A quarter of all independent countries on planet are resource rich. The 58 states produce 85% of world’s petroleum, 90% of the diamonds and 80% of copper with total profits from their extractive sector totaling more than $2.6 trillion.According to the Resource Governance Index (RGI), in 41 countries out of the group the extractive sector contributes a third of their GDP. And the future of these countries heavily depends on how effective they govern their resources.Norway takes the top ranking followed by the United States and the United Kingdom, all three majoring in hydrocarbon extraction. Russia comes 22 in the ranking, dragging behind its neighbor Kazakhstan and major South American energy states. Among the countries with the worst natural resource governance are Saudi Arabia, Iran, and Turkmenistan, and Myanmar concludes the ranking. The Index shows a striking governance deficit in natural resources management worldwide with only 11 countries on the list scoring satisfactory. The RGI evaluates four key components of resources governance in each country: institutional and legal setting, reporting practices, safeguards and quality controls and enabling environment. It also takes into account data from the World bank, advocacy groups, including Transparency International and various ecology watchdogs.The Index is based on the assertion that a good governance of natural resources provides successful development of country and is designed to serve as a tool to help identify good practices as well as governing failure.The Revenue Watch Institute is a unique organization of its kind exclusively dedicated to address the problems of countries that are rich in natural resources. … Read More
Russian Central Bank to increase controls over bankers’ bonuses and salaries
The State Duma Committee on Financial Markets will meet on Friday, and is expected to approve the bill, as they already have support from both government and bank deputies.If approved by deputies, the Central Bank will increase control over banks, their owners, executives, and executive bonuses. Starting in 2014 banks will be required to prepare a consolidated report in accordance with International Financial Reporting StandardsThe Central Bank will be able to influence banking systems, including bonuses, said Mikhail Sukhov, the Bank’s Deputy Chairman. If it sees fit the bank can set individual standards for banking groups.“Specific restrictions and sanctions will be outlined later in a separate piece of legislation,” said Sukhov.Starting on July 1, all banks will be required to submit their payroll documents to the Central Bank.“In general, we support the amendments. It is important for the Central Bank to understand the concentration risks in banks and to regulate controls abroad,” Anatoly Aksakov, the deputy president of the Association of Regional Banks, said in support of the amendments.The Central Bank will also be able to check on international subsidiaries, within the parameters of local jurisdiction. “If there are any violations to ‘daughter’ companies, we have no right to use these sanctions, but the [Russian] ‘parent’ company will be able to impose fines and sanctions on the ‘daughter’ company in order to correct violations,” said SukhovAlexander Levkovsky, first deputy chairman of SMP Bank, agrees that the new controls will mostly affect banking groups with foreign subsidiary branches.For low-quality risk management or corporate governance the Central Bank will be able to set individual standards for banks. … Read More
Chilean students clash with police in protest for free education
The march in the capital Santiago was mainly peaceful, but police used water cannons and tear gas to break up one group of demonstrators when they were attacked by petrol bombs.Organizers reported that 80,000 people took to the streets of Santiago, but police estimated the number was closer to 37,000.There were also major protests in the cities of Valparaiso, Concepcion, Temuco and Valdivia.Students have resumed their two-year-long protest for free education, staging marches in several major cities.Chilean students have been staging marches for free, high-quality education since 2011, and demonstrations continued throughout 2012. More than 100,000 people participated in the first such marches of 2013 in April.While Chile’s education system is regarded as among the best in Latin America, students say it is extremely unfair.They argue that middle class children from rich families have access to some of the best schools, while the poor have to make do with underfunded state schools. All universities in Chile are fee-paying.The campaign for educational reform has seen the biggest protests in Chile since the country became democratic in 1990 after voting to oust the military junta of General Augusto Pinochet. … Read More
Study finds ‘soup of toxic chemicals’ in the air near Arkansas ExxonMobil spill site
The new research, co-published by the Faulkner County Citizens Advisory Group and Global Community Monitor, indicates that the 500,000 gallons of heavy bitumen oil released by a gash in ExxonMobil’s aging Pegasus pipeline has released hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) as defined by the 1990 US Clean Air Act.According to a press release in conjunction with the new study, the total of 30 toxic chemicals include benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, n-hexane and xylenes. Consequences of exposure to these chemicals include damage to the human nervous system, muscular weakness and blurred vision, while breathing ethylbenzene and benzene in particular can cause cancer and reproductive issues.According to April Lane of the Faulkner County Citizens Advisory Group, health reports collected from residents in the four weeks following the spill show they are demonstrating symptoms consistent with exposure to hazardous chemicals and independent air testing.“Even four weeks later, residents are still feeling symptoms from the chemical exposure. People have consistently talked about gastrointestinal problems, headaches, respiratory problems, skin irritation including chemical burns, and extreme fatigue,” says Lane.According to Dr. Neil Carman, a member of the Lone Star Chapter of the Sierra Club and a former member of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, analysis of these HAPs could present any number of public health concerns.“Thirty toxic hydrocarbons were measured above the detection limits. Each of the thirty hydrocarbons measured in the Mayflower release is a toxic chemical on its own and may pose a threat to human health depending on various exposure and individual factors,” said Carman, who described the ambient air in the affected spill region as a “soup of toxic chemicals.”The study comes only a week after another independent test performed by Opflex Solutions on nearby Lake Conway disputed ExxonMobil’s claims that bitumen heavy crude oil had not reached the lake.While the oil giant’s official statement read that “the main body of Lake Conway and Palarm Creek remain oil free,” the CEO of Opflex, a company specializing in oil spill cleanups, confirmed a different truth.”Yes, there’s oil in Lake Conway and there’s oil downstream flowing into the Arkansas River,” said Smith. “I have found methylene chloride and barium in concentrations indicative of tar sands oil,” he added.According to Inside Climate News, which has been closely following ExxonMobil’s response during the Mayflower spill’s cleanup, a number of discrepancies in its statements make it unclear when the Pegasus pipeline began leaking, how the company found out about the initial spill, or how quickly the company moved to contain the breach.As of yet, a definitive answer on how much oil spilled from the 22-foot-long pipeline gash remains in dispute. Three groups are currently looking into the spill: The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), US Representative Ed Markey (D-Mass) and Arkansas Attorney General Dustin McDaniel. McDaniel recently received over 12,500 pages of documents from ExxonMobil following a subpoena.Last week, local news channel THV11 reported on a Mayflower town hall meeting hosted by the Faulkner County Citizens Advisory Group. At that meeting John Hammons, a local resident near a smaller body of water adjacent to Lake Conway, reported his concern of consequences from oil spill contamination:”We can smell it. So I know it’s there,” Hammons said, who is concerned for his wife, who is seven months pregnant.”She’s broken out in hives, had nose bleeds, (and) respiratory problems,” added Hammons. … Read More
EA announces more layoffs rumored to be "in the hundreds"
Job security has likely been a hot topic around the water cooler as of late if you happen to work at Electronic Arts. Just last month, EA handed out a round of pink slips to roughly 170 employees at the company’s Mobile Montreal studio as well as part-time quality assurance… … Read More
ExxonMobil claims in dispute as spill reaches Arkansas lake
The new findings, provided to the media by Opflex Solutions, shows that the bitumen heavy crude oil (or tar sands) has now contaminated the lake, a revelation which directly contradicts ExxonMobil’s most recent cleanup update, which categorically denied that any oil had reached the body of water.According to Opflex CEO Scott Smith, there is only one way to interpret the results.”Yes, there’s oil in Lake Conway and there’s oil downstream flowing into the Arkansas River,” said Smith.”I have found methylene chloride and barium in concentrations indicative of tar sands oil,” he added.Residents interviewed by KATV described corroborating details, such as ducks emerging from the lake with oil tainted feet. As RT America also reported, other residents in the area witnessed unexplained behavior by ExxonMobil’s cleanup crew, such as night-time boat operations which seemed to be netting dead fish.According to local KATV, which initially shed light on the conflicting information, Opflex believes there is a “discrepancy” in ExxonMobil’s method of water testing, which evidently tests surface soil and samples at the bottom of the lake, while Opflex has focused on the water in between the two.According to ExxonMobil’s April 19 report on cleanup operations, the company does not acknowledge any contamination at Lake Conway, and likewise into the Arkansas River.”Water sampling confirms that the main body of Lake Conway and Palarm Creek remain oil-free. The Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) and ExxonMobil are continuing to monitor water samples,” a statement from the oil giant read.Meanwhile, Arkansas Attorney General Dustin McDaniel, who also spoke to KATV, expressed no doubt that oil had made its way into the lake.”Of course there’s oil in Lake Conway. I don’t understand where this distinction is coming from, from the cove and Lake Conway. The cove is part of Lake Conway…The water is all part of one body of water,” stated McDaniel.Earlier this month, McDaniel had announced that the damage to the Pegasus pipeline — which had sustained a 22-foot-long and 2-inchwide gash and flooded the residential community with thousands of gallons of tar sands — was “substantially larger” than initially thought. Mid-April estimates of cleanup results per ExxonMobil filings revealed “28,200 barrels of oily water and about 2,000 cubic yards of oiled soil and debris” had been identified.A subpoena submitted by the Arkansas Attorney’s office resulted in 12,500 pages worth of documents delivered by ExxonMobil, though what exact information these documents held remained unclear. … Read More
