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Archive for July 6th, 2011
Documents detail Exxon’s Yellowstone response
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on July 6th, 2011
Associated Press: Federal documents show it took Exxon Mobil nearly twice as long as it publicly disclosed to fully seal a pipeline that spilled roughly 1,000 barrels of crude oil into the Yellowstone River.
Details about the company's response to the Montana pipeline burst emerged late Tuesday as the Department of Transportation ordered the company bury the duct deeper beneath the riverbed, where it is buried 5 to 8 feet underground to deliver 40,000 barrels of oil a day to a refinery in Billings.
The federal...
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Exxon oil spill on Yellowstone River disrupts farms
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on July 6th, 2011
Reuters: Governor Brian Schweitzer vowed on Tuesday to cling to Exxon Mobil like "the smell on a skunk" for as long as it takes to get the company to clean up a weekend oil spill that fouled an otherwise pristine stretch of the Yellowstone River in Montana.
A 12-inch Exxon pipeline ruptured on Friday night about 150 miles downstream from Yellowstone National Park near the town of Laurel, Montana, southwest of Billings, dumping up to 1,000 barrels, or 42,000 gallons, of crude oil into the flood-swollen...
Exxon has yet to craft Montana pipeline fix plan
Posted by Reuters: Tom Doggett and Erwin Seba on July 6th, 2011
Reuters: U.S. pipeline safety regulators on Tuesday said Exxon Mobil must make fixes to its ruptured Montana oil pipeline and submit a restart plan before oil can flow again.
The U.S. Transportation Department's Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration also ordered the company to re-bury the pipeline segment and do a risk study where it crosses any waterway.
"The safety of our nation's pipelines is a priority and the investigation into this incident is ongoing," Transportation Secretary...
ROCKIES: Montana: Assessing Damage From Spill
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on July 6th, 2011
New York Times: Almost four days after an Exxon Mobil pipeline broke and spilled some 42,000 gallons of crude oil into the Yellowstone River, government officials and wildlife advocates struggled Tuesday to evaluate what the impact to water, birds and fish would be. Some 350 emergency personnel are working to ease the effects of the spill — absorbing pooled oil and conducting aerial flights to spot oiled birds and other damage. Alan Jeffers, an Exxon spokesman, said that so far, none of the towns that take drinking...
Warmer temperatures may threaten Northern California vineyards, study says
Posted by LA Times: Ashlie Rodriguez on July 6th, 2011
LA Times: In the next 30 years, high-value vineyards in California could shrink by 50% because of global warming, according to a Stanford University study released last week.
Scientists applied scenarios from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in a computer model and found that Napa and Santa Barbara counties could experience 10 more very hot days –; 95 degrees or higher –; during the growing season.
Related Supreme Court kills global warming suit Jonah Goldberg: Cooling on global warming...
Ford, Toyota Criticize EPA Ethanol-Blend Fuel Proposal
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on July 6th, 2011
Bloomberg: Automakers including Chrysler Group LLC, Ford Motor Co. and Toyota Motor Corp. criticized an Environmental Protection Agency proposal to allow gasoline containing as much as 15 percent ethanol in all cars and trucks in the U.S., saying its use may void warranties.
Twelve automakers released letters today sent to Representative James Sensenbrenner, a Wisconsin Republican, saying the EPA proposal to sell so-called E15 fuel may damage engines and fuel-supply systems in vehicles made to run on gasoline...