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Oil shale — Colorado, Utah deposits rival OPEC reserve

i think carter when he was president started the pilot progam on shale oil when he was presadent it was estimated that oil could be recovered for 35 a barrel oil prices fell and the projects stoped if i am correct i belive the federal govt spent billions on this does any one know please reply

I think that the environmentalists in Colorado better get off of it and see the light before they have to park their cars and walk when our economy as we know it collapses. The price of oil has reached all time highs now and with the likes of China in the equation, I don't think the price will be going down, but will continue to move up. It is time for the oil shale production, electric cars, ethanol or anything else we can come up with.

If our country moves to be more independent from oil, our country as a whole would be stronger, more powerful, less effect by world politics via energy and pollution. Our U.S. government owns hundreds of square miles of land. If more lakes were built on top of these hills and mountains for water retention, as we make electric from solar, or wind water could be pumped to reserves. Then later, draining these reserves to make electricity. Imagine how strong our country would be, if we really were truly energy independent from other countries as well making less pollution in the environment as well.

How can one invest in such a massive program...sign me up....

If this is shale fuel is indeed feasible, why has it not been done? When the carter administration faced its energy crisis , why was no change ever effectuated? There are obviously other powers in charge of making sure we are strapped with excessive debts to foreign countries and for ever backwards in our energy/fuel policies. Wonders, who could that sector be? The technologies of solar, natural gas/propane/wind exist, but they don't want the common man to have it, for if they did, their debt service [to them] would end. Is it foreign interests or our own politicos? Or large corporate control? It really baffles the mind.

OUR WORLD SYSTEM THRIVES ON A SHORTAGE. SO WHEN OIL IS $100 PER BARREL, LOOK TO SEE WHO STANDS THE MOST TO GAIN BECAUSE OF IT. THEN YOU'LL HAVE YOUR ANSWER.

With this much petroleum gas/fossel fuel it would
seem to me that the potential for the reshaping of
that portion of the Rockies is a potential time bomb. Why not use it rather than possibly let it
become fuel for a earth quake?

hate to say it but they are already pulling it out of the ground thats why the oil companys are showing record profits. money talks bs walks,

Maybe the energy powerhouse of the world will now shift back from the Middle East to the United States. Maybe this will bring better political stability to the Middle East and maybe the US can dictate energy terms instead of it being dictated to. I believe this will bring major opportunity to the Colorado / Utah region and the local economy could again surge upward. Good luck to all the explorers and scientists working on new solutions like shale oil to alleviate our energy dilemmas.

Oil Shale produces Kerogen. The distallation cuts of Kerogen is substantially Diesel, Naptha and Jet Fuel - exactly what America needs. Not only can they extract this oil, but the oil a few companies can produce from this shale is over 32 API gravity oil -- equal or better to Saudi Arabian Light and the entire OPEC basket. New technologies exist that use far less water, reclaim the ground and far less emissions than back in the first oil shale boom. Royal Dutch Shell has been on a 50 city tour telling everyone: "we know our technology works" and "we will make a commercial decision by 2010". Ski Resort Elitist liberals like the Udall Family and celebrities will continue to fight oil shale in the name of "environment". These same people support ethanol, which when compared to oil shale, has a 40 x greater "strip farming" foot print over oil shale. Consider this: 80 Million acres of strip farming every year to produce ethanol compared to the 2 million acres of oil shale for its whole industry. Not only can oil shale be less water than ethanol -- but also: less footprint. Oil Shale is the real environmental solution. Truth.

I'm always amazed when people talk about solar and wind energy as helping reduce our need for oil. 70% of oil is used to fuel our transportation needs (cars, trucks, plane, etc). Those all take liquid fuels- not electricity. Only about 5% of oil is used to generate electricity. The other 25% is used to make plastic resins that goes into all those nice plastic parts used on just about everything we used today. Wind and solar will only replace a portion of the 50% of electric energy currently provided by coal (which the US has the largest reserve in the world) and reduce greenhouse gases. So the real answer to reduce our dependence on foreign oil is to increase our domestic supply (oil shale, coastal drilling, ANWR) and decrease our demand of gas through alternate liquid fuels (liquified coal) or hybrid/electric car development. All these will take 10-15 years to develop the infrastructure to support so it is time to start working a total approach now instead of thinking a short term solution will appear out of nowhere.