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On Will the Oil Spill in Arkansas Impact Keystone XL?

Will it affect KXL? Probably not. This spill got very little coverage from the non-anti-KXL crowd. 

On For New Energy Sources, Unlocking Technological Energy Innovation

Important words in this article... more or less getting at why I've stepped away from writing so much opinion articles about this topic, actually. After a while, there's only so much you can say, and it becomes rehashing things, or just dropping new ideas and names into the bigger scheme of things - but that's not so much a response to Mark, as it is to 'the community'. 

"In short, governments will have to reorient their economies, their societies, their political systems, and their institutions towards new models that encourage rather than inhibit innovation; that approach innovation as a complex but feasible sociotechnical process; and that marshal levels of resource commitment commensurate to the scale of the challenges they’re addressing. Let the hard but necessary work begin."

Yes, so what does this really get at? 

The worlds best thinkers on energy and climate are ever-more having to deal with the reality of this transition, either from a international, national, state, or local level - and most of all from a personal level. Governments, unless maybe the most brutal totalitarian regimes, can't simply say "we're going to change how everyone lives", so it then becomes a much broader issue.

Dealing with 'broader issues' is nothing new at TEC, indeed. How to facilitate new developments that don't exist yet while mitigating the pressing challenges of 'now'. Big, abstract topics, which do indeed call for rolling up sleeves and getting to work. 

This, in my opinion, is where energy policy and climate policy talk in and of itself 'ends', and the myriad interfaces with other fields of study, public policy, and getting the engineers going, begins. 

So what are the questions or challenges here?

There's a whole lot to say on this. I think its important to look at who or what groups will be most resistant to changes in how energy is used, among other things. But in another light, how are we training ourselves and others to deal with the boundless informaiton and ideas that are coming to us now? How do we discern the info and opinion overload? How do we view our self images and relation to others?

It quickly becomes a matter of how the world functions and humans operate within it. 

It's no easy task to facilitate that kind of awareness while at the same time managing what is going on. But here we are. 

On Energy Facts: How Much Water Does Fracking for Shale Gas Consume?

Another good one, Jesse. I think sorting through gigantic numbers to generate meaningful perspective is one of the more ellusive but actually vital things to aim to do, and this is on point with that. 

Questions that linger on the water front have to do with the contamination level and treatment of the waste-water or water from the process in general, and how that impacts local water sources.

But at least in terms of how does fracking impact the water-energy nexus, this helps sharpen the picture.

Waterless fracking - "but it's another possible way to reduce water usage or even eliminate it" - yes, it is, and I can easily foresee it taking off in the future. I am curious about the waste products or related impacts of those kinds of projects, as well.

On Bill McKibben Gets the Math Wrong on Fracking

I'd not be surprised if Bill McKibben has more or less given up trying to (in some ways). Which is probably a not a bad move for what I see as his take on things.

I attended Powershift New York last year, which he was a featured speaker, and out of everyone there, I actually found him to be the most sober in terms of his overall views on the energy situation. Maybe it was because it was the last stop on a very long road trip for him at the time, but, he was particularly sober and realistic about the challenges facing the envrionmental movement - maybe also to temper the rah rah rah attitude that often embodies youth climate / sustainability / cause conferences. 

I'm not sure I can say I see the world and the path forward exactly as he does, but, I think he's fairly aware of what he's doing. 

On Bill McKibben Gets the Math Wrong on Fracking

Endless nonsesne in the sense of people creating riduculous arguments, both in favor and against fracking? Yes. It's absurd, and kind of embarassing that such important issues are spoken of in this way. 

Not sure if I agree or disagree with this: "So, the only thing this is really evidence of is that New York should perhaps consider replacing a few of these pipes, and that the fracking debate continues to be a source of endless nonsense."

Endless nonsesne in the sense of people creating riduculous arguments, both in favor and against fracking? Yes. It's absurd, and kind of embarassing that such important issues are spoken of in this way. 

But hey, that's why we're here, right?

On Oil Sands, Keystone XL, and the New Politics of Fossil Fuel Infrastructure

I'm basically in the same boat as you here: "What really interests me is how the debate raging over Keystone XL might indicate a broader shift in climate politics, and whether it might prefigure future dynamics at the intersection of new energy infrastructure, climate change politics, and environmental advocacy."

The matter is that I think the KXL debate and discussion tends to focus on all the other, more easily graspable concerns than this - which isn't wrong, it's just...its validety and weight is more ... ehhh, my friend was studying for linear regression, and I'm reminded of something he was talking about here, regarding things impacting correlations and predictors diffrently. More later maybe.

I think KXL ultimately is more indicative of US attitudes than anything else - no, it won't be a game changer for the environment, unless Canada is somehow compelled to not monetize its resources. But for the US, it's an interesting sort of zeitgeist lens, perhaps. 

On Oil Sands, Keystone XL, and the New Politics of Fossil Fuel Infrastructure

As serious energy analysts, serious analysts, or simply serious human beings looking at the world, this is absolutely the case: "There’s no use talking about new energy sources without assessing the social, political, and economic contexts into which they might emerge". 

On Department of Energy Launches New Clean Energy Manufacturing Initiative

While of course not perfect, this seems like along the right idea, right?

"The Clean Energy Manufacturing Initiative will also work to strengthen competitiveness across multiple manufacturing industries by supporting improvements energy productivity, efforts that allow manufacturers to get more value out of less energy and lower their production costs."

 

On Nuclear Energy Safety: Lessons of Fukushima for Europe [VIDEO]

 The lesson is that you should listen to regulators, and be pre-emptive in trying to solve problems, rather than bicker and wait and destroy the economy of your country. If pride gets in the way, you're going to suffer.

On Canada’s Most Priceless Commodity Is Not Oil

Pierre, I have to agree with you. I can't see the US as anything other than a petrol state, for better or worse. This is why it continues to lag behind in developing (or implementing...) advanced nuclear power, or trying to significantly update its infrastructure. There's a lot of inertia in hydrocarbons, and the compulsion to innovate away from that, in terms of 'necessity' or domestic market incentive, is fairly low. 

There are a lot of people working very hard to change this, and I salute them. Some of them post here. I can't in my right mind or heart tell them not to continue their work, it's just that it might not be implemented very well within the US - unless some other things happen first. 

On Natural Gas Vehicles Already Big in Italy, Pakistan

Great piece, Geoffrey. Do you suppose increased domestic supply of natural gas, in Europe (should fracking take off) would significantly impact natgas vehicles? Or merely, at best, seem slightly more domestically / regionally appealing than Russian gas?

I won't be expecting any robust devlopments in the US in the near future:

"For the US, where oil production is increasing and oil imports declining, a shift to natural gas for transportation is likely to remain an opportunity, rather than a matter of necessity. The "NATGAS Act", a bill proposing incentives for CNG and LNG along the lines of the Italian model has languished in the US Congress for several years. It remains to be seen whether this will become a higher priority in the new Congress, which has shown early signs of interest in breaking the recent logjam on energy legislation. "

... but we'll see.

On Driverless Cars Before Electric Ones

I think that might make a stronger, more immediate appeal than vague things like energy scarcity, energy security, or even climate change, for what its worth. It might be a useful avenue for expanding discussion