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<p>Europeans can buy cars that run on natural gas from at least eight automakers, but despite large reserves of the relatively inexpensive fuel in the United States, the federal government and states, including Massachusetts, are backing pricier biofuels as a way to lessen dependence on imported oil.</p>

Troy Anderson was at the gas pump and couldn't have been happier, filling up at a rate of $5 per tank. Anderson was paying 63.8 cents per gallon equivalent for compressed natural gas, making Utah a hot market for vehicles that run on the fuel. It's the country's cheapest rate for compressed gas, according to the Natural Gas Vehicle Coalition, and far less than the $3.56 national average price for a gallon of gasoline. "I'm totally celebrating," crowed Anderson, a 44-year-old social worker, who picked up a used Honda Civic GX two months ago. "This is the greatest thing. I...

SEAL BEACH, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Clean Energy Fuels Corp. (Nasdaq:CLNE) today opened the world’s largest compressed natural gas (CNG) fueling station in Lima, Peru. ...SNIP... Owned and operated by Clean Energy del Peru, a joint venture (“JV”) between Clean Energy and Energy Gas del Peru, the station is strategically located midway between downtown Lima, Peru's capital city, and the Lima International Airport. With thousands of taxis being converted to CNG each month and thousands of buses targeted for replacement with natural gas buses, this is the first of several fueling stations the JV anticipates constructing to support the expanding CNG vehicle and...

As Calif. fires burned, copters grounded By AARON C. DAVIS and MICHAEL R. BLOOD, Associated Press Writers 2 minutes ago As wildfires were charging across Southern California, nearly two dozen water-dropping helicopters and two massive cargo planes sat idly by, grounded by government rules and bureaucracy. How much the aircraft would have helped will never be known, but their inability to provide quick assistance raises troubling questions about California's preparations for a fire season that was widely expected to be among the worst on record. It took as long as a day for Navy, Marine and California National Guard helicopters...

BOISE - A massive bus fire torched a ValleyRide coach during the peak of the Thursday morning rush hour. It happened in downtown Boise at about 8:30 a.m. Flames shot out of the back of the bus - snarling traffic. The Associated Press reports the driver of the vehicle was taking a break when the fire broke out. Another drive saw the flames and quickly called 911. The coach is powered by compressed natural gas. Fire Department Captain Tom Pawek told the AP that a venting system prevented a large natural gas explosion. A number of fire engines and paramedics...

SAN DIEGO - Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger sounded more conciliatory Thursday toward President Bush's plan to send 6,000 National Guard troops to the Mexican border, but the governor's advisers said he still has not decided whether to participate. "If that will help to prevent people from coming across the border for right now, then we are more than happy to join in and to help temporarily," Schwarzenegger said. "But it definitely should not be a permanent solution." Schwarzenegger is concerned that California Guardsmen will be caught up in an open-ended mission on the border that could drag beyond the two years...

The state department that runs the California National Guard bears the weight of an unusually large and at times unchecked military bureaucracy that provides lucrative benefits for high-ranking officers, a Bee investigation has found. The state's Military Department - about 400 soldiers strong - is known as a destination for those whose federal military careers have ended. As state soldiers, they can earn salaries and tax-free allowances well in excess of $100,000, and qualify for state pensions on top of their federal retirement income. So many colonels, whose rank is signified by an eagle, have availed themselves of this opportunity...

What do plots to blow up National Guard armories and synagogues, 9/11, well-intentioned liberals, the War on Terror, and residue from the Vietnam era have in common? They all are playing out in California in three seemingly unconnected stories. The first story is about three men arrested for plotting to attack California National Guard facilities, the Israeli Consulate and synagogues. The men, one a Pakistani national and the other two, American converts to Islam, were found with weapons and “jihadist” material. The second story involves a liberal Democratic California state senator who has been making headlines with his allegations that...

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Islamic leaders and peace groups are criticizing the California National Guard for a flier posted in its headquarters suggesting the United States execute Islamic terrorists with bullets dipped in pig's blood to deny them entry to heaven. The flier attributed the practice to World War I General John J. Pershing. "Maybe it is time for this segment of history to repeat itself, maybe in Iraq?" the flier stated. It was posted outside a cubicle in the Guard's Civil Support Division. A second flier showed the wings and tail of a bomber forming a peace sign with the...

SACRAMENTO - Islamic leaders and peace groups are criticizing the California National Guard for a flier posted in its headquarters suggesting the United States should execute Islamic terrorists with bullets dipped in pig's blood to deny them entry to heaven. The poster attributes the practice to World War I General John J. Pershing. "Maybe it is time for this segment of history to repeat itself, maybe in Iraq?" the flier stated. It was posted outside a cubicle in the Guard's Civil Support Division. A second flier showed the wings and tail of a bomber forming a peace sign with the...

SACRAMENTO – U.S. military authorities on Wednesday began investigating whether a California National Guard unit was established to spy on U.S. citizens, as about 30 demonstrators outside guard headquarters confronted officials backed by armed soldiers. The federal probe of the nation's largest National Guard force involves the U.S. Army's inspector general, the federal National Guard Bureau's inspector general and the National Guard Bureau's legal division. The unit has raised concern among peace activists that the Guard is resorting to the same type of civilian monitoring that characterized Vietnam War-era protests. "These are your mothers, grandmothers and neighbors," said George Main,...

SACRAMENTO - Despite a request from a state senator that it preserve all documents related to a controversial intelligence unit, the California National Guard erased the computer hard drive of a retiring colonel who oversaw the fledgling project. Computer technicians at the Guard erased the officer's hard drive on June 27, said Col. Cherie Takami, the Guard's acting chief of staff. That same day, state Sen. Joe Dunn asked top military officials not to destroy any evidence concerning the special intelligence unit. On Tuesday, the National Guard rebuffed Dunn's requests for answers and immediate access to the computer, saying they...

MATHER, Calif. - A California congresswoman and a state senator said Tuesday they plan separate hearings into whether a California National Guard unit was established as a spy agency. Guard spokesmen denied that was the unit's intent but declined to make the unit's commander available for an interview to fully explain its function. State Sen. Joseph Dunn, D-Garden Grove, whose budget subcommittee oversees funding for the California National Guard, ordered the Guard to turn over all documents about the unit, formally called the Information Synchronization, Knowledge Management and Intelligence Fusion program. That would include any information collected about citizens. That...

Alexander says he would like top Guard job permanently The Atascadero man is named to lead the National Guard on an interim basis The Atascadero man appointed to lead the California National Guard on an interim basis told The Tribune on Wednesday he is strongly interested in having the job permanently. Brig. Gen. John Alexander was appointed Monday to command day-to-day Guard operations. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger will appoint the permanent adjutant general, a decision that typically takes between four and six months, though no timeline has been set for a decision, military officials say. "I'm absolutely interested (in the permanent...

SACRAMENTO – The commander of the California National Guard has resigned amid accusations that he failed to meet a Pentagon combat requirement and tried to arrange a flight on a military aircraft for members of a Republican group. Major Gen. Thomas Eres resigned late Monday after questions were raised by the San Jose Mercury News and Contra Costa Times newspapers about whether he passed a required shooting-skills test before visiting troops in Iraq. The papers also said Eres attempted to provide a military flight for a Lincoln Club group – a partisan Republican organization – that wanted to travel last...

California National Guard members serve in the Iraq war and respond to local disasters from fires to earthquakes, but now they're the ones seeking public aid - the right to a state pension. Legislation to grant new retirement rights to Guard soldiers and airmen was proposed this month, while more than 6,100 members are serving on active duty, many in the Middle East. Nine California National Guard members have died in Iraq since August 2003. The measure, AB 30, is expected to be one of several seeking to enhance fringe benefits for Guard members, a push likely to spark debate...