TechnoSanity #28: Offshore drilling on the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf, an Interior Department hearing, held in San Francisco, April 16, 2009

In the waning days of the Bush Administration they released a draft Continental Shelf 5-year program meant to cover 2010-2015. The current program runs from 2007-2012 and it's curious that there's an overlap. The overlap means that the Bush Administration sped up the 5-year planning process by a couple years. Under the normal schedule the next 5-year plan would have covered the years 2012-2017. To support putting the new plan together the Department of the Interior is holding a series of public hearings, and the following is based on the San Francisco hearing on April 16, 2009.

At stake is oil and gas drilling in the Outer Continental Shelf. You may recall a slogan in the 2008 Presidential Election was "Drill Baby Drill, Drill Here, Drill Now" as if drilling for more oil is what will solve the energy woes faced by the U.S. The U.S. is importing nearly 70% of the oil we use and of course the money spent on that oil undermines the U.S. economy (balance of trade), and is a national security matter (the oil rich countries have power over the U.S.). The Conservative Republican answer is to drill for oil. However anybody who's looked at the data realizes there is very little oil involved, and that it will take decades before the oil can come to market.

It's clear the attendees were overwhelmingly taking a different attitude about the problem. Over and over the presenters and question askers gave a different strategy than "Drill Now, Drill Here". Instead they overwhelmingly opposed drilling for new oil, and advocated instead use of renewable energy. Rather than spend the money on oil drilling rigs etc, spend the money on new technologies.

It's clear that a big event in their mind is the Santa Barbara oil spill in the 1960's. That oil spill put an image in everybody's mind of spoiled beaches, dead birds, etc. FWIW The attendees were overwhelmingly Californians.

The NIMBY aspect of this strikes me. California cities are overwhelmingly designed around the use of CARS and TRUCKS to move around the cities. Overwhelmingly those vehicles require fossil fuels to move around. Hence that oil has to come from somewhere and to deny the possibility of drilling for oil off the California coast means pushing the oil infrastructure fueling California's cars is conducted in someone else's back yard.

At least most of them advocated tying a shift to renewable energy resources combined with a ban on further oil drilling. Tying the two together is more honest than simply denying further oil drilling. However for the most part renewable energy resources are not in the forum of liquid fuels, but in the form of electricity. To continue supporting transportation systems through a renewable fuel is going to mean electrically driven transportation.

Some data presented.. while big oil spills are thankfully rare, there are small spills all the time. It's estimated there are 2 million gallons per year of small oil spills.

Offshore drilling comes with higher risk of disasters. The further offshore the bigger the risk. Off the Pacific coast the oil fields thought to exist are in deep water, and there are doubts over the possibility to safely drill in those deep waters. Further oil drilling causes the release of mercury and other contaminants, simply from the drilling platform.

One of the proposed locations is in an ocean upwelling zone off the Northern California Coast. Upwelling zones are vital places of abundant sea life where upward ocean currents carry nutrients to the surface feeding an abundant array of life. Allowing oil drilling to occur in that upwelling zone would convert it into a dead zone.

A draft proposal has been produced by the government outlining the plan: Draft Proposed Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Oil and Gas Leasing Program 2010–2015

Offshore drilling on the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf, an Interior Department hearing, held in San Francisco, April 16, 2009

Technosanity #27: Zero X Motorcycle demo ride

While at the 24 Hours of Electricross race, I took a demo ride on the motorcycle. This is the video.
Technosanity #27: Zero X Motorcycle demo ride

Technosanity #26: Interview w/ Don Amador at 24 Hours of Electricross

Continued coverage of the 24 Hours of Electricross race, continuing from Technosanity #25: 24 Hours of Electricross - Interview with Neal Saiki. Don Amador is with the Blue Ribbon Coalition, an organization specializing with taking off-highway vehicles (OHV) into the wilderness (mission: "The BlueRibbon Coalition champions responsible use of public lands and waters for the benefit of all recreationists by educating and empowering its members").

He attended the race to measure noise levels to understand the potential for electric off-highway vehicles to address noise issues related to OHV use. With a noise meter he recorded the race as producing 60-67 dB whereas normal motorcycle races produce noise in the 100+ dB range. At 65dB it is the same as regular conversation between people.

Electric vehicles offer more than mitigating environmental damage from burning fossil fuels, and they offer more than a way out of the peak oil mess. They offer a solution to noise pollution in our cities.

After 100+ years of gasoline vehicle use our society has become immunized to the noise coming from them. But they are noisy even if we're not aware of that noise. Think of the potential change to the quality of our cities if there were a preponderance of electric vehicles.

Technosanity #26: Interview w/ Don Amador at 24 Hours of Electricross

Technosanity #25: 24 Hours of Electricross - Interview with Neal Saiki

On April 4-5, 2009, Zero Motorcycles held the 24 Hours of Electricross race. This was an endurance race for their brand of electric motorcycle, 24 hours in length, 10 teams, three battery packs per team, the winner being the team achieving the most number of laps during that period. I've never been to a dirt bike race, never ridden a "dirt bike" style motorcycle "on dirt", but am an electric vehicle enthusiast and was excited to see this race occur.

I've been to the NEDRA race, the National Electric Drag Racing Association has a goal, shared by Zero Motorcycles, of proving that electric cars aren't boring golf carts. Electric vehicle races are a great way to show electric vehicles can be fast. However the NEDRA race is in the form of a drag race, 1/4 mile, 10-15 seconds, and that's it. The Electricross race just kept going and going and going. What made this possible is a motorcycle frame design which allows for quickly changing the battery pack. I observed several times a racer would come in off the track, the pit crew quickly change out the pack, and within a minute or so the bike is back on the track (with a new rider).

Quick change battery packs are not a new idea. Famously this is a key of the Project Better Place plan, however the idea is very old and goes back to the earliest days of electric vehicles. Zero Motorcycles have simply done a great job of implementing this old idea.

Other coverage
Zero Motorcycles hosts first-ever 24 Hours of Electricross
Electric Motorcycle Impresses Motocross Crowd
First International Electric Motocross Sets Guinness World Records And Only Cost $100 To Power All 10 Dirt Bikes For 24 Hours.
Zero Motorcycles sets electric motorcycle endurance record
Technosanity #25: 24 Hours of Electricross - Interview with Neal Saiki