Comments on: Are Technological Solutions to Peak Oil Possible?

By: Oil Prices Will Continue to Rise, IEA Reports – CleanTechnica: Cleantech innovation news and views

Sun, 08 May 2011 14:02:32 +0000

[…] Peak oil is nothing new to us here. I’ve written on a German military report clearly stating that peak oil is already here and discussing the various concerns that poses for modern society. I’ve also written on peak oil discussions made public by WikiLeaks that showed that Saudi Arabia has a lot less oil than its been saying. And I’ve written on peak oil misconceptions and false solutions and the potential (or lack of potential) for technological solutions to solve the peak oil crisis. […]

By: WikiLeaks: Saudi’s Oil Reserves Overstated by Nearly 40% – CleanTechnica: Cleantech innovation news and views

Wed, 09 Feb 2011 22:01:04 +0000

[…] 1. Are Technological Solutions to Peak Oil Possible? 2. Peak Oil This Year, Leaked German Military Report Says […]

By: Zachary Shahan

Zachary Shahan — Tue, 12 Oct 2010 22:18:12 +0000

@progressiveaudio: it’s the materials needed to make the technologies that tap into “renewable” energy that is the problem

By: Mark

Mark — Tue, 12 Oct 2010 20:22:13 +0000

everyone seems to be overlooking the massive amounts of energy just below our feet (geothermal).

I think it’s not really a fuel or energy problem, it’s an energy storage problem.

By: MrEnergyCzar

MrEnergyCzar — Tue, 12 Oct 2010 02:15:01 +0000

I converted my home to a net-zero solar powered home as part of weaning my family off of oil and made some short videos showing people what they can do…. I attached one of them here…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hHmXhgBhtWk

MrEnergyCzar

By: progressiveaudio

progressiveaudio — Mon, 11 Oct 2010 18:29:58 +0000

That’s some warped Malthusian porn there. And it’d almost have a point, if exploding populations and renewables peaking (isn’t renewable infinite or almost infinite?) were an actual fact of life. Doomers crack me up.

By: Zachary Shahan

Zachary Shahan — Mon, 11 Oct 2010 08:56:56 +0000

@ Lemac the cameL: However, in the long term, these kind of advances may not be possible due to limited supply of key resources.. regarding “If you look at the increase in demand for residential power in the US for the last 60 years, you will see that it is constantly going down.”: the “increase in demand” is going down? meaning there is still increasing demand, but not as much as before?

By: Lemac the cameL

Lemac the cameL — Mon, 11 Oct 2010 08:15:06 +0000

In reply to both of you.
First of all you underestimate the power of technological advances.
Advances could outstrip demand at anytime. If you look at the increase in demand for residential power in the US for the last 60 years, you will see that it is constantly going down. At some time in the future, we may over produce energy as Vinod Khosla has predicted within ten years.
I am using less energy now than at anytime in my adult life. I, like most of my friends will never go back to the old inefficient technologies and higher bills.
There are other wild cards. All out war with izlam that reduces large populations or low cost space transport that changes the whole game.
There are more scientists and engineers working on these issues than at any time in history.
In the short term, it’s hard to say. but in the long term, the answers are obvious.

By: darth

darth — Sun, 10 Oct 2010 04:01:45 +0000

We can do a lot to mitigate peak oil even w/o tech breakthroughs.

First, each family can buy 1 electric car (Leaf, Volt, etc) to use for commuting.
Next, 2 person carpools effectively double MPGPP (MPG per person).

So for a 2 wage-earner house, 1 commutes in the Leaf, the other carpools.

By: Zachary Shahan

Zachary Shahan — Sun, 10 Oct 2010 00:37:28 +0000

@Stu: you might be completely right here. heard these arguments before, and haven’t seen much (i.e. anything) to refute them.

By: Stu

Stu — Sat, 09 Oct 2010 17:40:46 +0000

Nope, we’ll lose, and this is why. Lets take conservation. So we all use less, even if it means lower standards of living. The result is, we cut back, that mitigates shortages, then we have plenty, so we increase our population more until we are screwed again. Efficiency, same thing, what you save, someone else will use, someone in china ir india perhaps, or someone that isn’t born yet. Your cut backs make room for more people, or other people to use more. Ramping up renewables will result in more resources going into those and thus less for other things, those resources will peak too. Technological breakthroughs always lead to increased energy consumption either by per capita increases or population increases, or both. It’s just like the family that gets a better income, there stardard of living increases to consume it. We are going to always use up whatever spare energy we have…..spare energy enables growth…and growth uses up the spare energy. So we are screwed…we will keep growing just like the bacteria in a petra dish for as long as we can…..then crash….and knowing it’s going to happen and trying to mitigate it will not change the end result at all.

By: New Biofuel Production Method Uses One Vessel to Rule Them All – CleanTechnica

Sat, 09 Oct 2010 12:06:38 +0000

[…] the potential for a faster, cheaper biofuel production process that could help ease our way out of peak oil. And there are some other goodies, […]

By: Tom Huggan

Tom Huggan — Sat, 09 Oct 2010 04:46:10 +0000

It’s really not all that complicated. The answers are out there, but do you really want to know? Allow the peak and the collapse. Hide out with Dr. Strangelove while the starving masses duke it out in 2006 Baghdad all over the world. Let it fall down, let it fall down, let it all fall down. W was working for those who know. Christian America got pulled into a black hole. Programs designed to help people get back on their feet, and be self-supportive, have turned into a multi-generational lifestyle. Without control of the growth of dependent population, there will never be a balance. Sustainability is a dream. It’s the stinky 800 pound gorilla in the room with you.