Facts

[C M Smith <cmsmith@domain.elided>]

There is enough recoverable oil in the tar sands at Fort McMurray Alberta 
to last the entire world essentially forever with current technology being 
actually used up there. The production costs are borderline too high, 
especially if the Saudis crank the international price down (crank 
production up) to closer to their lifting costs. But the oil is there and 
recoverable and at US$20 to 30 a barrel. Now that's ignoring similar 
deposits in Colorado. Furthermore, when the eco whiners were last doing 
their simplistic sums horizontal drilling was unheard of. Just horizontal 
drilling a known field increases the reserves exponentially, and that's 
with no new discovery costs, just drill a new hole in a known reservoir. In 
the last five years or so we have developed multiple branched horizontal 
drilling which multiplies the recoverable reserves again, from the same 
reservoir, AND we're doing this undersea from floating rigs as well as on 
dry land. And we ain't through yet.

Nope, we ain't about to run out of fossil fuels any time soon, nor is the 
price going to go through the ceiling. Drilling costs are being cut and cut 
again by these new techniques, and these techniques are in their infancy. 
The problem, mes amis, is greenhouse gas, and I'm not saying the earth is 
warming or cooling, I'm just saying that the continued unrestricted burning 
of fossil fuels is far more likely to be a problem because of the carbon 
being liberated into the atmosphere from beneath the Earth, than the 
prospect of not having enough fuels to burn. I'm betting on some global 
warming myself because when this carbon was last circulating in the 
biosphere, there were dinosaurs in the Arctic. Of course, Canadians are in 
favour of global warming, it'll save on our winter heating bills, and the 
salt won't be needed on the roads, which'll make our vintage Alfas last longer.

So, preserve those older Alfas guys, they are very efficient at burning 
fossil fuels, and work with your Congressman to ban SUVs and tax the hell 
out of anything that burns say more than 20 mpg of any fuel.... (darn 
clever Alfa related item eh?) can we go back to more interesting stuff than 
the chicken little debate? It's no debate, really, there's oil and gas to 
burn....


Michael Smith
Calgary, Alberta
Canada
91 Alfa 164L, White, original owner

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