Climate Technology

CNOOC-ered

Bush security adviser helped firm land lobbying gig for Chinese oil co. The bid by state-owned China National Offshore Oil Corporation to purchase U.S. oil and gas producer Unocal has raised hackles among some national-security types. So it may seem odd that James C. Langdon Jr., the chair of President Bush’s Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board […]

Harder than it looks?

We're constantly hearing about how insanely popular the Toyota Prius is -- the celebrities, the cachet, the waiting lists.

Is it possible that said popularity is just a blue state phenomenon?

I ask because we recently got an email from a reader, Linda, who's having trouble selling hers. No, really!

My husband received an international assignment so we are moving to Belgium. We have decided to sell my beloved 2004 Prius. I live in Pocatello, Idaho, and in this land of conservatives, where they are sure that global warming is a figment of Al Gore's imagination, there appears to be no market. I've had an ad in various papers for over a month and no calls. It is salsa red and comes fully loaded (package #7) with everything except GPS. The blue book value on this gem is $23,360, I bought it for $24,800. I'd be willing to negotiate around $23,000. It has 13,600 miles and is in excellent condition with seat covers and even a 1.25 inch hitch for a bike rack in back. (I could throw in the bike rack too, if someone wants it!)

So, Gristmill readers, I'm curious: Do you have any tips or advice for Linda? Or ... do you want her Prius? Tell us all about it in comments!

FYI: Linda's phone number is (208) 232-8207.

A Shot Across the Mao

State-controlled Chinese oil company makes big bid for America’s Unocal China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC), a state-controlled Chinese oil company, is making an $18.5 billion bid to take over California-based oil and gas firm Unocal, which has extensive Asian operations. Rival bidder Chevron warns that China will have the power to raise energy prices […]

A View to a Killing

Silicon Valley investors putting big bucks into clean-tech start-ups Silicon Valley’s venture capitalists are seeing green in clean energy — and we’re talking gobs of profit, not the whole planet-saving thing. Investor interest in clean-energy tech firms has jumped in the past year, fueled in part by escalating global demand for electricity and the rising […]

Bush admin hawks liquefied natural gas as energy answer

The Bush administration is championing natural gas as the answer to America’s domestic energy needs, despite reservations from the usual batch of freedom-haters about its cost, reliability, and safety. Proponents point out that natural gas is cheaper, less polluting, and more abundant than oil — and, oh yeah, a huge business opportunity. Major energy companies […]

Put a Liar in Your Tank

White House official who edited climate reports moves to Exxon Philip Cooney, the White House official (and former oil-industry lobbyist) recently outed for watering down government climate-change reports, has left his position in the Bush administration to take a new job at … wait for it … ExxonMobil. Now, we know what you’re thinking, but […]

Going down with the ship

Lee Raymond, chairman and chief executive of Exxon Mobil, has decided that global warming is bunk and that his company is not going to waste time or money funding renewable energy.

Openly and unapologetically, the world's No. 1 oil company disputes the notion that fossil fuels are the main cause of global warming. Along with the Bush administration, Exxon opposes the Kyoto accord and the very idea of capping global-warming emissions. Congress is debating an energy bill that may be amended to include a cap, but the administration and Exxon say the costs would be huge and the benefits uncertain. Exxon also contributes money to think tanks and other groups that agree with its stance.

You kinda have to admire the guy:

"We're not playing the issue. I'm not sure I can say that about others," Lee Raymond, Exxon's chairman and chief executive, said in a recent interview at Exxon headquarters in Irving, Texas. "I get this question a lot of times: 'Why don't you just go spend $50 million on solar cells? Charge it off to the public-affairs budget and just say it's like another dry hole?' The answer is: That's not the way we do things."

At least he's not fudging.

Chicago Climate Exchange paves the way for U.S. emissions trading

Forget the feds — we’ll make our own deals. The Oakland airport seems perfectly situated. Unlike many urban airports, which require an expensive taxi trip or hour-long train ride to reach the city where you thought you’d just arrived, downtown lies mere minutes away. Such convenience is possible because the runways sit on a former […]

If the Suit Fits, Wear It

BT and other multinationals call for action on climate change More and more prominent suits are issuing calls to action on global warming. The latest is Ben Verwaayen, chief exec of U.K. telecom company BT, who this week became the first Brit corporate bigwig to say publicly that climate change is hurting his business — […]

So Long and Thanks for All the Fish Nets

Changes in fishing gear could save thousands of cetaceans a year Low-cost changes to commercial fishing gear could prevent the deaths of tens of thousands of whales, porpoises, and dolphins every year, according to the World Wildlife Fund. About 1,000 cetaceans drown every day after becoming entangled in fishing nets, primarily gillnets, which are hard […]