Huge explosion at EXXON refinery
in California this morning.
= new reply since forum marked as read
If refinery capacity goes down prices go up, it's the same with most commodities.
And for mostly good reasons, it's VERY hard to build additional refineries.
One hedge against the problem is to electrify transportation so that as our grid gets more green so does our transport.
The used Chevy Volt I recently bought has gone about 8,122 miles on just 47 gallons of gasoline for a 173 MPG average.
About 6,000 miles of that 8,122 was all electric, shorter trips, and the rest was assisted by the onboard generator.
True, I had to pay for the electricity but under new billing rates for EV owners, my utility bill was actually a bit lower than it had been.
Much cleaner than gas!
So I need to correct both of your statements, if you don't mind. Most Americans just don't really know.
First, on EVs, the efficiency is so much greater in the natural gas to electrons to motion scenario that even if we use petroleum to generate electricity, the car is more clean.
In fact, the greenhouse gas impact of an EV on a pure coal power electrical mix is lower per mile than gasoline or diesel for the same vehicle class.
In Texas, like most states, your electricity comes from a mix of sources. BTW, you generate more electricity than any other state, about as much as the #2 and #3 combined! http://www.eia.gov/state/rankings/?sid=TX#/series/51
Not even half of your electricity is from Natural Gas, though it is the number one source, followed by coal and then by nuclear and wind.
The breakdown, however, for electricity in most places is dependent upon the specific utility provider. In California, PG&E has a very different mix of sources from SoCalEdison so what your EV "runs on" will vary.
Were you to name a city and it's utility provider, one could calculate the CO2 footprint and the efficiency and the sources of energy used, and the relative cost savings, compared to using gas for the same mile traveled in a similar vehicle class.
last year will only make $180,000 million this year, so that is absolutely not acceptable
Other end of the state this time.
http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Fire-at-Chevron-refinery-in-Richmond-3767221.php
The explosions started about 6:15 p.m., and at least two large fires spewed thick, black smoke into the darkening sky. ...
About five minutes after the explosions, sirens tore through the air, alerting residents to stay indoors to prevent breathing tainted air. Some people got in their cars and drove away from the smoke that spread throughout the neighborhoods east of the refinery....
A shelter-in-place warning was issued for Richmond, North Richmond and San Pablo and remained in effect late Monday. An advisory for those with lung conditions or a sensitivity to smoke to stay indoors was expanded to all of Contra Costa County. Residents as far away as the Oakland hills were being warned by police about smoke heading that way.
A dear friend lives basically right across the street.
