Fossil Fuels from Federal Lands Create One Quarter of Total U.S. Carbon Emissions, New Report Concludes
A newly released analysis by the Climate Accountability Institute concludes that fossil fuels extracted from federal lands release carbon equal to a quarter of all U.S. greenhouse gas emissions. The rate has stayed roughly consistent from 2003 toย 2014. When it comes to coal, the rate was even higher than average last year, the report concluded. […]
Peabody CEO Greg Boyce's Long History of Climate Denial
When it comes to climate denier coal executives, there is none more outspoken than Peabody Energy CEO Greg Boyce, who recently reiterated his belief that climate change is, โan environmental crisis predicted by flawed computerย models.โ Boyce made the โflawedโ comment in the roll-out ofย Peabody’s โfive point planโย โ which is more a grumpy rejoinder to a […]
Banks Family Mining Millions in Profit From Climate Sceptic Matt Ridley's Coal
Aristocrat and self-styled climate โcontrarianโ Matt Ridley has steadfastly refused to disclose how much cash he makes from the large opencast mines operating on his familyย estate. The free market advocate has intimated his share of the bounty from the Northumberland mines is small in comparison to the amount taken by the government (which owns theย coal). […]
Widely-Used Tool Can Lowball Methane Pollution Rates, Scientists Report, With Huge Implications for Climate Policy
An EPA-approved methane sampler widely used to measure gas leaks from oil and gas operations nationwide can dramatically under-report how much methane is leaking into the atmosphere, a team of researchers reported in a peer-reviewed paper published inย March. The researchers, one of whom first designed the underlying technology used by the sampler, warn that results […]
Dimock, PA Lawsuit Trial-Bound as Study Links Fracking to Water Contamination in Neighboring County
A recent peer-reviewed study published in theย Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences has confirmed what many fracking critics have argued for years: drilling operations associated withย hydraulic fracturing (โfracking)ย for oil and gas can contaminateย groundwater.ย For the study, researchers examined groundwater contamination incidents at three homes in Pennsylvania’s Marcellus Shale basin in Bradford County.ย As The New […]
Anti-Fracking Activists-Turned-Politicians Challenged MPs at the Polls in Lancashire
While climate change barely got a mention in the national election debates, in Lancashire the issue of fracking was by no means sidelined in the run-up to electionย night. Since the news of Lancashire County Councilโs announcement to further delay its decision on two Cuadrilla fracking licences until after the election, fracking stories have continued to […]
Whatโs In The Recycled Oil Field Wastewater Sprayed On California Crops?
โYou can’t find what you don’t look for,โ UC Berkeley researcher Seth B.C. Shonkoff recently told the LA Times, referring to the chemicals that state regulators donโt know to test for in the recycled wastewater the California oil industry sells for use on crops here in the top agricultural producing state in the US. Chevron […]
That Time When an IPCC Report Clashed with ExxonMobil's Climate Denial Spending Spree
Our latest DeSmog UK epic history post recalls how the IPCC COP 6 was held in the midst of the ExxonMobil fundingย splurge. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reconvened in Bonn, Germany in 2001 for the sixth Conference of the Parties (COP). Michael Mannโs hockey stick took centre stage of the IPCCโs third report, […]
'Woe is Us': Oil Industry a Hot Mess After NDP Alberta Victory
While Jim Prentice and his Progressive Conservative cadre lick their wounds after last nightโs landslide victory by the New Democratic Party and leader Rachel Notley, punditry about the oil industryโs place in the transformed province is in fullย force. Even before the results were in, Canadians were being warned new leadership in Canadaโs oilpatch will mean […]
North Dakota Town Evacuated After Oil Train Derailment, Explosion
An oil train derailment and subsequent fire early this morning near Heimdal, a rural town in central North Dakota, has led to the evacuation of nearby residents. The Associated Press reports that the accident occurred at 7:30am and that ten tanker cars of a BNSF Railway train were burning, โcreating thick black smoke.โ There are […]