They are also resistant to H2S and CO2. While water is still quite effective in homogeneous reservoirs with light oils, most reservoirs exhibit some degree of heterogeneity and a polymer or gel sys- tem will increase oil recovery. What fluid is most effective is dictated by rock and oil properties. Fortunately, a process is available for most reservoir conditions . Boom and bust cycles used to play out over years, but the current cycle looks as if it could be condensed into a single year.
Volatility is the oil and gas industry's worst enemy.
This involves a concerted effort to educate both politicians and the public that new development is needed for the nation's energy future, letting them know the environmental lessons learned, and that development can occur in an environmentally sound manner. I recently heard that employment in the industry used to be in the 700,000s in the 1980s, but now it's only in the 300,000s. The average oil and gas worker is 46-47 years old. Dr. Sandra Mark, Director of the Rocky Mountain Region of the Petroleum Technology Transfer Council, sees this firsthand. Working out of the Colorado School of Mines, she's noticed that a high percentage of the students enrolled in petroleum engineering and petroleum geology courses are from other countries.