August 11, 2009

Don Briggs: The plan is … there is no plan

http://www.shreveporttimes.com/article/20090811/NEWS05/908110301/1064

Nearly every day, 143 million cars and 110 million trucks are on U.S. highways. It is this immense transportation network that provides our 300 million citizens with the American way of life.

We have the luxury of commuting to work, traveling cross country and the ease of delivering goods and services, all of which comes with a cost — oil.

Every day, the U.S. consumes 25 percent of the world’s daily crude oil production, providing the fuel to power 96 percent of the country’s transportation infrastructure. Our country consumes, in round numbers, 20 million barrels of oil per day while producing only 5 million, making up the balance mostly by imports and refinery gains.

By importing nearly 70 percent of our oil demand, hundreds of billions of dollars every year go into the coffers of countries that dislike the United States. Why is there not a plan to even contain our ever-growing dependence on these countries?

President Obama said in his inaugural address, “We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories.” Washington, D.C., needs to stop insulting the American people’s intelligence. The development and research into new sources of energy is important. However, when we are so vulnerable as to import 70 percent of the energy that powers 96 percent of our transportation, we should be providing incentives for the exploration and development of our natural resources.

The United States is the only country in the world that has more than 85 percent of its natural resources off limits for exploration and development. This past week, Russia inked a contract with Cuba to drill off Florida’s coast, an area that is off limits to U.S. companies to drill. China and India also have leased concessions from Cuba.

“This is the irony of ironies,” complained Charles Drevna, executive vice president of the National Petrochemical & Refiners Association. “We have chosen to lock up our resources and stand by to be spectators while these two come in and benefit from things right in our own backyard.”

Opposition to drilling off Florida’s coast is weakening as the Florida Legislature is looking for revenue to offset budget deficits. “Our national enemies, who have sworn to destroy the United States and everything we stand for, use our reliance on foreign oil as a tool to arm themselves and to disarm us and to cripple us,” said Cannon, a Winter Park Republican slated to become speaker in 2010.

The environmentalists argue that drilling off Florida’s coast will spoil the beaches. However, the fact is more oil bubbles up naturally from the sea floor in the Gulf of Mexico than will ever come from drilling operations.

The Obama administration has no plan that provides energy security to the transportation network so vital to our country; in fact, it is quite the opposite. President Obama’s budget, if passed by Congress, would strip the independent oil and natural gas producers of their incentives to explore.

What would a good plan look like?

Caddo gets $5.1M in monthly lease sale
By Vickie Welborn  vwelborn@gannett.com  August 15, 2009

http://www.shreveporttimes.com/article/20090815/NEWS01/908150317

The Caddo Commission added more than $5.1 million to its bank account when the state Mineral Board sold its latest round of leases to Haynesville Shale oil and natural gas operators this week.

The DeSoto Police Jury added $31,098.

All total, the board collected more than $7.3 million in bonuses, bringing the total collected for the fiscal year that began July 1 to more than $10.5 million, according to the state Natural Resources Department.

The bonus payments reflect the slow improvement in per-acre leases in the Haynesville Shale region. Payments in Caddo average slightly better than $6,000 an acre, while the acreage in DeSoto commanded $8,506.

Bonuses topped out at $30,000 an acre in Caddo a year ago and took a nosedive when the nation’s economy faltered last fall.

“The lease prices the board has seen in the Haynesville Shale area in the first two months of this financial year ˜ averaging nearly $4,800 an acre in July and more than $6,500 an acre in August ˜ are strong compared to previous years, though not what they were during the heat of the 2008 rush,” a Natural Resources news release states. “For the parishes that have been the primary interest area for the Haynesville Shale, lease price sales averaged about $532 an acre in 2007 and about $252 an acre in 2006.”

The board also sold leases in Allen, Cameron, East Baton Rouge, Lafourche, Madison, Ouachita, Plaquemines, Red River, St. Charles and Terrebonne parishes. Of the 31 leases sold, 23 are in north Louisiana. Twenty of the 23 north Louisiana leases are in Caddo, DeSoto and Red River. Of that 20, 16 are in Caddo.

The Caddo Commission, which received $1 million in the July sale, set a minimum of $1,500 an acre for the bonus and 25 percent royalty.

Companies gobbling up Caddo’s mineral leases include Suncoast Land Services Inc., Classic Petroleum Inc. and Merit Energy Services LLC. The leased land includes everything from water bottoms to roads and alleys in subdivisions.

The 3.6 acres owned by the DeSoto Police Jury, which got a $28.7 million bonus payment in July 2008, includes water bottoms. Matador Resources Co. topped the three bidders, with bids ranging from $7,006 to $8,508 an acre.

Six bidders each vied for two tracts of state-owned land east of Mansfield. The winning bids also drew more than $8,000 an acre.

New Priorities For Our Energy Future
Our natural gas reserves contain more energy than Saudi Arabia’s oil.
By T. BOONE PICKENS AND TED TURNER

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203863204574348432504983734.html

Renewable energy and clean-burning natural gas are the basis of a new strategy the world needs to create a cleaner and more secure future. And the global transformation to a clean-energy economy may be the greatest economic opportunity of the 21st century. According to the authoritative Potential Gas Committee (administered by the Colorado School of Mines), the U.S. sits on top of massive reservoirs of natural gas˜an estimated 2,000 trillion cubic feet˜that contain more energy than all the oil in Saudi Arabia.

Harnessing this large supply˜plus developing wind, solar and biofuel energy sources˜is essential to achieve three strategic national priorities:

 Energy security: The internal combustion engine makes us dependent on oil that’s concentrated in a handful of countries in some of the world’s most volatile regions. In June, we imported 374 million barrels of oil, nearly two-thirds of what we used, at a cost of $24.7 billion. With 70% of imported oil going into cars and trucks, our transportation system is perilously at risk to shaky oil markets and even shakier regimes.

 Economic security: Last year more than $155 billion was invested in clean energy technologies such as wind and solar, and China and India plan to invest hundreds of billions in renewable energy sources. The annual market for clean energy may escalate in the next decade to between $1 trillion and $2 trillion. The race is on.

 Climate security: Likewise, the clock is ticking on potentially devastating climate changes. We already are witnessing the disintegration of polar ice, melting glaciers, rising sea levels and altered weather patterns. But if we act now, we can prevent catastrophic human and economic impacts.

Long-term economic and environmental interests compel us to put a priority on energy independence and a price on carbon pollution. Natural gas and renewable energy are obvious sources for cheap, clean and reliable electric power and transportation fuels.

In the electricity sector, natural gas is already cheap, available and ready to meet the nation’s power needs while improving climate security. It emits about half the carbon dioxide per British thermal unit of energy, and far fewer of the heavy metals than does coal.

Adopting a “cash-for-clunkers” program in the utility sector can save money and reduce emissions right away by retiring the oldest, least efficient and most polluting power plants in exchange for modern gas-powered plants. New coal plants should be required to combine natural gas with the coal they burn, resulting in cleaner emissions, and every power plant should meet strict carbon-emissions standards.

We should also adopt a strong national standard requiring that electrical generation include a growing percentage of renewable fuels to help bring down costs over time, and ensure America’s place in the burgeoning global competition for innovative renewable and efficiency technologies. Numerous state initiatives have already demonstrated the feasibility of these standards on a smaller scale.

In the transportation sector, renewable energy and natural gas can also be deployed immediately. For a quarter century, natural-gas vehicle technology has been available but stymied by lack of leadership. Of the 10 million natural gas vehicles in the world, fewer than 150,000 are in the U.S.

We can begin transitioning the nation’s fleet of 6.5 million 18-wheelers that run regular routes. It would take just 20 refueling stations along a single highway to get trucks from one coast to the other. Centrally fueled urban business and government fleets also can quickly move to natural gas. The Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach are in the process of buying new natural gas vehicles for their fleets, and many municipalities are harnessing the economic and environmental benefits of natural gas-powered buses.

Renewable biofuels should also be part of a new energy strategy. Advanced biofuels produced from cellulosic material, such as forest residues, municipal waste or even algae, can play a key role in reducing the vulnerabilities, emissions and costs associated with imported oil, while also providing new economic opportunities for America’s farm communities.

The economic, environmental, and national security imperatives of America’s energy posture are clear, as is the proven potential of domestic natural resources like gas, wind and solar power. Coupled with energy efficiency, these resources have the potential to help jump-start the economy, drive prosperity and reduce emissions well into the 21st century. The keys are in our hands. All we have to do is unlock the door and start the engine.

S’port’s Sportran bus line to receive $5 mil
Posted: Aug 15, 2009 9:44 PM Updated: Aug 15, 2009 9:44 PM

http://www.ksla.com/Global/story.asp?S=10936983

SHREVEPORT, LA (KSLA) – Shreveport’s Sportran’s Transit lines will soon receive $5 million to pay for transit improvements.

It’s all thanks to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

Sportran in Shreveport will get $4.7 million to buy five green buses, renovate the existing bus terminal, security equipment upgrades and to construct a compressed natural gas fueling station.

Gene Eddy, General Manager of Sportran says the funding shows that the government recognizes the area’s effort to “Going Green.”

“It was seen by the administration as an opportunity to make a statement that Shreveport-Bossier is in support of the Haynesville Shale efforts that are going on in support of the jobs that the Haynesville Shale is going to provide as well as provide for clean air in our area,” said Eddy.

Plaquemines Parish was also awarded $300,000 for help with the Belle Chase Ferry.