DailyDirt: What, Me Worry?
from the urls-we-dig-up dept
The price of oil is surprisingly low — dipping below $30 a barrel recently. That’s not a bad thing for consumers who like to drive and have warm homes in the winter and for the prices of a whole lot of other things. But let’s not get too comfortable with hydrocarbon-based fuels for too long. There are a few concerning things about burning fossil fuels — even if we’re not worried about carbon dioxide emissions and climate change. However, the alternatives might not be that great, either.
- A massive methane leak in southern California has been spewing over 100,000 pounds per hour of natural gas into the atmosphere for months now. Several attempts to plug the leak have failed, possibly making the problem worse each time, and it could be sometime in March before the leak is under some control. [url]
- BP spent over $14 billion on cleanup efforts after the Deepwater Horizon accident in 2010. The environmental damage is still being assessed, and all kinds of marine wildlife from around the world might be affected (e.g., turtles). It’s estimated that 4.9 million barrels of oil were released, and a sizable amount of that oil is unaccounted for — though Mother Nature may have biodegraded some of it. [url]
- Satellite imagery from 2003-2009 detected a mysterious methane hotspot near the Four Corners intersection of Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico and Utah. This leak poured about 590,000 tons of methane into the air for each year it was seen, and no one has quite pinpointed its source(s) yet. For reference, this methane hotspot emits more than natural leaks from the ocean floor. [url]
After you’ve finished checking out those links, take a look at our Daily Deals for cool gadgets and other awesome stuff.
Filed Under: carbon dioxide, climate change, deepwater horizon, environmental damage, fossil fuels, methane, oil, pollution
Comments on “DailyDirt: What, Me Worry?”
simple math
100,000lbs per hour = 438K tons per year. That’s California.
590K tones per year. That’s Four Corners, NM.
So one is a serious emergency ermagad godda fixit like now ernerz.
The other is something going on since 2003 that nobody can be bothered to check on.
Good article! Please! Tell us more about things that have been happening since 2003 that nobody cares about that are just as important as the great disasters of yesterday.
E
[Insert Political Joke Here]
Re: Re:
Rob Reiner?
Re: Re: Re:
Unable to comment on Rob Reiner because of the 37th Commandment: Thou shalt grant Meathead great liberties, for Spinal Tap he hath wrought.
I can, however, say that ‘spewing over 100,000 pounds per hour of natural gas into the atmosphere for months’ is the sort of ‘gimme’ phrase that Kirk used to use to make comedians’ heads explode.
Not to mention the potential oil loan bubble.
While they may not have pinpointed the source, according to the linked article the Four Corners leak is attributed to “leaks in natural gas production and processing equipment in New Mexico’s San Juan Basin, which is the most active coalbed methane production area in the country”.