As most of you know, this Grumpy Gringo constantly mutters that change is happening right under our feet despite all of our denials and platitudes. Click here to read an article indicating just how life continues to change while remaining the same. But before you get to that article, please note the following splash from the Wall Street Journal yesterday:
U.S. Poised to Overtake Russia as Largest Oil-and-Gas ProducerThe U.S. is poised to overtake Russia as the world’s largest producer of oil and natural gas this year, a startling shift that is reshaping energy markets and eroding the clout of traditional petroleum-rich nations.Shale-rock formations of oil and natural gas have fueled a comeback for the U.S. that was unimaginable a decade ago. Russia meanwhile has struggled to maintain its energy output and has yet to embrace the technologies such as hydraulic fracturing that have boosted U.S. reserves.
Hydraulic fracturing is a big challenge for your generation. On the one hand it frees us from excessive involvement with Middle Eastern regimes in order to have access to cheap energy. The shift of focus in US policy from the Middle East to Asia is already well under way. On the other hand, unregulated hydraulic fracturing is a huge environmental challenge. Because of the money involved, power games will be fought on the global chess board to sort out “who’s on first”! Getting that balance right, i.e., access to low priced energy while protecting and sustaining the environment, is the small problem my generation trusts yours to work out!
In the meantime, greetings from Assisi (Italy). We’re celebrating St. Francis’ feast day tomorrow. I think he should be named patron saint of the environment but that’s just a crazy old Grumpy Gringo muttering under his breath.