Peak oil piques energy concern

If we are nearing peak oil, and energy prices continue to skyrocket, will this concern for aesthetics seem as quaint as the $3 barrel of oil? The same question holds true on this coast: How long will California’s resistance to offshore oil drilling withstand triple-digit oil prices?

Michael C. Moore, a member of the California Energy Commission during the energy crisis of 2000-2001, recalled at the seminar that the supply-strapped state relied on coal-fired power plants to make up our electricity shortfall. In only three and four hours of operation, those plants exceeded their air quality permits for an entire year, he said.

If another energy crisis comes, will our environmental concerns go up in smoke again?

North County Times