Methane Hydrate and Fracking - The end of "Peak Oil" ?

[Abandoned by Wolves]

This month's "Atlantic" has an interesting article about the new fossil fuel boom and its positive implications (no such thing as running out of fossil fuels, well, ever) and negative ones (increased onset of climate change, instability for OPEC and other oil providers.)

Apparently between fracking and absolutely fucking ENORMOUS amounts of a kind of "flammable ice" that Japan has been investigating since 1985, the industrialized world has just begun to tap into energy sources that could hinder the market for alternative "clean" energy source for decades to come:

http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/arc ... il/309294/

[Alfred_E._Neuman]

This month's "Atlantic" has an interesting article about the new fossil fuel boom and its positive implications (no such thing as running out of fossil fuels, well, ever) and negative ones (increased onset of climate change, instability for OPEC and other oil providers.)

Apparently between fracking and absolutely fucking ENORMOUS amounts of a kind of "flammable ice" that Japan has been investigating since 1985, the industrialized world has just begun to tap into energy sources that could hinder the market for alternative "clean" energy source for decades to come:

http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/arc ... il/309294/

I didn't have time to read the article this morning, but I've read about methane hydrate several times. Its the single biggest methane reserve known.

I do think it's the government's (meaning a cooperative effort among all governments) responsibility to move the world away from fossil fuels and toward renewable energy. "Free" markets are never going to willingly give up such a profit making machine as fossil fuels, and there is no doubt that burning them is harmful to the environment and our health. Even taking climate change off the table there can be no argument that our air and water quality is shit in most cities. Ad in the cost of treating diseases caused by pollution and you have more than enough reason to invest in making the change.

Hard to believe that in the 21st century we still get most of our power by burning shit we dig out of the ground to boil water.

[Stillwater]

Pennsylvania is getting royally screwed over by the fracking. Corbett sold us out big time. We should be taxing the hell out of them, instead they're getting a virtual free ride. Jobs, Jobs, Jobs. Yeah I hear it's pretty easy to find a hooker in Lancaster now.

Mark my words. The pollution from fracking will ruin Pennsylvania water for generations. They failed to map the old oil wells and blowouts are frequent. But don't worry they guarantee the water is safe.

Fisheries out west are already seeing the effects on the trout out there, it's only a matter of time.

USGS has linked earthquakes to deep waste storage wells.

[Shafpocalypse Now]

Yeah, I agree, states are bending over to give oil companies money, and there is going to be some consequences no one likes

[Turdacious]

USGS has linked earthquakes to deep waste storage wells.

That problem can be solved relatively easily by not allowing them. It isn't particularly expensive for frackers to pump the fluid back out and treat it either.