Chevron CEO: Drill Now People Are Full of Crap
Submitted by Nick D on Tue, 07/01/2008 - 3:52pm.
In an interview on CNN's Larry King Live, Chevron CEO David O'Reilly sat down with Natural Resources Defense Council attorney Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for a discussion of energy policy. The interview contains this tidbit:
KENNEDY: The fastest way for us to solve our energy problems in this country is immediate conservation. If we improve fuel economy standards in our automobiles by one mile per gallon, we generate twice the oil that's in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. If we raise fuel economy standards by 7.6 miles per gallon, we can yield more oil than we are currently importing from the Persian Gulf.
O'REILLY: I agree, that first of all efficiency is the very first thing we ought to be working on.
There you have it folks. The CEO of a major oil company says conservation is the FIRST THING we ought to be working on. This "Drill Now" nonsense is just window dressing on a problem whose solution is simple: use less! He goes on to say that it will take YEARS before new wells will be producing oil and gas, completely disavowing the "facts" put forth by the Drill Now wingnuts.
Don't get me wrong. We should drill here to reduce our reliance on imports. Just don't expect that it'll make a dent in gas prices. Because, for the 101st time, the new oil production from these wells won't be adding to the world's oil supply, they'll simply be replacing wells that are drying up in West Texas, the North Sea, and Mexico.
We could however, make a much bigger dent in gas prices by using an energy source that is cheap, green, and readily available: CONSERVATION!
P.S. Can anyone explain why conservatives have such a problem with conservation? The two are almost exactly the same word!
Power of conservation begins with increased CAFE standards
Submitted by Pelikan on Tue, 07/01/2008 - 10:55pm.
I think our avg MPG has been neutral or even gone down for American cars over the past 15 years - related to the formerly cheap oil and our penchant for SUVs. Check out a book I just finished reading, "The End of Oil."
Our energy policy is simply consumption and capacity. Perhaps the "Apollo Program" for energy should focus only on transportation, and save the black stuff for agriculture and industry.
Pelikan
Good information
But I have a follow-on question - If we fuel economy standards in our automobiles by one mile per gallon and Detroit (and Tokyo) were to start tomorrow, how long would it take to have an effect? How long would it take for the new cars to cycle through?
I heard a report that gas mileage had doubled over the last 15 years and that it was reasonable to expect it to double again over the next 15. Sorry, I don't have a reference, and the "reasonable" conclusion was said without backing information. But basically this agrees with your direction.
This is one conservative who doesn't have a problem with conservation. I (like you) don't believe "Drill now" will have an impact on prices, at least not "now".
I've started my series on gas prices on my blog. So far, only one topic. See http://newfromclt.blogspot.com/ for the posts. I've invited random sub-topics, one will be on conservation. Not sure I have enough material on "drill now". I'd be interested in your comments as I wind through.