U.S. Geological Survey Says ...

Arctic holds vast untapped oil and gas reserves

Posted at 7:48 AM on 24 Jul 2008

The Arctic Ocean holds up to 20 percent of the world's undiscovered, technically recoverable oil and gas reserves, according to new research from the U.S. Geological Survey. A four-year study found that the region contains up to 90 billion barrels of oil and almost a third of the world's undiscovered natural gas -- about 1,670 trillion cubic feet. However, even with climate change improving drilling conditions in the Arctic (i.e., melting more and more of that pesky ice), it will be decades before the oil and gas there could be developed. While environmentalists and others want to try to limit the impacts of Arctic drilling before it happens, the USGS characterized the oil and gas survey as a precursor to such protections. "Before we can make decisions about our future use of oil and gas and related decisions about protecting endangered species, native communities, and the health of our planet, we need to know what's out there," said USGS Director Mark Myers. So now that we know, where are those protections already?

sources: Associated Press, The Wall Street Journal (access ain't free)
straight to the report: Circum-Arctic Resource Appraisal: Estimates of Undiscovered Oil and Gas North of the Arctic Circle [PDF]
straight to the map: Oil's Final Frontier

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Comments: (3 comments)

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Very Important Issue

Quite frankly, this is a VERY important issue. In the coming decades we will see the US, Russia, and Canada claiming stake to the Arctic Circle. The amount of oil and natural gas up there only raises the stakes. Not to mention that Russia just assumes that it deserves all of it.

If itâ€^TMs profitable to dril for oil up north, itâ€^TMs going to be done because Russia will have a stake up there and probably wonâ€^TMt really restrict the area for environmental reasons.

That given, we as individuals need to take greater responsibility for the environmnet. I think it is important for us to support businesses that not only provide us our desired utility but also benefit the environment. For example, I came across a website http://www.simplestop.net that stops your postal junk mail and benefits the environment.

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by Gustavion at 3:00 PM on 24 Jul 2008

No, Dino! Stay out of the Snow!

So, the Arctic has "vast resources" of ... what was it you called it...fossil fuel?

So, let's see...the dinosaurs, because they were hungry living in the rich tropics, decided to go up to the Arctic to find food...and then starved to death up there because they were given bad information by the AAA.

No, no...that's not it. How about, years ago it was much warmer there, warmer than it is now when temperatures are caused entirely by man, and...wait...no, that won't work either.

Sheesh...I just don't know how them dinosaurs got up there?!!!

http://oilismastery.blogspot.com/2008/07/arctic-has-over- ...

by jabailo at 12:18 AM on 25 Jul 2008

Geology

jabailo spouts his usual nonsense again. Has he never heard of 'plate techtonics?' Perhaps he thinks of that as setting the Arctic table for the migrating dinos, rather than the gradual transfer of portions of the Earth's crust from the tropic regions to the polar regions and vice versa.

If Global Warming is opening up the Arctic for undersea resource exploitation it is also causing the desertification of the northern lands with the increase in evaporization.

Extended summer seasons are now arriving a full month earlier and staying another month in the fall before the winter snows replenish the small creeks and streams on which the Inuit depend for fresh water. Many ponds and lakes are now drying up in the summertimes, killing off both their flora and fauna which form one of the bases of the food chain which supports life there.

If we (humans) procrastinate getting off our oil dependency and switching to alternative power sources, it will soon enough be too late for us to do anything but say our prayers and wish each other "Godspeed into that dark night."

Des Emery

by Des Emery at 8:23 PM on 27 Jul 2008

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