Special Series
Word on the Street
In a Series
Step Right Up! Fossil Fuel Roller Coaster
The cost of oil has been a rollercoaster ride since the 1970s. Thankfully, we've hit a low in this season of recession, foreclosures, and a major Wall Street meltdown. But nobody expects the ride to be over -- and the only way to go now is up.
Just ask oil industry insiders. A recent survey of senior oil and gas professionals by (auditing and consulting firm) Deloitte revealed growing concern among the top brass of the fossil fuel industry about the affordability and sustainability of oil and gas in the near future, along with a surprisingly strong belief in the viability of renewable energy.
Most participants in Deloitte's assessment group expressed a belief that oil and gas will no longer remain the world's cheapest energy source in the next few decades: 71 percent said that oil and gas is today's most affordable energy source, but only 23 percent feel it will still be the cheapest source 25 years from now -- a 48 percentage point drop.
Three-quarters considered it a good idea for the US to phase out fossil fuels for transportation.
Over half believe that transitioning away from fossil fuels is a reasonable goal for oil and gas companies.
When fuel prices are down, the inclination is to back away from energy policy that would get us off this scary ride. But even as we catch our breath (and our knuckles aren't white for the moment), the ride remains dangerous and unpredictable -- and it's likely not getting any better. I shudder to think what lies around the corner (a loop-de-loop perhaps?).
If oil execs -- of all people (!) -- are thinking about bailing off, shouldn't the rest of us?
CAP On Clean Coal
At the risk of obsessing, check out this new report on "clean coal" from the Center for American Progress.
I'll let CAP do the talking:
...the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity, an industry group comprised of 48 coal and utility companies. ACCCE spent at least $45 million on advertising this year to convince Americans that “clean coal” is the solution to global warming. The ACCCE companies claim that they “are committed to making coal a clean energy source.” Yet the coal mining and electric utility industries spent over $125 million combined in the first nine months of 2008 to lobby Congress to delay global warming pollution reductions until clean coal technology is ready.
Despite the ads’ claims, an analysis by the Center of American Progress determined that ACCCE’s companies spend relatively few dollars conducting research on carbon capture and storage, the most promising clean coal technology to reduce global warming pollution from coal-fired power plants. This technology would allow power plants to capture 85 percent or more of their carbon dioxide emissions and permanently store them underground in geological formations.
