Replies

U.S. Petroleum & Crude Oil Overview
(thousand barrels per day)
	1960	1965	1970	1975	1980	1985	1990	1995	2000
U.S. Crude Oil Production	7,035	7,804	9,637	8,375	8,597	8,971	7,355	6,560	5,834
U.S. Petroleum Imports	1,815	2,468	3,419	6,056	6,909	5,067	8,018	8,835	11,093
Total	8,850	10,272	13,056	14,431	15,506	14,038	15,373	15,395	16,927
Imports as % of Total	20.5	24.0	26.2	42.0	44.6	36.1	52.2	57.4	65.5

As North Sea oil production continues to decline, America's dependence on imported petroleum will shift even more towards OPEC. While drilling offshore and in ANWR may help, it would still be insufficient to dramaticly reduce our ever-increasing consumption.

The obvious solution to this dependency would be to begin construction of modern, efficient mass-transportation systems in our nation's most densely populated regions and urban areas. Electricly powered light rail, high-speed rail and maglev systems could be easily fueled by clean-coal and nuclear technology power plants.

Unfortunately, RINOs have been bought-out by Big Oil special interests. Alaskan representative Don Young, who chairs the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, continues to sidetrack and delay implementation of energy efficient mass-transportation systems. A whole contingent of Nevada RINOs unite to obstruct our nation's efforts to utilize abundant nuclear power. And Dubya's own sibling, Jeb, brags about his obstruction on his re-election website:

Protecting Florida’s Coasts From Offshore Drilling – Thanks to Governor Bush’s hard work and leadership, Florida’s coastal and marine resources will continue to be free from the threat of offshore drilling. Protections secured by Governor Bush far exceed those agreed to by former President Clinton, former Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt, and the late-Governor Lawton Chiles.

U.S. oil production is 4 million barrels a day below it's peak and declining virtually every year. U.S. production is 11 million barrels a day below U.S. consumption.

According to the Department of Energy,the most optimistic estimates for ANWR production are about a million and a half barrels a day but that peak won't be reached much before 2020. More likely is a peak around a million barrels a day by 2020.

ANWR won't even get us close to our 1970 peak and at best if fills ten percent of our reliance on foreign oil.

The countries of Iraq, Iran, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait have two thirds of all the oil remaining in the world. Saudi Arabia alone has one quarter. It's time to realize that we need alternatives to oil or we will be forever at the mercy of the Middle East

The DOE report on ANWR is here: http://www.eia.doe.gov/oiaf/servicerpt/aong/pdf/sroiaf(2002)02.pdf

bttt

You are blaming the wrong people for the increase in oil prices. There was an article in our local paper about environmental groups who are appealing a ruling that would prevent a local refinery from adding a second dock and would put limits on the amount of crude that they could refine. Add to that, the govenor wants to put a .09 cent per gallon tax on gasoline at the pump. Of course, that doesn't mean that some of the oil companies wouldn't like to see $4/gal gas.