Statement of Friends of the Earth President Brent Blackwelder on Oil Spills in Indian Ocean, Philippines, Lebanon

Friends of the Earth President Brent Blackwelder issued a statement arguing that oil dependence is dangerous and contributes to the climate crisis. He cited several recent spills, including a 1.4 million gallon spill by a Japan-bound tanker, a 528,000 gallon spill in the Philippines, a leak contaminating 60 miles of the Lebanese coast, and leaks in BP's Alaskan pipeline. Blackwelder called for the replacement of oil with clean energy and improved efficiency to avoid air and water pollution and severe health consequences.

• Brent Blackwelder, President of Friends of the Earth, asserts that dependence on oil is dangerous because every stage of production pollutes the environment and its consumption contributes to the climate crisis.
• The statement cites several recent oil spill incidents: a 1.4 million gallon crude oil spill by a tanker bound for Japan, a spill of 528,000 gallons of industrial fuel in the Philippines, a leak from a power plant in Lebanon that contaminated 60 miles of coast, and leaks in BP’s Alaskan pipeline in Prudhoe Bay that spilled over 600 gallons of oil.
• Friends of the Earth argues that oil refining, development, and use lead to air and water pollution and severe human health consequences, and that oil must be replaced by improved efficiency and clean energy sources.

APA

Blackwelder, B. (2008). Statement of Friends of the Earth President Brent Blackwelder on Oil Spills in Indian Ocean, Philippines, Lebanon. Friends of the Earth. https://foe.org/news/2008-10-statement-of-friends-of-the-earth-president-brent-bl/

Chicago

Blackwelder, Brent. Statement of Friends of the Earth President Brent Blackwelder on Oil Spills in Indian Ocean, Philippines, Lebanon. Friends of the Earth, 2008. https://foe.org/news/2008-10-statement-of-friends-of-the-earth-president-brent-bl/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=Blackwelder |first1=Brent |title=Statement of Friends of the Earth President Brent Blackwelder on Oil Spills in Indian Ocean, Philippines, Lebanon |publisher=Friends of the Earth |date=30 October 2008 |url=https://foe.org/news/2008-10-statement-of-friends-of-the-earth-president-brent-bl/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{blackwelder2008statement, author = {Blackwelder, Brent}, title = {{Statement of Friends of the Earth President Brent Blackwelder on Oil Spills in Indian Ocean, Philippines, Lebanon}}, publisher = {Friends of the Earth}, year = {2008}, month = oct, url = {https://foe.org/news/2008-10-statement-of-friends-of-the-earth-president-brent-bl/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }