By Lethbridge Herald on March 18, 2023.
Editor:
All my years in the recycling industry and plastic product manufacturing was energy and resources directed in sync with the three Rs – Reduce, Reuse and Recycle. In my mind it was a way of life to sustain a way off life.
I believe we now need to refocus – the three Rs should now be Reallocate, Rethink and Recycle. Reallocate our carbon-based energy – oil must be processed for uses other than gasoline and diesel fuel because transportation is going electric and Big Auto is investing in anything but gas guzzling engines.
Governments are directing incentives and loans towards anything to do with the future of electricity, carbon capture and finding ways to recycle plastic waste that we have suffered upon our land and waters and make sure future production is recycled.
The plastic production by our petrochemical companies will grow every year by as much as 10 per cent because the products are needed in many, many areas of our lives and our economy. Billions of dollars will be needed to make sure the waste plastic is collected, sorted and pelletized for reuse – it can be recycled as much as seven times before being used as a fuel to turn electric turbines.
The petrochemical companies will thrive, the oil companies will continue to produce, natural gas will be vibrant as we need it for plastic production and heating and a clean, reliable resource for producing electricity.
Oil extraction will be the loser – we will maintain current extraction but more oil will be redirected to creating hydrogen and lubricants. Gasoline and diesel are on the way out little by little every year in the near future. The world will still need oil and Alberta will still sell four million barrels or more a day over the next 30 years as industry and people slowly adjust. You can see the change all around you as the big guys in the oil industry invest in solar and wind power to satisfy their shareholders with respect to maintaining future profits.
And, after all it is all about our children and grandchildren – we all must rethink what matters in our lives and support the changes that are coming down the road. Changes that are hard to imagine, hard to initiate and had to accept – but c’est La vie, said the old folks. It goes to show you never can tell.
Grant R Harrington
Lethbridge
11
Grant you have nailed it. While these reformers and their supporters try to stop it and pretend it’s not happening it’s our children’s future that they are trying to destroy. The oil industry is fully aware of what is happening and making changes of their own. They are even stating that the 2050 emission targets, that Reformers were beating up Trudeau over are reachable using green energy. Some of the stupid comments we have been hearing from some of our fellow seniors prove how ignorant they are.
Solar panels are useless they will never work in the winter covered in snow is one of them. Want to bet? Most are dual sided and can pick up rays from underneath and are even being used in Alaska They have to be replaced every 10 years. Yet most have a 30 year warrantee. Electric cars won’t work in winter. Yet Norway is creating electric snowmobiles. Why should we be trying to do anything about climate change when China is still building coal fired power plants. We will never have enough electricity to power them is another one.
All are complete lies if you bother to do any research.
Ignoring what Global Warming is doing to this planet and what our children will have to face is another bit of stupidity that we find seniors are ignoring. These Reformers, starting with Ralph Klein have literally destroy our children and grandchildren’s future with all the debt they have dumped in our laps and Smith is promising to create more by giving away another $20 billion and forcing us into Health care User Fees, isn’t she.
Oil will always be needed for other things like roads.
Sure it will, but the oil industry knows we have to make changes for our children’s sake, they have children to.
Tell them to fatten their wallets.
It won’t be the oil industry who creates the havoc.
https://www.manhattancontrarian.com/blog/2023-3-18-a-proposal-for-exposing-the-true-costs-of-getting-electricity-from-wind-and-sun