The Green Parent

I’ve taken as many steps as I can to improve my gas mileage and cut back on the amount of money I spend at the pump. But with the rising prices, I find that I’m still forking over the equivalent of my child’s college tuition just to fill up each week. So I decided it would be a good idea to know a bit more about the oil tycoon’s I’m working to support. Fortunately, this good folks at GOOD magazine recently researched this exact topic. Here’s the summary:

Shell
HQ: The Hague
Where’s the oil from? Mexico, Algeria, Ecuador, Nigeria, China
How much do they spend on alternative energy? They won’t say
Environmental record? Allegations of environmental degradation, exaggerated community reinvestment projects, and questionable development practices.

Exxon/Mobil
HQ? Dallas, TX
Where’s the oil from? Mexico, Canada, Angola, Saudi Arabia, Iraq
How much do they spend on alternative energy? They’re not talking
Environmental record? Exxon will forever be linked with the notorious Exxon Valdez tanker spill in 1989 when 11 million gallons of oil marred Alaskan reefs and waters.

BP
HQ? London, U.K.
Where’s the oil from? Canada, Iraq, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, Angola
How much do they spend on alternative energy? $600 million
Environmental record? BP was the original bad boy of the oil biz; however, a recent makeover means that BP is now the most transparent of all the oil companies with real efforts to support alternative energy and improve social responsibility.

Wanna know more? Read the full report from Good Magazine here.