[Biofuel] Twenty-First Century Energy Wars: Global Conflicts Are Fueled by the Desire for Oil
http://truth-out.org/news/item/24834-twenty-first-century-energy-wars [multiple links in on-line article] Twenty-First Century Energy Wars: Global Conflicts Are Fueled by the Desire for Oil Tuesday, 08 July 2014 10:07 By Michael T Klare, TomDispatch | News Analysis Iraq, Syria, Nigeria, South Sudan, Ukraine, the East and South China Seas: wherever you look, the world is aflame with new or intensifying conflicts. At first glance, these upheavals appear to be independent events, driven by their own unique and idiosyncratic circumstances. But look more closely and they share several key characteristics -- notably, a witch’s brew of ethnic, religious, and national antagonisms that have been stirred to the boiling point by a fixation on energy. In each of these conflicts, the fighting is driven in large part by the eruption of long-standing historic antagonisms among neighboring (often intermingled) tribes, sects, and peoples. In Iraq and Syria, it is a clash among Sunnis, Shiites, Kurds, Turkmen, and others; in Nigeria, among Muslims, Christians, and assorted tribal groupings; in South Sudan, between the Dinka and Nuer; in Ukraine, between Ukrainian loyalists and Russian-speakers aligned with Moscow; in the East and South China Sea, among the Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese, Filipinos, and others. It would be easy to attribute all this to age-old hatreds, as suggested by many analysts; but while such hostilities do help drive these conflicts, they are fueled by a most modern impulse as well: the desire to control valuable oil and natural gas assets. Make no mistake about it, these are twenty-first-century energy wars. It should surprise no one that energy plays such a significant role in these conflicts. Oil and gas are, after all, the world’s most important and valuable commodities and constitute a major source of income for the governments and corporations that control their production and distribution. Indeed, the governments of Iraq, Nigeria, Russia, South Sudan, and Syria derive the great bulk of their revenues from oil sales, while the major energy firms (many state-owned) exercise immense power in these and the other countries involved. Whoever controls these states, or the oil- and gas-producing areas within them, also controls the collection and allocation of crucial revenues. Despite the patina of historical enmities, many of these conflicts, then, are really struggles for control over the principal source of national income. Moreover, we live in an energy-centric world where control over oil and gas resources (and their means of delivery) translates into geopolitical clout for some and economic vulnerability for others. Because so many countries are dependent on energy imports, nations with surpluses to export -- including Iraq, Nigeria, Russia, and South Sudan -- often exercise disproportionate influence on the world stage. What happens in these countries sometimes matters as much to the rest of us as to the people living in them, and so the risk of external involvement in their conflicts -- whether in the form of direct intervention, arms transfers, the sending in of military advisers, or economic assistance -- is greater than almost anywhere else. The struggle over energy resources has been a conspicuous factor in many recent conflicts, including the Iran-Iraq War of 1980-1988, the Gulf War of 1990-1991, and the Sudanese Civil War of 1983-2005. On first glance, the fossil-fuel factor in the most recent outbreaks of tension and fighting may seem less evident. But look more closely and you’ll see that each of these conflicts is, at heart, an energy war. Iraq, Syria, and ISIS The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), the Sunni extremist group that controls large chunks of western Syria and northern Iraq, is a well-armed militia intent on creating an Islamic caliphate in the areas it controls. In some respects, it is a fanatical, sectarian religious organization, seeking to reproduce the pure, uncorrupted piety of the early Islamic era. At the same time, it is engaged in a conventional nation-building project, seeking to create a fully functioning state with all its attributes. As the United States learned to its dismay in Iraq and Afghanistan, nation-building is expensive: institutions must be created and financed, armies recruited and paid, weapons and fuel procured, and infrastructure maintained. Without oil (or some other lucrative source of income), ISIS could never hope to accomplish its ambitious goals. However, as it now occupies key oil-producing areas of Syria and oil-refining facilities in Iraq, it is in a unique position to do so. Oil, then, is absolutely essential to the organization’s grand strategy. Syria was never a major oil producer, but its prewar production of some 400,000 barrels per day did provide the regime of Bashar al-Assad with a major source of income. Now, most of the
[Biofuel] Truck owners blow extra smoke to anger environmentalists | www.wsbtv.com
http://www.wsbtv.com/news/news/national/truck-owners-blow-extra-smoke-anger-environmentali/ngZnt/ [Is there an text emoticon for the 'eye roll'? video and multiple links in on-line article] By Ben Lawson Video transcript provided by Newsy.com It's a trend now big enough to put a name to. Many Americans are rigging their trucks to intentionally emit large plumes of toxic smoke. It's called rolling coal, and it's meant as a political statement. The truck owner rigs the diesel engine to emit large amounts of black soot. One truck owner labeled his vehicle Prius repellant and took a video as he aimed smoke at a car behind him. (Via YouTube / doug coons) For some, it's a form of protest against environmentalism, striking back against efforts to lower carbon emissions and overall pollution. For others, it's just for kicks. (Via YouTube / Renato Sanchez) The relatively new trend has skyrocketed in recent years. Google analytics shows the search volume for rolling coal increasing sevenfold since February 2011. (Via Google) Vocativ kicked up quite a stir last month after its article brought the subculture to light. The article agrees that the trend is a backlash against environmentalists, and adds that it is in response to the fear that anyone with an interest in preserving the earth is a threat to the diesel-loving lifestyle. One truck driver said The feeling around here is that everyone who drives a small car is a liberal. I rolled coal on a Prius once just because they were tailing me. (Via Vocativ) To make the modifications, mechanics essentially trick the vehicle's engine into thinking it needs more fuel, producing a burst of black soot. Some owners spend anywhere from $500 to $5,000 to rig their trucks to roll coal. (Via Diesel Hub) And for all that cash and trouble, drivers get to produce one of the most toxic air pollutants in the U.S. (Via YouTube / J killen) According to the Clean Air Task Force, diesel exhaust leads to 21,000 premature deaths each year and carries a cancer risk seven times greater than the combined risk of all other air toxins tracked by the EPA. A writer for Slate blames a use-it-before-liberals-ban-it instinct, comparing it to when people stockpile guns and ammo after a mass shooting because of a fear that liberals will capitalize on the shooting to ban guns. While this is definitely bad for the environment and public health, coal rollers are legally able to blow as much smoke as they please. -- Darryl McMahon Project Manager, Common Assessment and Referral for Enhanced Support Services (CARESS) ___ Sustainablelorgbiofuel mailing list Sustainablelorgbiofuel@lists.sustainablelists.org http://lists.eruditium.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/sustainablelorgbiofuel
[Biofuel] Hawaiian Electric gets 86% of energy from oil and coal - Pacific Business News
http://www.bizjournals.com/pacific/news/2014/07/10/hawaiian-electric-gets-just-14-of-energy-from.html [Long ago in business school, we called this an opportunity.] Jul 10, 2014, 2:50pm HST Updated: Jul 10, 2014, 3:06pm HST Hawaiian Electric gets 86% of energy from oil and coal Duane Shimogawa While the talk about energy in Hawaii has mostly focused on renewables such as solar, wind, hydro, geothermal and biofuels, the state’s largest electric utility still gets the majority of its energy from non-renewable sources such as oil and coal, to the tune of about 86 percent, according to 2013 figures released by the company. The Hawaiian Electric Cos., which consist of Hawaiian Electric on Oahu, Hawaii Light Electric Co. on the Big Island and Maui Electric Co., got about 13.7 percent of its electricity from renewable sources with wind leading the way at about 5.3 percent. Solid waste, mostly from Honolulu's H-Power plant, accounted for about 4 percent and geothermal on the Big Island accounted for about 3 percent. Solar, biofuel, biomass, hydro and solar amounted to less than a half percent of the total. On Oahu, the largest consumer of energy in the state, about 92 percent of its electricity comes from non-renewables such as oil and coal, with about 7.7 percent coming from renewables. Solid waste accounted for 5 percent of the total, followed by wind [1.7 percent], biofuel [0.4 percent] and solar [0.4 percent]. Hawaiian Electric pointed out several highlights in 2013, including the City and County of Honolulu’s H-Power expansion, First Wind’s 30-megawatt Kahuku Wind farm that got back up to full power after a fire at its battery energy storage facility shut it down and its own plans to develop a 15-megawatt solar photovoltaic system at its Kahe Power Plant. Some of this year’s highlights include the collaboration with the U.S. Army to build a 50-megawatt power plant at Schofield Barracks, which is scheduled to be running in 2017, the Hawaii Department of Transportation’s 8-megawatt biofueled emergency power plant at Honolulu International Airport and ongoing negotiations with nine solar facility developers that would add about 240 megawatts of power. ___ Sustainablelorgbiofuel mailing list Sustainablelorgbiofuel@lists.sustainablelists.org http://lists.eruditium.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/sustainablelorgbiofuel
Re: [Biofuel] Hawaiian Electric gets 86% of energy from oil and coal - Pacific Business News
Funny it doesn't mention that in many area of Hawaii it is illegal to connect rooftop solar to the grid. People want it but are being forced into off grid solar because the utility is taking such a conservative approach and caps Pv at such a low level (compared to what Germany is doing, for example). I wonder if they'd have more renewables if they actually didn't keep fighting them... Z On Friday, July 11, 2014, Darryl McMahon dar...@econogics.com wrote: http://www.bizjournals.com/pacific/news/2014/07/10/ hawaiian-electric-gets-just-14-of-energy-from.html [Long ago in business school, we called this an opportunity.] Jul 10, 2014, 2:50pm HST Updated: Jul 10, 2014, 3:06pm HST Hawaiian Electric gets 86% of energy from oil and coal Duane Shimogawa While the talk about energy in Hawaii has mostly focused on renewables such as solar, wind, hydro, geothermal and biofuels, the state’s largest electric utility still gets the majority of its energy from non-renewable sources such as oil and coal, to the tune of about 86 percent, according to 2013 figures released by the company. The Hawaiian Electric Cos., which consist of Hawaiian Electric on Oahu, Hawaii Light Electric Co. on the Big Island and Maui Electric Co., got about 13.7 percent of its electricity from renewable sources with wind leading the way at about 5.3 percent. Solid waste, mostly from Honolulu's H-Power plant, accounted for about 4 percent and geothermal on the Big Island accounted for about 3 percent. Solar, biofuel, biomass, hydro and solar amounted to less than a half percent of the total. On Oahu, the largest consumer of energy in the state, about 92 percent of its electricity comes from non-renewables such as oil and coal, with about 7.7 percent coming from renewables. Solid waste accounted for 5 percent of the total, followed by wind [1.7 percent], biofuel [0.4 percent] and solar [0.4 percent]. Hawaiian Electric pointed out several highlights in 2013, including the City and County of Honolulu’s H-Power expansion, First Wind’s 30-megawatt Kahuku Wind farm that got back up to full power after a fire at its battery energy storage facility shut it down and its own plans to develop a 15-megawatt solar photovoltaic system at its Kahe Power Plant. Some of this year’s highlights include the collaboration with the U.S. Army to build a 50-megawatt power plant at Schofield Barracks, which is scheduled to be running in 2017, the Hawaii Department of Transportation’s 8-megawatt biofueled emergency power plant at Honolulu International Airport and ongoing negotiations with nine solar facility developers that would add about 240 megawatts of power. ___ Sustainablelorgbiofuel mailing list Sustainablelorgbiofuel@lists.sustainablelists.org http://lists.eruditium.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/sustainablelorgbiofuel ___ Sustainablelorgbiofuel mailing list Sustainablelorgbiofuel@lists.sustainablelists.org http://lists.eruditium.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/sustainablelorgbiofuel
Re: [Biofuel] WV chemical company fined $11, 000 for poisoning 300, 000 people's drinking water
So freaking lame. Corporate welfare knows no bounds. On Jul 9, 2014 4:18 PM, Darryl McMahon dar...@econogics.com wrote: http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2014/07/08/wv-chemical-company-fined-11000-for- poisoning-30-peoples-drinking-water/ [Perhaps I have too high an opinion of myself, but I would like to think that if someone poisoned my drinking water, the value assigned to the punishment would be more than 4 cents. video and links in on-line article] WV chemical company fined $11,000 for poisoning 300,000 people's drinking water By David Edwards Tuesday, July 8, 2014 14:06 EDT The federal government announced this month that a West Virginia chemical company would be fined $11,000 for a spill earlier this year that poisoned the drinking water for 300,000 people in the state. According to a citation document obtained by The Charleston Gazette, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) hit Freedom Industries with a $7,000 fine for keeping chemicals in diked areas that were not liquid tight. The administration fined Freedom an addition $4,000 for not providing employees with a proper hand railing to walk over the storage dikes. About 300,000 people were left without drinking water when coal cleaning chemicals leaked on Jan. 9. A recent survey found that one in five people reported health issues after the chemical spill. The Marshall University Center for Business and Economic Research estimated in February that the spill would cost businesses $61 million. Freedom Industries, which filed for bankruptcy earlier this year, has not said whether it would appeal the fines. Watch the video below from Russia Today, broadcast June 24, 2014. ___ Sustainablelorgbiofuel mailing list Sustainablelorgbiofuel@lists.sustainablelists.org http://lists.eruditium.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/sustainablelorgbiofuel ___ Sustainablelorgbiofuel mailing list Sustainablelorgbiofuel@lists.sustainablelists.org http://lists.eruditium.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/sustainablelorgbiofuel
