BALTIMORE (AP) — An environmental group said Wednesday that infrared video shows air pollution streaming from natural gas sites that have been sprouting up across the Chesapeake Bay watershed.

The Chesapeake Bay Foundation said it sent the videos to the federal Environmental Protection Agency along with a letter saying they show emissions are not being adequately controlled. The video “establishes that the industry is not sufficiently limiting the amount of leaks from drilling and processing operations and the full extent of those leaks” has not been adequately considered in the EPA‘s proposed regulations, the letter said.

A boom in drilling using a technique known as hydraulic fracturing prompted environmentalists to sue the EPA last year over regulation. The agency proposed new rules in July to control air pollution at oil and gas wells for the first time. The video and letter were filed on the last day of the public comment period for the proposed regulations, said Harry Campbell, a senior scientist at the foundation’s Pennsylvania office.

The Chesapeake Bay Foundation said it hired a videographer to record video at 15 sites in Pennsylvania, Maryland and West Virginia and found otherwise invisible emissions at 11.

Campbell said the video “adds another line of evidence that there are issues that need to be addressed.”

The foundation said in its letter that increased shale gas production may prove beneficial because natural gas is cleaner than oil and coal, but “the alarming rate at which extraction activities have increased in the bay watershed gives us great pause as we attempt to understand the full implications.”

The EPA did

Read the whole article at: http://news.yahoo.com/group-gas-drilling-polluting-chesapeake-bay-area-215903180.html

A week after a South Korean lawmaker set off a tear gas bomb in a parliamentary session, police there haven’t brought charges against him and some in the country are hailing him as a hero. The lawmaker, Kim Seon-dong, represents the opposition Democratic Labor Party, which opposed the passage of a free trade agreement with the United States. On Wednesday, local media noted that police there had yet to charge or even investigate Kim for the gas attack. Many in Korea are happy for that, as they see Kim and his tear gas as comparable to those who fought the Japanese in World War II. As one English-language Korean columnist pointed out, opposition politicians have little recourse in Korea’s government, which is dominated by a single party on both a legislative and executive level. In a way, he’s Korea’s one-man version of Occupy Wall Street and the Tea Party combined.

Related: What They’ll Be Eating at Tonight’s White House State Dinner

After the outburst last week (that’s a red-eyed Kim at left being led out of the chambers afterward), the Wall Street Journal reported that “because the incident occurred in parliament, he said prosecutors or the police can only launch an official investigation if parliament presses charges against Mr. Kim.” The ruling Grand National Party said it would hold Kim responsible, but it didn’t specifically threaten to press charges. And so far it hasn’t. Working from a Korean-language news report on Munhwa, one of the nation’s four major broadcasters, Asian Correspondent blogger Nathan Schwartzman reports that “no investigation of him has even begun and criticism of the police is mounting,” and that “many are calling the delay by prosecutors an example of abuse of the

Read the whole article at: http://news.yahoo.com/koreas-tear-gas-lawmaker-now-national-hero-222915663.html

November 25, 2011, 8:24 AM EST

By Todd White

(Adds U.S. share price in second paragraph.)

Nov. 22 (Bloomberg) — Cheniere Energy Inc. signed a second natural-gas supply contract in three weeks, boosting its chances of building the first export terminal in the continental U.S.

Gas Natural SDG SA of Spain agreed to load 3.5 million metric tons of liquefied natural gas a year from Houston-based Cheniere’s proposed Sabine Pass terminal in Louisiana for 20 years beginning in 2017, the companies said in statements after the market closed in the U.S. Cheniere rose 7.1 percent to $12.30 in New York premarket trading at 8:12 a.m. local time.

Production from shale fields has made the U.S. the world’s largest gas producer and seen prices collapse 75 percent from 2008’s highs, opening the prospect of ship-bound exports. Yesterday’s deal, following a 20-year contract with BG Group Plc, may ensure cash-strapped Cheniere gets financing to build the first phase of its $7.2 billion Sabine export terminal, Societe General said.

“Cheniere now has an incentive to build it as fast as possible,” said Thierry Bros, a senior analyst for European gas and LNG at Societe Generale in Paris. “The banks will now have secured cash flow” to repay debt on the export facility.

Cheniere, which fell 1.9 percent to $11.48 a share in the U.S. yesterday before the news, called “another milestone” for Sabine. It has met a 7 million metric-ton capacity target, “which is expected to support the construction” of the first two export lines at the facility, Cheniere said in its statement.

Read the whole article at: http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-11-22/gas-natural-agrees-to-buy-supplies-from-u-s-producer-cheniere.html

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After I wrote an introductory series on investing in natural gas, a lot of Fools had questions about natural gas ETFs. Namely, what are they and are they worth investing in? This article aims to outline the natural gas ETF basics for interested investors.

Exchange-traded funds are typically funds composed of a variety of stocks you can buy and sell shares of on one of the exchanges. They’ve been around since the early 1990s but have become more popular recently. There are many reasons to buy or not buy ETFs in general, but natural gas ETFs come with their own specific set of pros and cons.

Natural Gas ETFs
Unlike most ETFs, most natural gas ETFs reflect the price of the commodity instead of the performance of a group of stocks. One of the most popular natural gas ETFs is the United States Natural Gas Fund (NYSE: UNG  ) , which measures the changes in natural gas futures contracts traded on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The price of natural gas has declined significantly since 2008, and futures trade for less than $4 per MMBTU. The year-to-date return of this particular ETF is a loss of 24.8%. A similar ETF, iPath Dow Jones-UBS Natural Gas Subindex Total Return ETN (NYSE: GAZ  ) , is down 17.6% this year.

Bird of a different feather
There is another option for ETF-inclined investors, however. The First Trust ISE-Revere Natural Gas Index Fund (NYSE: Read the whole article at: http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2011/11/29/natural-gas-etfs-the-basics.aspx

Skipping shipping and handling costs for online purchases can go a long way toward helping you stick to a holiday budget. Toss in gas and parking savings, not to mention convenience and ease, and the appeal grows.

[See 10 Ways to Start Earning Extra Money Now.]

“What many consumers don’t realize is that retailers often build the cost of this kind of promotion into their holiday budgets months in advance,” NRF spokesperson Kathy Grannis writes on the group’s blog. “So while the service isn’t ‘free’ for retailers, it’s something they know their valued shoppers look for when calculating the cost of gift-giving each holiday season, and this year, nine out of 10 plan to put the offer to good use.”

According to a Shop.org survey, 36 percent of holiday shoppers say free shipping is one of the top reasons they plan to spend more online than at traditional brick-and-mortar retailers this year. The polled group also cited 24-hour convenience and lack of crowds in favor of online shopping.

A separate survey, conducted by digital marketing consultancy comScore, asked consumers how important free shipping is for making an online purchase this holiday season. Slightly more than three-quarters (76 percent) of those surveyed indicated it was important and 47 percent indicated they would abandon a purchase if they got to

Read the whole article at: http://www.usnews.com/money/personal-finance/articles/2011/11/29/take-advantage-of-free-shipping-deals-this-holiday-season.html?s_cid=rss:take-advantage-of-free-shipping-deals-this-holiday-season

TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan’s Olympus Corp has launched a review of its business structure, according to an internal memo, amid speculation that the 92-year-old company may have to sell assets in order to survive a massive accounting scandal. The maker of cameras and medical equipment is also looking to reform its much-criticized …

Read the whole article at: http://news.yahoo.com/iwn-nnn-gas-pra-large-inflows-detected-etf-173332671.html

DALLAS, Nov. 28, 2011 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — MicroStockProfit.com announces a stock report featuring Legend Oil and Gas Ltd. (OTC:LOGL.OB – News). The report details the company’s most recent developments and news, outlines its financial position and market performance, and includes an easy-to-read stock chart.

MicroStockProfit.com is the premier destination for investment information, making your trading decisions easier than ever. Get the rundown on how LOGL stacks up against its competitors and check-out the stock’s technical data by viewing the free, in-depth report for LOGL at: http://www.microstockprofit.com/lp/LOGL

This newsletter has been helping traders make great investment decisions on LOGL; click here for a 15% discount offer.

In the report, the analyst notes:

“The Company said it has set up a Canadian office in Calgary, Alberta to support the development and management of its Canadian assets. It has also hired a petroleum engineer in the position of manager of engineering and a controller to manage the day to day operations of these acquired assets.”

“LOGL had a net loss of $476 K for the three months ended September 30, 2011, compared to a net loss of $44 K for the three months ended September 30, 2010 … The Company attributed the period to period increase in net loss to an increase in costs and operating expenses without a commensurate increase in revenues.”

To read the entire report visit: www.microstockprofit.com/lp/LOGL

See what investors are saying about LOGL at http://www.stockhideout.com

Get breaking news on LOGL at http://thestockmarketwatch.com/

MicroStockProfit.com is a small-cap research and investment commentary provider. MicroStockProfit.com strives to provide a balanced view of many promising small-cap companies that would otherwise fall under the radar of the typical Wall Street investor. We

Read the whole article at: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Penny-Stock-Trade-Review-pz-2632651845.html

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea’s ruling party forced a long-stalled free trade deal with the United States through parliament Tuesday, enraging opposition lawmakers who blasted their political rivals with tear gas.

South Korean lawmakers voted 151 to 7 in favor of ratifying the landmark trade agreement in a surprise legislative session called by the ruling Grand National Party, parliamentary officials said.

Shouts and screams filled the National Assembly as ruling party lawmakers forced their way onto the parliamentary floor. Amid the scuffling, one opposition lawmaker doused rivals with tear gas.

Security guards hustled him out of the chamber as he shouted and tried to resist. Outside the National Assembly building, opponents of the deal scuffled with police mobilized to maintain order.

The pact is America’s biggest free-trade agreement since the 1994 North American Free Trade Agreement with Canada and Mexico. Two-way trade between the United States and South Korea, Asia’s fourth-largest economy, totaled about $90 billion last year, according to the South Korean government.

After the deal was approved less than an hour after the tussle began, dozens of opposition lawmakers and aides — who fought hard to prevent passage of an agreement they say favors U.S. over South Korean workers — sat slumped around the chamber podium. One legislator leaned her head against the shoulder of another as they both stared at the floor in silence.

Such chaotic scenes are not uncommon in South Korea’s parliament, where rival parties have a history of resorting to physical confrontation over highly charged issues. In 2008, opposition lawmakers used a sledgehammer to try and force their way into a barricaded committee room to stop the ruling party from introducing a debate on the U.S. trade deal.

President Lee Myung-bak’s ruling party commands a majority in South Korea’s single-chamber, 295-seat parliament but hadn’t forced the deal through earlier,

Read the whole article at: http://www.lsureveille.com/news/tear-gas-scuffles-as-south-korea-oks-us-free-trade-deal-1.2677028

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  • Heat turned on Egypt’s ruling generals
  • Protesters keep pressure on Egypt army
  • Egypt truce holds, protesters plan mass rally

Saboteurs blew up Egypt’s gas pipeline to Jordan and Israel
today, witnesses and security sources said, a few hours before the
country holds its first free election since President Hosni Mubarak
was toppled in February.

The explosion was set off west of al-Arish in Sinai, witnesses
said. State news agency MENA said the explosion was in al-Sabeel
area.

Security forces and fire trucks raced to the scene.

The pipeline, which supplies gas to Jordan and Israel, was last
attacked on November 25.

It is the eighth such attack since Mubarak stepped down on
February 11, although the pipeline was first attacked a few days
earlier.

Egypt’s 20-year gas deal with Israel, signed in the Mubarak era,
is unpopular with the Egyptian public, with critics arguing that
the Jewish state does not pay enough for the gas.

Citizens demand clean election

Egyptians desperate to stop bullies and cheats stitching up the
country’s first free election in decades are lining up by the
thousand, cameras and mobile phones at the ready, to help monitors
document abuses and expose the perpetrators.

Democracy activists fear wealthy candidates and well-funded
Islamists will use time-worn tactics to edge out their rivals -
cajoling voters, stuffing polling station queues with supporters
and handing out food and medicine to sway voters.

Such tactics helped President Hosni Mubarak stay in power for
decades, when membership of his party was widely seen as a
requirement for high office and success in business.

The discredited party was scrapped after Mubarak was overthrown
in February, paving the way for the vote, but old

Read the whole article at: http://tvnz.co.nz/world-news/egyptian-gas-pipeline-blown-up-saboteurs-4574944?ref=rss

TEL AVIV, Israel, Nov. 28, 2011 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Ampal-American Israel Corporation (Nasdaq: AMPL – News), a holding company in the business of acquiring and managing interests in various businesses, announced today that it has been advised by East Mediterranean Gas Co. (“EMG”), in which Ampal has a 12.5% interest, that around 01:00 last night there was an explosion close by and west of Al Arish along the Egyptian gas pipeline and west of EMG’s site, due to an alleged terror attack. The pipeline is owned and operated by GASCO, the Egyptian gas transport company, which is a subsidiary of EGAS, the Egyptian national gas company (EMG’s gas supplier).

Following the explosion EGAS has initiated its standard shut down procedure affecting gas transportation throughout the Sinai area and gas supply to Jordan, Lebanon, Syria; to major Egyptian industries and gas consumers in the Sinai; and to EMG.

The extent of the damage to GASCO’s pipeline and the estimated repair period is unknown at this point. Neither EMG’s site nor EMG’s pipeline were damaged as the affected GASCO’s pipeline is not a part of the EMG pipeline system.

About Ampal:

Ampal and its subsidiaries acquire interests primarily in businesses located in the State of Israel or that are Israel-related. Ampal is seeking opportunistic situations in a variety of industries, with a focus on energy, chemicals and related sectors. Ampal’s goal is to develop or acquire majority interests in businesses that are profitable and generate significant free cash flow that Ampal can control. For more information about Ampal please visit our web site at www.ampal.com.

Safe Harbor Statement

Certain information in this press release includes forward-looking statements (within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of

Read the whole article at: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/EMG-Gas-Supply-To-Israel-pz-2650256237.html