A rare victory for people power. The Guardian has reported how the Achuar Indians from the Amazon have managed to get the Peruvian government to take notice of their plight. For decades they had been saying that their land had been heavily polluted and their waters poisoned by oil exploration, but they had been consistently … Read More
Later today, some of BP’s most senior executives will face their first Congressional grilling over their corrosion problems at Prudhoe Bay. Although BP’s embattled CEO Sir John Browne won’t be testifying, Bob Malone, the new head of BP America will be grilled by the House Committee on Energy and Commerce. The hearing is called “BP’s … Read More
As well as facing a lawsuit from its shareholders, it has emerged that BP now faces three Congressional hearings into its problems at Prudhoe Bay. Republican Don Young, has scheduled a hearing of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, for Sept. 13.
Sunday’s local newspaper reported that gasoline sales in Vermont were 13 percent below prediction in February of this year and almost 15 percent low for May. I have no theories on the May swoon, aside from the toll continued high prices are having on us all, but I’m reasonably sure the February dip was due … Read More
Here is Rich Cookson’s third blog from Sakhalin. “In early-morning off-the-record briefings, Sakhalin Energy’s (SE) employees – many of them from Shell – insist that the company is committed to protecting the island’s environment. They say, for instance, that the company has new scientific data which proves that its offshore activities have had no discernable … Read More
BP’s woes continue. Hurricanes, explosions, spills, price-fixing and now a production short-fall. BP admitted yesterday that it produced less oil in the past three months than many analysts had predicted, leading some suggesting it could miss its crucial production targets for the year. The company has blamed Venezuelan President Hugo Cavez for the shortfall at … Read More
I would just like to tell you that we haven’t specifically got it in for BP – the oil giant seems to have it in for itself. Hot on the heels of news of the company being investigated for price manipulation and propane is the news that a group of prominent black leaders in the … Read More
There is an alarming record of human rights abuses by governments and corporations associated with fossil fuel operations, resulting in appropriation of land, forced relocation, and even the brutal and sometimes deadly suppression of critics. In addition to strong evidence for a ‘repression effect’ from oil production, in which resource wealth thwarts democratization by enabling … Read More
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
