AltWeeklies Wire
Obama Could Thwart Canadian Exports from Alberta Tar Sandsnew
Barack Obama has signaled that addressing a "planet in peril" will be a top priority for his administration. Alberta's huge tar sands could soon feel the pain of America's solutions to climate change.
The Georgia Straight |
Gwynne Dyer |
11-11-2008 |
Environment
A Perfect Populist Storm Brews Around Oil Giant Chevronnew

The company faces not only angry voters, but a landmark human rights and corporate responsibility trial, in which Chevron stands accused of complicity with Nigeria's authoritarian government in the torture, murder, and abuse of those protesting Chevron's exploitation of the Niger Delta.
San Francisco Bay Guardian |
Steven T. Jones |
11-06-2008 |
Business & Labor
Falling Oil Prices Could Drill into Oregon's Clean Energy Progressnew
Some clean-energy companies, investors and economists worried that cheaper oil will slow the growth of the state's green industries and smother the political will to pass new incentives when the Legislature meets in 2009. That, in turn, will make it harder to meet the state's goals to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to 10 percent below 1990 levels by 2020.
Willamette Week |
Libby Tucker |
11-05-2008 |
Environment
Is There a Foreign Policy Bright Side to the Economic Crisis?new
The sinking economies of the West are dragging the price of oil down with them. For car-driving Americans, lower fuel prices mean a few extra bucks in our pockets each week. That's good news. Even better news: Lower oil prices mean a few extra billion dollars not pouring into the bank accounts of oil-rich countries like Venezuela.
Creative Loafing (Atlanta) |
Andisheh Nouraee |
10-29-2008 |
International
Kicking Oil in the Cannew
Consumers have saved billions during the last gas crisis.
Pasadena Weekly |
Jennifer Hadley |
10-27-2008 |
Transportation
Crude: How Wall Street is Screwing Americanew

While it is clear that our economy is in deep trouble, there's one part of the puzzle that still lies in a place as murky as the water surrounding the refineries in the Gulf of Mexico: the Wall Street-Oil connection.
Long Island Press |
Jed Morey |
09-25-2008 |
Economy
How Wild Mustard Could Be Used to Power Farms and Transitnew
In California's wine country, early spring paints the vineyards and fields with the chrome yellow of wild mustard. Its spicy leaves perk up a salad and infuse vinegar with a kick -- and oil from its seeds may soon power the buses of Monterey-Salinas Transit (MST).
East Bay Express |
Susan Kuchinskas |
09-10-2008 |
Environment
William Orr's Quest for Better, Cheaper Gas Left Him Facing Prison Timenew
Despite the battery of charges he was convicted of, much of the fraud case came down to a single issue: whether Orr had misrepresented to investors and to the government the potential of the formula he was trying to market -- a fuel blend that he claimed would be cheaper, cleaner and more efficient than conventional gasoline.
Westword |
Alan Prendergast |
09-09-2008 |
Environment
From Fort Mac to Downtown Calgary -- by Bicyclenew

Activists cycle nearly 1000 kilometers to deliver water collected downstream from the Athabasca oilsand to oil companies' head offices in Calgary.
Fast Forward Weekly |
Adrian Morrow |
09-04-2008 |
Environment
Would Drilling for Oil Off Florida's Gulf Coast Lower Fuel Prices?new
Why wouldn't it? Just pump that stuff out and ship it a few short miles over to gas stations in Tampa Bay, ready to dispense at our local convenience stores. How cheap would that be?
Creative Loafing (Tampa) |
Wayne Garcia |
09-03-2008 |
Economy
The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgianew
Maybe oil figures it's time to get back to Plan A and revive the Cold War, or at least oilmen do. There are issues aplenty behind the conflict in Georgia, but to the powers fueling it, it's a war of competing pipelines.
Los Angeles CityBeat |
Jim Washburn |
08-25-2008 |
International
Here's the Drill: The Sticky Truths About Offshore Oilnew

Approving drilling now would mean that oil reaches our gas tanks in a decade, under the best estimates, and the small quantity relative to global production would do little to alleviate prices. Still, advocates argue, anything that reduces American dependence on foreign oil is worth pursuing. That pursuit becomes sticky, however, when weighed with drilling's definable risks to the environment and public health.
Charleston City Paper |
Stratton Lawrence |
08-13-2008 |
Environment
Floyd Gessner, the 5 Million Mile Mannew

At 76 and with more than 40 years at the same company, Floyd has no plans to retire. He speculates that he's driven between 4 and 5 million miles. To put that in perspective: Earth's circumference at the equator is 24,902 miles. Floyd has effectively driven around the world at least 180 times.
Colorado Springs Independent |
Matthew Schniper |
08-01-2008 |
Economy
What the Hell Will it Take to Get You Out of Your Car?new

It's crossroads time for Sacramento Regional Transit. Rising gas prices and I-5 construction have raised demand for public transit through the roof -- but the system is completely unable to handle the demand.
Sacramento News & Review |
Cosmo Garvin |
07-22-2008 |
Transportation
Big Oil in Little Richmondnew

Back in 2004, the Chevron Corporation proposed a billion dollar "Energy and Hydrogen Renewal Project" at its 2,900-acre Richmond, Calif., refinery. Critics worry that the renovations will end up fouling the air in the already-blighted Richmond neighborhoods downwind of the refinery, and have taken up arms to halt the project's progress.
East Bay Express |
Anna McCarthy |
07-10-2008 |
Business & Labor