Problem is, it's in Iran. Anne Korin and Gal Luft at the IAGS have an interesting article (PDF link here) on how the Iranian government is trying to get around the threat of international sanctions by replacing domestic gasoline demand with natural gas -- something Iran has in abundance.
Clearly, America doesn't have huge amounts of natural gas left under the ground. But that's really not the point. If America is serious about reducing it's vulnerability to foreign disruptions, rather than passing stupid bills that won't fix the problem, American policymakers should be working on using the resources that America actually has and could replace gasoline and diesel consumption. When Iran -- theocratic, closed-minded, hobbled by incompetence -- is pursuing better energy policies than the US Congress, there's something seriously wrong.
1 comment:
The US has nothing approaching the resources to replace gasoline and diesel consumption. They don't have the oil, gas, farmland for biofuels (they might, but then need to import all their food, which is much worse than importing all your gasoline/oil), anything. They have a simple choice to reduce foreign disruptions: cut consumption. Do so in a huge and quick way (massive electrified railway building project, anyone?). Now, I don't think that'll happen voluntarily, but it will happen in the next decade. What the US does have is a desert (solar power), coast lines (tidal and wind), and excellent scientific resources (innovations). Electricity is easier to make than fuels for cars...focus on that.
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