Latest Articles
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Obama’s finally connecting the Gulf spill and clean energy. Champagne time?
My request for President Obama is simple, really: Dust off the secret presidential SCUBA suit, invite the Senate’s biggest oil-industry shills on a “fact-finding mission” to the Gulf (promise shrimp cocktails if necessary), and use them to plug up BP’s hole. Failing that, Obama could start talking about the connection between the oil gusher, climate […]
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The federal government needs to take command of the disaster response
This post is co-authored by Tom Kenworthy. There are obvious limits to how much control the federal government can exert over the frantic and so far hapless effort to stem the catastrophic oil eruption that threatens the entire Gulf of Mexico with ecological devastation. As Coast Guard Commandant Thad Allen said Monday, the government does […]
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How would you stop the Gulf oil gusher?
Plug it up? If only it were so simple …They’ve tried underwater robots, a containment dome, a riser tube (which has been siphoning up at least a bit of the gushing flow), and relief wells (still being drilled, a process that will take months). They’re now attempting a top kill. They might still try a […]
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Will Obama admin allow Shell Oil to do to Arctic waters what BP did to the Gulf?
This essay was originally published on TomDispatch and is republished here with Tom’s kind permission. —– Polar bear approaching Bowhead remains from a previous year’s hunt, Bernard harbor outside Kaktovik, 2001.Photo: Subhankar BanerjeeBear with me. I’ll get to the oil. But first you have to understand where I’ve been and where you undoubtedly won’t go, but […]
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Endocrine disruptors really do suck
U.S. manufacturers and agribusiness are addicted to endocrine disruptors — dangerous chemicals that alter the natural function of the body’s hormones. They are frequently used in plastics, in pesticides, and in personal care products and act in the human body as a “false” version of estrogen. They appear to be linked to a variety of […]
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NWF scientist visits habitat hit hard by oil spill
Dr. Doug Inkley, certified wildlife biologist & senior scientist with the National Wildlife Federation, called me from Louisiana at 6:30am Central time. He was heading down to Venice Marina for another long day on the water viewing the effects of the BP oil disaster, but before motoring out beyond cell service, Doug wanted to tell […]
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Deforestation reductions could save U.S. farmers, ranchers, and foresters $220 Billion
If losing one football sized area of forestland every second or the potential to stop global warming pollution equivalent to all the world’s transportation sector aren’t compelling enough reasons to support efforts to halt tropical deforestation, then here is one more reason….$$$$$. A new report from the National Farmers Union and Avoided Deforestation Partners shows […]
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Big energy vs. coal ash regulation
A special Facing South investigation. At her January 2009 confirmation hearing, Lisa Jackson promised to take action on coal ash.Photo: Senate Enviroment and Public Works CommitteeWhen the catastrophic coal ash spill occurred at the Tennessee Valley Authority’s Kingston plant in 2008, a quiet debate over how to regulate coal ash had already been going on […]
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Will BP take responsibility for the Gulf spill or squeeze profits from it?
This post is co-authored by Susan Lyon. ExxonMobil will convene its annual shareholders meeting in Dallas this morning as the magnitude of the ongoing BP oil disaster grows. This is a reminder that oil companies need to be held accountable for their actions—both while the oil gushes from the ocean floor and 20 years after […]
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Oil rig workers missed ‘very large abnormality’ before explosion
The Deepwater Horizon after the explosion.Photo: U.S. Coast GuardHere’s something to fill you with confidence on the eve of BP’s risky “Top Kill” gambit: Workers on the Deepwater Horizon rig missed warnings that something was seriously wrong before the rig exploded. BP itself, in a memo to a House committee, reveals that crewmen failed to […]
