Peak Oil and Its Effect on Climate Change

Peak Moment 132: The peak oil message is slow to gain acceptance, says energy analyst Randy Udall, because it's at odds with our optimistic It's-Morning-in-America mentality. Politicians "Don't Do Depletion." Randy describes challenges, mitigations, and exciting opportunities to create a prosperous path to a lower-energy future. In an excerpt from his presentation at the Association for the Study of Peak Oil (ASPO-USA) conference in September 2008, the co-founder of ASPO-USA points out cornucopian myths about energy that are being shattered by reality. His concern is that the peak oil crisis, while less known than the climate crisis, will impact us sooner, and is not being factored into climate policy decisions, Ironically, it can make resolution of the climate crisis easier.
This is the third of several Peak Moment Conversations videotaped at ASPO-USA 2008.(http://www.aspo-usa.com).
DVDs of the entire conference can be ordered through ASPO-USA at http://www.regonline.com/Checkin.asp?EventId=662327

Still to come: James Howard Kunstler, author of The Long Emergency, and Julian Darley, founder of Post Carbon Institute. If you missed them, be sure to watch energy investment banker Matthew Simmons on "Oil and Gas - The Next Meltdown?" and "Making Financial Sense of the Coming Energy Crisis" with financial consultant Jim Puplava.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• peak oil
• climate
• change
• randy
• udall
• aspo
• energy
• global
• economy
• politics

[fuggybootnling]

This series from the ASPO conference has been something I've been looking forward to seeing week by week. Well done Janaia! Especially featuring someone like a Jim Puplova - I don't necessarily agree with his climate change thoughts, but this guy is a godsend in terms of instruction on how to perserve wealth in the face of Peak Oil.

I don't say it enough...but you do great work!

[peakmoment]

Thanks for your ringing support--more ASPO voices are coming. I hope Jim Puplava will come to factor in climate change as he has done with Peak Oil, because the financial guidance he'll provide will be invaluable.

[oldhacks]

thizs is like the most important post on all of youtube and yet you've only gotten 287 views. While "fred" gets 300,000 views every post...

this country has a Long way to go.

[peakmoment]

I sure appreciate your perspective and support! It's uncomfortable to face hard stuff like this, and everything in mass media culture says, don't worry. Buy green. Somebody will fix it. Denial and avoidance is a lot easier than looking at the consequences of our actions.

[LastReplaySC]

Good said, well said, but 15 years to late for the US I'm afraid.

you will live to see fuel rations and food shortages accompanied with 2-3 further wars, a new currency and the NAU emulating the EU

[kkob]

The flaw in Randy's argument is to ignore rapid climate change and assume sea level rise and massive amounts of carbon being added to the atmosphere are centuries away. This is a false assumption. The ice cores show temps can rise or fall 7C within a couple of years. Yes, it has happened within 2 - 10 years in the past. Methane release from the Arctic is accelerating.

Tackle both, or die from one or the other. It's not either/or, Randy. We must deal with BOTH concurrently.

[westkan]

Do we still have the right stuff? Good question, I would hope so, but I see little evidence of it. The current financial crisis, is showing that the powers that be, still believe in an economy based on ever increasing consumption.

[DFORCE1969]

Another thought provoking episode with an intelligent guest;10/10