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To: LindyBill who wrote (368085)	6/9/2010 6:57:24 AM
From: FJB	2 Recommendations Respond to of 793656

Gulf oil spill: Kevin Costner donates 'Ocean Therapy' invention to clean oil from sea; BP OK's tests BY Helen Kennedy DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER Thursday, May 20th 2010, 12:37 PM Could there be a happy Hollywood ending to the Gulf oil spill? Enter "Waterworld" star Kevin Costner, who has spent years and millions of dollars perfecting a device that cleans oil from seawater. British Petroleum - desperate for ideas - gave the okay to test six of Costner's gizmos this week, said BP Chief Operating Officer Doug Suttles. Costner's high-speed centrifuge machine has a Los Angeles-perfect name: "Ocean Therapy." Placed on a barge, it sucks in large quantities of polluted water, separates out the oil and spits back 97% clean water. "It's like a big vacuum cleaner," said Costner's business partner, Louisiana trial lawyer John Houghtaling. "The machines are basically sophisticated centrifuge devices that can handle a huge volume of water," he said. The "Field of Dreams" star first got a team together to create the device in the wake of the 1989 Exxon Valdez spill in Alaska. His scientist brother, Dan Costner, helped develop the device, and together, the brothers formed Costner Industries Nevada Corp. to pursue various energy projects, including a non-chemical battery that could last 15 years. The 55-year-old actor eventually sank $26 million into the Ocean Therapy oil separator project. He obtained a license for the device from the Department of Energy in 1993 and has been trying for years to promote it. In 2007, he told London's Daily Mail that he had blown millions on "technologies I thought would help the world" and had nothing to show for it. "I've lost $40 million-plus," he said. "But I knew that if I was right, it would change things in an incredibly positive way." Last week, he was in Louisiana seeking redemption, demonstrating his Ocean Therapy contraption. "I'm just really happy that the light of day has come to this," Costner said. Though reporters largely greeted his ideas with snickers, BP apparently wasn't laughing. At least 210,000 gallons of oil per day is gushing into the sea from the ocean floor where the BP rig exploded April 20. The oil company has tried several novel solutions, but none has worked so far to plug the leak. The company is skimming the oil, spraying it with dispersant chemicals underwater and trying to burn it on the surface. Nineteen percent of the Gulf's lucrative fisheries are closed, billions of beach tourist dollars are at stake and dozens of seagoing species are threatened. Costner has 300 of his Ocean Therapy machines in various sizes. The largest, at 21/2 tons, is able to clean water at a rate of 200 gallons a minute - faster than the well is leaking, Houghtaling noted. Meanwhile, the 50 or so tar balls that washed up this week in the Florida Keys are not from the BP spill, the Coast Guard announced, temporarily calming tourism jitters. "The source of the tar balls remains unknown at this time," the Coast Guard said. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said a tendril of oil from the slick entered the Loop Current that leads to the Gulf Stream yesterday, prompting fresh fears for Florida's tourist industry. A counterclockwise eddy in the Loop Current that might keep the oil contained - at least for now - has been observed, NOAA said. Read more: nydailynews.com

To: LindyBill who wrote (368085)	6/9/2010 8:08:14 AM
From: FJB	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 793656

Honda hit by strike at 2nd parts factory in China Honda hit by strike at 2nd parts factory in China, halting production at 2 car assembly plants .Elaine Kurtenbach, AP Business Writer, On Wednesday June 9, 2010, 7:26 am SHANGHAI (AP) -- Workers at a second auto parts factory affiliated with Honda Motor Co. walked off the job Wednesday as a strike dragged on at the other facility, forcing the company to halt production at two of its Chinese car assembly plants. The latest labor dispute was at Honda Lock (Guangdong) Co., in Zhongshan, a city near Honda's production base in the southern city of Guangzhou and began Wednesday morning, said Yoshiyuki Kuroda, a Honda spokesman in Tokyo. He said the reason for the strike was unclear. Separately, Honda said in a statement that production at its two car plants would remain suspended Thursday due to "labor negotiations" at parts maker Foshan Fengfu. Production at Honda's other two China car assembly plants was not affected because they had a sufficient supply of parts on hand, the company said. Workers at Foshan Fengfu Autoparts Co. walked off the job earlier this week, seeking pay raises, just days after Honda settled a two-week strike at a wholly owned parts supplier that had forced the Japanese automaker to freeze production at all four of its car assembly factories in China due to a lack of parts. The conflicts reflect rising tensions between workers and foreign companies that rely on China as a source of cheap labor and a fast-growing market. Companies in China are finding it harder to attract and keep workers, who are demanding better pay and working conditions. But Honda's own situation is unique in that apart from its car assembly joint ventures with local partners Guangzhou Auto Group and Dongfeng Motor Group, it tends to run its car parts businesses without teaming up with local partners. The lack of a local partner -- Foshan Fengfu is owned by Honda subsidiary Yutaka Giken Co. and a Taiwanese partner, Moonstone Holding Co. -- can mean a lack of support in persuading or forcing workers to return to their jobs. "The first strike was in a parts factory wholly owned by Honda, which makes a lot of difference in terms of how the company is run, its corporate culture and how it treats workers," said Zhang Xin, an auto analyst at Guotai Jun'an Securities in Beijing. "Most foreign companies still cooperate with local companies even if joint ventures are not required for parts plants, unlike car assembly plants. Honda is a rare exception," he said. The strikes have hobbled Honda just as it was gearing up to expand production to meet strong demand. Foshan Fengfu makes exhaust pipes and other parts for Honda's Odyssey, Accord and Fit models. Honda Lock's website says it makes ignitions, handles, mirrors, wheel sensors and key sets, among other parts. Wage disputes and strikes are common in China, but rarely attract as much attention as the Honda strikes and other disputes that surfaced following 11 suicides and three suicide attempts -- mostly by jumping off tall buildings -- at Taiwan's Foxconn Technology Group, a contract manufacturer in China of iPhones and other name-brand electronics. Labor activists accuse Foxconn of having a rigid management style, an excessively fast assembly line and forced overwork. The company denies the allegations, but has announced two raises for its Chinese workers. It also is installing safety nets around buildings and hiring more counselors.