Tuesday, 04 Oct 2005

When oceans activist David Helvarg got into his rental car and pointed it toward the city of New Orleans, he didn't know what to expect. But he soon found out just what this notorious ghost town looks like, feels like, and smells like. Through conversations with scientists, soldiers, and survivors, he also got a glimpse of what could come next. Helvarg describes the scene.

The Drill of the Chase

Offshore and Arctic Refuge drilling out of House bill -- for now

House Republican efforts to open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and U.S. coastal waters to oil drilling are dead for now, but are likely to return, zombie-like, from the grave. Rep. Richard Pombo (R-Calif.) had offered legislation, intended as part of a larger House energy package, that would have allowed individual states to opt out of the coastal oil-drilling moratorium in return for a cut of the resulting federal royalties. Although there were signs last week that it was gaining key adherents among Florida representatives, the House Resources Committee subsequently amended the measure to open all federal waters to natural-gas drilling -- with no control by states. Florida's reps protested, and yesterday Pombo withdrew the entire measure from consideration, including his proposal for Arctic Refuge drilling. But we've all seen the horror movies: This ain't over. Pombo is eyeing an upcoming filibuster-proof budget reconciliation bill as a likely vehicle for riders on both issues. It lives!


Last week, President Bush asked his employees to give up their parking passes for Metro passes. He's not the first boss to encourage workers to use alternative modes of transportation -- in fact, even before the recent hurricanes jacked up oil prices, companies around the country were hopping on the car-free trend. From offering prizes for carpoolers to letting the PJ-prone work at home, businesses are learning how to do more with less ... gas, that is. Joel Makower explains.

We'll Always Have Parish

Louisiana faces massive trash and toxics cleanups

New Orleans' ecological recovery is likely to be both complex and lengthy. State environmental officials say Hurricane Katrina left around 22 million tons of debris in southeast Louisiana, 12 million of it in Orleans Parish. The ginormous load of trash ranges from organics like downed trees and rotting food to about 60,000 boats and 350,000 cars. Louisiana oil refineries, pipelines, and storage facilities wrecked by Katrina spilled millions of gallons of oil, and it'll take months to clean up the mess. One 1.5-million-gallon spill from a refinery in a neighborhood southeast of New Orleans contaminated about 1,000 homes. And overall ecological damage -- to marshes, fishing grounds, urban environments, and more -- is so massive, some observers say it'll take years to assess and repair. Says Harry Roberts, director of the Louisiana State University's Coastal Studies Institute, "This is an unprecedented event in terms of devastation and scale."

Porcine of the Times

Bush administration launches cartoon conservation campaign

With gas prices already skyrocketing and home heating costs expected to follow, the Bush administration yesterday unveiled a long-term clean-energy and conservation program. Oh, wait, did we say "long-term clean-energy and conservation program"? What we meant was "cartoon character." Yes, yesterday the Department of Energy (working with consumer group Alliance to Save Energy) introduced a campaign featuring Energy Hog, a sneering swine in leather jacket and jeans who will join McGruff the Crime Dog and Woodsy Owl in the pantheon of animated mascots failing to solve national problems. Energy Hog will offer Americans a fun, funny, and positive role model as they strive to ... hog energy? No, wait. He'll be featured on billboards, in magazine ads, and in public-service radio announcements sent to about 4,500 radio stations nationwide, giving advice on how to save energy at home and gas in cars. Remember: give an oink, don't, uh ... waste energy!