Portside

However severe the current crisis, and whatever the outcome in November, big changes are coming in how the U.S. economy functions, how this country is ruled and its role in the world.

Fossil fuel industry lobbyists have convinced lawmakers in 16 states to introduce legislation criminalizing pipeline protests. Seven states have ratified them as law. And now the industry is proposing Congress enact similar language as federal law.

The force that threatens our existence isn’t an alien invasion — it’s climate change — and the response from mankind has been less that inspiring. So why hasn’t our species come together, in dramatic fashion, to save the day?

For months, a man calling himself Joel Edwards had posed as a pipeline opponent, attending protests, befriending water protectors, and paying for hotel rooms, supplies, and booze.

At 350-person rally organized by Torrance Refinery Action on the third anniversary of a giant explosion at Exxon Mobil’s facility there, people were eager to hear about how Richmond is working to hold Chevron accountable for its pollution. His piece ref

In a region known for being among the worst nationally for its air quality, plans are marching briskly forward on a proposed integration project that will combine operations at two sprawling oil refineries near Southern California's Long Beach area, expanding it into the single largest oil refinery by far on the nation's West Coast.

The government insists that the oil giant should pay Ecuador reparations for thousands of oil spills in the Amazon rain forest.

Many US producers borrowed heavily and cheaply to cash in on the shale boom, but prices of around $30 a barrel are now causing severe difficulties.

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Looking for another reason to worry about fracking? We're going to bubble-wrap the entire planet with the overabundance of plastic it produces.