Mon, 28 Feb 2000 8:28 AEDT Concern over long-term petrol supplies for Australia

A warning has been sounded about Australia's long-term security of petrol supplies.

A key industry body is worried about declining levels of oil exploration.

For the second year in a row, investment in petroleum exploration is projected to decline.

The Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association says it is likely to fall to just $950 million this year, down from $1.2 billion in 1999.

The association says the overriding issue is continued uncertainty surrounding details of the goods and services tax (GST) implementation and business tax reform.

It says the seeds are possibly being sown for significant problems in the longer-term in areas such as security of petrol supplies, Australia's trade performance and the budget positions of the Federal and various state governments.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/newslink/nat/newsnat-28feb2000-29.htm

-- Martin Thompson (mthom1927@aol.com), February 27, 2000

Answers

The solution to the problem is simple, but implementation is extremely unlikely. Since there is not much oil left to extract, we must reduce our consumption. Significant extra investment will not find much more oil.

The equivalent investment in minimising our consumption, along with government policies with the same aims will go a lot further in serving the interest of all Australians.

-- Ilan Goldman (ilan@mira.net), March 01, 2000.

It surprises me, coming from the UK, that there is no environmentally friendly method of decreasing traffic in the cities - eg Park and Ride schemes, Cycleways on the roadways, subsidised train services. The pollution in Sydney is dreadful, and yet there is no way I could safely cycle to work - trust me I have tried, and the only route is through the domain/bottanical gardens where you get yelled at by angry joggers. So, Aussie Cities, sort out your roadways, reduce traffic, and increase the clean air. In addition, you will reduce petrol/oil consumption, and voila - the beginning of a solution.

-- Kitty Hawke (kitty_hawke@email.com), April 08, 2001.