History of the oil shale industry in the United States Act of 1985 which among other things abolished the United States' Synthetic Liquid Fuels Program. Union finally bowed to continued low oil prices and closed the project in 1991, rather than complete the US$2 billion project. Over several decades, some of the world's largest oil companies (Amoco, Arco, Chevron, Exxon, Gulf, Phillips, Shell, Sohio, Sunoco, Texaco, Union Oil) had spent billions of dollars to start an oil shale industry in the Green River Formation, the world's largest oil shale resource. But in the end, cheap petroleum prices drove oil shale out of business. Even after the oil shale bust, some
Amazon Defense Coalition of 30,000 Amazonian residents in a region the size of Rhode Island. The case was initially heard in a U.S. court in New York City and then moved to Nueva Loja, Ecuador in 2003. With a 2011 judgement of $18 billion against the oil giant, confirmed in 2013 by the Ecuador Supreme Court, it is potentially the biggest environmental litigation ever brought against a multi-national corporation. The ADC was initially the main organization to follow up the lawsuit. In 2001, the Assembly of People Affected by Texaco (ADAT) was created to better represent the affected communities and make the most