Today’s Essential Reads
FRACKING:
Pembina Institute Recommends More Restrictions on Natural Gas Production, Development
The Ottawa-based Pembina Institute Thursday published a report that recommends greater restrictions on the development of natural gas wells that use hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, and that governments refrain from providing financial support for the replacement of coal or petroleum products by natural gas.
Hydro-Fracking Company Nixes New York State Kids’ Coloring Book Propaganda
Talisman Terry was just your friendly neighborhood “Frackosaurus” who liked to explain why natural gas is “clean” and how drilling for it allows your family to live comfortably. Talisman Terry was also a coloring-book cartoon created in 2009 by Talisman Energy, a Canadian oil and gas company, for the children of Twin Tiers, an area on the New York/Pennsylvania border that is home to more than 100 Talisman oil wells [the Guardian]. But today, after continued media pressure (including Stephen Colbert’s portrayal of the character committing suicide by lighting a cigarette in his flammable shower), it looks like Terry’s gotten the industry axe.
Controversial Drilling in Payette County: ‘It’s Really Scary’
But now, one Treasure Valley community is discussing whether to allow a controversial method of natural gas drilling in their backyards.
New York Must Not Be Harmed for Gas Profits
I came away from listening to this week’s public radio show “This American Life,” which spotlighted hydraulic fracturing in Pennsylvania, feeling at once vindicated and saddened. Sometimes one does not want to be right. The program reinforced my belief that the natural gas industry is not to be trusted and that no amount of money can right a wrong.
BP OIL SPILL:
AG Luther Strange: BP Oil Spill Accountability No. 1 Priority; Immigration Law ‘Golden Opportunity’
State Attorney General Luther Strange, tapped as the lead attorney for all states filing claims against BP for last summer’s oil spill, told a group of south Baldwin County leaders Thursday that his top priority is to ensure that the oil giant remains accountable as the area continues to recover from the disaster.
BP Oil Still Washing Ashore One Year After Spill
Crude oil continues to wash ashore along the Gulf of Mexico coast a year after BP Plc (BP/) stopped the flow from its damaged Macondo well, which caused the worst U.S. offshore spill, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said.
A Year After the Spill Stopped
Today marks an important anniversary. On July 15, 2010, oil giant BP at last brought to heel the monster it had unleashed in the Gulf of Mexico.
State Economists Seek Better Way to Calculate Local Government BP Claims
Florida state economists are taking a second look at the methodology used by BP to calculate losses incurred by local governments due to last year’s oil spill.
RADIATION:
Beef Contamination Spreads in Japan as Cattle Eat Radiation-Tainted Straw
More beef from cattle in Japan that ate straw tainted by radiation has found its way into the food supply, deepening concern about the safety of meat as the country struggles to contain the spread of the contamination.
Energid Develops Robot for Inspecting Nuclear Power Plants
Energid Technologies Corp. of Cambridge said it has developed a next-generation robot prototype to inspect nuclear power plants as part of an agreement with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. of Japan.
