News
This Country Voted to Keep Oil in the Ground. Will It Happen?
More than 10 million Ecuadorians voted last year to ban oil operations in part of the Amazon rainforest. But heavy crude has continued to flow from the region, which is home to uncontacted Indigenous families.
By Katie Surma
Imagine oil workers appearing in your backyard and drilling without warning. Think of constant noise, noxious odors and routine spills that contaminate your air and water. Then consider all this lasting for decades, with no end in sight and the wealth from the oil sales flowing to people in far-off places.
Related Knowledge Center: ENERGY BASICS: petroleum
State of Play
While electric-powered vehicles may be the ride of the future, oil remains at least for now the dominant fuel for transportation around the world. And after a period of time at the end of the 20th century when oil was subject to wide fluctuations in price, new supplies in North America as a result of non-conventional recovery techniques have helped stabilize prices.