Articles by Grist staff

Senate Oils Industry's Hand

The Senate did a favor for oil companies yesterday, voting to prevent the Clinton administration from charging royalties based on market rates for oil and gas pumped from federal lands. By the Interior Department’s estimation, the companies are currently underpaying the government by as much as $68 million a year. The vote came as the […]

Industry Oils Alaskan Land

BP Exploration pleaded guilty yesterday to illegally dumping hazardous wastes on Alaska’s North Slope and agreed to pay some $22 million to settle criminal and civil claims. Federal prosecutors say that a BP contractor dumped hundreds of barrels containing oil, paints, paint thinners, and solvents. Alaska’s North Slope is an environmentally sensitive area, and BP’s […]

When the Going Gets Tough, the Tough Take Out an Ad

The British Columbia government began running radio and newspaper ads yesterday accusing a native Indian tribe of illegally logging on public land. The government also started legal proceedings to stop the logging by the Westbank Tribal Nation, which began 17 days ago after treaty negotiations between the tribe and the provincial and federal governments broke […]

Your One-Stop Shop for Carcasses, Pesticides, and Other Goodies

Rivers in North Carolina and New Jersey are horribly contaminated in the wake of Hurricane Floyd, and North Carolina officials say the state is facing its worst-ever environmental disaster. The Cape Fear River in North Carolina is carrying raw sewage, farm pesticides, industrial chemicals, oil slicks, hog feces, and animal carcasses into the Atlantic. Cleanup […]