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    U.S. Coal Exports Nearly Triple Over Last Decade

    U.S. Coal Exports Nearly Triple Over Last Decade

    Coal exports in the U.S. have nearly tripled since 2005, according to new data from the U.S. Energy and Information Administration. Export volumes set a monthly record in March 2013, before declining in the second half of the year. Domestic coal consumption is continuing to shrink in the U.S., where a combination of low natural […]

    DOT Issues Emergency Order for Stricter Standards to Transport Crude Oil by Rail

    DOT Issues Emergency Order for Stricter Standards to Transport Crude Oil by Rail

    The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) yesterday issued an Emergency Order requiring all shippers to test product from the Bakken region to ensure the proper classification of crude oil before it is transported by rail, while also prohibiting the transportation of crude oil in the lowest-strength packing group. The fireball that followed the derailment and explosion […]

    4 Reasons the Sochi Olympics Are an Environmental Disaster

    4 Reasons the Sochi Olympics Are an Environmental Disaster

    By Kevin Mathews You may see a lot of gold, silver and bronze at the Olympics, but one color you definitely won’t see much of in Sochi is green. Years ago, Russia won its Olympic bid in large part by pledging to host the most environmentally friendly Games ever. Now, however, it’s clear that Sochi did not […]

    Despite $93 Billion in Profits, Big Oil Demands Continued Tax Breaks

    Despite $93 Billion in Profits, Big Oil Demands Continued Tax Breaks

    By Daniel J. Weiss and Miranda Peterson The 2013 profit totals are in for the big five oil companies—BP, Chevron, ConocoPhillips, Exxon Mobil and Shell. Their financial reports indicate that they earned a combined total of $93 billion last year, or $177,000 per minute. After years of oil production declines, the big five oil companies actually increased their […]

    5 Ways the Farm Bill Brings Home the Bacon for Big Ag

    5 Ways the Farm Bill Brings Home the Bacon for Big Ag

    Today the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Farm Bill, which fails to make meaningful reforms to correct this imbalance in our food policy: 1. “Direct Payments” Bait and Switch The Farm Bill eliminates the “Direct Payments” program—long the poster child for wasteful agricultural subsidies, known for handing out checks to rich landowners who don’t […]

    Pesticide Exposure Linked to Alzheimer’s Disease

    Pesticide Exposure Linked to Alzheimer’s Disease

    By Robin Lally Scientists have known for more than 40 years that the synthetic pesticide DDT is harmful to bird habitats and a threat to the environment. Now researchers at Rutgers University say exposure to DDT—banned in the U.S. since 1972 but still used as a pesticide in other countries—may also increase the risk and […]

    Court Ruling Expands Secrecy on Public Safety Information Concerning Dam Failures and Chemical Spills

    Court Ruling Expands Secrecy on Public Safety Information Concerning Dam Failures and Chemical Spills

    A sweeping new appellate court decision justifies federal agencies withholding substantial public safety information concerning dam failures, chemical spills and other critical events, according to Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER). The ruling blocked PEER’s attempts to force release of the emergency plans in the event of failure of two large international storage dams on […]

    Exxon Pressures Government to Lift Restrictions on Oil Exports

    Exxon Pressures Government to Lift Restrictions on Oil Exports

    By Farron Cousins It wasn’t long ago that the dirty energy industry and their friends in Congress and the media were screaming that we needed to open up every corner of America to oil and gas drilling in order to lower energy costs and help protect our country from oil-rich countries who don’t like the U.S.  Photo […]