In the winter of 2009 I worked with the Louisiana Coastal Restoration Coalition to plant mangroves on a small island in Venice, Louisiana. I believe it was an artificial island created by diverting sedimentary water from the Mississippi River. It was probably about 2,000 feet long and 1,000 feet wide. Anyway, we were transported to the new strip of land via airboat. We spent 3 days going back and forth from the launch to the island carrying the young seedlings. The next 4 days were spent planting these young plants on the mosquito laden island. After a lot of work we are finally finished! Months passed and it was now April 2010 when the Deep Water Horizon oil disaster occurred. The oil spill devastated that small island. The facilities had just begun to thrive and were now being hit with huge amounts of crude oil and dispersants. You can imagine my frustration when I visited the same island in July 2010 and saw all our hard work gone. Most of the plants were dead. The few who were still alive were bent over with the full weight of the heavy crude oil on them. All our exhausting work was in vain. This is the dark side of the oil industry. The oil industry doesn't have many accidents, but when they do happen it's best to be careful. Accidents in the oil industry are generally fatal and long-lasting. For example, the Exxon Valdez oil spill, even after 25 years, the effects of the spill are still visible. These sporadic incidents are what lead environmentalists to believe that the oil industry poses a grave threat to ecological health. They believe that until we cease production, the oil industry will continue to lead in environmental damage. However, the oil...in the middle of the paper...is as we had hoped. In 2010, the five largest oil giants spent less than 1.2% of profits on alternative fuel research and development. When asked about this huge difference in the funding that alternative energy appears to receive, the oil industry quickly retorts that its business will be dominated by fossil fuels for the foreseeable future. At least the oil industry is consistent. They are companies like Green Peace and the World Wildlife Fund that function solely on the ingenuity of their donors. They have found that as long as doom and gloom are popularized, the money will continue to flow. Many non-profit companies use this method to raise funding. The question that arises from this working principle is: does the Earth derive any significant benefit from green organizations? They are operating a charity when in reality they are a business?