PLAN USA
PLAN USA
Action Plan for USA Energy Independence
It might focus our collective minds if we develop a Manhattan type project about energy independence. Call it Project USA, but this time with the government actively supporting it, not controlling it. Our energy industry is more than capable of doing what they have been waiting to do for years already. The primary objective is to rapidly increase production of fossil fuels as well as nuclear power, clean coal and any other energy source that could be competitive without government subsidies on the North American Continent.
A few things need to be kept in mind.
1 We must remember at all times that the doomsday scenarios painted by the eco-crowd are false and can be ignored.
2 We must remain sensitive to the long term need to use energy much more efficiently.
3 Our economy, as it exists, needs to be kept operating at full tilt on the conventional fuels of today, i.e. many years yet.
4 Currently popular and heavily subsidized "alternative" energy sources should be phased out or turned over to unsubsidized private investors. These alternatives are not the answer today. Only conventional fuels will save our economy, industry and defense posture, whether we like it or not.
5 To increase fossil fuel production and refining and to build many more nuclear and clean coal power plants and their associated infrastructure will take many years and huge investments. To get really moving on this project, permitting processes would need to be significantly improved and speeded up. NIMBY objections, except in extreme cases, should not be allowed to hold up construction plans.
6 It goes without saying that we must have more than adequate fuel stocks for our military, our airlines as well as our economy at large. None of these operations should be put in jeopardy because of short-sighted or ill conceived governmental edicts.
For those who believe we do not have the requisite fossil fuel stocks required for such a program let me remind them of a few facts.
The United States market currently uses about 20 million barrels of crude oil per day of which domestic production supplies 10%, with about 15% coming from our neighbors in Canada and Mexico while roughly 75 % is imported from overseas. Since US economic viability and growth are critically dependent on readily available energy supplies, the urgency of reducing our dependence on over 75% of our current expensive imports is obvious.
Relatively recent confirmation of enormous new oil finds in the Saskatchewan, Montana and Dakotas area, estimated at 500 billion barrels of readily available good quality crude, together with projected finds in Pennsylvania and Alaska and of course the large potential off-shore finds, add up to many decades more of domestic fossil fuel to drive our economy while we rework it to prepare ourselves for new energy sources after 2040-2050 or thereabouts.
The whole North American continent also has considerable sources of geothermal, hydropower, oil sands and gas, not to forget roughly 1000 years of coal deposits. This suggests the possibility from a purely market and economics point of view, that there may be merit in creating a North American energy market, benefiting an overall population of 450 million people.
For all these reasons and considerations, to rapidly realize energy independence is a justified and essential priority for the USA. And here is another reason we should do so.
China and India and Russia and Brazil are all doing exactly what I propose and with a vengeance. They know that energy independence is a must, politically and strategically and consequently are spending big bucks to grow their domestic options as well as acquiring as many foreign points of supply as possible. Currently and in contrast, our large and still growing dependence on foreign sources of supply makes us increasingly vulnerable to arm-twisting at some point, if not blackmail on an international scale.
Therefore a complete overhaul of our thinking is necessary to deal with the issue effectively, sooner rather than later. And it seems appropriate to do so now because America's citizens need to understand clearly what the stakes are in order to make the correct choices come next November's election.
Whether one agrees or disagrees with the reasons why we have been fighting in the Middle East for 6½ years already, which conflict, by the way, may last considerably more time yet in order to achieve the Western World's strategic goals, it does not change the necessity of starting a major domestic campaign towards energy independence now. Only then will we stop sending our money abroad to buy foreign oil at inflated prices. Reducing our dependence on this off-shore oil will help to stop the further deflation of the value of our dollar. We just cannot export ourselves out of this mess because foreigners do not buy enough of our products and services to make up the difference. A real run on the dollar therefore could become a possibility. Not a pretty picture.
To recap, our economy is currently winding down, in part as a result of irresponsible financial operations by some banks and other financial institutions associated with the housing market, but also exacerbated by the manipulations of certain foreign oil suppliers. Our current economic and political situation is fundamentally a result of our national indulgence in misleading and unrealistic environmental concerns which have virtually stopped the necessary expansion of our own energy industry during the past 40 years. We are now paying huge penalties for our earlier economic follies and lack of appreciating the dilemma we were placing ourselves into vis a vis off-shore energy suppliers. The chickens have finally come home to roost.
The time for action is now!
Action Plan for USA Energy Independence
It might focus our collective minds if we develop a Manhattan type project about energy independence. Call it Project USA, but this time with the government actively supporting it, not controlling it. Our energy industry is more than capable of doing what they have been waiting to do for years already. The primary objective is to rapidly increase production of fossil fuels as well as nuclear power, clean coal and any other energy source that could be competitive without government subsidies on the North American Continent.
A few things need to be kept in mind.
1 We must remember at all times that the doomsday scenarios painted by the eco-crowd are false and can be ignored.
2 We must remain sensitive to the long term need to use energy much more efficiently.
3 Our economy, as it exists, needs to be kept operating at full tilt on the conventional fuels of today, i.e. many years yet.
4 Currently popular and heavily subsidized "alternative" energy sources should be phased out or turned over to unsubsidized private investors. These alternatives are not the answer today. Only conventional fuels will save our economy, industry and defense posture, whether we like it or not.
5 To increase fossil fuel production and refining and to build many more nuclear and clean coal power plants and their associated infrastructure will take many years and huge investments. To get really moving on this project, permitting processes would need to be significantly improved and speeded up. NIMBY objections, except in extreme cases, should not be allowed to hold up construction plans.
6 It goes without saying that we must have more than adequate fuel stocks for our military, our airlines as well as our economy at large. None of these operations should be put in jeopardy because of short-sighted or ill conceived governmental edicts.
For those who believe we do not have the requisite fossil fuel stocks required for such a program let me remind them of a few facts.
The United States market currently uses about 20 million barrels of crude oil per day of which domestic production supplies 10%, with about 15% coming from our neighbors in Canada and Mexico while roughly 75 % is imported from overseas. Since US economic viability and growth are critically dependent on readily available energy supplies, the urgency of reducing our dependence on over 75% of our current expensive imports is obvious.
Relatively recent confirmation of enormous new oil finds in the Saskatchewan, Montana and Dakotas area, estimated at 500 billion barrels of readily available good quality crude, together with projected finds in Pennsylvania and Alaska and of course the large potential off-shore finds, add up to many decades more of domestic fossil fuel to drive our economy while we rework it to prepare ourselves for new energy sources after 2040-2050 or thereabouts.
The whole North American continent also has considerable sources of geothermal, hydropower, oil sands and gas, not to forget roughly 1000 years of coal deposits. This suggests the possibility from a purely market and economics point of view, that there may be merit in creating a North American energy market, benefiting an overall population of 450 million people.
For all these reasons and considerations, to rapidly realize energy independence is a justified and essential priority for the USA. And here is another reason we should do so.
China and India and Russia and Brazil are all doing exactly what I propose and with a vengeance. They know that energy independence is a must, politically and strategically and consequently are spending big bucks to grow their domestic options as well as acquiring as many foreign points of supply as possible. Currently and in contrast, our large and still growing dependence on foreign sources of supply makes us increasingly vulnerable to arm-twisting at some point, if not blackmail on an international scale.
Therefore a complete overhaul of our thinking is necessary to deal with the issue effectively, sooner rather than later. And it seems appropriate to do so now because America's citizens need to understand clearly what the stakes are in order to make the correct choices come next November's election.
Whether one agrees or disagrees with the reasons why we have been fighting in the Middle East for 6½ years already, which conflict, by the way, may last considerably more time yet in order to achieve the Western World's strategic goals, it does not change the necessity of starting a major domestic campaign towards energy independence now. Only then will we stop sending our money abroad to buy foreign oil at inflated prices. Reducing our dependence on this off-shore oil will help to stop the further deflation of the value of our dollar. We just cannot export ourselves out of this mess because foreigners do not buy enough of our products and services to make up the difference. A real run on the dollar therefore could become a possibility. Not a pretty picture.
To recap, our economy is currently winding down, in part as a result of irresponsible financial operations by some banks and other financial institutions associated with the housing market, but also exacerbated by the manipulations of certain foreign oil suppliers. Our current economic and political situation is fundamentally a result of our national indulgence in misleading and unrealistic environmental concerns which have virtually stopped the necessary expansion of our own energy industry during the past 40 years. We are now paying huge penalties for our earlier economic follies and lack of appreciating the dilemma we were placing ourselves into vis a vis off-shore energy suppliers. The chickens have finally come home to roost.
The time for action is now!
posted by Schaesberg at 8:53 AM
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