NEW YORK, NY, Apr 19, 2012 (MARKETWIRE via COMTEX) -- The markets have experienced a strong first quarter in 2012 and yet the Utility Sector have disappointed. The Utilities SPDR ETF--- which seeks to provide investment results that correspond to the price and yield performance of the Utilities Select Sector of the S&P 500 Index -- has seen almost no change year-to-date. Low natural gas prices and new carbon emission limits are forcing electric utilities companies to switch their plants from coal to natural gas. The Paragon Report examines investing opportunities in the Electric Utilities Industry and provides equity research on PPL Corporation /quotes/zigman/255398/quotes/nls/ppl PPL -0.04% and Exelon Corporation /quotes/zigman/252515/quotes/nls/exc EXC +0.08% .
April 19, 2012
NEW ORLEANS – Eyeless shrimp, fish with oozing sores and other mutant creatures found in the Gulf of Mexico are raising concerns over lingering effects of the BP oil spill.
On April 20, 2010, an explosion aboard the BP-leased Deepwater Horizon rig killed 11 people and spewed an estimated 4.9 million barrels into the Gulf, in the worst offshore oil spill in U.S. history.
April 17, 2012
MARSHALL, MICHIGAN — Sections of the Kalamazoo River that have been closed since a 2010 pipeline rupture that spilled more than 800,000 gallons of oil in southern Michigan could reopen this summer.
Ralph Dollhopf, the federal on-scene coordinator for the Environmental Protection Agency, says he expects some areas back open for recreational use. The Detroit Free Press reports that decision will be made by local health officials in consultation with EPA and state officials.
ScienceDaily (Apr. 16, 2012) — Researchers at Rice University and Penn State University have discovered that adding a dash of boron to carbon while creating nanotubes turns them into solid, spongy, reusable blocks that have an astounding ability to absorb oil spilled in water.
April 16, 2012
The Caribbean region including Jamaica and other Small Island Developing States lacks the resources to combat a major oil spill, delegates to a regional convention on oil spill prevention and response have been warned.
Opening the convention to discuss oil spill prevention, preparedness and response in the Gulf of Mexico, keynote speaker Christopher Cargill, Chairman of the Petroleum Corporation of Jamaica, said Jamaica and other islands in the region do not have access to vast amounts of resources to combat major oil spills of the magnitude of the BP Deepwater Horizon incident – which occurred two years ago this month in the Gulf of Mexico.