How To Stop Worrying And Love The Oil Sands
Ahni writes at Intercontinental Cry:
“Communication might be understood as both the conduit for and the actual substance of human culture and consciousness. Psychological warfare is the application of mass communication to modern social conflict.”
—Science of Coercion, Christopher Simpson, American UniversityTendencies of psychological warfare (U.S. Army War College):
1. Destroys will and ability of enemy to fight
2. Deprives enemy of support of allies and neutrals
3. Increases internal will to victoryEffects of psychological warfare (U.S. Army War College):
* Dissension
* Distrust
* Fear
* HopelessnessGiven the challenges that we face as Indigenous Peoples in Canada, it’s important to take a step back every now and again, if only so we make sure we know what exactly is being placed in front of us. If we don’t than we run the risk of wasting what little time and resources we have to stop an untenable project like, for example, the proposed Enbridge pipeline–a project that threatens our cultural heritage, our health, the environment…
Oilsands Imperil Western Canada
Mike De Souza reports for the Vancouver Sun/Postmedia News:
Contamination of a major western Canadian river basin from oilsands operations is a “high-profile concern” for downstream communities and wildlife, says a newly-released “secret” presentation prepared last spring by Environment Canada that highlighted numerous warnings about the industry’s growing footprint on land, air, water and the climate.
The warnings from the department contrast with recent claims made by Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Environment Minister Peter Kent that the industry is being unfairly targeted by environmentalists who exaggerate its impacts on nature and people.
The presentation noted figures from the Canadian Energy Research Institute, a collaboration among industry, government and academics, that estimate the oilsands sector is responsible for more than 100,000 direct and indirect jobs in Canada, and will contribute more than $1.7 trillion to the country’s economy over the next 25 years.
But it warned that Alberta and other parts of Western Canada…
Shell Nigerian Oil Spill Far Worse Than Reported
Photo: Vin Mullen (CC)
Emily Gertz reports for Talking Points Memo:
A Shell deepwater drilling site off the Nigerian coast that the company reported leaking on Wednesday may have spilled up to 2.4 million gallons, according to nonprofit environmental satellite monitoring group SkyTruth.
If so, that’s far worse than indicated in statements made so far by Royal Dutch Shell, which has put the amount of oil leaked at the Bonga offshore site at “less than 40,000 barrels,” (1.7 million gallons).
“That could mean anything from 1 gallon to 1.7 million gallons,” John Amos, founder and president of satellite-imaging nonprofit SkyTruth told TPM.
Oil must be at least 1 micron (1/1000th of a millimeter) thick to be seen from a satellite, according to Amos. The visible rainbow sheen, he says, means that the oil could be anywhere from .3 to 10 microns thick, depending on two different sets of guidelines.
Amos used an image from a European Space…
Niger Delta Villagers Vs. Oil Giant Shell’s Destruction of Their Land
Once again, unregulated Big Business makes everything better. John Vidal writes in the Guardian:
Goi is now a dead village. The two fish ponds, bakery and chicken farm that used to be the pride and joy of its chief deacon, Barrisa Tete Dooh, lie abandoned, covered in a thick black layer. The village’s fishing creek is contaminated; the school has been looted; the mangrove forests are coated in bitumen and everyone has left, refugees from a place blighted by the exploitation of the region’s most valuable asset: crude oil.
A long-awaited and comprehensive UN study exposed the full horror of the pollution that the production of oil has brought to Ogoniland over the last 50 years.
The UN report showed that oil companies and the Nigerian government had not just failed to meet their own standards, but that the process of investigation, reporting and clean-up was deeply flawed in favour of the firms…
Leaked Documents Reveal BP’s Control Over Iraq’s Oil
The Iraq War probably didn’t start out being about oil — it just seems to be ending that way. Oil industry watchdog PLATFORM London gained access to a leaked copy of a contract between BP and the Iraqi government which reveals the extent to which the company has gained control over Iraq’s resources. New Left Project writes:
BP was awarded the 20-year deal at an auction in June 2009, but suspicions were raised when the company did not sign the contract until four months later. The Iraqi government said nothing had changed in the interim, only “clarifications” – claims that the leaked contract show not to be true.
PLATFORM obtained from a reliable source a version of the Rumaila contract with BP/CNPC dated 8 October 2009. This leaked version was compared with the official model contract, dated 23 April 2009, which formed the basis of the first bid round.Several key changes were made, including:
> BP could…
U.S. Govt. May Be Squelching Scientist Over Arctic Oil
Arctic National Wildlife Refuge
Why is this all too believable? Bob Berwyn reports on the latest skirmish in the battle over Alaska offshore oil drilling for Summit County Citizens Voice:
Last summer’s Deepwater Horizon oil-drilling disaster in the Gulf of Mexico clearly showed the conflict between science, energy policy and politics, and the looming battle over drilling in Arctic waters will be no different, as a watchdog group claims that federal scientists are being muzzled and harassed over their efforts to disclose potential impacts of energy development in the fragile Arctic marine environment.
Dr. Charles Monnet, a senior federal scientist working the Arctic has been placed on administrative leave and is being investigated by the Interior Department’s Inspector General. Such inspections are not uncommon, but what’s unusual in this case is that the researcher says he has no idea what the investigators are looking for.
But a Washington, D.C.-based watchdog and whistle-blower protection group,…
A Gallon Of Gas Should Cost $15
We know the approximate price of gas for consumers, but what is the price for society? The external costs borne may be as high as $1.7 trillion per year for the United States alone — that’s from health problems caused by pollution and toxic fumes, damage to crops and plant life, et cetera. The Center for Investigative Reporting calculates $15 per gallon as a reasonable pump price reflecting the true cost of gasoline.
My only complaint: it should be significantly higher still, as they forgot to factor in the huge sums of tax dollars spent on foreign aid and military operations for the benefit of the oil industry:
KLM To Use Recycled Frying Oil To Fuel Flights
KLM airlines are going green, well, at least for some flights. BBC reports:
The Dutch airline KLM says it plans to use recycled cooking oil on 200 flights between Paris and Amsterdam.
The fuel, biokerosene, is derived from used frying oil, which has to be tested to meet the same technical specifications as traditional kerosene.
Airlines are under EU pressure to cut their carbon emissions by 3% by 2012.
KLM’s interest in biofuels dates back to 2009, when it ran a test flight carrying 40 people, including the then Dutch economics affairs minister.
The 90-minute flight was majority powered by traditional aviation fuel, with just one of the its four engines powered 50% by biofuel.
Future flights will use half traditional kerosene and half biofuel.
[Continues at BBC News]
Tell Secretary Clinton To Say No To The Kochs
The Koch brothers stand to make millions from a pipeline that would carry the dirtiest oil on Earth through six states, one of America’s most important aquifers and almost 2,000 miles of American homes and farmland.
Congressional Republicans are trying to force the Obama administration to approve the pipeline with grandstanding hearings starting Monday, but gas prices would actually increase and construction would put American communities in danger. Another video from the Koch Brothers Exposed campaign:
Because the oil pipeline crosses an international border, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton can intervene and stop this now. Share our petition and help reach the goal of 50,000 individuals telling Secretary Clinton to say No to the Kochs and Yes to protecting Americans at http://kochbrothersexposed.com/tellclintonno
Less than 50 Years of Oil Left, HSBC Warns
Recently John Collins Rudolf reported in the New York Times:
The world may have no more than half a century of oil left at current rates of consumption, while surging demand from the developing world threatens to create “very significant price rises” before substitutes like biofuels can serve as viable alternatives, the British bank HSBC warns in a new report.
“We’re confident that there are around 50 years of oil left,” Karen Ward, the bank’s senior global economist, said in an interview on CNBC.
The bank, the world’s second largest in assets, further cautioned that growth trends in developing countries like China could put as many as one billion more cars on the road by midcentury. “That’s tremendous pressure on oil to power all those resources,” Ms. Ward said.
Substitutes, such as biofuels and synthetic oil from coal, could fill the gap if conventional supplies fall short, but only if average oil prices exceed…
Wikileaks Cables Show Race To Carve Up Arctic
BBC News reports:
Secret US embassy cables released by Wikileaks show nations are racing to “carve up” Arctic resources — oil, gas and even rubies — as the ice retreats.
They suggest that Arctic states, including the US and Russia, are all pushing to stake a claim.
The opportunity to exploit resources has come because of a dramatic fall in the amount of ice in the Arctic.
The US Geological Survey estimates oil reserves off Greenland are as big as those in the North Sea.
The cables were released by the Wikileaks whistleblower website as foreign ministers from the eight Arctic Council member states – Russia, the United States, Canada, Denmark, Norway, Finland, Sweden and Iceland – met in Nuuk, Greenland on Thursday to sign a treaty on international search-and-rescue in the Arctic and discuss the region’s future challenges.
The cables claim the Danish Foreign Minister Per Stig Moeller joked with the Americans saying “if you stay…
ExxonMobil Makes $11B Quarterly Profit
Exxon apologizes for sticking it to us at the gas pumps last quarter. The disgusting part? Exxon feels that their company “doesn’t even make that much money selling gasoline.” AP reports:
Exxon made almost $11 billion and practically apologized for it.Sensing public outrage over gasoline prices that have topped $4 in some states, the company struck a defensive posture Thursday after posting some of its best quarterly financial results ever.
Exxon said it had no control over high oil prices. It said it’s one of the biggest taxpayers in the United States. It cast federal subsidies as “legitimate tax provisions” that keep jobs at home, and cast itself as a victim of Washington scapegoating.
“They feel they have to demonize our industry,” said Ken Cohen, Exxon’s vice president for public affairs.
What’s more, the company argued, it doesn’t even make that much money selling gasoline.
Exxon’s profit of $10.65 billion for the first quarter was its highest since…
What Japan’s Disaster Tells Us About Peak Oil
Explosion and fire at Cosmo refinery following the March earthquake. Photo: Cranky5 (CC)
From the Guardian:
For large parts of eastern Japan that were not directly hit by the tsunami on 11 March 2011, including the nation’s capital, the current state of affairs feels very much like a dry-run for peak oil.
This is not to belittle the tragic loss of life and the dire situation facing many survivors left without homes and livelihoods.
Rather, the aim here is to reflect upon the post-disaster events and compare them with those normally associated with the worst-case scenarios for peak oil.
The earthquake and tsunami affected six of the 28 oil refineries in Japan and immediately petrol rationing was introduced with a maximum of 20 litres per car (in some instances as low as 5 litres).
On 14 March, the government allowed the oil industry to release 3 days’ worth of oil from stockpiles and on 22 March an additional 22…
20 Signs That A ‘Horrific’ Global Food Crisis Is Coming
Zero Hedge writes via The Economic Collapse Blog:
In case you haven’t noticed, the world is on the verge of a horrific global food crisis. At some point, this crisis will affect you and your family. It may not be today, and it may not be tomorrow, but it is going to happen.
Crazy weather and horrifying natural disasters have played havoc with agricultural production in many areas of the globe over the past couple of years. Meanwhile, the price of oil has begun to skyrocket. The entire global economy is predicated on the ability to use massive amounts of inexpensive oil to cheaply produce food and other goods and transport them over vast distances. Without cheap oil the whole game changes.
Topsoil is being depleted at a staggering rate and key aquifers all over the world are being drained at an alarming pace. Global food prices are already at an all-time high and…
BP Asks To Resume Gulf Coast Drilling
Some (who don’t speak Chinese) say that the Chinese word for “crisis” also means “opportunity”. Well, no one creates cris-portunities like BP does. Via the Boston Globe:
BP has asked US regulators for permission to resume drilling in the Gulf of Mexico, two company officials said yesterday.
The petition comes less than 15 months after a rig BP leased there exploded, causing a huge oil spill and killing 11 workers.
[One] other official said, “We’re making progress but it’s not a yes yet.’’ Both people spoke on the condition of anonymity because talks on a possible agreement were continuing.
Drilling in the Gulf of Mexico was halted last summer after the accident involving BP’s Macondo well, which spilled 4.9 million barrels of oil into the ocean. The ban was lifted in October.
Royal Dutch Shell won approval on Wednesday to drill off the coast of Louisiana on the condition that rigorous new safety standards were…
OPEC Could Reap $1 Trillion This Year
OPEC Member Countries
Olga Belogolova writes in the National Journal:
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) is set to make a record-breaking $1 trillion in export revenues this year if crude oil prices remain above $100 a barrel, an the International Energy Agency official told the Financial Times.
“It would be the first time in the history of OPEC that oil revenues have reached a trillion dollars,” Chief IAEA Economist Fatih Birol told the Financial Times. “It’s mainly because of higher prices and higher production.”
The possibility of a record-breaking year comes as continued unrest in the Middle East and North Africa, engagement in Libya, and signs of an economic recovery renew debate among policymakers over how to deal with rising global oil prices and their ties to national security.
President Obama will weigh in on the issue [on 30 March] when he speaks about his new four-part “Plan for America’s Energy Security” at…
Gulf Spill Company Hands Out “Safety” Bonuses to Executives
Al Jazeera reports:
Transocean Ltd., the owner of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig that exploded off the Gulf of Mexico last year, has given its top executives bonuses for achieving the “best year in safety performance in our company’s history”, despite the blast that killed 11 people and spilled 200 million gallons of oil into the ocean…
