Comments by CharlesB
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Posted on July 23 at 8:04 p.m.
While we're at it, let's go _really_ Green and close all the gas stations in the county. It would certainly make the county a leader in dealing with an inconvenient truth - the California Energy Commission said, in their 2007 Energy Policy Report:
"As the third largest consumer of transportation fuels in the world (behind the United States as a whole and China) - almost 16 billion gallons of gasoline and over 4 billion gallons of diesel used each year - California would like to replicate its success with electricity efficiency in the area of transportation fuels."
You read that right. California's 37 million-odd citizens consume more fuel for transportation than, say, the 82 million Germans, let alone the 1 billion who live in India. Read the rest at http://www.energy.ca.gov/2007_energypoli....
After the "energy crisis" years, We the People and our Duly Elected Leadership collectively decided to utterly forget energy conservation, with a few dissidents reduced to crying in the wilderness. Where are we today? Consider the Santa Maria and Lompoc to Santa Barbara commute, or Santa Maria or Paso Robles to San Luis Obispo commute for that matter. Do you see a lot of busses? Car poolers? I think not. How many long-distance trucks carry cargoes that could be better transported by rail? A load of produce needs to get to its destination in a hurry, but a load of toaster ovens does not. Or, for example, why doesn't every building, residential or commercial, built since 1980 have a solar water heater on the roof? Instead, we ask other nations and peoples to produce oil for us from their offshore areas, their rain forests, their deserts. NIMBY. High time we at least shoulder some of the environmental risk ourselves. 1969 was caused by human error, particularly an accident due to a panicky drill crew. I cannot say it won't happen ever again, but it is much, much less likely nowdays. Improved equipment and training, you see.
By the way - Venoco's operation is a shiny new car compared to Greka's rusty bucket of bolts owned by a scofflaw.
Posted on June 26 at 6:10 p.m.
"EPA expects that the PCBs were released in January 2008..."
"Expects"? Did you mean "suspects"?
Careful proofreading goes a long way.
On U.S. EPA Holds Greka Responsible for Cleanup of Toxic PCBs
Posted on May 24 at 12:48 p.m.
From up here in Santa Maria, my $0.02:
I walk to work along a 4-lane major street. The residential street intersections are landscaped so that cars wanting to enter the big street must block pedestrians (and bicyclists) in order to pull out far enough to see oncoming cars. Meanwhile, the local busses pass by nearly empty.
Bah. The nation has had over 20 years, since Reagan convinced the Saudis to flood the world oil market and bankrupt the USSR in 1986, to come to grips with transportation and traffic issues, but no politician had enough guts to take action (such as imported oil tariffs and stronger CAFE standards), and few citizens asked for such. 20 years and 4 presidential administrations without leadership and without a clue on energy and transport issues.
Posted on March 24 at 12:51 a.m.
I dislike Greka as much as anyone, but using a photo of the horrendous January spill at Zaca to head a report of a 2 barrel (84 gallon) spill is a bit much.
Posted on February 27 at 3:53 p.m.
I've converted from gas to foot power recently. One thing I'd like to offer: many intersections of residential with major streets are uncontrolled and feature walls and landscaping that block the view for drivers on the minor streets so they're FORCED to block pedestrians in order to see the cross traffic. This is just plain lousy planning. Of course, nobody's supposed to walk anywhere, so why bother designing so foot and wheeled traffic can coexist?
Posted on February 2 at 9:48 p.m.
Another thing the new "Green Greka" will have to change is the habitual non-payment of contractors that's apparently a part of the old, bad Greka's standard operating proceedure. Many oilfield contractors won't work for them at all, and the others demand payment up front.
Posted on January 12 at 2:25 p.m.
Jake Blues, in the movie "The Blues Brothers" from 1980:
"Honest... I ran out of gas. I, I had a flat tire. I didn't have enough money for cab fare. My tux didn't come back from the cleaners. An old friend came in from out of town. Someone stole my car. There was an earthquake. A terrible flood. Locusts. IT WASN'T MY FAULT, I SWEAR TO GOD."
That's Greka's excuse, too.
Posted on January 6 at 3:23 p.m.
Somebody really needs to tell the Chinese National Petroleum Company that Green Dragon Gas (http://www.naturalgasstocks.com/Articles...) is run by Randeep Grewal, environmental scofflaw extraordinaire.
Wait - on further reflection, the Chinese bureaucrats probably don't care, as long as the money flows forth into their pockets.
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Posted on August 8 at 6:51 p.m.
It's too easy to just say "go away" to Venoco. Where's the equivalent effort to reduce energy consumption overall? Ms. Krop, Mr. Chase, and Ms. Massey, COMMAND the north county commuters to ride busses and see how far you get. COMMAND the wealthy owners of south county businesses to subsidise those busses or subsidise housing for workers near their businesses and see how far you get.
Might as well face it, we're addicted to oil. Let's see some effort at reducing energy use if blanket condemnation of oil production is to be a mantra.
On Venoco Seeks Approval for Full Field Development