EXTRACTED: Daily News Clips 10/17/23
PIPELINE NEWS
WSET: Protestors arrested at Mountain Valley Pipeline site after locking themselves to construction equipment
Bismarck Tribune: North Dakota Public Service Commission to hear local ordinance arguments in Summit pipeline case
KTIV: PHMSA: How this federal organization regulates hazardous CO2 pipelines
KSCJ: CITY COUNCIL DELAYS CARBON PIPELINE RESOLUTION VOTE
Sioux City Journal: Sioux City Council to weigh resolution opposing the construction and operation of CO2 pipelines
Tri-State Livestock News: Carbon concerns: Carter County, Montana, residents say they need more time to evaluate carbon capture project
Bloomberg: Pacific Northwest Gas Proposal Highlights FERC Balancing Act
Petroleum Economist: The Trans Mountain fiasco
WASHINGTON UPDATES
MSNBC: U.S. oil production discredits weird Republican talking points
Axios: Biden's big bet on hydrogen has potential warming pitfalls
E&E News: Republicans To Pick Apart Biden Offshore Drilling Plan
STATE UPDATES
Associated Press: Company drops plan for gas power plant in polluted New Jersey area
Louisiana Weekly: LNG plant operators change their tune on carbon capture
Indiana Capitol Chronicle: ‘Too many unknowns’: As company forges on with carbon sequestration project, residents mobilize
Nebraska Examiner: Snubbed as a regional ‘hydrogen hub,’ Nebraskans remain charged up about clean energy growth
NM Political Report: New Mexico’s hydrogen proposal not included in federal hub announcement
EXTRACTION
Associated Press: Greta Thunberg joins activists to disrupt oil executives’ forum in London
S&P Global Platts: Canada to amend environmental law, in line with Supreme Court ruling: ministers
Reuters: Oil producer Suncor tells Canadian lawmakers it is sticking to climate goals
Wall Street Journal: The Oil Price Has a Safety Valve. Gas Doesn’t.
RBN Energy: Petra Nova Restart Provides An Intriguing Test Case For Carbon-Capture Technology
Canadian Press: Tourmaline Oil announces deal to buy Bonavista Energy worth $1.45 billion
The Cool Down: Experts overwhelmingly blame one person for climate change confusion: ‘One of the greatest climate villains’
CLIMATE FINANCE
WisPolitics: Climate protests held in three banks in Wisconsin
The Atlantic: If You’re Worried About the Climate, Move Your Money
TODAY IN GREENWASHING
Mountain Press: Enbridge awards $10,000 grant to Morgan Scott Project
OPINION
Los Angeles Times: To shut down the supply side of climate change, start here
MSNBC: There's overwhelming support for action on our climate. Why that hasn't mattered.
PIPELINE NEWS
WSET: Protestors arrested at Mountain Valley Pipeline site after locking themselves to construction equipment
Ezra Hercy, 10/16/23
“Multiple people have been arrested in connection to protests tied to the Mountain Valley Pipeline,” WSET reports. “On Monday morning, dozens of protestors walked onto a construction site in Elliston. The group Appalachians Against Pipelines told WSET three people locked themselves to equipment on the site… “VSP said three protesters were left attached to three pieces of equipment using the "sleeping dragon" maneuver, hindering their removal from the area. The Virginia State Police Specialized Extraction Team responded to the scene and removed the protesters. The following protesters were arrested and charged: Tara Marie Houska, 39, of Duluth, Minnesota; Emily Adamski, 37, of Oakland, California; Louisa Mirima Kornblatt, 31, Brooklyn, New York.”
Bismarck Tribune: North Dakota Public Service Commission to hear local ordinance arguments in Summit pipeline case
JOEY HARRIS, 10/16/23
“The North Dakota Public Service Commission on Monday approved a motion to hold a hearing on the applicability of local ordinances in the siting application for Summit Carbon Solutions' planned multistate 2,000-mile carbon dioxide pipeline,” the Bismarck Tribune reports. “Regulators did not set a date, time or location for the hearing due to the need to accommodate the schedules of PSC commissioners, PSC staff, Summit and the multiple project intervenors… “The PSC has a hearing room in the Capitol, but it is not large enough to hold the size of the crowds that have attended the hearings for Summit's case. Only legal arguments from Summit and intervenors will be considered at the hearing on the applicability of local ordinances. There will be no outside public input, according to the commissioners… “The details regarding scheduling for one or more hearings on Summit's broader petition for reconsideration have not been decided yet… “Summit made the same request for local ordinances to be overridden in its petition for reconsideration.”
KTIV: PHMSA: How this federal organization regulates hazardous CO2 pipelines
Katie Copple, 10/16/23
“Carbon-capture pipelines have been making headlines in the tri-state region for more than two years, with two major projects mapped for the upper Midwest, including Iowa, Nebraska and South Dakota,” KTIV reports. “These pipelines fall under heavy government regulations, created and overseen by one entity within the U.S. Department of Transportation called PHMSA, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration… “Tristan Brown is PHMSA’s Deputy Administrator. “...One thing PHMSA says many don’t realize is that it does not provide permits for projects. That is up to individual states. “We do not approve these pipelines,” Brown told KTIV. “Our role is we set the design standards, we set the operations and maintenance standards, they must meet those standards. We then inspect during the construction phase and the operations phase to make sure they are meeting our standards.” “...Brown and a team went to Satartia to see the site and speak with residents to see what went wrong. “I actually went down and visited Satartia, Mississippi, really the only major incident on a carbon dioxide pipeline for last few decades,” Brown told KTIV. “We met with victims and first responders to really glean what went wrong, and how we can avoid it from ever happening in the future. And we on our own decided we need to update the standards and regulations for carbon dioxide pipelines.” PHMSA’s report on the Satartia disaster detailed a failed response by the pipeline company, Denbury Gulf Coast Pipeline. Because of that, PHMSA says it is working on new and updated regulations to hopefully prevent a disaster like that from happening again, but those changes take time… “What would you say to critics who believe the current safety standards and regulations are not adequate, especially considering the rapid rise or possible rapid rise of CO2-specific infrastructure in this country?” I asked Brown. “We need to update the standards, we’re doing it…I think folks are rightly concerned, what until the standards are updated, what if projects are being built or companies going to try to get around it? We’re not going to let that happen. We’re overseeing these projects, once they are approved, once they are permanent, that’s when we inspect and oversee it,” Brown explained, “and if there are items that we feel are inadequate, then we’re going to use the tools necessary to mitigate those risks that we have.”
KSCJ: CITY COUNCIL DELAYS CARBON PIPELINE RESOLUTION VOTE
Woody Gottburg, 10/16/23
“The City Council of Sioux City has postponed voting on a resolution opposing carbon pipelines in or near the city,” KSCJ reports. “The resolution concerns proposed pipelines from Summit Carbon Solutions and Navigator Heartland Greenway and how near they will be to Sioux City homes and businesses. Councilman Alex Watters asked for a delay to obtain more information on the issue… The proposed resolution says research shows various possible negative outcomes should the pipeline be allowed, including health and safety issues, adverse effects on property values, and loss of future development opportunities for the properties… “The City Council decided to defer a vote on the resolution until their November 6th meeting.”
Sioux City Journal: Sioux City Council to weigh resolution opposing the construction and operation of CO2 pipelines
Dolly Butz, 10/15/23
“The Sioux City Council will be asked Monday to approve a resolution opposing the construction and operation of hazardous CO2 pipelines in or near the city,” the Sioux City Journal reports. “According to city documents, the resolution is being proposed at the request of council members and individuals within the community. "Current plans show a proposed pipeline within Woodbury County and within two miles of the city limits of Sioux City. Research shows various possible negative outcomes should the pipeline be allowed. This includes health and safety issues, adverse effects on property values, and loss of future development opportunities for the properties," the documents stated… “The proposed resolution states that "granting eminent domain for private companies sets a dangerous precedent" and that both routes are "dangerously close" to residences, business areas, Sioux Gateway Airport and the 185th Air Guard, as well as the sister cities of Sergeant Bluff and Lawton. The resolution notes that "major highways will be affected by construction and operation of hazardous CO2" and "construction of hazardous CO2 pipelines would result in irreparable damage to land."
Tri-State Livestock News: Carbon concerns: Carter County, Montana, residents say they need more time to evaluate carbon capture project
Carrie Stadheim, 10/13/23
“According to a BLM news release, “The Bureau of Land Management is seeking public comment on a proposal to permanently store carbon dioxide in underground rock formations on public land in Carter County. The Denbury Carbon Solutions, LLC project would store carbon dioxide in more than 100,000 acres of subsurface pore space,” Tri-State Livestock News reports. “The proposal is referred to as the Snowy River Carbon Dioxide (CO2) Sequestration Project. Carter County Commissioner Pam Castleberry is concerned that her constituents have not had enough time to learn about the project and will not be able to research the concept and submit meaningful comments by the deadline. “Our main concern right now is that the public needs more time to learn about this,” Castleberry, who said she herself is still trying to gather details on the proposal, told the News… “She also said that at an Oct. 12, 2023 BLM informational meeting, a good showing of concerned landowners attended, and many seemed taken aback by the idea… “TSLN learned that The Northern Plains Resource Council did, on Oct. 13, 2023, request a 90-day extension of the comment period, saying that ranchers are busy shipping cattle and have not had time to fully evaluate the proposal. Because the project requires additional pipeline to be built, 15 wells to be dug, and local roads to be used, local landowners are concerned. Ekalaka rancher Mike Hansen, who has ranched in the area for over 40 years, and whose adult children are now involved in the business, told the News some of the privately owned land in the middle of the sequestration project is his. He is not pleased that he is just now finding out about the project. He learned at the recent BLM informational meeting in Ekalaka that BLM and Denbury have been in negotiations on the project for a couple of years… “Hansen is concerned that a CO2 leak could contaminate water… “The BLM representative also reportedly assured him that the CO2 will remain underground… “According to the proposal, about 15 class VI injection wells will be dug… “Denbury didn’t respond to a request for an interview, and it is not known whether the CO2 that Denbury proposes injecting into the site will have been already used for enhanced oil recovery. In addition it is not known whether the CO2 could, at a future date, be used for enhanced oil recovery… “According to Denbury, approximately 40 miles of pipelines, including bulklines and flowlines, will be required for the project.”
Bloomberg: Pacific Northwest Gas Proposal Highlights FERC Balancing Act
Daniel Moore, 10/16/23
“The Gas Transmission Northwest Xpress project seemed noncontroversial to TC Energy when the Canadian energy company first proposed it to regulators in October 2021,” Bloomberg reports. “...But environmental groups, US senators, and three states’ attorneys general saw it locking in fossil fuels for 30 years as the region pursues ambitious renewable energy goals to decarbonize the power grid. Proposed more than two years ago, the pipeline upgrades have become the longest-pending project of its kind at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission—and a case study for how US regulators balance state renewable energy goals and costs to consumers. The commission included the project on the agenda for its Oct. 19 meeting, but that’s no guarantee it will be approved… “FERC doesn’t discuss internal deliberations, so it’s unclear why a decision on the projects has been held up. Residents and environmental advocates expressed concern about public safety from gas pipelines, while also saying consumers shouldn’t have to pay for an expansion of fossil fuels. Sens. Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden, both Democrats from Oregon, have penned letters urging FERC to reject the project, including one that was sent days before the project was withdrawn from the July meeting. Protesters have rallied outside FERC meetings for months. In August 2022, Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum joined California Attorney General Rob Bonta and Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson in petitioning the commission to deny the request… “Where states are working really hard to reduce GHG emissions, FERC shouldn’t get in the way,” Dan Serres, advocacy director for Columbia Riverkeeper, a Portland-Ore.-based organization that protects, restores and cares for the Columbia River, told Bloomberg. “You have a region and states working really hard to try to diminish gas use and the pollution that goes with gas use, and you have the Biden administration saying they take environmental justice and climate seriously—and their FERC appears poised to rubber-stamp this project.”
Petroleum Economist: The Trans Mountain fiasco
Vincent Lauerman, 10/16/23
“A recent decision by Canada’s energy regulator will see the pipeline’s expansion project avoid yet more additional costs, but it remains blighted by poor economics,” Petroleum Economist reports. “Calgary-based Trans Mountain Corp. (TMC) received a rare bit of good news for its troubled Trans Mountain Expansion (TMX) oil pipeline project when the Canada Energy Regulator (CER) ruled in its favour on a re-routing dispute with a British Columbia First Nation in late September. Had the CER not agreed to a minor modification to TMX’s pipeline route in Indigenous territory, it would have added C$86m ($63m) in construction costs to its already bloated budget and pushed the in-service date back yet another nine months, to December 2024. Each month the in-service date is delayed leads to “roughly $200m in lost revenues and roughly $190m in carrying charges”, TMC said in its filing to the regulatory agency.”
WASHINGTON UPDATES
MSNBC: U.S. oil production discredits weird Republican talking points
Steve Benen, 10/16/23
“On Thursday morning, Republican Sen. Markwayne Mullin published a message to social media, urging President Joe Biden to “reverse course on his anti-American energy agenda and unleash domestic production to bring down prices and create market stability for the United States and our allies,” MSNBC reports. “...The same morning in which Mullin condemned the administration’s “anti-American energy agenda” and implored the White House to “unleash domestic production,” the public learned that domestic oil production in the United States reached an all-time high. The Associated Press reported: The U.S. Department of Energy’s Energy Information Administration reported that American oil production in the first week of October hit 13.2 million barrels per day, passing the previous record set in 2020 by 100,000 barrels. Weekly domestic oil production has doubled from the first week in October 2012 to now. The newly set record, the AP report added, “conflicts with oft-repeated Republican talking points of a Biden ‘war on American energy.’” “...That conversation, however, is muddled to a ridiculous degree, not only by those who reject and deny climate science, but also by Republicans who keep telling the public that the Biden administration is dramatically scaling back production, even as production reaches record highs… “The Washington Post’s Catherine Rampell added in a column two weeks ago: If “energy independence” means exporting more than you import, we’ve achieved it in spades. The United States has been exporting more crude oil and petroleum products than it imports for 22 straight months now, far longer than was the case under Trump. If this is what waging war on fossil fuels looks like, Democrats apparently aren’t very good at it.”
Axios: Biden's big bet on hydrogen has potential warming pitfalls
Andrew Freedman, 10/16/23
“The Biden administration's $7 billion push to ramp up hydrogen production signals the huge potential for this fuel to help decarbonize hard-to-abate sectors, among other uses,” Axios reports. “...But as critics have noted, the White House has gone for an "all of the above" strategy. The announcement includes so-called "blue, green and pink" hydrogen, each of which is made from different energy sources. Blue hydrogen relies on energy produced from natural gas to split water molecules into hydrogen and oxygen. To avoid emitting further climate-warming emissions, blue hydrogen would be paired with carbon capture, usage and storage, since this process also produces carbon dioxide… “One of the concerns voiced by some scientists and climate advocates is — by including fossil fuel-powered hydrogen production facilities paired with carbon capture and storage — the administration is throwing a lifeline to coal and natural gas plants that might otherwise shut down sooner. Carbon capture, after all, has not yet been proven to work at scale and is mainly used for oil and gas extraction. "It is extremely disappointing to see the Biden administration provide funds for hydrogen hubs which will be based on fossil fuels, even with the carbon capture," Robert Howarth, a Cornell University professor who has researched the climate effects of blue hydrogen, told Axios. "It takes a lot of natural gas to make hydrogen, since the methane in the natural gas is the chemical feedstock for the process, and natural gas is also burned to power the chemical process of breaking the methane down into hydrogen and carbon dioxide. So, the emissions of carbon dioxide are quite high," Howarth told Axios. The intrigue: Researchers at the Environmental Defense Fund have found that hydrogen itself is an under-appreciated, potentially potent greenhouse gas, particularly on shorter time scales.”
E&E News: Republicans To Pick Apart Biden Offshore Drilling Plan
Nidhi Prakash, 10/16/23
“House Republicans will hold a hearing this week to attack the Biden administration’s five-year offshore drilling plan, which includes a historically low number of expected lease sales,” E&E News reports. “The Natural Resources Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources will examine what Republicans are calling ‘the Biden Administration’s Unprecedented Obstruction’ of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management’s oil and gas leasing program. ‘This plan will go down as one of the great blunders of the Biden administration,’ Natural Resources Chair Bruce Westerman (R-Ark.) said ast week. ‘Families are struggling to keep gas in their tanks, yet President Biden refuses to access the abundant energy resources in our own backyard,’ he added. The Interior Department’s plan, released two weeks ago, includes three offshore drilling auctions between 2025 and 2029, satisfying Inflation Reduction Act language requiring the administration to hold at least one offshore oil sale within the year before any offshore wind auctions.”
STATE UPDATES
Associated Press: Company drops plan for gas power plant in polluted New Jersey area
WAYNE PARRY, 10/12/23
“Opponents of a natural gas-fired power plant planned for an already polluted low-income area in New Jersey celebrated Thursday after hearing the company that proposed the project no longer plans to build it, citing low energy prices,” the Associated Press reports. “Competitive Power Ventures wanted to build a second plant beside one it already operates in Woodbridge, about 20 miles (30 kilometers) south of Newark. The company previously said the expansion is needed because of growing demand for energy, pitching it as a reliable backup source for solar and wind energy when those types of power are not available. But in a statement Wednesday night, the Silver Spring, Maryland-based CPV said market conditions have deteriorated to the point where the project is no longer feasible… “A wide coalition of residents from Woodbridge and surrounding low-income communities, environmental and social justice groups opposed the project, saying it would have placed an unacceptably high health burden in an area that already deals with serious pollution. In public hearings regarding the proposal, area residents said their children developed chronic breathing problems, including some so severe that the children had to be rushed to hospitals… “The CPV power plant scheme would have dumped air pollution into already overburdened communities, and undermined the Murphy administration’s climate goals,” Charlie Kratovil, an organizer for Food & Water Watch, told AP. “The inspiring grassroots movement to stop this plant won a major victory for clean air, environmental justice, and our climate.”
Louisiana Weekly: LNG plant operators change their tune on carbon capture
Sara Sneath, 10/16/23
“As Louisiana attempts to spew less climate-warming pollution, which disproportionately comes from industry, fossil-fuel companies have convinced lawmakers to jump onto the bandwagon of carbon capture and storage (CCS), a controversial and unproven method of addressing the issue,” the Louisiana Weekly reports. “They’ve also asked lawmakers to finance the technology, which critics say is classic “greenwashing” – it may sound good, but will not curb the state’s overall emission levels. Critics of CCS point out that even corporations don’t buy into the technology, unless the money is right. Officials from one corporation, Venture Global, repeatedly told government regulators that CCS was incompatible with the company’s plans to build three massive new liquified natural gas export terminals in south Louisiana. The company is poised to be one of the largest U.S. exporters of liquified natural gas. In air permitting documents, Venture Global officials told the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality that it would be “technically challenging” to capture carbon dioxide from the exhaust of on-site natural gas engines and inject it underground — called carbon capture and storage (CCS). But the company quickly set aside its hesitations about CCS, once it became clear that Congress would pass the Inflation Reduction Act. A look back at Venture Global’s correspondence with regulators also shows that the company’s public proclamations – that CCS would improve the environmental impact of their LNG facilities – contrasted with the doubts that the company expressed to regulators in permitting documents over the past several years… “Venture Global’s opposition to the concept was mirrored, using some of the exact details, in permitting documents submitted to state and federal regulators about the company’s Calcasieu Pass facility operating in Cameron Parish; and a third facility proposed nearby, called CP2. But it wasn’t just about money. “Even if (economic) feasibility could be demonstrated, Venture Global noted that any CCS system would cause significant adverse energy and environmental impacts due to the additional water and energy needs for system operation,” according to federal permitting documents for the Plaquemines LNG facility. Environmental groups have raised those concerns, and more, about each step of CCS… “Companies were just spinning their wheels with CCS – and even backtracking on CCS plans, in Venture Global’s case – waiting for the IRA tax-credit subsidies to come through Congress,” Lackowski told the Weekly. Often, what private investors want in these for-profit projects is “taxpayers footing the bill,” he said.
Indiana Capitol Chronicle: ‘Too many unknowns’: As company forges on with carbon sequestration project, residents mobilize
LESLIE BONILLA MUÑIZ, 10/10/23
“Susan Strole-Kos grew up bottle-feeding calves, putting up hay and repairing tractors on her family’s 100-acre farm in Vigo County. The land, a dairy farm turned soybeans and corn operation, has been in the family for two centuries,” the Indiana Capitol Chronicle reports. “...But that land, including the 1865 farmhouse she spent two decades restoring, lies in between two planned carbon dioxide injection sites. Wabash Valley Resources (WVR) intends to pipe and inject 1.67 million tons of carbon dioxide annually a mile below the area’s surface as part of its plan to produce “green” anhydrous ammonia fertilizer at a former coal gasification plant in Vigo County… “But Vigo and Vermillion County residents near the injection sites fear potential consequences like pipe ruptures and water contamination. They’re skeptical of the company’s intentions — and its use of public incentives. “We’re trying to build for our kids: my kids, grandkids, great-grandkids, eventually,” Tammy Sanquenetti, whose family lives less than a mile from one of the proposed injection sites, told the Chronicle. “There are too many unknowns.” “...WVR plans to liquify the carbon and pump it through 11 miles of pipeline to the injection sites for permanent storage 5,400 feet underground… “To operate, the plant needs to clinch a final Class VI permit — regulating carbon dioxide sequestration — from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The EPA has granted just one thus far: to the Archer Daniels Midland Company operating in Macon County, Illinois, according to the agency. And it’s approved a single draft permit: to WVR. The company is also working to secure air permit modifications from the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM). WVR has drawn on a variety of local and federal resources — and state legislation — prompting deep skepticism from residents… “We have no experience with wide-scale, permanent geological sequestration of (carbon dioxide). Any project that moves forward is absolutely an experiment,” Olson of Citizens Action Coalition told the Chronicle. “… There are legitimate and significant concerns over the unknowns, or the risks.”
Nebraska Examiner: Snubbed as a regional ‘hydrogen hub,’ Nebraskans remain charged up about clean energy growth
CINDY GONZALEZ, 10/13/23
“While Nebraska officials were disappointed Friday at being passed over for a billion-dollar “hydrogen hub” grant, they said the two-year application process strengthened regional alliances and positions the state for other opportunities,” the Nebraska Examiner reports. “And two Nebraska companies that would have benefited from the federal funding — Monolith of Hallam, and Project Meadowlark of Gothenburg — both told the Examiner the rejection won’t stop their expansion plans, though the dollars could have accelerated or improved them. “It’s unfortunate,” State Sen. Bruce Bostelman, chair of the Legislature’s Natural Resources Committee, told the Examiner following news that a Nebraska-Iowa-Missouri partnership was not among seven regional hubs selected to share $7 billion in funding from the Department of Energy… “Courtney Dentlinger is spokeswoman for the Nebraska Public Power District, which spearheaded the tri-state request dubbed MCH2, or Mid-Continent Clean Hydrogen Hub. She foresees other funding opportunities to bolster the area’s hydrogen and clean energy industry, and anticipates that new alliances formed and information learned will assist future efforts. “The process of pulling together all of these various industry players has been tremendously beneficial,” Dentlinger told the Examiner. “Having a hub designation isn’t going to hold us back from pursuing other incredible opportunities.”
NM Political Report: New Mexico’s hydrogen proposal not included in federal hub announcement
Hannah Grover, 10/16/23
“New Mexico’s joint efforts with other western states to pursue federal funding for a hydrogen hub was unsuccessful,” according to NM Political Report. “...While we are disappointed in the U.S. Department of Energy’s decision, we are undeterred. I spoke with every project partner this morning and we agree: our bullish outlook has not changed and we will continue to move forward,” Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham said in a statement on Friday. “I am incredibly grateful for the work of our industry project partners and their commitment to furthering clean energy solutions that will benefit generations of New Mexicans to come.” Hydrogen is a controversial technology and many environmental advocates consider it a false solution that is expensive. “Throwing billions at hydrogen hubs deepens our dependence on fossil fuels and worsens the climate emergency,” Maggie Coulter, an attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity’s Climate Law Institute, told the Reportt. “President Biden should be urgently investing in proven and increasingly affordable solar and wind energy. It’s wasteful and misguided to fund false solutions like hydrogen that only further burden frontline communities.” Alejandria Lyons with New Mexico No False Solutions Coalition described hydrogen as placing frontline communities at risk and delaying a just transition… “We’ve repeatedly urged the Department of Energy to ditch hydrogen hub investments, which are ridiculous in a water scarce state like ours and will only intensify the climate emergency by emitting more greenhouse gasses and pollution in our communities,” Lyons told the Report… “Not being included in the federal hydrogen hubs does not mean that hydrogen won’t be developed in New Mexico… “But not being included is a blow for hydrogen proponents in New Mexico who have already struggled to get legislation passed at the state level to support development of hydrogen resources.”
EXTRACTION
Associated Press: Greta Thunberg joins activists to disrupt oil executives’ forum in London
10/17/23
“Greta Thunberg joined dozens of climate activists outside a central London hotel on Tuesday to disrupt a meeting of oil and gas company executives,” the Associated Press reports. “Five people were arrested on suspicion of obstructing a highway during the protest targeting the Energy Intelligence Forum, which is hosting speakers including the chief executives of Saudi Arabia’s Aramco and Norway’s Equinor as well as the U.K.'s energy security minister. Protesters attempted to block access to the conference venue, the InterContinental Hotel on Park Lane, by sitting on the sidewalk by the entrance. They held aloft banners and chanted “oily money out” and “cancel the conference,” while some lit yellow and pink smoke flares… “The world is drowning in fossil fuels. Our hopes and dreams and lives are being washed away by a flood of greenwashing and lies,” Thunberg said. “It has been clear for decades that the fossil fuel industries were well aware of the consequences of their business models, and yet they have done nothing.” “We cannot let this continue. The elite of the oil and money conference, they have no intention of transition,” she added. “We have no other option but to put our bodies outside this conference and to physically disrupt. And we have to do that every time, we have to continue showing them that they are not going to get away with this.” “...Environmental groups told AP they will continue to protest throughout the planned forum, which is expected to last three days.”
S&P Global Platts: Canada to amend environmental law, in line with Supreme Court ruling: ministers
Ashok Dutta, 10/16/23
“Canada will bring about changes to an existing environmental legislation that came under scrutiny by the Supreme Court, with the federal government insisting its Impact Assessment Act of 2019 is still valid despite a court ruling,” S&P Global Platts reports. “The Canadian supreme court ruled on Oct. 13 that although parliament has the powers to legislate on environmental issues, with the ownership of non-renewable natural resources resting with provinces/territories – as per the constitution – the latter had an upper hand in the approval processes of projects. The federal government would be "overstepping its constitutional competence", if it were to come in the way of approving projects that were in the jurisdictions held by provinces, the court said in its ruling… “Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson said: "The court confirmed that the federal government has the authority to legislate in environment matters which are areas of shared responsibility with the provinces and we will be bringing forward the necessary amendments to the act to align with the court's decision." "...The supreme court ruling has provided an opportunity to rebuild investor confidence that has been challenged by the IAA," Alberta Premier Danielle Smith told reporters late-Oct. 13. Alberta is open for business and province will ask "for those who have faced delays in getting projects approvals to start their applications now as we are going to approve them [without federal government interference]. We have the constitutional authority to do it and we will proceed full-steam ahead," Smith said. The ruling will not immediately translate into applications, but it's a substantial win for the province and will result in multiple oil and gas producers looking favorably in mounting on the drawing board expansions to existing capacity or taking up new projects, Greg Stringham, a former vice president for markets for the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers, said separately Oct. 16.”
Reuters: Oil producer Suncor tells Canadian lawmakers it is sticking to climate goals
Nia Williams, 10/16/23
“Canada's second-largest oil producer, Suncor Energy (SU.TO), told Canadian lawmakers on Monday that the company remains committed to cutting carbon emissions, after its CEO's earlier comments raised concerns the company was backtracking on climate pledges,” Reuters reports. “CEO Rich Kruger also warned that unpredictability in Canadian energy policy is scaring away capital investment… “Kruger, who appeared before a Canadian parliamentary committee in Ottawa to answer questions on Suncor's climate strategy, had said on an earnings call in August that the company had put a "disproportionate emphasis" on the longer-term transition away from oil and gas to cleaner forms of energy. Those comments, made during Canada's worst-ever wildfire season, sparked condemnation from environmental groups and were described as "disappointing" by Canadian Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault. Kruger told the natural resources committee on Monday that Suncor was still aiming for net-zero emissions by 2050, and would focus on decarbonizing oil production and growing its renewable fuels businesses. "Our commitments on decarbonization and being part of the transition have not changed at all since I've taken over in this position six months ago," Kruger said.
Wall Street Journal: The Oil Price Has a Safety Valve. Gas Doesn’t.
Carol Ryan, 10/13/23
“The impact of war in Israel on the global economy might be clearer in electricity bills than prices at the pump,” the Wall Street Journal reports. “The old reflex when tensions rise in the Middle East is to worry about oil. But the bigger price moves this week have been in natural-gas markets, which have no plan B when supply is hit. Brent crude has risen 6% since Hamas attacked Israel last Saturday in an assault that killed 1,300 people. Despite its immense human cost, the fighting hasn’t had any impact on the global oil supply so far, though that could change if the conflict spreads, especially if Iran gets involved. Meanwhile, Europe’s TTF natural gas benchmark has surged more than 40% this week. The Israeli energy ministry asked Chevron to stop production at the Tamar offshore gas field, west of Haifa, because of the conflict. Also, a gas export pipeline that runs to Egypt close to Gaza has been closed. The shutdowns will have some impact on regional energy balances, and potentially Egypt’s exports of liquefied natural gas, if they go on for a long time, according to Zongqiang Luo, analyst at Rystad Energy. But the effect on global LNG supply looks limited. However, there was also a reminder this week of how vulnerable energy infrastructure is as the world becomes more unstable, when suspected sabotage caused a leak in a Baltic undersea gas pipeline. This has made traders nervous… “In an increasingly volatile energy market, having no supplier of last resort is a problem.”
RBN Energy: Petra Nova Restart Provides An Intriguing Test Case For Carbon-Capture Technology
Jason Lindquist, 10/17/23
“...For the Petra Nova carbon-capture/enhanced-oil-recovery (EOR) project southwest of Houston, its previous three-year run largely confirmed the preconceived notions of critics as a highly touted project that fell short of expectations for a variety of economic and technical reasons,” RBN Energy reports. “But it also enjoyed some significant successes, and now the facility has been given a second life, courtesy of a new owner and higher oil prices… “The Petra Nova project has been a frequent topic in the RBN blogosphere over the years, in part because it touches on so many important themes, from the basics of EOR and the markets for carbon dioxide (CO2), starting with EOR Don’t Get No Disrespect way back in 2014; the potential of EOR in shale plays, which we examined in Let It Flow and Texas Flood; and Petra Nova’s importance as a carbon-capture project, including several blogs in our Way Down in the Hole series and a pair of Drill Down reports. More recently, in Part 1 of this blog series, we looked at the history of the Petra Nova project, how falling oil prices overshadowed its technical successes, and its importance as a bellwether for the carbon-capture industry.”
Canadian Press: Tourmaline Oil announces deal to buy Bonavista Energy worth $1.45 billion
10/16/23
“Tourmaline Oil Corp. announced an agreement Monday to buy Bonavista Energy Corp. in a deal worth $1.45 billion,” the Canadian Press reports. “Under the acquisition, Tourmaline Oil will pay $725 million in shares and $725 million in cash, less Bonavista's net debt at closing. Tourmaline said the deal represents an important component of the company's ongoing consolidation strategy, adding decades of inventory and supplementing its existing Deep Basin assets in Alberta… “Following closing of the deal, Tourmaline said it expects to exit 2023 with production of over 600,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day. In addition to the acquisition, Tourmaline announced that it will increase its quarterly base dividend effective in the fourth quarter to $1.12 per share on an annualized basis, up from $1.04 per share. The Tourmaline board also declared a special dividend of $1.00 per share that will be paid on Nov. 1, to shareholders of record on Oct. 24.”
The Cool Down: Experts overwhelmingly blame one person for climate change confusion: ‘One of the greatest climate villains’
Leo Collis, 10/15/23
“Rupert Murdoch announced in September that he would step down as chairman of Fox Corp and News Corp. The Australian’s impact on the media landscape since the 1950s has had far-reaching and damaging consequences,” The Cool Down reports. “Speaking to the Guardian, climate scientist at Australian National University Joëlle Gergis said: “It’s hard to think of another person who has single-handedly done more to muddy the public’s understanding of climate change.” Other scientists did not give Murdoch particularly glowing reviews upon the news of his decision to hand over control of the media empire to his son, Lachlan. Climate scientist and University of Pennsylvania professor Michael Mann added, per the Guardian: “He has wielded his global media empire as a cudgel to sow confusion and doubt about the science and the solutions. He will go down in history as one of the greatest climate villains.” “...The Guardian said that 97% of comment pieces in the Herald Sun, under Murdoch’s media empire, published climate-skeptic views. Syndicated columnist Andrew Bolt was responsible for a number of these articles, with similar work also published in The Advertiser, NT News, and Daily Telegraph.”
CLIMATE FINANCE
WisPolitics: Climate protests held in three banks in Wisconsin
10/16/23
“On Saturday, October 14, climate activists held peaceful sit-ins at three Chase banks in Wisconsin – two in Madison and one in Milwaukee,” WisPolitics reports. “Ranging in age from 22 to 82 years old, ten activists occupied branches of Chase Bank in downtown Madison and on Madison’s west side. Others were outside the banks, calling on JP Morgan Chase to stop financing pipelines and other fossil fuel infrastructure projects. At the same time, activists from 350 Milwaukee and Casa Maria Catholic Worker gathered inside and outside the Chase Bank on West Morgan Avenue in Milwaukee, demanding an end to Chase funding of climate chaos. Police removed the activists in all three branches, issuing formal citations to 5 activists in Madison and 1 activist in Milwaukee… “Burning fossil fuels is a major cause of this emerging climate chaos,” said the activists in a letter delivered to Chase Bank management, “Therefore, we call on JP Morgan Chase to phase out support of the fossil fuel industry and stop funding the expansion of fossil fuel infrastructure projects.” “We are especially outraged by Chase’s loans to Enbridge,” added Chuck Schobert, a leader of the sit-in of the downtown Chase Bank. “With its Line 5 pipeline, Enbridge is trespassing on the Bad River Reservation and threatening the waters of Bad River and Lake Superior, as well as the Straits of Mackinac, Lake Michigan and Lake Huron.”
The Atlantic: If You’re Worried About the Climate, Move Your Money
Annie Lowrey, 10/13/23
“A decade and change ago, as the world woke up to the catastrophe of climate change, campus activists were looking for ways to heal the environment at scale. They landed on an unusual one: the free market,” The Atlantic reports. “...Students at dozens of universities, galvanized by the nonprofit 350.org, began protesting at academic-leadership and investment offices, asking for endowments to quit holding shares in fossil-fuel companies. The students picketed. They marched. They conducted sit-ins. They held votes. “You do not want your institution to be on the wrong side of this issue,” Stephen Mulkey, the president of Maine’s Unity College, the first to divest using 350.org’s guidelines, told Inside Climate News in 2012. “We realized that investing in fossil fuels was an unethical position.” “...By 2018, less than a decade since the climate divestment movement picked up in the United States, more than 1,000 institutional investors with $6.2 trillion in assets under management had committed to divestment, the firm Arabella Advisors has estimated; some of today’s tallies are several times higher. The list of entities quitting fossil-fuel investment now includes several large pension funds, the country of Ireland, the Ford and Rockefeller foundations, and dozens of private colleges and universities. In 2021, Harvard (under new management) divested. In July, Seattle University did too. Last month, New York University, despite its deep ties with Wall Street, agreed to do so as well. Has it worked? On the margin perhaps. Some analyses find that the movement is still too small to have any effect. But one broad analysis of lending to oil-and-gas firms in 33 countries from 2000 to 2015 found that divestment was “associated with lower capital flows,” an effect “enhanced in more stringent environmental policy regimes and diminished in countries which heavily subsidize fossil fuels.” But the single most important effect of divestment isn’t about the money at all, but something stranger and more diffuse: It takes away the “social license” of the fossil-fuel industry, as the movement’s leader, Bill McKibben, puts it. It makes extractive companies seem socially irresponsible and unworthy of public investment. It makes people think twice about working for such firms. It pushes all companies to acknowledge the environment, and to understand that being a major emitter is a bad business practice. It helps pressure corporate financiers to take climate seriously, something that really will keep the planet livable… “And if you are worried enough about the climate to want to take personal action, moving your money to green funds is one of the easiest ways to do it—one that takes perhaps five minutes, one time, plus a bit of emailing once a year. Contrast that with quitting meat, giving up your car, or stopping air travel.”
TODAY IN GREENWASHING
Mountain Press: Enbridge awards $10,000 grant to Morgan Scott Project
10/16/23
“Enbridge, Inc., owner and operator of East Tennessee Natural Gas, recently awarded a $10,000 grant to the Morgan Scott Project through the company’s Fueling Futures Program,” the Mountain Press reports. “The funds will directly support the ongoing work of the Morgan Scott Project through food aid, accessibility improvements, home repair, utility assistance and educational assistance throughout Morgan and Scott counties. Last year, Enbridge announced plans for an expansion of its East Tennessee Natural Gas system, which has supplied affordable and reliable energy to millions of Tennesseans for more than 70 years. (Art Haskins, manager of stakeholder engagement at Enbridge/East Tennessee Natural Gas, presents Fueling Futures grant check to Crystal Tompkins, executive director of Morgan Scott Project, alongside Elizabeth James, senior advisor stakeholder engagement at Enbridge. Photo submitted by Enbridge/East Tennessee Natural Gas.)”
OPINION
Los Angeles Times: To shut down the supply side of climate change, start here
The Rev. Lennox Yearwood is the president and CEO of the Hip Hop Caucus. Bill McKibben is the founder of Third Act, which organizes people over 60 for action on climate and democracy, 10/16/23
“September was a scary month — or as one prominent climate scientist termed it, “gobsmackingly bananas.” It broke all temperature records for the month and by a record margin,” the Rev. Lennox Yearwood and Bill McKibben write for the Los Angeles Times. “...Almost as scary as the temperature, however, has been the reaction — or, more precisely, the lack of it in Washington… “Having begun to credibly cut demand for fossil fuels by boosting electric vehicles, heat pumps and solar panels with the the Inflation Reduction Act, the White House needs to start turning down the supply by stanching the spiking exports of fossil fuels. The place where that change should begin is along the Louisiana coast, where a massive fossil fuel build-out is underway, with a vast and growing array of export terminals and pipelines. If the oil and gas industry has its way, America will expand its production more than any other country in the next decade (far more than China). LNG gas shipments — LNG stands for “liquefied natural gas” — from the Gulf of Mexico are by far the biggest source of that growth. One of us grew up in Louisiana and founded the Hip Hop Caucus’ Gulf Coast Renewal Campaign in the years after Hurricane Katrina decimated New Orleans. To anyone who knows this region, the idea of putting new LNG facilities in a place where hurricanes grow ever stronger is ludicrous, and that they are slated mostly for poor communities of color runs counter to the Biden administration’s promise to protect those who have been affected “first and worst” by fossil fuel development… “Exporting natural gas drives up its cost for domestic consumers who still rely on it for cooking, heating and cooling, which means that Biden and his Energy secretary, Jennifer M. Granholm, should be able to sell a retreat from the Gulf LNG build-out as a political plus, defending consumers from energy inflation. Doing anything else would be gobsmackingly bananas.”
MSNBC: There's overwhelming support for action on our climate. Why that hasn't mattered.
Derrick Z. Jackson, 10/13/23
“The year’s not over, but the United States has already suffered a record 24 weather disasters that have cost at least $1 billion in damage,” Derrick Z. Jackson writes for MSNBC. “...A lack of understanding among Americans isn’t the issue. According to a spring report from the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication, clear majorities believe that climate change is affecting extreme heat, rising sea levels, wildfires, droughts, flooding, water shortages, hurricanes, air pollution, tornadoes and reduced snowpack… “The issue is that majority sentiment is constantly undercut by minority opinion. And undercut by a party that represents a minority of the American people. That September AP-NORC poll found that only 48% of Republicans think climate change contributes to extreme weather, compared to 93% of Democrats. The Washington Post found similar partisan divides. There are racial divides, too. While between 65% and 70 % of Hispanic Americans, African Americans and Asian Americans see climate change as a “critical threat” to the vital interests of the United States (hugely because they disproportionately breathe in fossil fuel pollution), only 47% of white Americans feel the same, according to a poll this year by the Chicago Council on global Affairs and New America. It would be easy here to blame America’s inaction on loud right-wing climate deniers in Congress, who are often beholden to the lobbying of the fossil fuel industry. But the media deserve blame, too. As much as clear majorities of Americans know what’s happening and support renewable energy, there likely would be even larger majorities clamoring for change if news outlets didn’t give disproportionate attention to skeptics with no scientific data backing their skepticism. The same newsrooms also tend to focus on studies that have the effect of lowering the public’s urgency to deal with climate change… “Newsrooms need to acknowledge the “weight-of-evidence” disparity and adjust their reporting accordingly. Forget balance. The scales of coverage, as it regards global warming, should be so unbalanced that the deniers are left high up in the air and exposed as having no foundation of science under their dangling feet.”