Ten Years Ago .....

Canada Pingo Park - Tuktoyaktuk, NT
Photo Credit PSJalkotzy

In late 1999, I was working with the Canadian Energy Research Institute (Canadian Energy Research Institute (CERI)) and was provided the opportunity to contribute to a piece they were doing on Northern Gas Pipelines.  It has been a project that has morphed and evolved and re-invented itself over and again in many different forms.  And this applies equally to the Alaskan or Canadian efforts.  It has been a much more stop than go process.  My task was to look at a comparison of potential solutions to transporting northern gas to southern markets from an environmental and regulatory perspective.


It gave me a chuckle to see reference to a FACTBOX from Reuters laying out the details of the current ware in consideration.  This as we in Canada wait for the Joint Panel Review report from the lengthy process that took place over the last far too many years.  At one point I looked at the comparison of the Snohvit gas field development off Norway's coast.  Well, there is no comparison.  Snohvit is in production (despite significant challenges and delays).  Northern gas is still stranded in North America.  Russia is looking with new energy at the Shtokman field.  Don't get me wrong, the current circumstances, the fundamentals pose significant barriers to consideration of bringing northern gas to southern markets.  But what if we hadn't spent the last thirty years "deciding", "negotiating", "settling"?  Or how about we take serious about the importance of some of these types of projects, and "make" them happen.  Regardless, let's make sure we keep the bigger picture in mind, and do what is best for the overall healthy of society and its people.  Let's be careful of the degree with which we integrate our world - we are seeing to some degree the unwinding of some of that 'globalization'.  


The instability and interconnectedness of our economies is at a level not experienced before.  Supply chains have shown new risk.  As written in a blogger's commentary:

demand gets there first, supply chain gets there second, currency gets there third, inflation gets there fourth, revolution gets there fifth.

AND that is a function of the relationships it represents.  And what does THAT relationship look like?

“Without transparency of central bank facilities and policies, there can be no accountability for misuse of public resources and abuse of the public trust. Transparency provides an essential check on bank mismanagement, even for central bankers.

And for me, the entire basis of the system we "live" in comes down to trust and integrity.  I trust my children with their teachers.  I trust the driver in front or behind me to be mindful.  I trust my bank with my money.  I trust people will treat me fairly.  Not always, but in general.  Sadly, both are lacking in today's world.  And as our economic conditions deteriorate under the depth and weight of the collective debt - financial, social, spiritual, etc. etc. , trustworthiness and integrity with deteriorate further as when things become difficult, scarcity of resources (of all kinds) will be a powerful driver.


I'm really looking forward to my days in the cabin (of my dreams).




Reuters
FACTBOX: Planned North American Arctic gas lines
Reuters - Jeffrey Jones, Claudia Parsons - ‎Dec 9, 2009‎
(Reuters) - Energy companies and governments are struggling to advance multibillion-dollarpipelines to tap Arctic gas reserves and bring the supplies to ...
FACTBOX-Planned North American Arctic gas lines Reuters

Globe and Mail
Economics, politics chill Mackenzie pipeline dreams
Globe and Mail - ‎Dec 9, 2009‎
The next big step for the 1220 km pipeline is expected this month, when Canada's Joint Review Panel is due to release a report into environmental and ...