Nathan Taylor

Never Been A Better Time To Drill

It should come as no surprise that Americans are getting pinched hard at the pump! I had my own sticker shock the other day when I spent over $60.00 to fill-up my truck that used to cost me $40.00! Our country and our society is feeling some pains that haven’t been felt in over 25 years. With the price of goods on the rise, a trip to the grocery store costing the average family and extra $25 – $50, and an energy crisis that’s driving up our electricity bills–Americans are wondering when it’s going to end!

The immediate issues that appears to be driving up the price of oil is the turmoil in the middle-east. First there was the scare in Egypt that threatened access to the Suez Canal, and then the upraising in Lybia! We all know that we’ve been too depended on foreign oil, and that our economy is tied too closely to the world economy. I’m starting to wonder when our government is going to actually do something about this?

Yes, we have heard the mantra “drill baby drill” from Sarah Palin and other American politicos–however it seems no one in Washington, D.C. is listening! In 2008 a report was released from the U.S. Geological Service that stated in North Dakota, South Dakota, and extreme Eastern Montana existed enough oil that Americans could be entirely independent of  foreign oil. In fact, the Energy Information Administration stated that over $503 billion barrels of oil could be found there–this would equate to a value of over $5.3 trillion dollars.

Oil is not the only resource that Americans should be pursuing when tackling our energy crisis. For years now, I along with many Nevadans have spoke to politicians, organizations, and local governments about making Nevada the clean-energy capital of the world. Nevada is unique in the sense that we the ability with our abundant supply of sun-rays to create massive amounts of solar energy. In addition, Nevada has over 80% of barren land we can use to generate this energy. Unfortunately, the Federal Government owns most of this land and without the Feds as partners much of this will never happen. Just another example in my opinion why big government and specifically a Federal Bureaucracy out of touch with the states shouldn’t have too much power!

Nevada is also poised to become the nations leading geothermal energy producer. In a 2009 article writing by Las Vegas Sun reporter Stephanie Tavares she states, “…anticipated growth in production in Nevada is expected to be triple the growth of California. Nevada is expected to produce more than 3,600 megawatts of geothermal energy in the next 10 years…”. So, I ask again why we as a nation are not being more aggressive in obtaining energy independence? I can speculate about our politics and the complications of foreign relations, but none of this will move us any closer to a solution.

It is my opinion that states need to take a more proactive approach to this very important issue. We can’t rely on our Federal Government to make the important decisions that have such a profound effect on our citizenry. We also must encourage individuals to advocate on behalf of this issue to their Legislators, Governors, and Congressional Representatives. I took the step several years ago to join former Shell Oil CEO John Hofmeister’s group called Citizens for Affordable Energy. This has allowed many Americans the ability to be informed about the realities of energy independence. Groups like CFAE are not only great sources of information, but networking tools for activists to share information on the developments of alternative energy projects. I would urge anyone interested in seeing our country become energy independent to engage yourself in the public arena. Talk to your Lawmakers, write your Congressman and Senators, and most of all urge your government to pursue sources of energy in our own nation. It is time we stop sending our money over-seas and instead create jobs here in America that can help us lower our prices at the pump.

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