Chris McGillEnergy Production and the Environment: When will the debate move to the 21st century?

January 8, 2009 by Chris McGill · 5 Comments, leave one of your own
Filed under: energy 

production Energy Production and the Environment: When will the debate move to the 21st century?Recently, I was riding home to Northern Virginia on the Washington, DC Metrorail and stood across from a poster, which was obviously designed to sway public opinion away from including domestic oil and gas drilling in our national energy policy. The poster said “No, to oil and gas drilling” and included a large image of a man holding an oil covered bird in his hands. When is this going to stop?

When is the discussion of the footprint associated with oil and natural gas development, pipeline infrastructure or any energy-related facility for that matter, going to be conducted within the context of 21st century technology? Without doubt energy production in the U.S. carries with it a footprint and a history not always exemplary with respect to environmental stewardship. However, today’s petroleum industry includes multi-well development from single pads, includes zero-discharge offshore facilities, includes underwater reef building associated with production platforms and pipeline construction and an additional list of surface remediation strategies as long as your arm. Is no credit offered to the engineering and investment in these elements of our energy industry because they go largely unseen? Every source of energy today, whether it be renewable, traditional or even still in the eye of a thoughtful beholder has a footprint.

Would it be asking too much to conduct the debate on our national energy future and climate change policy on a level playing field using a refreshed, current view of energy development technology? In my view that time has come.

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5 Comments, leave one of your own
Tags: energy, environment

Comments

5 Comments on Energy Production and the Environment: When will the debate move to the 21st century?

  1. Fred Westberg on Wed, 14th Jan 2009 4:05 pm

    2. I have been saving energy for most of my life. when I worked at AGA at East 62nd Street in Cleveland, Ohio I was designing electronid things like spark ignition to gas ranges. that was in the 60′s and it was pattened in EJ Weber and my name as he was my boss in the research department. Presently I design Solar Electric Systems and suggest that the customer replaces their electric range with a gas unit. Also heating and cooling is a good thing for gas appliances. I have been to the new AGA Labs. in southern Cleveland and was thrilled to see the new facilities as compared with those near East Ohio Gas at East 55th street in Cleveland, Ohio

  2. Dan Gibson on Thu, 15th Jan 2009 4:58 pm
    Dan Gibson

    3. Hey Fred,

    Thanks for joining the conversation but I’m told the AGA labs ceased operations in 1997. The labs you visited may have been CSA International.

    Thanks,

    Dan

  3. Victoria Switzer on Thu, 15th Jan 2009 6:33 pm

    4. You fail to talk about the great misinformation and deception used by your hired landmen and then the company employees. Clean only if it is extracted from the shale carefully and responsibly. Waste material and water must be dealth with safely. People should have been given the facts by the gas companies so we could make informed decisions. We did not have a public hearing or any kind of information seminar prior to the land man’s arrival in our once peaceful valley. I am not opposed to drilling if done properly with an interest in the citizens and their environment. The big issue-lack of honesty by your industry. Sincerely, a concerned resident of Dimock PA.

  4. Chris McGill on Fri, 16th Jan 2009 11:50 am
    Chris McGill

    5. Victoria:
    I may surprise you here a little bit — but I agree with your concerns about oil and gas exploration and production activities and any infrastructure project for that matter. A blog is a way to get a conversation started and I appreciate your comments. I couldn’t agree more that energy development should be done by the rules. It should be honest and all stakeholders should be involved. I appreciate your recognition that energy development can be important and useful if done correctly. AGA is a national trade association that represents distributors of natural gas. Even our companies have rules, regulatory requirements, safety initiatives and many remediation strategies that you probably can’t imagine. When they propose pipeline projects or continue the challenge of updating old systems it is done under many guidelines imposed by local, state and federal regulators.

    You are right. The challenge of meeting our future energy needs should be open, honest and should follow the rules and guidelines that are in place to protect the public, the environment and other needs of the people that it is going to impact.

    Chris McGill

  5. Carlos Hernandez on Tue, 20th Jan 2009 12:46 am

    6. The challenge is running since the all stakeholders decide to go ahead with the projects. I have seen too many cases where the control framework is so weak to keep the integrity of the operation. Be open and honest is quite hard to find now days, everybody is looking for their own profit and at the end of the day the environment, communities and workers will suffer the consequences.
    Keep a high level audit process as part of the normal operation and project philosophy will help the oil industry environment.