Matthew Gerke

April 4, 2009

On March 31, the U.S. Justice Department filed a civil complaint against BP Exploration, an Alaska company, alleging that BP illegally discharged excessive amounts of crude oil onto Alaskan land during two major spills in 2006. Filed on behalf of the EPA and Department of Transportation, the complaint further alleges that BP violated the Clean Water Act by failing to have the necessary spill prevention measures in place on its pipelines. http://www.upi.com/Business_News/2009/03/31/Feds_sue_BP_Exploration_over_Alaska_spill/UPI-75921238548326/. For further details, including discussion of the Alaska state claim, see http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/apr/01/state-feds-file-civil-suits-over-bp-oil-spills--2/.

In the US Congress, a new climate bill was introduced by Representatives Wasman and Markey that would create a national energy portfolio with renewable energy standards aimed at boosting the country's energy efficiency. One of the goals of the bill is to cut greenhouse gas emissions by twenty percent from 2005 levels by 2020 and partially seeks to do so by providing industry incentives for the use of carbon sequestration technology. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/03/31/AR2009033103683.html.

Danish pension fund ATP recently paid over $32 million for approximately 92,000 acres of forest in the Adirondacks in New York. Sellers Nature Conservancy stated that the sale was complete with the idea that ATP would ensure sustainable logging practices were utilized in the region, a goal designed to both protect the forest and increase the economic productivity of the land. http://www.adirondackdailyenterprise.com/page/content.detail/id/505766.html?nav=5008. Photo of the conservation plan found here http://www.adirondackdailyenterprise.com/?page=photos.largeImage&showlayout=0&loc=news&photoSyndDir=&Photo=505766_1.jpg.

MIT Professor Timothy Gutowski recently led a study examining the energy efficiency and consumption of new manufacturing systems and found that when considering energy consumption on a per pound of output basis, new manufacturing systems use far more energy than traditional industries. Gutowski notes that while many factors beside energy consumption are typically focused on by manufacturers, such as quality, energy cost will be a prime concern when looking to scale up these new technologies in the fight against global warming. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/03/090327112547.htm. Report abstract http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/es8016655?prevSearch=&searchHistoryKey=.

President Obama is attempting the further green the White House but before revealing his master plan, is first consulting with environmental experts to figure out what measures will be cost-effective for helping the 132-room building leave a smaller carbon footprint. Any actions the President makes will be in addition to the changes made former Presidents Clinton and Bush, with the former improving the efficiency of the White House lighting and temperature control and the latter adding three solar panels to auxiliary buildings. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29944122/. White House history http://www.whitehouse.gov/about/White_House_101_White_House_History/.