To Drill or Not To Drill

Healdsburg CA

Description

The US is admittedly the largest producer of oil in the world (12.1 mb/d) but followed closely by Russia (10.8 mb/d). What we do not use ourselves is exported to our trading partners all over the world. We sell them oil and in exchange buy their goods and services. Some of our energy exports go to Western Europe. Most of Russia's oil is refined in refineries with no pollution controls, such as we have here, into products high in carbon and other pollutants. Their pollution of the environment in the refinement process is huge and the dirty products they produce certainly are not helping the environment either. Most of their exports go to Western Europe and China. Unfortunately, Europe has come to accept this dirty energy and give Russia their money. Most of the money Russia gets from Europe goes into their military. When the Soviet Union fell apart in the '90s, Russia was broke, their ships rusting, their fighters grounded, but they have come back strong thanks to the dirty energy they produce and sell to Europe. Europe is waking up to what a mistake they made but are now faced with either keep paying Russia or turn off their heaters on cold snowy nights. Europe will be making short and long term energy decisions soon. In the short term, do they suck it up and continue to buy from the butcher Russia, or look elsewhere, like the US. We have the means to ramp up clean(er) energy for them. Just issue the permits to restart pumps that were shut down last spring. In the long term, if the US is unwilling to supply their needs, they will likely turn to more nuclear power plants or OPEC, which is no friend of anyone but themselves.