No leaks … this time: That Shell oil drilling rig that ran aground in the Gulf of Alaska earlier this week? It’s got some electrical and water damage, but it’s not leaking, officials say. Hmmm, considering that this is only the latest in a “series of alarming blunders,” as a group of Democratic congressmen put it yesterday when demanding an investigation, perhaps we should consider ourselves lucky and not, you know, let Shell and other oil companies continue to make plans for more drilling in the Arctic? Washington Post
No justice: Speaking of dangerous oil rigs, the owner of the Deepwater Horizon, which killed 11 people when it blew up and sank in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010, has agreed to settle civil and criminal claims with the federal government to the tune of $1.4 billion. Somehow, the company’s stock then soared. TheStreet
Not-so-promised land: Get the world’s tiniest violin ready. Gas company execs are complaining that it’s getting harder for them to make gobs of money because state regulators and local communities are insisting on tougher rules and regulations to make sure gas drilling activities are safe and don’t pollute local air and water supplies. New York Times
Crop failure: This week’s deal between Congress and the White House to avoid the so-called “fiscal cliff” also included a stop-gap extension of the Farm Bill, which was due for an every-five-years renewal and was in danger of completely slipping through the cracks because -- surprise! -- Tea Party Republicans wanted to gut it. Pretty much everyone agrees that what got passed at the 11th hour might be worse than nothing. Mother Jones, Grist, NPR, Associated Press
Criminal element: Could leaded gasoline be to blame for violent crime, lower IQs, and even the ADHD epidemic in America’s cities during the latter half of the 20th century? A compelling case. Mother Jones
Stop us if you've heard this one: In a repeat of what happened on the Kalamazoo River a year earlier, federal investigators say it took an oil company way too long to react to the 2011 pipeline break under Montana’s Yellowstone River, making the impact far worse. With the kind of track record they’re piling up, how is anyone supposed to buy the safety assurances from these companies that want to build new pipelines and carry even more oil and gas across America’s waterways? Associated Press
You want fries with that heart transplant? Too bad: As long-term leases signed a decade or more ago are expiring, more hospitals are kicking McDonald’s restaurants out of their food courts and cafeterias. Soda and other sugary beverages are next. The Salt
Tips: @OnEarthMag (tag it #greenreads)
Image: Keoni Cabral/Flickr
