Posted on 02/20/2010 6:43:14 AM PST by kingattax
After listening to President Obama advocating for offshore drilling for gas and oil, a Wall Street Journal headline came to mind: “Alaska Can Meet U.S. Energy Needs.”
An article followed by Gov. Gene Parnell of Alaska: “Such (offshore) exploration could set the country on a clear and sustainable energy path for decades to come.
His remarks are similar to those expressed in a speech by the previous governor of Alaska 18 months ago. Your columnist was there, along with Gov. Sarah Palin, who was unknown to us at the time, a couple of months before her vice-presidential nomination,
She said, “We in Alaska have enough oil to meet U.S. demand for seven years and enough natural gas to meet demand for eight years.”
She also emphasized that of the 20 million acres in ANWR, the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, drilling for the known reserves would require only 2,000 acres, “Just a sliver.”
Gov. Palin also said, “We are sending diplomats to the Mideast begging for more oil production. At the same time, it is so easy to release demand right here in Alaska. It makes no sense to me. Others in Congress, who have never been to Alaska, are making decisions.”
Alaska’s Outer Continental Shelf contains an estimated 27 billion gallons of oil and 130 trillion cubic feet of recoverable gas. Alaska likely has more than 30 percent of the nation’s recoverable oil and gas.
Gov. Parnell cites three “significant ways” these resources will advance our national interests:
1.Increasing oil and gas exploration and production will create good-paying jobs for Americans.
2.Developing our own resources means that royalties from production will go to our government, not foreign governments. Today, Americans are concerned about swelling federal deficits, so it is important to underscore that Alaska’s leases have already generated over $9 billion in revenue for the federal government. Also, “Our massive trade deficit will be reduced if we increase production because we will import less foreign oil.”
3.Developing Alaska’s Outer Continental Shelf will significantly advance U.S. national security and foreign policy interests … Right now, too much of our oil comes from unstable regimes hostile to the United States – some of what we spend on Middle Eastern oil ending up funding global terrorist operations. Then Gov. Parnell had a word to those worried about disturbing the environment. “My state has a strong record of responsible offshore oil and gas development that demonstrates sensitivity to the environment and respect for Native American culture.
“Over more than three decades, 84 oil and gas wells have been drilled in Alaska’s Outer Continental Shelf without incident. Moreover, without increased domestic production, we will continue to import oil and gas from countries that have far weaker environmental laws than we do.”
The governor also wrote that Alaska is not unique in seeking to tap offshore riches. “Other nations, notably Norway and the United Kingdom, have been developing oil and gas offshore in harsh northern climates for decades. The production of these resources has helped maintain global energy supplies, has created thousands of jobs in those countries, and has generated tens of billions of dollars in revenue for those governments.”
Although President Obama did not specifically recognize Alaska in his statement favoring offshore drilling, his position is right in the best interests of our nation.
Now, can the drilling commence? Or does the Congress have a voice?
Dr. George G. Spaulding is a retired General Motors executive and distinguished executive-in-residence emeritus at the School of Business at the College of Charleston. He can be reached at 2 Wharfside St. 2A, Charleston, S.C., 29401.
Recall when gasoline prices spiked in 2008 and liberals decried talk of opening up ANWR to drilling, saying that the oil would take ten years to come on line (a damnable lie) and would only reduce the price of gasoline by 1¢/gallon (another damnable lie). Even if the liberals’ lies were true - SO WHAT? We are going to need that oil at some point in time, and the sooner the better. It is contemptible that the American people are hamstrung in terms of accessing our own energy resources by the econutjob/liberal-politician complex.
I think we should drill offshore in CA, too.
...wouldn’t it be cheaper to drill ON shore...what’s wrong with drilling the Artic?
I’m sure any senceable Lib would have an answer to that question.if you find one let me know.
senceable= sensible
California, too.
Congress has a voice. It's word is a resounding "No!"
My hunch is that we are saving all the oil for the Chinese.
At some point we will owe them so much we will offer them all the AK & CA oil fields for partial debt relief.
I don’t know so much about saving the oil for China. More likely the bread basket of the world. the mid west farming states. Food will out trump oil IMO.
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