At 7:26 a.m., Friday, August 21, in Lima, Ohio, the lead story on the local NBC newscast showed hundreds of people lining up in a parking lot for free food. They stood behind a panel truck from the West Ohio Food Bank as cardboard boxes were handed down to them.

One man standing in line said he was laid off in April. Others had similar stories.

At 11.2 percent (July 2009), Ohio has one of the highest unemployment rates in the country. And northwest Ohio--the region that includes Lima and nearby Toledo--has been hit the hardest. "We're not just in a recession here, it's a depression," Toledo Mayor Carty Finkbeiner told Reuters recently.

Yet, a new study shows the Waxman-Markey climate bill passed by the House could make Ohio's economic hardships worse. The CRA International analysis of the... more »

As I wrote yesterday, this is a monumental week for the energy industry. It marks the 150th anniversary of the first successful oil drill and the significant changes we've been able to make since. Now, more energy production is required for the maintenance of our emerging economy.

Below are some updates from API's Sara Banaszak, who's on the road with the "Rock Oil 2009" tour, headed up to Pennsylvania to visit the site of America's first oil well:

UPDATE: Friday, 10:00 a.m. "It will take us around 6 hours to drive from Washington, DC, to Titusville, PA. About an hour outside of Washington, we cross through the area that was used by Civil War General Robert E. Lee to march his Confederate troops north toward Gettysburg. They would march not more than 30 miles in a day. Today, most peopl... more »

Two more CRA International studies have been released, citing the likely economic impact of the Waxman-Markey bill. They show that the bill, if enacted, would reduce the number of jobs and lower purchasing power in both Ohio and New Mexico.

In Ohio, CRA International's analysis of the House-passed climate bill showed that as many as 114,100 jobs would be wiped out, and the average household's purchasing power would be reduced by as much as $1,070 a year.

In New Mexico, as many as 18,900 jobs would be eliminated by the Waxman-Markey bill, and the average household would lose as much as $1,230 in purchasing power every year.

Both states also would see tax receipts decline dramatically, which could take away funds for education, health and safety programs. Tax revenues in Ohio would shrink by... more »

This week marks the 150th anniversary of the first successful oil well drilled in the United States. In 1859, Col. Edwin Drake drilled down to a depth of 69½ feet near a creek in Pennsylvania where oil naturally seeped out of the ground and in the process, he changed the American way of life.

Before "Drake's Folly" proved that oil could be produced by drilling, Americans used wood and coal for heat and a variety of fuels for lamps, including whale oil. As API Chief Economist John Felmy recently pointed out, in 1850 consumers could use camphene, also called "burning fluid," at the cost of 50 cents a gallon; whale oil, which cost $1.30 to $2.50 a gallon; lard oil at 90 cents a gallon; or coal oil, which cost 50 cents a gallon. Some have speculated that Col. Drake's drilling technology saved... more »

In a move to improve U.S. energy security, the U.S. State Department today issued a Presidential Permit to Enbridge Energy, Limited Partnership allowing the construction of the Alberta Clipper pipeline. This pipeline--which will be built on an existing Enbridge right-of-way--will bring a steady supply of Canadian crude oil to refineries in the United States.

As the State Department's announcement explained, the Alberta Clipper pipeline will help the United States by "shortening the transportation pathway for crude oil supplies and increasing crude oil supplies from a major non-Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries producer. Canada is a stable and reliable ally and trading partner of the United States, with which we have free trade agreements which augment the security of this energ... more »