“All of the Above” or “Action now?”: Obama’s Natural Gas Contradiction
At a talk in Vermont last week, the nation’s top energy official offered up his thoughts on a problem the White House has said calls for “urgent action”: climate change. “We need to mitigate the effects of climate change and need to adapt at the same time,” said Dr. Ernest Moniz, Secretary of Energy, as he […]
Groundbreaking Anti-Fracking Ballot Initiative Clears Key Hurdle in Colorado
The citizen-led anti-fracking battles in Colorado ratcheted up a notch May 22 when the Colorado Community Rights Network announced that Ballot Initiative #75, the Community Right Amendment (also known as “Right to Local Self-Government”), has cleared its final legal hurdle with the Colorado Supreme Court and has the go-ahead to start gathering signatures to get […]
Should CEOs Get Jail Time For Oil-By-Rail Accidents Like Lac Megantic?
On May 12th, a heavily armed SWAT unit stormed the home of Thomas Harding and threw Harding, his son and a visitor to the ground. Harding was then handcuffed, arrested and taken for interrogation. Harding was the engineer for the oil train that caused the explosion in Lac-Megantic, Quebec. He had cooperated with authorities and was […]
Revealed: Former Energy in Depth Spokesman John Krohn Now at U.S. EIA Promoting Fracking
For those familiar with U.S. Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) work, objectivity and commitment to fact based on statistics come to mind. Yet as Mark Twain once put it, “There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics.” That’s where John Krohn comes into play. A former spokesman for the gas industry front group Energy in […]
Interactive Map Shows Extent of Oil and Gas Fouling of Colorado
Photos of Colorado’s spectacular Rocky Mountains draw tourists to the state from all over the world, but if people could see the extent to which oil and gas drilling is polluting the state, they might think again about visiting. DeSmogBlog has posted infographics about oil spills resulting from transportation, pipeline leaks and other disasters. Now […]
Documents: Petraeus Fracking Field Trip Reveals ND Government, Oil, Private Equity Nexus
DeSmogBlog has obtained hundreds of documents portraying the blurred lines between North Dakota’s government, the oil and gas industry and the private equity world. They also offer one of the first looks inside the professional life of former CIA Director Gen. David Petraeus after he resigned from the agency in 2012. The documents reveal Kohlberg Kravis […]
Should Chevron Pay For the Mountain Pine Beetle Epidemic?
This is a guest post by Andrew Gage, staff lawyer with West Coast Environmental Law. According to the B.C. Government, the Mountain Pine Beetle epidemic – a direct result of climate change – cost British Columbia billions in lost timber value alone – not counting environmental and other damages. This reality has influenced the public […]
New Report Exposes Fossil Fuel Front Groups Behind Attacks on Renewables
Fossil fuel exploitation in the United States has reached a fevered pitch. Oil production is at a near-record high, and fracking activities have made the U.S. the number one producer of natural gas. All of this comes at a cost. In 2013, the oil industry averaged 20 oil spills per day, destroying countless swaths of […]
Estimates of Recoverable Oil in California's Monterey Shale Slashed 96%
Last year, a post here on DeSmog asked: “Could California’s Shale Oil Boom Be Just a Mirage?” For now, the answer appears to be a resounding yes. According to the LA Times, the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) is set to announce next month that it is officially downgrading its estimate of the oil reserves […]
California Governor Brown Warns of Increasing Drought, Wildfire Costs, Decries Climate Denial
Alarmed by California’s intensifying wildfires and withering drought, Governor Jerry Brown has lashed out at Republicans and other politicians who continue to deny that destructive climate change is already occurring. In a series of recent comments, Brown also said California is at “the epicenter of climate change” and urged other states and nations to work to […]