MAY 29

There's definitely a lot of merit behind the idea of tapping the vast, harsh and barren landscape of the Sahara Desert for European energy production. As we reported last week, it would require a solar power plant roughly the size of Wales to power all of Europe!

But now, several countries are looking another vast, barren and harsh landscape to meet energy demands. And this, it turns out, is a heck of a lot scarrier.

Not content with trashing Alaska, news just in from the Financial Times that US scientists are already eyeing up the crude reserves that the Arctic holds. Ironically enough the retreat of the ice-sheets due to climate change is opening up the doors for much more oil exploration. The USGS estimates that 13% of the world's oil reserves lie beneath the Arctic, with the figure for gas even greater at 30%. The potential for profit is only overshadowed by the potential for environmental damage.

This is bad news for EcoGeeks, and possible for Canada as well. Miltary strategists have already predicted the possibility of armed conflict between the US, Russia and Canada for arctic oil.

Let's hope sincerely, that by the time they work out how to extract the oil from such a hostile location, the world will be running on renewables, and we'll only use the resource for making pharmaceuticals, plastics, and other applications where the carbon is nicely locked away.

The battle for the arctic begins - my pound is on a remake of Ice Station Zebra sometime soon...

Comments (4)

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Huge Deal
written by Carlos, July 28, 2008

This is a huge deal! Oil significantly raises the stakes in the controversy over who will control what areas up there. We need to make sure that mother nature comes first regardless.

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Lets not forget Denmark and Norway
written by bob bobberson, July 28, 2008

Both Denmark and Norway have interest in the Arctic also. Norway is the 3rd biggest exporter of oil. Denmark 'owns' Greenland. Both of those could be players for the arctic resources.

But it is probably in Europe's best interest to pursue the whale-sized solar power plant rather than buy energy from Russia.

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...
written by Clinch, July 28, 2008

whale-sized solar power plant

Ha, that made me laugh.

Even the arctic is harvested for oil, we wont see the 'benefit' for years (with all the finding suitable site, testing, setting up the rig etc), but could see the damage to wildlife and the environment rather quickly.
It's the wrong answer to the problem anyway, if you use too much oil, don't get more, use less (better efficiencies, and file conservation).

And in comparison to solar, oil will keep producing the same amount of energy, but solar is constantly improving, so however much better solar seems at the moment (i.e. while they're still in the planning stages) when they actually get round to the construction stage, solar technology will have improved, and will be even betterer.

If the size estimations for the solar plant are based on current solar technology, then it could be half that size if they used new advances such as the recent organic dye panels.

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Sub-Zero
written by The Food Monster, July 28, 2008

http://thefoodmonsterblog.blogspot.com
Sounds like there is a Mortal Kombat remake here, starring sub-zero.

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