Green Options

The number of people dying and being admitted to hospitals from swine flu grows 25 percent each day. Officials fear that between 15% and 50% of the population might contract the illness. One surprising consequence of the swine flu outbreak is its effect on the value of the US dollar and the price of crude oil.

In a rare admission of China’s strategic petroleum reserve capacity, a senior industry executive acknowledged that all four state-owned emergency oil reserve tanks – holding a total 100 million barrels – are filled to the brim.

Revealing that China’s current stockpiles have already exceeded the capacity of the first phase of facilities, which the government built over the last two years, China Shipping Group President Li Shaode urged the government to use foreign exchange reserves to finance floating storage capacity in the short term.

Li’s comments come after a string of recent oil- and gas-related events in China. Within the last few months, China has entered into natural gas supply agreements with Myanmar, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan, and has already begun construction on needed pipelines. Just yesterday, China National Offshore Oil Company (CNOOC) signed a 25 year gas supply agreement with Qatar.

Researchers at Wuhan University in China discovered that adding chicken manure to soil contaminated with crude oil triggered degradation of 75% of the oil within two weeks.

“The use of chicken manure to stimulate crude oil biodegradation in the soil could be one of the several sought-after environmentally friendly ways of abating petroleum hydrocarbon pollution in the natural ecosystem.”

The credit crunch is not just hurting the banks and the real estate market. Even the billionaire and wind energy enthusiast, T. Boone Pickens is having trouble financing his high profile 4000 MW wind farm. The proposed Texas wind farm has a hefty $10 and $12 billion price tag.

Although we are used to hearing about climbing energy costs, the price of natural gas is actually down. Natural gas accounts for 20% of the nation’s electricity generation. The energy sector is also suspecting that the financial crisis may result in a global reduction in energy demand. Pickens’ plan calls for replacing natural gas with wind energy for electricity generation, while converting vehicles to run off natural gas. The natural gas currently used for electricity would be used for transportation and America could wean itself off foreign oil.

“We often hear of environmental catastophes but almost never meet the people who suffer the consequences.”

Those are some of the introductory words of Lou Dematteis, one of the authors and photographers of the new photo book Crude Reflections: Oil, Ruin, and Resistance in the Amazon Rainforest.

Editor’s note: This post is a guest contribution by Adam Shake.

Do you remember going to the local pond or lake as a kid and swimming around without a care in the world?  Do you remember the feel of the algae between you’re toes?  Well if New Zealand company Aquaflow Bionomic has anything to say about it, we may be using that same algae to fuel our vehicles.

The company, founded in 2005, says that it has produced the first samples of green crude oil at a commercially competitive price. This could be great news for a lot of Bio-Fuel “Flip-Floppers.”  The question of utilizing land based crops producing Ethanol, or animal / vegetable oil based Bio-diesel, may be coming to a close with this new contender.

Democrats caved came to a new proposal on Wednesday which would allow offshore drilling 50 miles from the coast if the state approves: federal waters within 50 miles of shore would continue to be protected. Waters off Florida’s Gulf coast also would remain protected at least until 2022 under the plan.

The proposal is expected to come up for a vote next week. Along with allowing offshore drilling, it is also expected to roll back tax breaks on the largest of oil companies, where those royalties will be used to spur renewable energy programs and conservation. But the proposal, announced by Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office, would essentially end the long-standing federal ban on oil and gas drilling that has barred oil companies from more than 80 percent of Outer Continental Shelf waters from New England to Washington state.

Twelve states - New York, California, and a few I’ve never heard of - have announced yet another suit against the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). They claim federal regulators have failed in issuing the necessary standards to regulate green house gas emissions. The EPA’s rebuttal: it’s not in our job description.

Announcement of the suit came Monday and is being led by New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo. It charges the EPA with once again violating the Clean Air Act by refusing to issue oil refineries a performance standard in which to curb global warming.  A claim hinged on the fact that 15 percent of the U.S.’s industrial emissions comes from crude refineries.

“The EPA’s refusal to control pollution from oil refineries is the latest example of the Bush Administration’s do-nothing policy on global warming,” Cuomo said in a release. “Oil refineries contribute substantially to global warming, posing grave threats to New York’s environment, health, and economy.”

But the EPA is pointing to Congress to get the job done. EPA spokesman Tim Lyons said time and money would be better spent by encouraging Congress to take action on sound environmental legislation. But it was just in 2003 when the EPA claimed that under the Clean Air Act they couldn’t regulate vehicle emmissions because green house gases were not air pollutants. And as a result from another suit against them, the Supreme Court decided in a 5-4 ruling that they should step up and regulate CO2 emissions.

Step Right Up And Be Amazed

It struck me today that our fearless leaders, would-be’s, and corporate giants seem to think we’re all a bunch of rubes gathered outside a carnival sideshow, leaning on the barker’s every word.

Urging Congress to lift its ban on offshore oil and gas drilling, our fearless leader, you know, President Bush, told lawmakers, “There is no excuse for delay“.

It got worse, “Families across the country are looking to Washington for a response.”  Gimme a break.