Ranking the 10 Greenest Oil Companies

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Oil: it's a dirty word in much of the green community. It's blamed for international conflicts, global warming and wildlife-killing spills. We can all agree that it's best to avoid using the cruel crude as much as possible, but if you're like many of us who still rely on fossil fuels to get around, you can at least check out Greenopia's new Oil Company Rankings Guide, and spend your dollars with more impact.

According to the guide, BP ranks as the overall greenest oil company for it's past investments of oil profits into alternative-fuel research. The company also scored high for the transparency, breadth and accuracy of its environmental reporting.

Unfortunately, it's also true that BP has been scaling back its once ballyhooed commitment to renewable energy, ever since its top leadership changed back in 2007. The New York Times and others are not bullish on BP's interest in working with an eager Obama administration to provide a more diverse mix of energy supplies.

Still, there aren't a lot of other choices when it comes to big oil. Going further down Greenopia's list are Sunoco and Shell, ranked #2 and #3, respectively. The world's largest oil company, the massively profitable Exxon Mobil, ranked 6th.

Even though it may not appear that way, your choice at the pump can make a difference to the environment. That's because there are significant differences in the impact that oil companies have, from carbon footprint for extraction, to hazardous waste produced to water used. To rate these ten companies, Greenopia used a six-part analysis method, which included greenhouse gas emissions and oil spill efficiency.

"Fossil fuels are pretty much at the top of any environmentalist's black list," said Doug Mazeffa, director of research for 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. Our Greenopia consumers had a strong desire to learn where they should be buying gasoline."

Check out the rest of the Top Ten in the report -- and find out where Hess, Citgo, Chevron and others ranked!

Ayana Meade is an assistant editor for Greenopia.

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