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(California) In-state oil fields don't all meet standard (some “dirtier” than tar sands)
http://www.sfgate.com/business/article/In-state-oil-fields-don-t-all-meet-standard-4267131.php[font face=Serif][font size=5]In-state oil fields don't all meet standard[/font]
David R. Baker
Published 5:50 pm, Sunday, February 10, 2013
[font size=3]Environmentalists often call oil from Canada's tar sands the dirtiest fuel on Earth, because the complex process of extracting it spews huge amounts of carbon dioxide into the air.
But by that standard, some of the crude oil pumped in California is just as dirty. In a few cases, it's even worse.
Several California oil fields produce just as much carbon dioxide per barrel of oil as the tar sands do, state data show. A handful of fields yield even more.
All of them are fields that have been pumped for years and now need injections of steam to squeeze out more oil. Power plants create the steam, releasing greenhouse gases in the process. The gases build up in the atmosphere, slowly warming the globe.
…[/font][/font]
David R. Baker
Published 5:50 pm, Sunday, February 10, 2013
[font size=3]Environmentalists often call oil from Canada's tar sands the dirtiest fuel on Earth, because the complex process of extracting it spews huge amounts of carbon dioxide into the air.
But by that standard, some of the crude oil pumped in California is just as dirty. In a few cases, it's even worse.
Several California oil fields produce just as much carbon dioxide per barrel of oil as the tar sands do, state data show. A handful of fields yield even more.
All of them are fields that have been pumped for years and now need injections of steam to squeeze out more oil. Power plants create the steam, releasing greenhouse gases in the process. The gases build up in the atmosphere, slowly warming the globe.
…[/font][/font]
