EIA reports on changing US energy mix

Primary energy consumption fell slightly in 2015, as a decline in coal use exceeded increases in natural gas, petroleum and renewables use. In most cases, changes between 2014 and 2015 reflect longer-term trends in energy use.

In 2015, natural gas consumption increased more than any other energy source, accounting for 29% of total primary energy consumption. As domestic natural gas production continues to reach record levels, natural gas prices have remained low. Low natural gas prices have led to increased use of natural gas-fired generators in the electric power sector.

Coal supplied 16% of total US primary energy use in 2015, down from 18% in 2014. Coal consumption declined by more than 12% in 2015, and it is now at its lowest level since 1982. Nearly all coal is used for electricity generation. In 2015, demand for coal in the power sector reached its lowest level since 1987.

US petroleum consumption grew in 2015, as lower gasoline and diesel prices led to increased vehicle travel. In addition, exports of US petroleum products continue to grow, driven largely by demand in South and Central America. Crude oil exports continued to grow significantly in 2014 and averaged 458 000 bpd in 2015.

Renewable fuels use continued to grow in 2015, especially in the electric power sector. Both wind and solar generation expanded significantly, growing by 31% and 5%, respectively, in 2015. Increases in wind and solar were slightly offset by a decline in hydroelectric generation, which fell for the fourth consecutive year because of drought conditions on the West Coast.

Nuclear electric power remained relatively flat in 2015. Several nuclear plants retired in 2013 and 2014, but no nuclear plants either retired or came online in 2015. Nuclear outages were relatively low during the summer of 2015.

Adapted from press release by Rosalie Starling

19 Comments on "EIA reports on changing US energy mix"

Boat on Fri, 22nd Jul 2016 9:25 pm 



Global Economy Becoming Less Energy Intense

Globally, energy intensity has fallen 30 percent since 1990, and about 2 percent between 2014 and 2015.

http://www.climatecentral.org/news/global-economy-using-energy-more-efficiently-20542

The deniers have said the world has done almost nothing. I say they’re wrong and the tide is turning.

Apneaman on Fri, 22nd Jul 2016 9:51 pm 



Boat methinks that is hopey environmentalists BS. Did you not read my recent post to outcast about almost 30 years (1988) of ever more dire warnings from the scientists who study AGW?

1988 – CO2 354.18

http://www.carbonify.com/carbon-dioxide-levels.htm

July 21st 2016 – CO2 404.66 ppm

https://scripps.ucsd.edu/programs/keelingcurve/

Global Warming Fact: More than Half of All Industrial CO2 Pollution Has Been Emitted Since 1988

http://blog.ucsusa.org/peter-frumhoff/global-warming-fact-co2-emissions-since-1988-764

Congratulations Boat et al humans, you’ve become more energy efficient in your last handful of decades on the planet while still increasing CO2, ocean acidification, soil loss, species extinction at mass extinction levels, mass coral die off and all the rest of the great dying the humans have caused. Boat, that’s got to be the all time Pyrrhic victory. Will the last human please turn out the lights.

Apneaman on Fri, 22nd Jul 2016 10:46 pm 



Awesome pictures. If it was in Texas they would blame it on the pavement.

Deluge hits Siberia’s largest city, causing ‘waterfall’ near city’s railway station

Tornado – first since 1954 – signals freak downpour, opening craters in roads which swallow up cars.

http://siberiantimes.com/other/others/news/n0678-deluge-hits-siberias-largest-city-causing-waterfall-near-citys-railway-station/

Boat on Fri, 22nd Jul 2016 10:55 pm 



ape,

I have just said every year I look out 10 years and see no collapse. I tend to agree with you over the longer term. Label me whatever you want. What any of us thinks is about as important as who can spit farther.

Apneaman on Fri, 22nd Jul 2016 10:57 pm 



The Single Day Heat Record for the Eastern Hemisphere Has Just Been Shattered

“As Weather Underground meteorologists Jeff Masters and Christopher C. Burt noted, if confirmed, that would be Earth’s hottest temperature ever recorded outside of Death Valley, California. This record will likely be verified given that this temperature was recorded not once but twice. Earlier today, Basra, Iraq recorded the exact same temperature, 129.2 degrees F (54 degrees C).”

http://gizmodo.com/the-single-day-heat-record-for-the-eastern-hemisphere-h-1784131279

Burn Baby Burn

Muslim Inferno

Burn Baby Burn

Burn That Mother Down

GregT on Sat, 23rd Jul 2016 12:00 am 



“What any of us thinks is about as important as who can spit farther.”

You have proven time and time again Kevin, that you are not capable of rational, intelligent thought. My dog is likely much smarter than you are.

Apneaman on Sat, 23rd Jul 2016 12:51 am 



Holy Moly, look at the lengths the Chinese are going to propagate the AGW hoax so they can fool Trump and merican’s to steal more of their manufacturing jobs. They must really want that manufacturing bad to flood out a major city just to trick super smart mericans who just happen to be all white, male and conservative (Hmmm they must go to a special school or sumthin to be the only ones who can spot all these hoax weather events N stuff). Chinese are sneaky bastards eh? Good thing Trumps on guard, he’ll stop em and bring them $30 hr manufacturing jobs back – just you wait! Full benefits too and you get your birthday off with full pay.

Beijing storm

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XC3IDLKOjvs

Northern China has been hit by some of the worst flooding in years and 75 people are missing or dead

Heavy rains have caused chaos across usually dry regions of the country including the capital, Beijing
Officials have released warnings as rains continue and floodwaters continue to rise in the country’s north

Images highlight the contrast in how people have dealt with the situation in flooded Beijing

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3700665/At-75-dead-missing-recent-China-flooding.html

Apneaman on Sat, 23rd Jul 2016 2:40 am 



Boat, next year or in a decade or tomorrow there could be a financial crash potentially bigger than any that has come before. I know less about financial stuff than science, but it’s obvious to me that the mouthpieces of TPTB, the econO priests are talking the same language they always have, but the goal post have been moved – like a mile or so. I do share something in common with all these econOpriests and financial gurus, not one of us predicted the 2008 crash or the dot com or any other crash in the history of capitalism. Pretty good huh, seeings how I don’t got me a fancy Phd and all. A few people were raising the alarm before all the crashes, but they maybe got a short interview and always shouted down and ridiculed by the high priests of capitalism. They claim economics is a science. After a period of time you can look at any branch of science and count how good their prediction are. Good science has a high degree of accurate predictions. Economics is batting 0-20 or something like that. Never predicted anything. Conclusion – not a science, but rather legitimizers of a system and those who rule it. Same as shamans and priests have been doing since civilization started. With a record that abysmal, why do so many still hang off their every word? True believers methinks. It’s what happens in all societies when you start em young. Doesn’t matter what belief you are trying to instill in them. Repetition Repetition Repetition. Could be Hitler youth or medieval French crusaders or radical 21st century muslims or commies or capitalists – all the same. Same fucking shit, different century. The humans need these belief systems. It gives them meaning and no matter the beliefs the believers are certain that they are right and the other is wrong. Even when they are aware of these patters in human societies throughout history they’ll have some yabut why in just this instance their politics, god, country, football team really is better than the others. Science, facts, real world examples don’t matter because nothing can penetrate the true believer’s beliefs. Sure some small number realize this and grow out of their indoctrinations, but they are to few to make any dent in their societies story. I’m not saying this as a condemnation of humans. No, this is their default mode. Evolutionary programming. Once the human brain developed to the point where the humans were conscious and aware of their own death, it had to come up with a fix and it was stories that give meaning to their their lives in a world and a universe that appears to be meaningless. Evolution works like that – post hoc fixes and often just good enough – not perfect. That’s why we have fucked upped backs and an appendix that seems all but useless and a bunch of other weird stuff. Evolution don’t get to start from scratch, it just slaps one fix on another. It’s why we have 3 brains in one. How’s that for a story?

THE EVOLUTIONARY LAYERS OF THE HUMAN BRAIN

http://thebrain.mcgill.ca/flash/d/d_05/d_05_cr/d_05_cr_her/d_05_cr_her.html

Sometimes you can see vestiges of our chimp like ancestors in modern humans from time to time.

7 Vestigial Features of the Human Body

“Tails

In the sixth week of gestation, the human embryo possesses a tail, complete with several vertebrae. In the next couple weeks of development, however, the tail disappears, and over time the vertebrae fuse to form the coccyx, or tailbone, in the adult. Humans and their ape relatives are distinguished from other groups of primates in part by their taillessness, though it is unclear why apes lost their tails. On rare occasion, a human infant is born with a vestigial tail. In modern medical literature, such tails lack vertebrae and typically are harmless, though some are associated with spina bifida (failure of the vertebrae to completely enclose the spinal cord). Tails in human infants typically are removed through surgery without complication.”

https://www.britannica.com/list/7-vestigial-features-of-the-human-body

Big brained story telling monkeys who are not in control – that’s what we are.

makati1 on Sat, 23rd Jul 2016 5:37 am 



Ap, that is the most concise picture of humanity I have read in a long time.

I just returned from the 3rd world country called America where the indoctrination is so thick it is visible on everyone you pass. Obvious in anyone you talk to, including, I am sorry to say, my family. I felt like a stranger in a strange land.

I see the Philippines headed in the same direction, but I hope it all crashes and burns before it takes over completely. In the US, the war against cops is progressing nicely. The war against the 0.1% is beginning. The end of America as a free country is about complete.

At the moment, Americans are enjoying a taste of hell in their high temps and lack of rain. The election circus is in full swing. Domestic airlines are getting worse and worse. So many negatives… but gas is cheap! ^_^

JuanP on Sat, 23rd Jul 2016 6:39 am 



Welcome back, Mak! I am debating whether to go home for the holidays. I really don’t want to, but I think I should for my family. They really need another dose of reality because they are all living in denial and we are running out of time to prep as a family. I probably won’t do it, though. I’d love to put it off for another two years. It really takes a toll on my wellbeing, but I don’t look forward to letting most of them starve. The last time it took me weeks to fully recover. The people down there are unbearably closed minded and provincial. And, just like everywhere else, including the USA, it gets worse every day.

Kenz300 on Sat, 23rd Jul 2016 8:20 am 



Koch Brothers EXPOSED: 2014 • FULL DOCUMENTARY FILM • BRAVE NEW FILMS

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2N8y2SVerW8&spfreload=10

Koch Brothers Continue to Fund Climate Change Denial Machine, Spend $21M to Defend Exxon

http://ecowatch.com/2016/06/22/koch-defends-exxon/

Big Coal Funded This Prominent Climate Change Denier, Docs Reveal

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/roy-spencer-peabody-energy_us_57601e12e4b053d43306535e

Pope Francis’s edict on climate change will anger deniers and US churches | World news | The Guardian

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/dec/27/pope-francis-edict-climate-change-us-rightwing

Head Of The Episcopal Church Says It’s ‘Sinful’ To Ignore Climate Change

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/03/26/katherine-jefferts-schori-climate-change_n_6949532.html?utm_hp_ref=green&ir=Green

Kenz300 on Sat, 23rd Jul 2016 8:25 am 



Travel to the Real Philippines: Homeless Family w/ 3 Young Kids. Poverty among Filipinos is High

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HgCVQqSK_Vw

Too many people demand too many resources……yet the worlds population grows by 80 million every year…..

How many charities are dealing with the same problems they were dealing with 10 or 20 years ago with no end in sight. Every problem is made worse by the worlds growing population. IF you can not provide for yourself you can not provide for a child.

Birth Control Permanent Methods: Learn About Effectiveness

http://www.emedicinehealth.com/birth_control_permanent_methods/article_em.htm

makati1 on Sat, 23rd Jul 2016 10:56 am 



JuanP, I promised my sister that I would help her when my step father (93 y.o.) passes and his home has to be cleared and sold. THAT will likely be my next and LAST trip to the States. I am getting too old (72) to make that trip. Jet lag lasts a week now as I cannot sleep on a plane and those 30-40 hour days are too much.

As for family, I can do as much for them here as there. I send them things like emergency crank radios, books and small supplies useful for preps. Amazon gets a lot of my business. Only two of them even care. The others, I have sadly written off as not savable. They refuse to even listen.

Even my sister and brother-in-law are impossible. They don’t want to talk about the situation. Luckily, they are debt free and have several incomes. Both are retired.

I traveled thru 5 airports in the US this trip (and 3 in Asia) and worried if one of them would be in the news next. Dallas was one of them. Orlando was another. The central PA area, where my sister lives does not show signs of the problems … yet … but it is home to the US War College, US Naval Supply Depot, and an army supply depot, plus the major rail and interstate hub for 50 million people and literally many square miles of warehouses. Target?

Make you travel plans carefully, and stay home if you can. A long distance call or live cam is a lot cheaper, easier, and safer. LOL

Apneaman on Sat, 23rd Jul 2016 11:26 am 



Hey Mak, thanks fer saying. So, you did not come across even one person who had an inkling that something was wrong?

makati1 on Sat, 23rd Jul 2016 11:51 am 



Ap, my Bro-in-law sees the real US as I do, but has decided to not worry about it. They are in good shape financially. No debt. Good health, etc. Plus, they are in their 70s so death is not unexpected.

As for others, it is not a common subject discussed over lunch. I saw BAU with everyone glued to the propaganda mill (TV, I pads, I phones, etc.) One stewardess noticed that I was reading an actual book most of the time in flight and asked, as I left the plane, if I had finished it. Apparently actual books are rare these days. LOL

From my recent observation, I would say that most Americans are still oblivious to reality but sense that something is wrong. Not interested enough to check it out and see if there is something to be worried about. Yet.

Kenz300 on Sun, 24th Jul 2016 9:52 am 



7 Charts Show How Renewables Broke Records Globally in 2015

http://ecowatch.com/2016/06/03/renewable-investment-broke-records/

Fossil Fuels Vs. Renewables – Citizens’ Climate Lobby

https://citizensclimatelobby.org/laser-talks/jobs-fossil-fuels-vs-renewables/

Solar Added More New Capacity Than Coal, Natural Gas and Nuclear Combined

http://ecowatch.com/2016/06/09/solar-new-capacity/

Rick Bronson on Sun, 24th Jul 2016 3:30 pm 



June-2016 marked the hottest June on record just like the first 5 months from January – May.

So the hottest Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May & Jun are in the Year 2016. Let’s see the July.

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/jul/20/june-2016-14th-consecutive-month-of-record-breaking-heat-says-us-agencies

Rick Bronson on Sun, 24th Jul 2016 3:33 pm 



How much of the Oil is used in the process of drilling and refining.

Shale involves extensive and continuous drilling and also the heavy oil involves lot of refining.

Kenz300 on Mon, 25th Jul 2016 7:28 am 



The world is in transition to safer, cleaner and cheaper alternative energy sources……Prices for wind and solar keep falling making them more competitive around the world……..

Solar Added More New Capacity Than Coal, Natural Gas and Nuclear Combined

http://ecowatch.com/2016/06/09/solar-new-capacity/

Dubai Utility DEWA Said to Plan 1,000 MW of Solar Power Plants

http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/articles/2016/06/dubai-utility-dewa-said-to-plan-1-000-mw-of-solar-power-plants.html