I come upon a web site that has a dynamic wind map of the United States. I’m told that many wind turbine control centers keep it on display. Check the link, it is pretty mesmerizing to watch. It seems to update once a day or so.
I love the description on the site: “An invisible, ancient source of energy surrounds us—energy that powered the first explorations of the world, and that may be a key to the future. This map shows you the delicate tracery of wind flowing over the US.”
Oil Tanks – from my office window.
We have lots of them in Tulsa, the former Oil Capital of the World. The United States burns about 19 million barrels of oil per day compared to about 14 million barrels per day for all the countries of the European Union put together. That takes lots of refineries and lots of tanks and lots of oil wells, and lots of pipelines. We may complain about the price of oil, but we want it and lots of it and we’ll want more next year than what we are using this year.
Statistics from the CIA – The World Factbook
Hey, its ABC Wednesday, let me see, I live in Oklahoma, I work in the energy industry so this week D is for Drilling Rig. Isn’t it a beauty?
Cushing, Oklahoma is a major hub for many crude oil pipelines that criss-cross North America. It is also the benchmark price location for crude worldwide. When you hear about “West Texas Intermediate” crude oil prices it is the price posted in Cushing, Oklahoma for that grade of oil.
Red, Red, What is Red????
I know last year’s Oklahoma Oil and Gas Trade Expo in Oklahoma City is Red.
The oilfield requires rough and tough stuff. The stuff painted red is the most rugged stuff. I don’t know how that got started but it is true.
Blue is used for electronics and other sensitive items that don’t belong on a drill site.
There was lots of manly red at the oil show.
My employer’s booth didn’t have any red. White and Blue are our colors. There may be “nothing finer than a pipeliner” but we don’t have all the manly stuff that oil and gas producer’s have. If we did, we wouldn’t be pipeliners, we would be producers.
I think this shoot out was a tie, what do you think?
Saint Barry Switzer, former University of Oklahoma football coach was there. Manly stuff and football go together.
This isn’t red, but it is still cool. A natural gas powered motorcycle.
I took these pics in October 2011, so they have had time to marinate. Have you seen any manly red lately?
The Gas Industry has come out with a movie “Truthland” their answer to GasLand.
Here is the trailer for Truthland
You can go to the Truthland site and watch the entire movie. I haven’t done that yet. (Don’t you think the kissing the baby thing is shameless?)
Here is the trailer for Gasland:
Personally I thought GasLand, which I saw on NetFlix was a good movie. It could have been a great movie if they paid as much attention to the facts as they did the cinematography but hey, that’s the movie business. I can’t vouch for Truthland and I can see why some would view it skeptically because it was funded by the gas industry. But hey you know what? I think that you and I should look at all opinions and presentations skeptically, but not cynically.
(Sweetie’s family is not afraid of fracking. They are here having a picnic on a Chesapeake Energy well site in western Oklahoma. The well was horizontally drilled into and hydraulically fracked in the Colony Wash formation. Sweetie is in the back at the far left standing up trying to sneak some food. So far, no ill effects except that I have gotten somewhat older, fatter, balder, dumber, and uglier since the event.)
Do your research, check the facts, decide for yourself but keep an open mind. Write your Senator, take some action if you feel led. Don’t take everything at face value. Think about what the unstated assumptions are? (Like do you really want all the water quality enforcement everywhere taken over by the Federal Government? Is that good? bad? Why? Or should exploration companies be allowed unchecked access anywhere they want regardless of the environmental impact? Why? Can’t we keep sensitive areas untouched? Why not?) Check and see who has what to gain or lose by presenting a certain viewpoint.
It’s kind of fun actually googling GasLand and TruthLand and seeing how the pro and con fracking trolls are tearing each other up on the internet. Are the various advocates answering questions and providing information that can be checked or are they just bobbing and weaving?
(And they like hot showers in the morning!)
(And your most stubborn oilman likes a to get away from it all to a place with clean air and water.)
I could give you a bunch of links, but I’m not. Just google it. Read the pros and the cons. Make up your own mind. (But keep it open.)
Can I get off my soapbox now?
(Full disclosure: I work for a natural gas pipeline company and I don’t have any problem with properly designed and executed fracking. My opinions are my own and not necessarily that of my employer).