Global crop production shows some signs of stagnating

After decades of rapidly growing global agricultural output, production of four of the world’s most important crops could be stagnating or even slowing in some regions, according to a new study published in Nature, a top scientific journal. The study, by the University of Minnesota’s Deepak Ray and four others, examined millions of census reports […]

The Outlook for Steady State Economics in 2013

The Center for the Advancement of the Steady State Economy (CASSE) has been the leading organization in advancing the steady state economy as a policy goal for nearly ten years. Maybe that’s not saying much, because CASSE has been the only organization focused on advancing the steady state economy. But times, they are a-changin’. Others […]

Pulling the Plug on Energy Waste: A Guide to Efficient Consumer Electronics

The typical American household owns about 25 gadgets–TVs, phones, video game consoles, cable boxes, computers, and other consumer electronics–many of which waste energy by continuing to draw power even when they’re off, or in stand-by mode. All those gadgets waste about several billion dollars worth of electricity each year, nationwide. According to the U.S Department […]

EU must drastically reduce its oil imports

The Swedish newspaper Svenska Dagbladet has now, 2012 December 23, published my article “EU must drastically reduce its oil imports”. In Swedish, “EU måste skära ner sin oljeimport drastiskt“. Michael Lardelli has made a great translation of the article and I have added some relevant photos and graphs. Every week you are around 1000 persons […]

There’s no such thing as energy independence in our globalized, fossil-fueled world

Anyone who tells you that energy independence can be achieved based on globally traded commodities such as oil, coal and natural gas is either trying to mislead you or doesn’t understand the structure of energy markets. As of 2011 fossil fuels produced 83 percent of the world’s energy according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration […]

$7/gallon for milk next year?

Forget the fiscal crisis and the automatic budget cuts. Come Jan. 1, there is a threat that milk prices could rise to $6 to $8 a gallon if Congress does not pass a new farm bill that amends farm policy dating back to the Truman presidency. Lost in the political standoff between the Obama administration […]

If Capitalism is Sociopathic, How Should We Make a Living?

[As background to this long post, I highly recommend that you read another set of long posts from Venkatesh Rao entitled The Gervais principle. I will be using terminology from his first article but summarizing a bit at the beginning of this post, so reading Rao’s isn’t strictly required.] Let’s start with a hypothesis. I […]

Why Renters Use More Electricity

Energy Star appliances are far more common in owner-occupied dwellings, data show. Why do people buy inefficient refrigerators and clothes washers when spending a little more for an efficient one would save them money over time through lower electricity or water bills? There are a variety of reasons, but one that is persistently cited is […]

Saudi Arabia’s Oil Minister Naimi Says Supply Matches Demand

Saudi Arabian Oil Minister Ali al- Naimi said demand for crude matches supply and the global market is stable. “The market is functioning well,” Naimi told reporters in Cairo before a meeting tomorrow of the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries. “Supply is adequate. Demand matches supply. If there is extra supply it is helping […]

Peak Philosophy: The economic contraction narrative needs facts, not theory

These days, people are maxed out on every level trying to get through life as everything gets more tedious, expensive, and uncertain. The onslaught of “glittering generalities” and opinionated political rhetoric coming from popular media and paid advertising on “both” sides is enough to make many shut off and tune out – their philosophical bandwidth […]

Nate Hagens: The end of growth

  Energy Hub, WUD Society and Politics Committee, and Madison Peak Oil Group host energy/finance expert Nate Hagens for a presentation that weaves together economics, anthropology, psychology, finance, trade, energy and human behavior into a coherent story about our human social system. In a visual synthesis using pictures and paintings instead of charts and graphs, Nate uses biophysical first […]

Why World Coal Consumption Keeps Rising; What Economists Missed

A primary reason why coal consumption is rising is because of increased international trade, starting when the World Trade Organization was formed in 1995, and greatly ramping up when China was added in December 2001. Figure 1 shows world fossil fuel extraction for the three fossil fuels. A person can see a sharp “bend” in […]

What Your Potential Customers Should Know About Energy Prices

Recently, the folks at Grist tipped us off to some interesting new stats from the Consumer Price Index that show how prices of various commodities in the U.S. economy have changed over the past year. We think that, for companies offering home performance and energy efficiency services, the story these numbers tell should be right up […]

The Global Food Crisis & Bernanke’s Recipe for Disaster

Our goal is to help as many people as possible become aware of the disaster we are rapidly approaching with the end of cheap resources. In our opinion, the wealth of most Americans could get wiped out during the next decade due to commodity inflation. Focusing on your real purchasing power, altering your lifestyle, and […]

The Pros and Cons of Natural-Gas Vehicles

Clean. Abundant. Cheap. Domestic. What’s not to like about natural gas? So why not use it to power a car? Most Americans think of natural gas as a fuel source to heat their homes or run their clothes dryers or stoves. But natural-gas cars have been zipping around foreign highways for decades. According to the […]

Warnings of oil running out are just baloney

How much would you pay for a barrel of Irish rainwater? Not much I guess, as it is heavily oversupplied despite being told that water is an increasingly scarce resource worldwide. This baloney about world ending “facts” applies to the oil market too, and anyone betting on oil prices rising continuously are advised to think […]

Oil Imported, Than Refined Products Exported From USA By “Our Oil Companies”

In 2011, the United States consumed more than 97 quadrillion Btu (quads) of energy, despite only producing about 78 quads. The difference—about 18 quads—reflects the balance of imports and exports of energy. Petroleum, which includes crude oil as well as petroleum products, accounted for a majority of both energy imports and exports. The United States […]

Kunstler: America the Horror Show

Finally the USA has an act that perfectly expresses its true spirit as the horror show nation among nations: the random mass slaughter of little children by a maniac. Is it not so that the failure to protect little children from harm is the most shameful weakness an adult human can present?      Next, […]

“Peak farmland” is here, food crop area to fall

The amount of land needed to grow crops worldwide is at a peak and an area more than twice the size of France can return to nature by 2060 due to rising yields and slower population growth, a group of experts said on Monday. The report, conflicting with U.N. studies that say more cropland will […]

In growing global market for energy, coal still dominates

A surge in natural gas production in North America and regulatory assaults in the US can give the impression that coal’s future is grim. Not so, says Energy-Facts.org. The misimpression can be especially strong in the US, where gas prices very low by international standards and regulations from the Environmental Protection Agency are displacing coal […]

What everybody ought to know about energy

If you’ve ever looked for an iron-clad case that the fossil energy supply is out-of-control, over-the-top destructive –of planet, wildlife, people’s health and culture– then check out Energy, the latest publication of the Post Carbon Institute. The word “breathtaking” has become cliche when put with “photographs” but here it really applies. You will gasp aloud […]

Will Israel Sell its Natural Gas to China?

Several issues related to the production of natural gas in Israel’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) have not yet been properly analyzed and no decision concerning them has been adopted. Some of these issues have economic as well as political strategic implications, and particularly as they are within an industry that is guided by long term […]

Fixing the Future

Host David Brancaccio tackles one of the toughest challenges facing Americans today: How does our country create jobs that pay well and build prosperity? Brancaccio travels across America uncovering innovative community and small business projects pioneered by inspirational personalities.

World Bank and US National Intelligence Council Agree: This Will Be the Chinese Century

When the bureaucrats and analysts of the World Bank and the US NIC agree that the US is on the way down, and China is on the way up, then it must be true, nicht wahr? On Monday, the National Intelligence Council released its fifth “Global Trends” report. Among its conclusions, the study predicted that the Chinese economy would […]

How Unconventional Oil And Gas Is Supercharging The U.S. Economy

It’s an exciting time to be in the energy industry in America. The impact of unconventional oil and gas development on the U.S. economy is considerable, with potentially hundreds of billions of dollars in investments, millions of new jobs, and a renaissance of American ingenuity and innovation. In thinking about what is to come, looking […]

Oil in for a crude awakening

This morning, the price of oil, West Texas Intermediate crude, is around $US86.00 a barrel. That’s a hefty 10 per cent lower than where it was at the start of 2012 and 40 per cent down from the 2008 peak. It is no exaggeration to say that a crash in the oil price could be […]

Death of a Battery

All the metrics looked great. The 2.7-year-old lead acid batteries in my off-grid photovoltaic system appeared to have settled into a consistent mid-life performance. Monthly maintenance (equalizing, adding distilled water) promised to keep the batteries in prime condition for some time to come. Based on cycle depth, I expected another 2.5 years out of the […]

IEA sees sluggish oil demand in 2013, good supply

Global oil demand will be sluggish throughout 2013 as economic expansion remains tepid and oil supply levels comfortable, which could alleviate oil price pressures on consumers, the West’s energy agency said on Wednesday. “Global demand growth is expected to stay relatively sluggish through 2013, based on the continued assumption of tepid global economic expansion,” the […]

Why Malthus Got His Forecast Wrong

Most of us have heard that Thomas Malthus made a forecast in 1798 that the world would run short of food, and that great famine would result. But most of us don’t understand why he was wrong. This issue is relevant today, as we grapple with the issues of world hunger and of oil consumption that […]

Exxon Forecasts 35% Global Energy-Demand Growth by 2040

Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM), the world’s biggest oil producer by market value, raised its long-term global energy-demand growth estimate to 35 percent from 32 percent as expanding populations in Africa and India use more electricity. Worldwide consumption of fuels to run power plants, trucks, trains and airplanes will climb to the equivalent of 705 quadrillion […]

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