Following up my post on the estimation of the U.S. being energy self-efficient, there was an article commenting on Exxon's big plans for spending $14 billion to drill one of the biggest oil fiels in North Atlantic for Canada. The criticisms focused on the risk Exxon's taking as in 1982, the Ocean Ranger drill rig has been capsized and sank in nearby water, killing all 84 members aboard. They said drilling in icy, remote condition remained very dangerous. However, Exxon denied the criticisms by stating the fact that they had been operating in the Arctic for decades (constructed a similar platform nearby in 1990s) and had learned a lot of how to keep it safe. The Canadian waters were much closer to ports so that ships and other infrastructure could be used in an emergency.
It really posed the question on how Americans think about opening U.S. waters to drilling. Americans are opposite of Canadians and some other countries as "other countries are not letting the grass grow under their feet when it comes to offshore energy development". The policy director for the Institute for Energy Research, an organization that's long called for more domestic drilling explained that "oil naturally leaks into ocean every day anyway, and the benefits of more jobs and more domestic energy far outweigh the risks." He also said that renewable energy couldn't supply adequately. Others disagreed, and said the naturally slow speed of oil leaking could not be compared with the potentially massive blowout and the fact that the industry had to go ever more remote and risky places was proof of the necessity of renewables and conservation.
It's time, again, for the debate of the risks the people have to bear and the profit the companies benefit from. And it's also time to ask why Canadian government allow Exxon to drill oil in North Atlantic ocean.
Source: http://money.cnn.com/2013/01/17/news/economy/exxon-offshore-drilling/index.html?iid=SF_E_River
4 comments:
As far as the debate over renewable energy goes, I would side with those in favor of renewables. I completely agree that big oil companies' increasing willingness to accept greater risk when searching for oil both illustrates the the depletion of oil that is occurring as well as represents the increasing possibility for another major spill like the one that occurred in the gulf. Both of these points could have potentially devastating effects on the U.S. economy and therefore I believe we should hasten our efforts to find a reliable alternative.
The problem is: shouldn't the U.S. look at what other countries are doing, such as Canada and ask why Canadian government allowed Exxon to do such a risky move? Is it simply Canadians accepted the risk or they have the technology to reduce it?
I think in the end this comes down to Exxon and the Canadian government operating under the idea of maximizing profit. They see a pile of money and ignore the obvious dangers of drilling for oil in such treacherous waters. There is no way that they can say with 100 percent certainty that they can avert all the ice bergs. They try to downplay the obvious dangers by referencing their history of drilling in the arctic and the fact that oil naturally spills everyday but the fact is they have weighed the profits versus the consequences and decided the risk to the environment is worth it.
I agree with Austin, I believe we need to allocate more of our resources into researching renewable energy. Oil, historically, has been the cause of many historical conflicts between nations whether directly or as an underlying factor. The faster our technology and minds can come up with a renewable resource, we will see less conflicts in the future. Sure, Exxon, Canada, and surrounding areas may benefit economically from oil drilling in Canada, however, I believe in the long run it will be detrimental for them as well. The consistent "small" leaks will harm the environment, the local residents, etc. I believe if Canada or Exxon are ignoring the consequences, they may experience a lot of resistance. Unfortunately, I believe they may also have a lot of support from individuals/firms who want to profit from oil drilling activity. Who turns out to have the final say is going to determine what happens next.
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