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5-6 October 2013 | 92 comments (92 topical, editorial, 0 hidden)
Re: Living off the Planet (4.00 / 2)
US surpasses Russia as world's top oil and natural gas producer | Business | theguardian.com

The US was on pace to achieve global energy domination on Friday, overtaking Russia and Saudi Arabia as the world's top oil and natural gas producer.

New estimates released on Friday by the Energy Information Administration showed America pulling ahead of both countries in oil and natural gas production for 2013.

The rise to the top was fuelled by new drilling techniques, such as horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing, which have unlocked vast quantities of oil and gas from shale rock formations - especially in North Dakota and Texas.



*Lunatic*, n.
One whose delusions are out of fashion.
by DoDo on Sat Oct 5th, 2013 at 05:50:40 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Re: Living off the Planet (4.00 / 2)
Fracking produces annual toxic waste water enough to flood Washington DC | Environment | theguardian.com

Fracking in America generated 280bn US gallons of toxic waste water last year - enough to flood all of Washington DC beneath a 22ft deep toxic lagoon, a new report out on Thursday found.

The report from campaign group Environment America said America's transformation into an energy superpower was exacting growing costs on the environment.

"Our analysis shows that damage from fracking is widespread and occurs on a scale unimagined just a few years ago," the report, Fracking by the Numbers, said.



*Lunatic*, n.
One whose delusions are out of fashion.
by DoDo on Sat Oct 5th, 2013 at 05:50:49 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Re: Living off the Planet (none / 0)
Sometimes people forget how big the U.S. is, area-wise--and how much concentrated wealth there is to buy property. The entire District of Columbia is smaller than many, many privately owned ranches.

The King Ranch in Texas is 3340 square kilometers. One guy owns 2.2 million acres (about 9000 sq km) of property, bigger than a couple of states. If pollution from fracking were really to become a problem, it would be trivially easy for these guys to buy a "ranch" in Nevada or Texas or some other god-forsaken backwater and just put it all in a "pond."

Sort of like we were trying to do with nuclear waste there for a while...

http://www.businessinsider.com/biggest-private-landowners-2013-10

by asdf on Sun Oct 6th, 2013 at 11:56:47 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Re: Living off the Planet (none / 1)
"Global energy domination" my arse. The US is the biggest producer. The US is also the biggest consumerer, and still one of the biggest importers.

Slightly less powerless, no doubt. Still largely dependent on the actions of the dominant players in the international energy market, viz. KSA and Russia.

It is rightly acknowledged that people of faith have no monopoly of virtue - Queen Elizabeth II

by eurogreen on Sun Oct 6th, 2013 at 04:16:22 PM EST
[ Parent ]

5-6 October 2013 | 92 comments (92 topical, 0 editorial, 0 hidden)
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