Energy

According to a new EIA report, the cost advantages of liquefied natural gas make it an attractive alternative to diesel fuel for major U.S. freight railroad companies. Hybrid diesel-electric locomotives on order for 5 states will power HSR routes.

April 16, 2014 - Progressive Railroading

Several earthquakes in March in Ohio's Poland Township have been linked to shale fracking, resulting in suspension of oil and gill drilling at seven wells near the quakes. Previous Ohio earthquakes were linked to disposal of wastewater from fracking.

April 14, 2014 - The New York Times

More and more energy efficient buildings are coming online, but buildings are still a major source of energy use around the world. To track green building, the EPA recently ranked the cities with the most Energy Star buildings.

April 12, 2014 - United States Environmental Protection Agency

Written by Wall Street Journal energy reporter Russell Gold, the new book offers three recommendations that should be acceptable to all parties, from fracking's strongest supporters to its most ardent opponents.

April 10, 2014 - The Wall Street Journal

At 15 billion barrels, California's Monterey Shale is said to hold the nation's largest deposit of recoverable oil. The only problem is that its extraction has not proven to be economically profitable. Blame it on the shale's unique structure.

April 8, 2014 - Los Angeles Times

Surpassing the BP Gulf spill fine by $1 billion, the settlement covers multi-state environmental sites. While levied on Anadarko Petroleum, the chemical contamination was the fault of subsidiary Kerr-McGee Corp., which Anadarko purchased in 2006.

April 5, 2014 - The Wall Street Journal - Business

NPR host Linda Wertheimer interviews Evan Osnos about his current New Yorker piece on the Jan. chemical spill into W. Va.'s Elk River. His focus is less on the spill and more on the influence of Big Coal in government and how it contributed to it.

April 4, 2014 - NPR Morning Edition

Texas is the largest wind power producer in the United States, but its recent capacity efforts have broken records. And there are more megawatts on the way.

April 3, 2014 - Next City

Kaid Benfield has a new book out, which Scott Doyon found positively uplifting. In ways beyond what you might be thinking.

April 2, 2014 - PlaceShakers

Charles C. Mann reports on the benefits and obstacles to cleaner coal and why we need to explore carbon capture and storage even as we transition to renewable energy.

March 29, 2014 - Wired.com

When it comes to fracking, much dialog is about energy vs. environment. Not this one. NPR reports on the economic consequences of Europe's rejection of fracking. Many European companies are setting up shop in the U.S. where energy may cost 75% less.

March 27, 2014 - NPR Morning Edition

A barge spilled 168,000 gallons of heavy oil after colliding with a ship in Galveston Bay outside of Texas City on March 22, just two days shy of the 25th anniversary of the Exxon Valdez, 11 million gallon oil spill in Prince William Sound, Alaska.

March 25, 2014 - Galveston County Daily News

A familiar refrain: the EPA proposes new regulation of energy production, and the utility industry responds that new requirements will increase costs. The Center for American Progress recently looked back at how clairvoyant those claims proved to be.

March 25, 2014 - Triple Pundit

In a pair of articles, The Hill's energy and environment blogger Timothy Cara looks at political efforts to increase natural gas exports to Europe on account of Russia's annexation of Crimea, part of Ukraine, and environmental groups opposed to it.

March 24, 2014 - The Hill

The federal investigation of Duke Energy's Feb. 2 coal ash spill sheds light not only on the company and its state regulator, but also on that of the Environmental Protection Agency and holds wider implications for the coal industry as a whole.

March 23, 2014 - The Wall Street Journal - U.S.

Hopes for New Jersey to be a national leader in offshore wind energy were dealt a setback when the state Board of Public Utilities rejected the financial plan of a 25-megawatt project proposed for a site three miles off the coast near Atlantic City.

March 22, 2014 - The North Jersey Record

A unanimous vote by the Carson city council for the 45-day moratorium on all oil drilling, with or without fracking, was done in response to an application for drilling by Occidental Petroleum even though the company agreed not to utilize fracking.

March 21, 2014 - Los Angeles Times

All but 10% of the CBR went to Southern California refineries, though Bay Area shipments grew by 57% and provoked the largest outcry. The Northern California deliveries are mostly from North Dakota, with 12.5% from Colorado.

March 20, 2014 - Contra Costa Times

Unlike the U.S., most passenger vehicles in Europe run on diesel fuel, not gasoline, and from a public health perspective, diesel emissions can severely exacerbate particle pollution during weather inversions like the one Paris is now experiencing.

March 19, 2014 - The Atlantic Cities

The Port of Albany is thriving as a major hub for CBR shipments from the Bakken field in North Dakota and Saskatchewan province. But we learn there are limits to further growth after the city slapped a moratorium on expansion to oil sands from Canada

March 17, 2014 - Climate Progress