Let's talk about renewables...

[pcosmar]

I started out working "salvage" at 15. Parts Monkey and drove a wrecker on my permit.

I'm into restoration,,or was.
but this is reality.

it saddens me. and it is horribly wasteful.

 

[A Son of Liberty]

What about onshore fracking? I've been told that dangerous chemicals are used, and it contaminates the water table. Fact, fiction?

Here's a cut-away of a typical (depending on the geology where the well is) well casing:

Fracking is a process which occurs AFTER the well has been drilled, and the casing is set and pressure-tested.

In order to get FRACKING fluid into the aquafer, multiple layers of steel and concrete need to have failed. Fracking occurs in the "pay zone", which here in the NE is anywhere from 7,000' to 13,000 deep. I'm not aware of any aquafers that deep, and certainly no domestic water wells.

It can happen that drilling mud finds its way into shallow waters, but as AF said its more likely that when something like that happens, its due to the well being antiquated (we have oil wells in PA that date from the 19th century), or they're from coal bed methane wells - the whole "I can light my tap water on fire" baloney is more likely from either those CBM wells, or even from nearby coal mines themselves. Fracking fluid is not flammable, and drilling mud is only flammable in that it can sometimes be mixed with diesel, which is very difficult to light. Those people were lighting methane, not anything else. Frankly, a lot of those people bought properties of which they did not own the mineral rights, and were scorned by missing out.

There is no energy source more clean and environmentally friendly than natural gas, with the possible exception of nuclear.

 

[A Son of Liberty]

There is probably plenty of it. It's just getting harder to get to

I don't see any cause for alarm though.... at least for another 100 years (at least)

One more thing on this...

Hydraulic fracturing has been around since the '40's. Directional drilling is the innovation that made shale oil and gas viable economically. Certain basins are more or less profitable at certain prices, and it'll never been more profitable than Saudi oil because those basins don't require fracking/directional drilling, but my point is that the industry is always innovating. Basins that were once considered too expensive or too difficult to extract are now accessible, and profitable at prices as low as ~$25/bbl.

 

[Anti Federalist]

One more thing on this...

Hydraulic fracturing has been around since the '40's. Directional drilling is the innovation that made shale oil and gas viable economically. Certain basins are more or less profitable at certain prices, and it'll never been more profitable than Saudi oil because those basins don't require fracking/directional drilling, but my point is that the industry is always innovating. Basins that were once considered too expensive or too difficult to extract are now accessible, and profitable at prices as low as ~$25/bbl.

Yup, exactly this.

Also, I don't know whether it's a function of how much larger and more powerful offshore drilling rigs are or a matter of geology, but the wells we drill offshore, from the sea bed barrier to target depth, are typically twice to three times what that chart shows.

I did a lot of work at this facility, one of the biggest producers in the world.

Most of the wells in that field are 25,000 to 30,000 feet deep from the sea floor, which is roughly 6000 feet under water.

 

[A Son of Liberty]

Yup, exactly this.

Also, I don't know whether it's a function of how much larger and more powerful offshore drilling rigs are or a matter of geology, but the wells we drill offshore, from the sea bed barrier to target depth, are typically twice to three times what that chart shows.

I did a lot of work at this facility, one of the biggest producers in the world.

Most of the wells in that field are 25,000 to 30,000 feet deep from the sea floor, which is roughly 6000 feet under water.

You must spread some Reputation around before giving it to Anti Federalist again.

Dude that offshore stuff is crazy. I've never had the opportunity to get on an offshore rig (tho' that may be changing soon... have a possible opportunity with Schlumberger), but I can barely wrap my head around the complexity of that process! I've spoken with a couple of guys who've worked on those platforms and it's just amazing.

 

[Anti Federalist]

Dude that offshore stuff is crazy. I've never had the opportunity to get on an offshore rig (tho' that may be changing soon... have a possible opportunity with Schlumberger), but I can barely wrap my head around the complexity of that process! I've spoken with a couple of guys who've worked on those platforms and it's just amazing.

On the sea floor of that field is a subsea manifold that ties in 9 wells, to uptake risers and also control tubing.

It was the largest ever manufactured at the time, by FMC and worth roughly 7 million USD or so I was told.

I did the marine transport from Corpus to the rig, in the middle of Hurricane Ike, no damage, no incidents and ahead of schedule.

The ultra deep water stuff is fascinating and quite literally as complex as a space mission. I hope you get a chance to work in that environment.

Not that any of us will ever get any credit, but the vessels, and rigs and crews, of which I was part, that "shut in" the Deepwater Horizon well, performed a job that by any objective evaluation, was heroic in co-ordination, logistics, safety and technological miracles.

The current crop of Marxist assholes in the District of Criminals wants to put us all in jail or bankrupt us for that and doing our job.

 

[Anti Federalist]

Biden Slashes Millions of Acres Eligible for Oil Drilling in Alaska

https://www.theepochtimes.com/biden...ml?utm_source=partner&utm_campaign=whatfinger

By Katabella Roberts
April 26, 2022 Updated: April 26, 2022

The Biden administration is closing off almost half of the 23-million-acre National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska (NPRA) from oil and gas drilling, overturning a Trump-era policy that would have allowed oil development on more than 80 percent of the reserve.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM), part of the Department of the Interior, announced the decision on April 25.

It marks a return to an Obama administration plan to manage the area that would enable the administration to lease up to 52 percent of the reserve for oil and gas exploration.

Meanwhile, the remaining approximately 11 million acres (48 percent)—which includes the majority of lands within “special areas” and much of the coastal area of the reserve along the Beaufort Sea—will be closed off to oil and gas leasing.

The BLM announced in January that it had selected the Obama administration’s plan as its “preferred alternative” for further consideration.

“Today’s decision ensures the NPR-A will be managed consistent with the 2013 IAP, while including certain more protective lease stipulations and operating procedures for threatened and endangered species from the 2020 IAP/EIS, confirmed through consultation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service,” BLM said.

BLM said it had prepared a “Determination of National Environmental Policy Act Adequacy (DNA) for this action” and assessed the “associated subsistence evaluation and biological opinions, determining they remain adequate under NEPA, Section 810 of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act, and Endangered Species Act to support a new decision by the Department.”

NPRA is the country’s largest unit of public land and sits on the Alaska North Slope. It is owned by the federal government and managed by the Department of the Interior.

In 2019, the area generated more than $56 million in oil and gas lease revenue, which is authorized under the Naval Petroleum Reserves Production Act of 1976.

 

[A Son of Liberty]

On the sea floor of that field is a subsea manifold that ties in 9 wells, to uptake risers and also control tubing.

It was the largest ever manufactured at the time, by FMC and worth roughly 7 million USD or so I was told.

I did the marine transport from Corpus to the rig, in the middle of Hurricane Ike, no damage, no incidents and ahead of schedule.

The ultra deep water stuff is fascinating and quite literally as complex as a space mission. I hope you get a chance to work in that environment.

Not that any of us will ever get any credit, but the vessels, and rigs and crews, of which I was part, that "shut in" the Deepwater Horizon well, performed a job that by any objective evaluation, was heroic in co-ordination, logistics, safety and technological miracles.

No doubt. Shutting in that well must have been every bit as complex and challenging as drilling at those depths.

It always amazes me to imagine the BOP being so far below the rig, and tied to it with basically a Kelly hose. Onshore, all of that is safely bolted up under the rig... to imagine having to go through that much water just to get to the hole... really unbelievable stuff.

The current crop of Marxist $#@!s in the District of Criminals wants to put us all in jail or bankrupt us for that and doing our job.

One of the talking points I've been using lately with people is that we have to stop thinking of these politicians as being "smart", just because we see them on TV. This is really a boomer thing, and it's understandable, but it's a concept that HAS to be broken. The only reason they're on the idiot box is because they're either "austere, experienced statesmen", or because they're photogenic. Very rarely are they in any compelling way intelligent, or even interesting. They're just there to peddle the narrative. And it's still working, at least for now.

 

[axiomata]

https://www.amazon.com/Fossil-Future-Flourishing-Requires-Gas-Not-ebook/dp/B098M3Y7VC

 

[Anti Federalist]

https://www.amazon.com/Fossil-Future-Flourishing-Requires-Gas-Not-ebook/dp/B098M3Y7VC

Thanks for the link, I tend to agree.

Mankind is enjoying a period of prosperity and material wealth never before seen in all of history.

Two things have been responsible for this:

The adoption of, more or less, free market capitalism around the world.

The availability of abundant, cheap and reliable energy.

So it's therefore no surprise that the anti humanity crowd have gone full retard in trying to destroy those two things.

 

[georgiaboy]

I believe there are some folks here who favor the renewables push, so I'm looking at you to explain this to me... I have a number of questions:

#1 - Oil and natural gas bi-products are not just used to fuel ICE's. They produce a not insignificant percentage of the things that we use and make the modern world possible, such as plastics, paints & coatings, synthetic fibers, fertilizers, vinyl, many makeup products, etc. These products consume a considerable percentage of O&G output. What is the plan to replace these items if O&G production is suspended, as is the apparent desire of the environmentalist movement?

#2 - Is there a plan in place for dealing with aged-out renewable components like wind sails and solar panels?

#3 - Do environmentalists understand the amount of earth-moving required to create the batteries to store the power created by renewables?

#3a - Do environmentalists understand the amount of diesel powered equipment required to produce the raw materials to create those batteries?

#4 - I spent a very brief period of time working in the solar industry in New England recently, and I was compelled by how infrequently solar works in that region... Solar seems to be a power source for regions such as the Desert Southwest, and maybe the Plains states, but few others, given the geography and/or weather. Same/similar with wind. Is there a reliable plan in place to transfer power from regions where renewables work to regions where it does not work? If not, how are those regions where it does not work supposed to generate power without oil, gas and/or coal?

I'm curious as to what the answers are to these questions, because the overwhelming push by the environmentalist movement seems to be completely neglecting these matters.

Do biofuels count as renewables?

 

[A Son of Liberty]

Do biofuels count as renewables?

I wasn't considering them and mostly referring to solar and wind, but sure... don't really know much of anything about them.

 

[Anti Federalist]

I wasn't considering them and mostly referring to solar and wind, but sure... don't really know much of anything about them.

My local electricity is supplied by a wood chip plant.

 

[pcosmar]

My local electricity is supplied by a wood chip plant.

Soo Michigan has a Hydro electric plant visible,, to the right side of the Live Feed.

on the exit of that 13 ft drop.

 

[Anti Federalist]

Soo Michigan has a Hydro electric plant visible,, to the right side of the Live Feed.

on the exit of that 13 ft drop.

So it does...too bad the enviro Marxists are doing everything in their power to shut down and remove hydro dams.

 

[TheTexan]

Nuclear is also one of the cleanest sources of energy... and they want to shut those down too

 

[pcosmar]

So it does...too bad the enviro Marxists are doing everything in their power to shut down and remove hydro dams.

Hooked to the Failed "Grid System"..

More power than the whole UP can use..
but they have to buy it from the grid..

and much is wasted,, could be producing Hydrogen as a store-able energy source. to be used as portable energy.

I hate Waste. of everything.

natural Pack Rat

 

[GlennwaldSnowdenAssanged]

I am into reusables. I use mason jars over and over. I use insulated stainless steel water bottles. I have 2,000 grit sandpaper that started out as 60 grit. Most all my furniture is second hand quality antique. I take the oil I drained from my automobile and pour it directly into my heating oil tank. We cook at home and eat all the food we cook. I am a conservative kinda guy. All true except the gritty humor. Much of my clothing is nearing the vintage point and I purchased it all new. I have so many old used cars that I know at least one of them will run. I don't mind walking. I recently gave up using toilet paper there is no need for it and a total waste. My theory is replacing a functioning item with a new one because you want an update is probably a mistake. The working old one is probably serviceable and will probably still be working when after the new one isn't. If I am cold I put on a pair of 20 year old wool socks and matching sweater. When I am hot, I open opposing windows, put on a 10 year old micro fiber wicking tee shirt and matching shorts. I can shower with a 2 gallon hot water heater twice. Old bath towels become great rags. 5 minutes of prep time in the morning and I have perfect Italian dough for brick oven style pizza or calzone. I wash from clean to dirty. First sweep everything and wash what is hardly dirty and saturate the soiled areas with water or water/diluted vinegar solution that was saved from cleaning the coffee maker. The cleaner areas hardly soil the old bath towel used to clean the area. Once all the cleaner areas are washed, I dry with another old bath towel. Then I go over the more soiled soaking areas with the already used washing towel for the pre-clean. Then I convert my dry towel into the new wash towel. I use industrial dry floor mops to keep my hardwood and vinyl plank flooring clean. I have had the same mop heads for over 20 years. Every once in awhile I take them outside and vigorously shake out all the dust and just throw them in with a towel rag load. They come out looking as good as the day they were purchased. I make my own laundry soap, body/face soap, lotions. I have my boiler on a timer so it doesn't spend hours each day just keeping the water in the boiler up to a specific temperature. It is shut off when heat/hot water not needed. I hand wash all dishes and there are 6 adults living here presently. The trick is to organize the dishes. First scrape off all scraps. If edible they go to the dogs, if not they go in the garbage. I use old dishwater or overflow from filling water glasses or washing hands that spills into a large dishpan. A stainless steel scratchy thingy is used to pre-clean all the dishes with the second hand water. Once all the dishes are pre-cleaned and stacked according to size the get the official wash in new soapy water after thoroughly washing all the counters, sinks, with a clean rag. Wash the glass plates and glasses first along with the silverware and rinse and put in the rack. They are dry from dripping before I am finished with the pots/pans and anything else. Heat house with hand fired coal stoves. I am probably going to build a solar hot water and put it on the roof for summer hot water. Probably nothing too fancy. Just a potable garden hose coming off an outdoor faucet feeding an appropriate sized pipe on the roof and then piping that into my indirect hot water tank. Will probably only use that in warmer months and gravity drain it for freezing weather. I yearn for nothing and couldn't ask for more.

 

[TheTexan]

In the summer i keep the AC at 62 degrees. If it gets too cold I turn on a heater. In the winter I have 4 heaters running plus central heating, and sometimes AC if it gets too hot. I keep the lights on in most rooms as it seems the bulbs last longer that way and I have better things to do than switch lights on and off. I keep all my power tools charged though I only use them maybe once a year. I will run hot water in the shower for 20 minutes to warm up the air in the bathroom before I take a shower. This is good but I really need a hottub that I can keep warm all year long and use maybe twice. Perhaps a legit steam shower would be nice also. I could use a lot more stuff.

 

[GlennwaldSnowdenAssanged]

In the summer i keep the AC at 62 degrees. If it gets too cold I turn on a heater. In the winter I have 4 heaters running plus central heating, and sometimes AC if it gets too hot. I keep the lights on in most rooms as it seems the bulbs last longer that way and I have better things to do than switch lights on and off. I keep all my power tools charged though I only use them maybe once a year. I will run hot water in the shower for 20 minutes to warm up the air in the bathroom before I take a shower. This is good but I really need a hottub that I can keep warm all year long and use maybe twice. Perhaps a legit steam shower would be nice also. I could use a lot more stuff.

Fantastic! I suggest if it gets too hot in winter with all those heaters running, open up some windows!