oil

photo: Getty Images

Usually when we talk about transportation emissions causing climate change here at TreeHugger, we focus on CO2 emissions or methane emissions—the usual suspects in the global warming discussion. In regards to cargo shipping, companies are investigating how much slowing down ships can reduce emissions. A new study conducted by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the University of Colorado shows, however, that it’s not just the carbon emissions from cargo shipping which are a serious global warming concern, but also the soot these s...

High gas prices have had some positive effects, such as increasing the popularity of mass transit, cycling, and compact cars, as well as reducing the amount of miles that Americans drive. However, as the NY...

From Motown to Growtown
The growing international food crisis, coupled with spiralling energy costs, is without doubt causing much suffering. But there is a silver lining – as the unsustainability of business-as-usual becomes apparent, alternatives are beginning to gain traction in mainstream consciousness. Detroit provides the perfect example of the need for change – once the thriving hub of the US motor industry, the city has seen a massive exodus of its population and major industries, leaving vacant plots e...

photo by Matt Hansa

A couple of days ago we wrote about how the Internataional Energy Agency believes how it is wrong to blame speculators for the current high oil prices. Based on an email titled “An Open Letter to all Airline Customers” apparently the CEOs of twelve U.S. airlines didn’t get the memo.

You may have gotten the same email as I did from Delta Airlines, but for those you didn’t here are the choice parts:

Since high oil prices are partly a response to normal market forces, the nation needs to focus...

There is too much oil in the ground there just to leave it, so what about the carbon dioxide and the natural gas consumption. We will just throw some high tech at it; problem solved.

Blimps to the Rescue

First up is the Skyhook JHL-40 Rotorcraft. A cross between a dirigible and a helicopter, Skyhook prez Peter Jess says the patented craft will be capable of hauling 40-tonne loads up to 320 kilometres in areas without basic infrastructure such as roads. Boeing will build them for Skyhook, and says that "the blimp would be environmentally friendly because it would eliminate the need to build roads and rail lines to remote locations, where transportation can b...

Islanders to Plant 20,000 Fruit and Nut Trees for Security
We’ve already celebrated as the Transition Towns movement reached Australia, but it looks like the people of New Zealand are also getting stuck into preparing for a post-petroleum future. The above video comes from Waiheke Island’s Fabulous Fruit Tree initiative, which is aiming to plant 20,000 fruit and ...

Marina Rikhvanova, Co-chairwoman of the NGO Baikal Environmental Wave, was awarded the Goldman Environmental Prize for Asia for her on-going achievements in the protection of Lake Baikal, the "pearl of Siberia," in Russia. Founded in 1990, the prize is given annually to six grassroots environmentalists working for change around the globe.

The pristine lake is the largest and deepest fresh water body in the world. Because of its age and isolated location in Siberia, it contains unusual collections of freshwater flora and fauna and 1,700 plant and...

In yet another sign of how gas prices are affecting the economy, several states, including Florida, Georgia and Oklahoma, have begun offering free gas for life instead of the usual cash prizes in lotteries. Of course, there's a catch: in Florida, for instance, free gas for life means that "each winner will be awarded 26 prepaid gas cards, each worth $100, every year until death." Interestingly, in Florida the free gas will go to the second-prize winner, while the first prize winner will win a cash prize. What's i...

London Borough to Reverses Free Parking for EVs
No sooner do I report on the virus-like spread of electric vehicle charging points in London, that I hear from our friends at GoinGreen that at least one London borough is preparing to withdraw some of the privileges enjoyed by EV drivers:

Today saw the announcement of changes in the City of London's parking concessions for electric vehicles. Existing users of the borough's electric vehicle scheme will see an increase in on-street parking from zero to £50 per year wh...

Combine rising fuel costs with escalating security concerns in China, and this makes perfect sense -- kind of: ahead of the Olympics, a Chinese anti-terror team has recently been training on specially-outfitted Segways, the electric, gyro-balanced scooters that are more commonly seen zipping across Silicon Valley campuses.

The scooters, which claim a top speed of 12.5 km/hour and which inventor Dean Kamen billed as nearly impossible to tip-over (George W. didn't get that memo) will also be used by officials and sec...

George Peridas, NRDC

The Alberta Tar Sands are called by some the most destructive project on earth, and their toxic tailing ponds kill birds and are poisoning downstream native communities. It has the worst air quality in the country, and companies regularly run afoul of exceedance limits, but in 2006 all of the oil companies were fined only $ 249,000. Library patrons in Calgary and Edmonton, on the other hand, were fined $4 million for overdue books.

"The Tar Sands is the largest fossil fu...

photo: Getty Images

Subsidies may be distorting the true price of oil in the United States, and the price of crude continues to rise unchecked but that won’t slow global demand for oil over the next few years—even if demand in the developing world is contracting—according to the International Energy Agency.

The Paris-based organization predicts that demand is expected to grow by 1.6% per year between 2008 and 2013, while non-Opec supply will increase at only 0.5% per year. This increased reliance on Opec means that oil prices are likely to remain at record levels.

...

Econ 101: Subsidies
One of the many problems with subsidies is that they are almost impossible to repeal. That's because they usually give big benefits to a small group of people at a relatively small cost to a huge number of people. For example, corn-ethanol subsidies are going to be very hard to phase out because they might mean hundreds of thousands of dollars to farmers, while their cost is spread over the rest of the population and almost invisible. Farmers are a lot more motivated to lobby politicians than the average taxpayer, even if they only represent 1% of the p...

There has been a flurry of publicity surrounding the ongoing Chevron Texaco case in recent weeks. Pushing the point home most forcefully of all is this animation created for Amazon Watch by political cartoonist Mark Fiore. Find out more about the latest ne...

Yesterday we took a look at Peak Moment TVs visit to White Sage Gardens, an Oregon experiment in backyard permaculture but, given the rising costs of food and fuel, we can’t get enough of any information that helps folks to grow local, sustainable food. While watching yesterdays video we came across another episode of Peak Moment that also explores the idea of diverse, edible landscapes for our homes and...

It’s been a while since we checked in on Peak Moment TV, the innovative public access TV show bringing you “Community Responses for a Changing Energy Future”. In the episode above, Peak Moment explores White Sage Gardens, an Oregon experiment in backyard permaculture-informed sustainability created by Scott McGuire. Unfortunately the website for White Sage appears to be down right now, but for more informa...

Time to buy a bike: Gasoline prices in North America will soar over the next four years to $7.00, causing a massive jolt to the continent's manufacturing base not seen since the oil shocks of the 1970s, a leading economist is warning. Jeff Rubin of CIBC World Markets was laughed at three years ago when he predicted $ 100 per barrel oil, and now thinks it will climb to $225 in four years. (Houston Chronicle quotes him as saying gas will cost $10 per gallon) From the National Post:

"Stripping out natural gas liquids, oil production has not grown for over two years, which certainly goes a long way to explaining why oil prices have doubled over that period," Rubin said. "It is increasingly...

We’ve already learned from the BBC how families around the world are changing their eating habits to deal with rising prices, but what does all this mean for the growing movement towards more sustainable lifestyles? We’ve already caused some healthy debate on why economic challenges might be good or bad for the environment, but now CNN has

From a great graphic by Bill Marsh of the New York Times

The New York Times writes about the factors causing the rise in the price of oil, which hit $ 116 per barrel this week. Jad Mouawad hits all the usual suspects, such as the weak dollar, worries about terrorism (?) and demand, saying "Producers are struggling to pump as much as they can to quench the thirst not only of the developed world, but fast-growing developing nations like China and India, the two most populous countries." However he then goes on to say "The number...

Click Here for PollOnline Surveys | Web Polls | Email MarketingView MicroPoll...

Oil is setting record high prices. People are rioting over the price of food in Haiti, Egypt, parts of West Africa and the Philippines. Since March 2007 the price of soybeans is up 87%, and the price of wheat has risen 130%. Global grain stores are at the lowest levels on record. Amid this turmoil the International Assessment of Agricultural Knowledge, Science and Technology for Development (IAASTD) release...

There is an Organisation in San Francisco called Matter of Trust, which, as one of its many projects, collects human hair from thousands of salons across the country and sends it to Georgia to be woven into mats.

These mats are then used to absorb used motor oil. The used, oil-soaked mats are seeded with oyster mushrooms, which thrive on and absorb the black gunk, and after three months the whole lot can then be safely composted.

Something that all coastal town folk should consider setting up...

via Tiny Choices