>
> I thought that those were interior department figures. Dan?
>
They may be. I know that they came from earlier surveys of the area. I'm
guessing they are based on seismic work. Reserve estimates are initially
based on seismic, and are often modified on the basis of logging runs.
Seismic is run from ships or land units at the surface, while logging is
down while or after drilling by tools made by people like me.
The numbers are as trustworthy as any other reserve estimate. Personally, I
think the environmental risk is not that great. 10 years after an oil
spill, it takes effort to measure the environmental impact. But, I don't
see why we need to use up all of the US reserve during a time of cheap oil.
In 20-30 years, energy will probably be much more expensive.
> You're such a nabob of negativity! 8^) In fact I'd like to believe that
one
> of the (unlooked for) consequences of Bush's designer energy crisis just
might
> be technologies that help us move away from total dependence on fossil
fuels
> for energy production. But I _am_ an optimist.
>
Like nuclear? I was asked to give a talk on the next 50 years of energy. I
predicted that solar would multiply by 100 fold, and be 0.5% of the total
energy budget. Of all energy sources, the use of coal should increase the
most.
Dan M.
