UNWANTED ENERGY ABUNDANCE

They don't want a pipeline, they don't want offshore drilling and now it seems they don't want oil trains.

At least not passing through their towns. As noted in the story linked below: "It's no longer not in my backyard. It's no longer in anyone's backyard."

America's so-called energy abundance has many flaws, it's not only as some claim, fracking, but one few anticipated is the fact that despite not building any refineries for some time, the ones that do exist are mostly on the nation's coasts. That means oil discovered in places like North Dakota and Canada's midlands has to be shipped.

Enter what has become known as oil trains, 100-car long behemoths, hauling the flammable black stuff  from the Heartland to the terminals located at America's two shiny seas. "With U.S. oil production at a 28-year high, new pipelines in booming shale areas like North Dakota's Bakken have not kept up. This has also pushed more crude onto trains," according to Reuters

Canadian oil flowing to the U.S. comes by rail and these shipments in the past three years are, according to one government agency, "up 20-fold." Train derailments occasionally happen, not to mention some unpleasant side effects of even safe shipping like smell and pollution, things that get people upset when it's in their backyard.

Environmentalists or otherwise, the fact is few ever really anticipate the unintended fallout of their actions. It's a human trait as common as irrational behavior. 

Blocking Keystone XL pipeline, like most things in life, is not without its downside, depending on how one looks at it. There are vested interests on both sides. You can bet that Mr. Obama and Mr. Buffett didn't want the pipeline. One for the votes, the other the so-called filthy green stuff.

Nor did many residing along its path.and keep in mind the pipeline was to run through middle America and part of  Buffett's home state Nebraska.

California, a state noted for its environmental craziness, "may receive 25 percent of its oil by rail in 2016, up from 1 percent" currently, the state's Energy Commission says. "About 60 oil-train terminals already exist along the 140,000 miles of U.S. rail tracks, and at least 30 more are planned, including eight in California"

Now the Golden Bear State and it's 34-plus million folks is one that likes to burn some oil. So you're beginning to get a fix on the developing drama as the disgruntlement spreads. And it is. 

Two recent oil-train derailments, one in Virginia and another in the City of Brotherly Love, have raised the awareness bar of what can go wrong. The farther you have to ship stuff is like being on the freeway. The longer you are, the more chances increase for an unwanted mishaps.

Some of the disgruntled may want to express their displeasure to the Grump of Omaha, Mr. Buffett, the Moat Man himself, since he bought up all of Burlington Northern railway a few years back, the only one in and out of the Bakken area. If that sounds like a moat to you, welcome aboard. 

More recently Mr. Buffett has claimed in public he's already looking for his next elephant (Probably not the best use of metaphors given all the animals rights folks around and we love our pets.) in the energy section.

Interruption of the trains could delay the whole process and cause a jump in energy prices something most us would look forward to, especially since the price of energy is excluded from the government's CPI. 

We just won't notice we're paying more and have less discretionary income to spend will we.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/05/25/us-oil-railway-towns-idUSBREA4O06A20140525