Oil Spill

In a world heavily composed of and reliant on water, how we treat our oceans should be a major aspect of the way we think about planning and living on this planet, according to Timothy Beatley.

In the wake of the BP oil spill, geographer Richard Campanella of Tulane University takes a look at the geography of New Orleans and the Gulf region, and suggests that the disaster will fuel a renewed discussion of the area's uniqueness.

Researchers estimate that roughly three-quarters of the oil spilled into the Gulf of Mexico is still dangerously concentrated in the water, a claim that disputes official word from the government that much of the oil has been safely dispersed.

The U.S. Department of Transportation issued repeat warnings to Enbridge Energy Partners, owner of a pipe that leaked an estimated 1 million gallons of oil into southwest Michigan's Kalamazoo River, to address the safety of its system.

This commentary from Urban Omnibus looks at how the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is a problem with roots in unsustainable land use.