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/steo/pub/contents.html
***http://www.eia.doe.gov/pub/oil_gas/petroleum/data_publications/
petroleum_supply_monthly/current/pdf/table49.pdf
****http://www.eia.doe.gov/oiaf/aeo/pdf/0383(2005).pdf, p111
*****http://www.eia.doe.gov/oiaf/aeo/pdf/0383(2005).pdf, p109