A paper published by the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), “The Climate Deception Dossiers,” reveals decades of corporate misinformation campaigns by the fossil fuel industry. The paper focuses on seven deception dossiers, or collections containing nearly 85 internal company and trade association documents that have either been leaked to the public, come to light through lawsuits, or been disclosed through …
Book Review: The Power Surge
As I write about energy each day, I often wonder what the trade-offs or consequences will be if a technology takes off, or even if it fails. How will it, if at all, alter America’s energy landscape? From my point of view, we are a country in fear of change and in fear of taking action. We are a country …
Editorial from Orrie Swayze
Pioneer ethanol advocate Orrie Swayze of South Dakota had the following op-ed published last week in the Sioux Falls Argus Leader: Like with lead, petroleum’s web of lies continues gaining permission from the masses to poison their children. Author Dresden James explains why: “When a well-packaged web of lies has been sold gradually to the masses … the truth will …
Book Review: Flight Behavior
I recently read the novel Flight Behavior by Barbara Kingsolver, a book about climate change. When I first began reading the book I had no intentions of doing a review, but as I got deeper into the book, and the characters voiced their opinions, about media in general, my intentions changed. The premise of the book is that millions of …
Wind Energy Faces Challenges
According to a new paper, “Challenges for Wind Energy’s Future,” although a negligible player in electricity generation, wind energy comes at an exorbitant taxpayer expense. In addition, the report finds that the wind industry faces several likely “insurmountable” challenges to becoming a dependable part of America’s energy portfolio. Author Merrill Matthews, Ph.D., discusses in the paper that while wind itself …
Oklahoma Institutes “Sun” Tariff
The Oklahoma legislature has passed a bill that institutes a tax on the sun and wind (distributed generation). Beginning November 1, 2014, residents who use solar or wind energy and want to connect their renewable energy to the grid, must begin paying a “solar surcharge” to utilities for the privilege. The bill was signed into law on April 21 (notably …
Editorial from Father of Ethanol
The man who is known as the “Father of Ethanol” in the United States is still busy advocating for the industry at the well-seasoned age of 93. Merle Anderson, one of the founding members of the American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE), just recently penned an excellent editorial for the Grand Forks Herald about his favorite subject and his observations are …
Keep Our Tax Breaks: We Only Make $93B in Profit
Dear Congress, Please keep our millions of dollars in tax breaks in place. We only make $93 billion in collective profit per year. This is not enough money to operate our businesses and overcharge our customers. We’re sure you will make the right decision. Yours truly, Big Oil This is what a letter to Congress might look like from Big …
Opinion: EPA Putting Carrot Behind Biodiesel’s Back
As the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) considers its proposal to cut down on the amount of biofuels to be blended into the Nation’s fuel supply, biodiesel makers are still scratching their heads trying to figure out why their green fuel is even being considered. In this piece in Biodiesel Magazine, Ron Kotrba makes the case that when it comes to …
Wind Tax Credit Set to Expire
The wind energy tax credit is set to expire tomorrow and unlike last year, there has been virtually no noise from the wind energy industry on the need to save the Production Tax Credit (PTC). In January 2013 Congress extended the tax credit for one year but structured the credit different in the past. Could this be the reason there …