Debbie Elliott

Shell Digs Deep To Tap Into Lucrative Oil, Gas Reserves

Debbie Elliott — Thu, 09 May 2013 09:56:00 +0000

Transcript

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

One reason the world is not yet running out of oil and gas is that energy companies keep finding ways to extract those resources from more and more difficult places, including far under the ocean. Royal Dutch Shell announced plans, yesterday, for the world's deepest offshore floating oil and gas facility.

NPR's Debbie Elliott reports.

DEBBIE ELLIOTT, BYLINE: Shell calls its ultra-deepwater project a milestone.

A Grieving Brother Finds Solace In His Sister's 'Small Town'

Debbie Elliott — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 07:28:00 +0000

When he was a teenager, journalist Rod Dreher couldn't wait to escape Louisiana. Now he has found his way home again in grief — after his sister's death from lung cancer. It was "in light" of that tragedy, Dreher says, that he discovered the value of community. It's the subject of his new book, The Little Way of Ruthie Leming: A Southern Girl, a Small Town, and the Secret of a Good Life.

Dreher's new home is on a historic block in St. Francisville, La., population 1,700. The houses have welcoming, wide front porches.

Drought Causes Ripple Effect Along Mighty Mississippi River

Debbie Elliott — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 00:43:00 +0000

The persistent drought is raising questions about how the Mississippi River is managed — both upstream and down.

While cargo traffic upriver has gotten lots of attention, the drought is creating a different set of problems downriver at the mouth of the Mississippi, where saltwater has encroached.

An old-fashioned staff river gauge behind the New Orleans district office of the U.S.

Myrlie Evers-Williams To Deliver Inaugural Invocation

Debbie Elliott — Mon, 21 Jan 2013 08:41:00 +0000

Transcript

RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

And the widow of a murdered Mississippi civil rights leader will help open the inaugural ceremony today. President Obama selected activist Myrlie Evers-Williams to deliver the invocation.

Cigarette Makers Frustrated As Product Approvals Stall

Debbie Elliott — Fri, 11 Jan 2013 22:34:00 +0000

It's been only a few years since Congress granted the federal government the power to approve how tobacco products are made and sold in the U.S.

The Food and Drug Administration's new Center for Tobacco Products, established under a 2009 law that gives the agency jurisdiction over tobacco, must review all new cigarettes or smokeless tobacco, as well as any changes to existing brands.

But the agency has yet to clear any products under the new system, and some cigarette makers are frustrated by the backlog of applications.

The FDA typically evaluates new drugs and other products with a "sa