Smoking Gun
A report released by Consumer Watchdog at the summit showed that the companies had spent more than $100 million on lobbying and campaign contributions during the last five years in California to combat environmental protections.
Press Release
Oakland, CA – The nonprofit Consumer Watchdog released a report chronicling the tactics California oil companies are likely to use to undermine implementation of climate protection laws and warned state officials they include artificially hiking the price of gasoline.
Blog Post
It’s Earth Day. Here in California, state regulators are celebrating with their Keep California Beautiful Event that kicks off at the State Capitol followed by cleanup activities, like picking up litter and collecting e-waste, across…
Blog Post
The word “fracking” exploded into the American vocabulary just a few years ago. People from Pennsylvania to Wyoming found chemicals creeping into their drinking water; some could light flammable gases straight from the faucet (video).as oil companies injected chemical-laced water deep underground to fracture gas-bearing rock. But in California, a narrow industry definition of fracking and the inattention of regulators kept the state mostly out of the conversation.
Blog Post
California gasoline prices are still soaring, even as the rest of the nation sees falling pump prices. The reason is simple: Refiners control the supply.
Blog Post
This California license plate, “Gas Pain,” might be the sly joke of a gastroenterologist, but it’s not on a Mercedes. So let’s stipulate that it means pain at the pump, with a gallon of regular…
Blog Post
Ohio has shut down the natural gas drilling wastewater disposal well that triggers earthquakes. Politicians are finally reacting to drinking water contamination, too. We need new disposal methods for the salty, toxic waste and ways to hold oil companies accountable. Here are 10 great ways to do both!
Blog Post
The reviled “jobless recovery” of the U.S. economy won’t improve much in 2012, say the usual forecasters. But oil company executives and market speculators can break out the champagne now as the price of crude oil starts the year with a huge jump. It’s not about Iranian threats or rising demand, it’s about speculative profits.
OilWatchdog and other critics of commodity speculation have long said that rampant speculation in oil futures markets has hurt families, cost jobs and kept the U.S. economy teetering on the edge of recession. Energy analyst…
News Clipping
“The pain in their wallets is causing them to rethink their lifestyles,” said Jamie Court, president of Consumer Watchdog in Santa Monica, a frequent critic of Big Oil. “People tend to be a lot more environmentally conscious when just ignoring it is going to cost them something.” The changes are even more significant, Court said, given the steady rise in the number of drivers. “It shows that ultimately we can solve both the higher emission problem and the higher consumption problem associated with more drivers if we can continue to improve fuel efficiency technology,” Court said.
Here’s a petition from our ally Public Citizen, calling on federal regulators to quit stalling and rein in the financial speculators who are jacking up gasoline prices. It’s well worth the few seconds to click…
Blog Post
The old adage about gasoline prices, “up like a rocket, down like a feather,” has never been so true. The price of crude oil in recent days has been down near $80 a barrel, translating…
Blog Post
The financial news today is that oil prices are down below $90 a barrel from over $100, and futures market prices for gasoline are down 5% to below $3.00 a gallon. Will that translate to…
