Until recently the American food revolution seemed to have bypassed the Rustbelt region which rims the Great Lakes from Buffalo to Detroit. But an "interdependent web of chefs, butchers, farmers, millers, bakers and brewers" there are "cooking sustainably, supporting agriculture and raising families — all while making world-class food with a strong sense of place."
"Scott Lee, an ardent fisherman from Oak Ridge, Tennessee, has an opinion as to whether Barack Obama should sell the federally chartered Tennessee Valley Authority to private investors: Don't do it."
"President Obama's comments over the weekend about his looming decision on whether to expand natural gas exports are the clearest indication yet that the White House intends to greenlight broader global sales of U.S. natural gas, a prospect that has attracted strong backing in states that produce or process the fuel while drawing criticism from some environmentalists and from energy-intensive manufacturers concerned that energy costs would dramatically rise as a result."
"JPMorgan Chase developed schemes to sell electricity at falsely attractive prices in Michigan and California, according to The New York Times. The market manipulation could result in JPMorgan Chase receiving penalties from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission."
"BP made a record pre-tax profit in the first quarter of double its $9bn for the same period in 2012, the company announced on Tuesday, as a Norwegian regulator rebuked the company for a 2012 oil spill in the North Sea."
"Not far from Google’s headquarters in Mountain View, California, there’s a nondescript building that looks like it might be home to stealth startup. But if you walk in the front door, you won’t find cubicles or computers. You’ll find a secret bike shop where people like Robert Jimenez and Terry Mac twist wrenches and true tires all day long, rocking out to AC/DC and Pink Floyd. Then, if you slip into the back room, you’ll see them: 1,300 green, blue, red and yellow Google Bikes, stacked Santa’s workshop-style as far the eye can see."
Seattle-based InvestigateWest published a feature package last summer documenting illegal parkland conversions in Michigan, New York City, and Oklahoma. They could not cover all the other states — that was left for you to do, with the assistance of their database of some 40,000 federal grants under the Land and Water Conservation Fund.
Government rulemaking takes place with everything on the record in a public docket, right? Well ... actually not. EnergyWire reporter Mike Soraghan revealed in an April 12, 2013 story that presidential aide Heather Zichal met more than 20 times with industry groups lobbying on the proposed rule for fracking on federal lands.
"BP's largest new oil project in the Gulf, called Mad Dog Phase 2, sits atop a 4 billion barrel oil field. BP blames 'market conditions and industry inflation' for delay."
