I am strongly in favor of the Valencia County overlay zone approval. We need more oil and gas exploration not less. It will be a great boost to the county's economy.
I have read objections to the overlay zone and potential oil and gas drilling because of impacts on "lifestyle". We need to face the truth that the only reason we all enjoy the "lifestyle" we have is because of fossil fuels. The radical anti-fossil fuel crowd loves to over-exaggerate negative aspects of fossil fuel development but ignore the unique, massive, and desperately needed benefits to human welfare from fossil fuels. Without fossil fuel benefits, no one, including the antis, would have the tools and wherewithal to live like we do now.
Development of fossil fuels has not made the earth more unlivable but has made the earth a more hospitable, safe, and healthier place to live. Fossil fuels are the only form of energy that provides every type of energy need at low cost and on demand for billions of people. Fossil fuels provide 80% of the world's energy and 90% or the world's transportation energy.
Because of fossil fuels, the world has never been a better place to live. Life expectancy and incomes have risen steadily. Fossil fuels have made us far safer from climate by providing low-cost energy for the amazing machines that protect us against storms, protect us against extreme temperatures, and alleviate drought. The truth about fossil fuels and climate is that fossil fuels have emitted CO2 that has contributed to some warming as well as significant greening. Most importantly, fossil fuels have produced and powered the infrastructure that keeps us safer from climate than ever. In fact, climate disaster deaths have decreased 98% over the last century.
Looking back a little more than 100 years, it’s easy to see how civilization has benefited from fossil fuel products to meet the demands of the 8 billion living on earth with more than 6,000 products made from oil. None of these products and subsequent infrastructures were available to society before 1900. The antis would have us go back to living the "lifestyle" of the late 1800's.
Wind turbines and solar panels may be able to generate intermittent electricity from breezes and sunshine, but they cannot manufacture anything. All the products needed to make the parts for vehicles, wind turbines, solar panels, planes, ships, medical supplies, tires, asphalt, and fertilizer are made with the oil derivatives manufactured from crude oil. Getting rid of oil will eliminate virtually everything in our daily lives and economies.
Another of the great green over-exaggerations is that oil and gas exploration will have significant effects on our water. Other than the totally discredited Michael Moore movie, oil and gas exploration has minimal impacts on water other than usage and that compares favorably to the water used for such luxuries as golf courses. With modern drilling and sealing techniques, there have been no documented cases of harming our water supplies in New Mexico.
Another good thing about the overlay zone is that it is just the starting point in the process. It does not give automatic approval for a particular drilling site. Additional analysis and public input will be required for any specific drilling proposal. No one knows if there is oil and gas to be found in Valencia County. We will never find out unless exploration is permitted.
I urge approval of the overlay zone as originally submitted and approved. It will be a boon for our county.
Jim Crawford has a Bachelor of Science in Forest Management and worked 33 years in various duties with the U.S. Forest Service. Jim retired in 2006 and has spent thousands of hours as a grassroots advocate, pushing back with facts against radical environmental policies. Married for over 61 years, Jim enjoys visiting other places around the country with his wife in a 5th wheel travel trailer.
