Greenopia has just ranked all the major oil companies for their eco friendliness; check out the results! Now, we all know that fossil fuels aren't the way to go. Not only are they a nonrenewable resource (meaning we're going to run out of them sooner or later, and many think we've hit Peak Oil already) but our dependence on them has led to more than one international conflict (to say the least) AND when we burn them, they release carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, causing global warming. And burning them is kind of stinky, no?

Why Even Analyze Oil Companies?

So we would never call an oil company green; but some are A LOT more sustainable than others, to a surprising degree. And if you're like me, waiting for the perfect electric car (and enough money to buy one!) and you're still driving an old fossil-fuel mobile, you can now check out our oil company rankings to figure out which companies to support, and which to avoid. At least that's how I'll be using this list!

"Fossil fuels are pretty much at the top of any environmentalist's black list," said Doug Mazeffa, Director of Research at Greenopia. "But until alternative-fuel coalesces into large-scale market availability, cars are a vast and current fact of life and they are powered by refined crude oil. Consumers have a strong desire to learn where they should be buying gasoline."

Ranking Methodology

Greenopia's research team analyzed oil companies' production efficiency, oil spill efficiency, sustainability reporting, pursuit of alternative fuels, stance on climate change, and resource efficiency. Data was collected from the companies' sustainability and or annual reports and was normalized against production and revenue to get a feel for the companies' efficiency relative to its competitors (regardless of size).

The criteria were weighted based off a rough life-cycle analysis taking into account their impact on the environment. Criteria like stance on climate change and alternative fuel portfolio were added to gain a sense of how the company views the environment and how it is positioned for the future.

Oil Company Rankings

1. British Petroleum (BP) ranked number one for sustainability among oil companies. Why? It has one of the most transparent and complete sustainability reports, but most importantly, it's taking its slogan "Beyond Petroleum" seriously. " BP supports and is pursuing development of solar, wind, hydrogen, and biofuel technologies. BP has pledged spending of $8 billion dollars towards renewable over the next few years, making it one of the biggest renewable donors in the world. BP is also progressive in its stance on climate change and publicly admits its merits and is acting to improve its own internal performance," writes Doug Mazeffa in his report on BP. 

2. Sunoco came in at number two in Greenopia's research. The company not only has excellent environmental reporting (the best of the bunch, where they disclose the good AND the bad), but they have extremely efficient practices in order to conserve water and reduce waste." Sunoco has been an industry leader in its efforts in Biofuels and other clean fuels and has a proactive stance on climate change," according to the Greenopia report. 

3. Shell was ranked number three, according to Greenopia's research. Shell has made serious investment in renewable resources, and, according to the report, "Shell has shown steady improvement in its greenhouse gas emissions (down to 92 million tons in 2007). When normalized to revenue, Shell has one of lowest emissions per dollar earned. Shell has also shown steady improvements in the number of spills each year and also the amount of water it consumes." Unfortunately, Shell also produces much more hazardous waste than other oil companies, and had a whopping 820 oil spills last year, which gave it a lower overall score.

Check out the rest of the Top Ten in the report; Find out where Exxon, Citgo, Chevron, and others ranked!