Evening star., 1926-02-14
STOP WASTE OR u. S. OIL FLOW
ENDS In 8 YEARS, SAYS REQUA
Presidents Board Hears of Amateurish Well
Operation, Consequent Losses and Hope of
New Car Efficiency.

! Although VARYING views OF the
| future Of the United States With re
! gard to domestic production of petro
leum were presented to the Presi
| dents oil board at public hearings
! held during the past few years. leaders
Of the industry agreed on one major
| matter-thdt conservation measures
must be begun Immediately and
! pushed vigorously, to the end that
future generations of Americans may
not be entirely without petroleum or
find themselves reduced to oil pro
duced from shalc with its consequent
higher costs.
Varying pictures of future produc-
tiCD were presented to the board,
which Is composed of Secretary Of
the Interior Work. chairman. Secre-
tary OF War Davis, Secretary of the
Navy Wilbur and Secretary OF Com
merce Hoover.
Mark l.. Requa, one of the most
prominent oil men IN the United
States, told the board there is known
oil in the United States sufficient TO
last eight years if consumption does
not increase and 'if We could get 1t
all out in that time"
But consumption will increase and
we cannot get 1t out in eight years
so new discoveries are imperative. y
he added. The facts point to the
necessity for most efficient use of
what we have. he it 5000. 900 900 or
26 900 900 600 barrels -
Prevention of Waste.
Thomas A. O'Donnen of Los An.
geleS. who Is chairman OF the boa rd
Of directors of the California Petro.
leum Corporation, said in n paper he
read that the board should deliver a
message to the American petroleum
industry along these lines:
That conservation and the preven
ton OF waste Of the petroleum re
sources of the country are of grea,
national Importance. and that every
possible effort within our presen,
economic requirements should be
made to prevent waste and to protect
as far as possible, the probable needs
Of the Nation in the future.
That the board request the Ameri.
can Petroleum Institute, and the in.
dustry as a whole, to create an organ.
ization to conduct a nationwide cam.
paign to prevent waste, by co-opera.
tive effort.
Consumption and Production.
America. according TO Secretary
Work. Is proceeding with regard to Its
petroleum assets in much the same
manner as the man who earns 500 a
month and spends 800 a month. "OuY
oil fields in 1926" the Interior Secre.
tary said. yielded 10000. 900 barrels
OF crude petroleum and the consump-
ton was 100000 barrels. We pro.
duced ten billion gallons Of gasoline
and burned up nine billion gallons.
This is a common ratio.
How long. at this rate. can we. as
a nation. maintain our equilibrium in
manufacturer
Amos L. Beatty. president of the
Texas Co. told the board that present
well-operation methods are amateur
ish. while the board heard declarations
by Henry l.. Doherty. New York engi-
neer. that production in new oil fields
may be quadrupled by conservation
underground. of the gases which force
petroleum to the surface.
TT is rather shocking to think that
with all the brains and engineering
ability. with all the inventive genius
for which our country is renowned.
we should not be able to recover more
than one-fourth of the oil that reposes
in a stratum underground" Mr.. Beatty
said. What we are actually engaged
in is mere skimmtng operation. I
am very confident that In the course