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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Nov. 1, 2000)
www.dailyemerald.com Wednesday Junior Zack Fre iter is healthy and ready to step into a starting role on the defensive line. PAGE 7 An independent newspaper Ready to shine New ground A University groundbreaking ceremony celebrated the construction of new apartments. PAGE 4 November 1,2000 Volume 102, Issue46 Weather TODAY high 55, low 41 Since 1 900 University of Oregon Eugene, Oregon Natural gas and fuel prices to remain high Conservation methods to decrease your bill :s aroui 4. ResourceHTfKc second-largest e heaters. Make si 3. Sto wind' Also 1. Furnace ducts: As much as 25 percent of heat can be lost as a result of leaks in the duct. By having the ducts sealed, you can increase the efficiency of your furnace. 2. Lower Temperature: Turn down the heat .at night or when you leave the house, setting the temperature 10 degrees 'k. ' usage, you can ting bill fhft££tO percent a month, nsive plastic inclows and that insulate well. Windows to eliminate drafts. s: The largest or houses are water rature is set to 120 degrees or lower. The construction of a new natural gas pipeline means higher costs for consumers By Rebecca Newell Oregon Daily Emerald Energy costs go up during the winter months, but next spring, the prices won’t go down as the weather warms. Natural gas and electric utility com panies hiked rates by approximately 20 percent on Oct. 1 due to a dramatic rise in the cost of the resources. This increase will affect Oregon and Wash ington but only minimally impact many Eugene residents. The main cause of the price increase stems from the construction of a new natural gas pipeline carrying the re source from Canada to the Midwest. The Pacific Northwest, which receives most of its natural gas from Canada, was suddenly faced with competition for the gas, resulting in the significant increase in wholesale prices to the util ity companies and new power plants, most of which run off gas. Lisa Schwartz, a policy analyst for the Conservation Resource division of the Oregon Office of Energy, said the sudden high demand has caused gas companies to redouble their explo ration efforts for new sources of Turn to Fuel cost, page 5 ■ Decreased oil supply and high oil prices are partly responsible for high gas prices By Lindsay Buchele Oregon Daily Emerald Oregon’s gas prices have finally leveled off. However, the $1.79 Ore gonians are currently paying for a gallon of regular gas is still 23 cents above the na tional average, something that’s not likely to change, according to Department of Energy economist Jacob Bournazian. “The only thing to bring down prices [of gas] is to lower the price of crude oil,” he said. National crude oil prices skyrocketed in 1999 and have stayed up through the year to date. The high prices are largely due to the de mand for oil exceeding the supply being put out by oil companies, Bournazian said. “In 1997 and 1998, we had a huge glut of crude oil,” he said. Then, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries cut back produc tion. Instead of producing the 65.5 million gallons a day that were in demand, oil companies were only pro ducing 64 million gallons per day, Bournazian said. A steady decrease in sup ply from OPEC pushed prices up and caused stock prices to decline. Bournazian said the breakdown of taxes and costs shows how prices be came so high in Oregon: • West Texas Intermedi ate, one of the nation’s lead ing providers of crude oil, is currently charging $32.73 per barrel of gas. • There are approximate ly 42 gallons in a barrel, which makes the price 81 cents per gallon. • The federal gas tax is 18 cents per gallon, and the Oregon gas tax is 24 cents per gallon. • It costs about 45 cents per gallon to process crude oil, and Oregon transports and stores the gas for about 5 cents a gallon. • After adding all the costs, a gallon of gas costs about $1.73 per gallon, and then gas stations add their costs to the final pump price. “If gas stations were charging anything less than $1.79, they would be losing a lot of money,” Bournazian said. Prices are high for the en tire country, but Oregon prices are even higher be Tu rn to Gas prices, page 5 ii The only thing to bring down prices [of gas] is to lower the price of crude oil. Jacob Bournazian economist Depart ment of Energy OSPIRG warns against genetically engineered edibles OSPIRG held a rally to inform consumers of the dangers of “ Frankenstein foods" By Eric Martin For the Emerald Warning that some genetically engineered foods may pose a health hazard and are not safety tested, organic food experts and OSPIRG activists held a rally at 10 a.m. Tuesday in front of John son Hall.. The experts said many geneti cally engineered foods are not identified as such in supermar kets or on packaging, which dis regards the consumer’s right to know. It also puts unsuspecting consumers at risk for increased allergic reactions and possibly cancer, they said. To promote the event, OS PIRG representatives strolled the sidewalks in front of John son Hall in homemade cos tumes that depicted the result of splicing vegetable genes with other food genes. One student wore a silver fish with the body of a tomato. They encouraged students to attend the rally, which at its peak drew about 10 spectators. One of Tuesday’s speakers was from the Genetically Engi neered Foods Alert Campaign, which is calling for a moratori um on genetically engineered foods until long-term safety test ing is complete, GE foods are la beled and the biotechnical cor porations manufacturing these foods agree to be liable for dam ages. “The long-term effect of these foods are not known,” said Rachel Spencer, a project coor dinator for the Genetically Engi neered Foods Alert Campaign. “The [Food and Drug Adminis tration] is no longer formally safety testing these ‘Franken stein foods.’” Spencer cited the recent FDA recall of Starlink corn products, which contained a bacterial pesticide and were not ap proved for human consump tion, as an example of the dan ger GE foods present. The pesticide, known as Bacillus thurengiensis, or Bt, is used to deter pests from infest ing crops, she said. Once con sumed, the pesticide basically disintegrates the bellies of these insects. The corn products containing Bt included certain taco shells and other corn-based products, and were found on shelves at Safeway, Mission Foods, Food line and other stores before be ing recalled, Spencer said. People consuming these prod ucts may face long-term effects. Corporations that make the foods use “marker genes” to de termine if the insertion of genet ic material into a plant’s DNA is successful, said J.J. Haapala, a speaker and director of resource education for the Oregon Tilth. Turn to Genetic rally, page 3 Eric Martin for the Emerald University student Rod Yoder urges students to attend an OSPIRG rally.
