The Flaring Scandal that Shames the US

The Flaring Scandal that Shames the US

Twenty years ago, Ken Saro-Wiwa, who was then largely unknown in the west either as an environmental activist or writer, started touring the capitals of Europe to drum up support for the Ogoni campaign against the oil giant Shell. Saro-Wiwa and the Ogoni had many issues with Shell – the fact that they had received … Read More

Oil markets and pipelines: the big picture

Oil markets and pipelines: the big picture

Oil Change International released a report yesterday asserting that much of the oil to be delivered by the proposed Keystone XL pipeline will be refined into diesel and exported.  We seem to have touched a raw nerve with some people as we have been accused of all sorts, from untruths to being unfamiliar with the … Read More

Canadian Pipedream

Canadian Pipedream

Why Canadian oil does not make America secure Political turmoil in the Middle East once again exposes America’s dependence on oil and its vulnerability to global price spikes. On Capitol Hill, Big Oil’s political lackeys are stepping up their campaign for supply solutions and the current must-have item on their list is the Keystone XL … Read More

Here we go again! Blah baby Blah

Here we go again! Blah baby Blah

As oil prices surge in response to the appalling violence in Libya, the House Natural Resources Committee offered their usual worn out suggestions for addressing America’s vulnerability to oil price shocks; more domestic drilling. Clearly energy only means one thing to this GOP dominated committee, fossil fuels. Domestic drilling may help Americans feel like something’s … Read More

Posting the Wrong Message on the Tar Sands

Posting the Wrong Message on the Tar Sands

When Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper met Barack Obama at the end of last week he asked the American president to support a highly controversial $7-billion pipeline that could double the amount of dirty tar sands that could be exported to the United States. TransCanada’s proposed Keystone XL pipeline has been on hold since last … Read More

Putting Tar Sands in Your Tank …

Disaster One. New estimates put the amount of oil per day pouring into the Gulf of Mexico at one million gallons a day. If this is so, BP’s disaster may have spilt more oil than the Exxon Valdez, when at least eleven million gallons poured from the stricken tanker. Disaster Two. There is another ecological … Read More

The Price of Oil: Local Pollution

Every link in the chain of oil production, from exploration through consumption, generates profound damage to the local environment and communities. As the industry moves towards increasingly risky forms of fossil fuel production, the impacts become more pronounced. A notable Harvard Medical School study identifies impacts from many aspects of oil production. Exploration for new … Read More