EXTRACTED: Daily News Clips 11/3/21
PIPELINE NEWS
Roanoke Times: Mountain Valley Pipeline nears completion, but hurdles remain
KSDK: Anheuser-Busch, other St. Louis businesses warn of dire consequences if gas pipeline shuttered
Bloomberg: Pipeline Agency Expands Authority Amid Biden’s Methane Crackdown
WCNC: North Carolina DEQ files complaint against Colonial Pipeline in massive Huntersville spill
Breach Media: On the War Trail with the Wet’suwet’en
International Viewpoint: Blocking an Ecocidal Pipeline
Sierra Club Iowa: Protect Our Land: No Carbon Pipelines
Facebook: FracTracker: FracTracker created an interactive map with a timeline showing the 21 locations of multiple Mariner East 2 Pipeline permit violations
Reuters: Pembina Pipeline looks to work together with rival Canada carbon capture plans
WASHINGTON UPDATES
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency: U.S. to Sharply Cut Methane Pollution that Threatens the Climate and Public Health
E&E News: How EPA Methane Rule Hits Energy, From Pipelines To Politics
E&E News: Republicans slam Biden’s methane ‘overregulation’
New York Times: Democrats Work to Salvage Methane Fee Amid Opposition From Manchin
Politico Morning Energy: Some more COP announcements: Carbon Negative Shot
E&E News: Granholm on DOE’s next steps, gas, energy ‘carrots’
E&E News: House Oversight subpoenas Big Oil
Center for Biological Diversity: Outdated Offshore Drilling Plans Spur Lawsuit Notice After California Oil Spill
STATE UPDATES
Casper Star Tribune: Less than half of proposed Wyoming oil and gas leases recommended for upcoming sale
EXTRACTION
NPR: The U.N. chief warns that reliance on fossil fuels is pushing the world to the brink
Reuters: Nearly 90 countries join pact to slash planet-warming methane emissions
Bloomberg: BP Looks Dirtier Than Exxon in New Data From Giant U.S. Oil Field
Press release: ConocoPhillips Canada joins Oil Sands Pathways to Net Zero alliance
CBC: Mark Carney talks about the oilsands and climate action funding [VIDEO]
CLIMATE FINANCE
Associated Press: Fossil fuel divestment gains momentum in philanthropy
National Observer: Canada takes the carbon crown when it comes to fossil fuel financing
OPINION
Petoskey News-Review: New cameras tracking ships won't protect Line 5
The Hill: A tax on methane may appeal to some — but won't actually reduce emissions
PIPELINE NEWS
Roanoke Times: Mountain Valley Pipeline nears completion, but hurdles remain
Laurence Hammack, 11/2/21
“As work on the Mountain Valley Pipeline winds down for another winter season, all but about 20 miles of the 303-mile-long natural gas conduit is finished, according to the lead partner of the project,” the Roanoke Times reports. “It’s in the red zone for completion” by next summer, Thomas Karam, CEO of Equitrans Midstream Corp., said in a conference call Tuesday to discuss the company’s third quarter results with financial analysts. In perhaps the most bitterly fought environmental battle in Southwest Virginia’s recent history, Mountain Valley has faced multiple court fights that delayed its completion by more than three years and nearly doubled its cost to $6.2 billion… “Mountain Valley still lacks state and federal permits to cross water bodies for the final phase of construction — and opponents show no signs of giving up. Of 2,292 comments made to the Department of Environmental Quality, 90% opposed granting a state permit for the remaining stream crossings in Virginia, according to Wild Virginia, one of many environmental groups opposed to the project… “The U.S. Forest Service gave Mountain Valley permission in January to pass through 3.5 miles of the Jefferson National Forest in two sections, mostly in Giles and Montgomery counties. But the work cannot start until stream crossing permits are granted. Meanwhile, legal challenges against other permits are pending, with a decision expected by the end of the year from the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.” In Tuesday’s conference call, Charletta said Mountain Valley expects to have approvals in hand in time to complete construction by next summer, at which point 2 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day will begin moving through the pipeline.”
KSDK: Anheuser-Busch, other St. Louis businesses warn of dire consequences if gas pipeline shuttered
Jacob Kirn, 11/2/21
“St. Louis businesses are warning of "substantial impacts" if a gas pipeline operated by utility Spire is not allowed to operate past Dec. 13,” KSDK reports. “...A federal appeals court in June vacated a regulator's approval of the pipeline, saying the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission did not sufficiently analyze whether it was needed, as only one gas supplier, an affiliate of the line's operator, committed to use it. That ruling prompted warnings from St. Louis-based Spire that the region could be hit with gas shortages this winter, but FERC in September decided to allow Spire to keep operating the pipeline until at least Dec. 13. The company, and others in the region, hope FERC will extend that emergency order, especially after the U.S. Supreme Court last month rejected a stay request from Spire to keep operating the pipeline. An executive for Anheuser-Busch, with more than 3,000 employees in Missouri, told FERC that the company "takes seriously the consequences that would be caused by the loss of the STL Pipeline." The brewer "relies on natural gas" to make its beer, Jim Bicklein, senior general manager for its St. Louis brewery, told KSDK, and "more than 30 percent of our shipments from the St. Louis brewery to our wholesalers is via trucks that use compressed natural gas." "If the STL Pipeline were to be shut off, our brewery operations would be impacted and the station we use near the brewery would also be shut off, severely curtailing our fleet," Bicklein told FERC in a letter. "This, in turn, would cause a ripple effect throughout our broader industry. With potential limitations and outages extending beyond our own operations to other businesses, negative economic consequences for the entire St. Louis region are inevitable."
Bloomberg: Pipeline Agency Expands Authority Amid Biden’s Methane Crackdown
11/3/21
“More than 400,000 miles of natural gas gathering pipelines will come under the federal authority for the first time, according to a final rule published by the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration,” Bloomberg reports. “The move represents a relatively quiet assertion of power by the pipeline agency as President Joe Biden’s administration announced a multi-agency crackdown on methane emissions during the COP26 climate summit in Scotland. “This is a really significant rulemaking,” Bryn S. Karaus, an attorney at Van Ness Feldman LLP’s pipeline safety practice in Washington D.C., told Bloomberg. “Many gathering lines have been exempt from pipeline safety regulation, and this final rule upends that.” The rule may proceed without a legal challenge because it was largely in line with what the industry expected, Karaus told Bloomberg. Operators of the gathering pipelines—which are mostly rural and move gas from production sites to interstate pipelines—will be required to submit incident reports and annual data to PHMSA, a unit of the Department of Transportation. Pipelines that have larger diameters, move gas at a higher pressure and run near populated areas will be subject to stricter safety standards, the agency said… “Unlike transmission lines, which are federally regulated regardless of location, most gathering lines were exempt from federal oversight because they run through sparsely populated areas. PHMSA deemed lines in rural areas as Class 1, which were subject only to a patchwork of state laws. Many lines were totally unregulated.”
WCNC: North Carolina DEQ files complaint against Colonial Pipeline in massive Huntersville spill
Hank Lee, 11/2/21
“The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) filed a complaint and motion in Mecklenburg County court to force Colonial Pipeline to meet its obligations for a massive gasoline spill in Huntersville last year,” WCNC reports. “In the complaint, NC DEQ said Colonial Pipeline has failed to provide state officials with essential information required for cleanup at the site, where a section of cracked pipeline leaked more than 1 million gallons of fuel at the Oehler Nature Preserve in northern Mecklenburg County. “The Associated Press reported in July that Colonial Pipeline faced a $200,000 fine each day if it failed to improve the way it detected leaks in its system after the leak, which was discovered by two teenagers in August 2020. In a June 15 settlement with the U.S. Department of Transportation, the company reported that almost 18 times more gasoline leaked from the pipe than the original estimate. DEQ claimed in its motion Tuesday that Colonial has yet to give the state an updated estimate of the spill, violating requirements set forth. At the same time Colonial was cleaning up the Huntersville spill, it was quietly analyzing the impacts of another spill in northwest Charlotte on Dec. 31, 2018… “The company filed an accident report that said crews later found the source: Jet fuel was leaking from a pinhole in a section of the pipe feeding one of the tanks. More than 8,000 tons of contaminated soil were removed from the site. Further examination by WCNC Charlotte revealed that 13,000 gallons of fuel spilled was only what workers were able to recover. The company said the pipe leaked an additional 3,200 gallons of jet fuel that weren't recovered. “
Breach Media: On the War Trail with the Wet’suwet’en
Kai Nagata & Michael Toledano, 11/2/21
“Last week, a Wet’suwet’en chief seized heavy equipment at a series of worksites along the historic Kweese War Trail in northern British Columbia, enforcing ancient trespass laws against pipeline contractors who ignored his warnings for a year,” Breach Media reports. “On Oct. 27, after a four-day campaign that left a snowy mountain road littered with nearly a dozen immobilized bulldozers, rock trucks and excavators, Chief Dtsa’hyl (Adam Gagnon) was ambushed by RCMP and Coastal GasLink (CGL) security and arrested without incident. Dtsa’hyl is one of several Wet’suwet’en hereditary name holders to be criminalized for efforts to uphold the nation’s sovereignty. In January 2019 and January 2020, the RCMP led high-profile militarized raids of blockade camps and a healing lodge deep in unceded Wet’suwet’en territory. That incursion sparked protests and solidarity actions across Canada. If completed, the CGL pipeline would deliver gas from fracking operations in northeast B.C. to an export terminal in the port town of Kitimat. The project is propped up with billions of dollars in tax credits and subsidies from both the federal and provincial governments. But leaders in the Likhts’amisyu (Fireweed Clan) government, which long predates the founding of Canada, say they have never been consulted on the pipeline—which crosses lands that do not belong to the Crown.”
International Viewpoint: Blocking an Ecocidal Pipeline
DIANNE FEELEY, 11/3/21
“Rebecca Kemble is a community activist and former member of the Madison, Wisconsin Common Council. This past summer she attended the blockade by Anishinaabe land protectors and allies against the construction of the new Enbridge Line 3 that cuts through their territory and threatens their treaty rights,” International Viewpoint reports. “Since then Enbridge has announced they have completed construction and are transporting tar sands oil. Meanwhile Indigenous protesters are still facing charges, and it was revealed that Enbridge has paid police $2.4 million for security. However, the protesters do not intend to end their opposition. Dianne Feeley: Tell us about the struggle against Enbridge’s plan to replace the old Line 3 in Northern Minnesota in what seems to be a remote area. Rebecca Kemble: Line 3 goes right through the center of Anishinaabe territory. To them, it’s the center of the world. Enbridge, a Canadian multinational tar sands company, is using Northern Minnesota, Northern Wisconsin, and Northern Michigan as a sacrifice zone to pipe their tar sands from Northern Alberta through Anishinaabe territory, then back to Canada and out to the east coast for export. None of that oil goes to U.S. markets, so presidents Biden, Obama and Trump’s arguments about energy independence are off when it comes to Enbridge. It’s just a giant disaster waiting to happen.”
Sierra Club Iowa: Protect Our Land: No Carbon Pipelines
11/1/21
“Iowa is ground zero for two new proposed carbon pipelines, Summit Pipeline & Navigator Pipeline. Pipeline construction can be devastating to our land. Tune in on Wednesday, November 10 at 7:00pm to hear how construction of the Dakota Access pipeline harmed Iowa farmland. On the webinar, you'll hear from Janet Holmes who has been meticulously documenting and investigating the damage to Iowa's farmland from the Dakota Access pipeline construction. Janet has real examples of farmers who've had to lower their Corn Suitability Rating, are having major drainage issues to this day, and who still see a scar across their land. We encourage all landowners threatened by the Navigator and Summit pipelines to attend this webinar.”
Facebook: FracTracker: FracTracker created an interactive map with a timeline showing the 21 locations of multiple Mariner East 2 Pipeline permit violations
11/2/21
“On October 5th, 2021, Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro charged Energy Transfer with 48 counts of environmental crimes for its construction of the Mariner East 2 Pipeline. FracTracker created an interactive map with a timeline showing the 21 locations of multiple permit violations, including spills and sinkholes—alongside the over 120 violations ETP has incurred with the pipeline's construction. Though the grand jury's investigation found chronic environmental violations and hazards associated with the pipeline, the Attorney General's office doesn't have the power to stop it. So who's responsible? The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection has fined Energy Transfer over $20 million—but between that hefty bill and the 48 criminal counts, the pipeline is still operating. Learn more & explore the map: http://ow.ly/lLkK50GEBaR
Reuters: Pembina Pipeline looks to work together with rival Canada carbon capture plans
By Rod Nickel, 11/2/21
“Canada's Pembina Pipeline Corp is asking backers of two competing proposals for carbon capture hubs in the oil-producing province of Alberta to combine efforts with its own plan, the company's chief executive said on Tuesday,” Reuters reports. “Pembina (PPL.TO) and TC Energy Corp (TRP.TO) said in June they were looking to develop a system to transport and sequester carbon. The Alberta government, which controls underground space for burying carbon, called for expressions of interest this autumn… “The Pembina-TC plan, called Alberta Carbon Grid, faces competition from at least two others - Oil Sands Pathways, pitched by the largest oil sands producers, and Polaris, a proposal by Royal Dutch Shell (RDSa.L). Pembina has spoken with both groups about joining together and talks remain active, CEO Mick Dilger told Reuters… “Pembina and TC would need to convince Shell and the Pathways partnership of Canadian Natural Resources (CNQ.TO), Cenovus Energy (CVE.TO), Imperial Oil (IMO.TO), Suncor Energy (SU.TO) and MEG Energy (MEG.TO), of a change in concept, he said. Pembina and TC proposed a plan that would make use of spare pipelines that they own to reduce costs. The other proposals rely more on new infrastructure, Dilger told Reuters.
WASHINGTON UPDATES
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency: U.S. to Sharply Cut Methane Pollution that Threatens the Climate and Public Health
11/2/21
“Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) took an important step forward to advance President Biden’s commitment to action on climate change and protect people’s health by proposing comprehensive new protections to sharply reduce pollution from the oil and natural gas industry – including, for the first time, reductions from existing sources nationwide… As part of today’s action, to inform a supplemental proposal, EPA is seeking comment on additional sources of methane to further strengthen emission controls and increase reductions from oil and gas operations… “EPA analyzed the proposed rule’s impact on natural gas and oil prices from 2023 to 2035 and estimates that changes would be small – pennies per barrel of oil or thousand cubic feet of gas. The proposed rule would reduce 41 million tons of methane emissions from 2023 to 2035, the equivalent of 920 million metric tons of carbon dioxide. That’s more than the amount of carbon dioxide emitted from all U.S. passenger cars and commercial aircraft in 2019. In 2030 alone, the rule would reduce methane emissions from sources covered in the proposal by 74 percent compared to 2005… “Key features of the proposed rule include: a comprehensive monitoring program for new and existing well sites and compressor stations; a compliance option that allows owners and operators the flexibility to use advanced technology that can find major leaks more rapidly and at lower cost than ever before; a zero-emissions standard for new and existing pneumatic controllers (with a limited alternative standard for sites in Alaska), certain types of which account for approximately 30 percent of current methane emissions from the oil and natural gas sector; standards to eliminate venting of associated gas, and require capture and sale of gas where a sales line is available, at new and existing oil wells; proposed performance standards and presumptive standards for other new and existing sources, including storage tanks, pneumatic pumps, and compressors; and a requirement that states meaningfully engage with overburdened and underserved communities, among other stakeholders, in developing state plans.”
E&E News: How EPA Methane Rule Hits Energy, From Pipelines To Politics
11/2/21
“The Biden administration’s plan to reduce methane emissions announced yesterday may spark state clashes even as it was called ‘extremely costly’ and drew criticism for allegedly not doing enough to cut oil and gas pollution,” E&E News reports. “The heart of the proposal is an updated EPA regulation on methane from the oil industry. While it would cover a broader range of sources than current rules — including an expansion to include existing wells along with new ones — the proposal wouldn’t crack down on most flaring, the process of burning natural gas rather than piping it to market. It also won’t apply to many low-producing wells. A separate plan teased yesterday by the Interior Department, to be introduced later, would crack down on flaring and venting — the release of gas directly to the atmosphere — from operations on federal land. A Transportation Department proposal also would address emissions from certain pipelines that have been linked to deadly explosions... “Some sections of the industry, along with some oil-producing states, said they were unhappy with the plan. Environmentalists, too, are gearing up for a second bite at the apple as EPA finalizes the rule. The agency is gathering comment on yesterday’s proposal and said it could introduce a supplemental rule next year to reduce emissions further. Green groups told E&E they will use that to press for a crackdown on gas flaring and requirements to rein in emissions from older wells.”
E&E News: Republicans slam Biden’s methane ‘overregulation’
By Timothy Cama, 11/3/21
“Congressional Republicans were harshly critical of the Biden administration’s proposal to crack down on methane emissions from the oil and natural gas sector, despite the industry’s signaling openness to the idea,” E&E News reports. “To the GOP, yesterday’s EPA proposal was yet another attempt by President Biden to shut down fossil fuels even though the industry has made progress toward reducing emissions. “With a harsh winter predicted and energy prices at seven-year highs, President Biden and the EPA are proposing more regulations that could raise energy prices even more for families,” Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) and other Republican leaders of the House Energy and Commerce Committee said in a statement… “Citing rising energy costs, Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) said the proposal is "duplicative of the good work North Dakota is already doing and it imposes Washington’s bureaucratic mediocrity on our state’s excellence.” The statements stand in contrast to the stances of many major oil and gas business groups. The American Petroleum Institute, the American Exploration & Production Council and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce all reiterated yesterday that they support direct regulation of methane emissions from oil and gas, though they said they would have to thoroughly analyze the proposal before passing judgment on it.”
New York Times: Democrats Work to Salvage Methane Fee Amid Opposition From Manchin
Coral Davenport, 11/2/21
“Democrats struggled on Tuesday to salvage a major initiative to address climate change in their sweeping social and environmental policy bill amid opposition from Senator Joe Manchin III of West Virginia, a key Democratic holdout,” the New York Times reports. “Mr. Manchin, a centrist from one of the top coal- and gas-producing states, has pushed to remove or weaken a provision that would impose a fee on emissions of methane, a powerful planet-warming pollutant that leaks from oil and gas wells. He has already effectively succeeded in stripping the bill of its most powerful climate change provision, a program that would have replaced coal- and gas-fired power plants with wind and solar power. “Senator Manchin has expressed reservations” about the methane fee, Representative Steny H. Hoyer of Maryland, the majority leader, told the Times on Tuesday. “We want to mitigate methane, but we’ll see.” “...Mr. Manchin has doubled down on his resistance to the methane fee and other major elements of the bill as President Biden attends a climate change summit this week in Glasgow, where he hopes to make the case to world leaders that the United States, historically the largest emitter of planet-warming pollution, is on the brink of enacting a major climate change law.”
Politico Morning Energy: Some more COP announcements: Carbon Negative Shot
11/2/21
“The administration is also announcing today its next Energy Earthshot through the DOE to speed up clean energy innovation, particularly focusing on carbon dioxide removal,” Politico Morning Energy reports. “The Carbon Negative Shot follows the department's pushes to develop clean hydrogen and long-duration energy storage earlier this year.”
E&E News: Granholm on DOE’s next steps, gas, energy ‘carrots’
Lesley Clark, Jeremy Dillon, 11/3/21
“Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm heads to a global climate change conference today as part of a U.S. delegation she says will show the world the United States is "back" on the issue, even as President Biden’s clean energy spending remains stymied by Congress and the president pushes for more oil production,” E&E News reports. “In an interview ahead of her trip to the COP 26 climate summit in Glasgow, Scotland, Granholm said she’ll be focused on several DOE initiatives at the event, including the department’s next "Energy Earthshot” aimed at removing carbon from the atmosphere. The "Carbon Negative Shot" follows similar department innovation efforts focusing on clean hydrogen and energy storage… “As part of that, she and presidential climate envoy John Kerry today will launch the "Net Zero World Initiative," which Granholm said has been led by the department’s national labs to help communities and countries “navigate their path to net zero, especially if they don’t have the technical ability to do that… “On Friday at the conference, she plans to announce the U.S. city that will host the international 2022 meeting of the Mission Innovation global partnership on carbon dioxide removal, one of the initiatives launched under Obama-era Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz as part of an international push to invest in technologies to combat climate change. The original Mission Innovation, launched at the 2015 Paris climate talks, was backed by billionaires like Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates and called for nations to double clean energy spending.”
E&E News: House Oversight subpoenas Big Oil
By Nick Sobczyk, 11/2/21
“House Oversight and Reform Chair Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) today formally issued subpoenas to four major oil companies and two of the nation’s largest trade organizations, demanding a wide range of internal documents and significantly escalating her committee’s investigation of climate misinformation,” E&E News reports. “The subpoenas — issued to Exxon Mobil Corp., BP America Inc., Chevron Corp., Shell Oil Co., the American Petroleum Institute and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce — require the organizations to offer up communications about climate science among executives, information about funding for outside groups and documents related to any efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. “Despite repeated effort by the Committee and staff to obtain the documents necessary for the investigation, the six entities have failed to substantially comply with the Committee’s September 16, 2021, document requests,” Maloney wrote in an accompanying memo. “As a result, subpoenas are now necessary.” Today’s announcement crystallizes the move and requires the organizations to deliver a huge trove of documents to the committee by Nov. 16. While Maloney said she has narrowed the scope of her initial request, the subpoenas ask for documents dating to 2015, likely totaling thousands of pages of emails, letters, marketing materials and detailed information about outside spending. It’s a move Democrats have been hinting at for months that significantly steps up the committee’s investigation of the fossil fuel industry for its role in funding and spreading what Democrats say is false information about climate science.”
Center for Biological Diversity: Outdated Offshore Drilling Plans Spur Lawsuit Notice After California Oil Spill
11/2/21
“The Center for Biological Diversity filed a notice today of its intent to sue the federal government for allowing Platform Elly and other offshore oil production in the Beta oilfield to operate under outdated drilling plans written in the 1970s and ‘80s. The notice comes after a major Southern California oil spill linked to Platform Elly. Today’s filing notes that the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management has failed to review and require revision of the plans, despite the recent oil spill, the age of the infrastructure and other changes since the plans were approved about four decades ago. “The oil industry is drilling and spilling off California’s coast under plans written when Carter and Reagan were in the White House and floppy disks were high tech,” said Kristen Monsell, legal director of the Center’s Oceans program. “These incredibly outdated documents highlight the federal government’s reckless, contemptible refusal to protect our beaches, wildlife and communities from offshore drilling pollution. Retro is not a good look for those ominous oil platforms, which should be shut down entirely.” The notice letter, a prerequisite to filing a lawsuit, explains that under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act the bureau has a duty to review and revise drilling plans when there have been changes.
STATE UPDATES
Casper Star Tribune: Less than half of proposed Wyoming oil and gas leases recommended for upcoming sale
Nicole Pollack, 11/1/21
“Of the 459 Wyoming parcels being considered for the upcoming federal oil and gas lease sale, just 195 are eligible to be sold, officials said Monday,” the Casper Star Tribune reports. “The lease sale is scheduled for the first quarter of 2022. It will be held more than a year after President Joe Biden’s Jan. 27 executive order suspended new oil and gas leasing on federal lands, and more than six months after a U.S. district judge ordered the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to resume quarterly lease sales. All of the 459 potential leases were originally proposed for the canceled March and June sales. The agency published the full list on Aug. 31, and took public comment from Sept. 1–Oct. 1. After reviewing public comment and completing an environmental assessment for the state’s nominated lands, the agency deferred 264 Wyoming parcels from the sale, largely due to concerns about disturbing priority sage grouse habitat. In a separate announcement Friday, the BLM also cited “insufficient environmental analysis” as a reason for deferring some parcels.” “...On Friday, the agency said that it would begin evaluating greenhouse gas emissions as part of its oil and gas leasing program, starting with the upcoming sale. In addition to considering the social cost of carbon as part of its environmental analysis, it created a lease sale emissions tool and issued its first annual report on the greenhouse gas emissions of the federal mineral leasing programs.”
EXTRACTION
NPR: The U.N. chief warns that reliance on fossil fuels is pushing the world to the brink
SCOTT NEUMAN, 11/1/21
“The world faces imminent disaster without urgent action on climate change, with the damage we can already see becoming unstoppable, the United Nations secretary-general told leaders gathered for a major climate conference in Glasgow, Scotland,” NPR reports. "Our addiction to fossil fuels is pushing humanity to the brink," António Guterres said in opening remarks to the 26th meeting of the Conference of Parties, known as COP26, on Monday. "We face a stark choice: Either we stop it — or it stops us." "We are digging our own graves," he warned. Guterres is pushing the world's nations to commit to more ambitious climate action – with a 45% cut in carbon dioxide emissions by 2030 and net carbon emissions by 2050. These are goals that scientists say must be reached if the global community has any chance of holding warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius this century. But the COP26 conference opened a day after the G-20 economies noted only vaguely "the key relevance" of halting net emissions "by or around mid-century" without setting a timetable even for phasing out coal. "Our planet is changing before our eyes — from the ocean depths to mountain tops; from melting glaciers to relentless extreme weather events," the secretary-general said.
Reuters: Nearly 90 countries join pact to slash planet-warming methane emissions
By Kate Abnett and Valerie Volcovici, Ilze Filks, 11/2/21
“Nearly 90 countries have joined a U.S.- and EU-led effort to slash emissions of the potent greenhouse gas methane 30% by 2030 from 2020 levels, a pact aimed at tackling one of the main causes of climate change, a senior Biden administration official told Reuters. “...The Global Methane Pledge, which was first announced in September, now includes half of the top 30 methane emitters accounting for two-thirds of the global economy, according to the Biden administration official. Among the new signatories that will be announced on Tuesday is Brazil - one of the world's five biggest emitters of methane. China, Russia and India, also top-five methane emitters, have not signed on to the pledge… “There were roughly 60 countries signed up only last week, after a final diplomatic push from the United States and EU ahead of the COP26 summit. While it is not part of the formal U.N. negotiations, the methane pledge could rank among the most significant outcomes from the COP26 conference, given its potential impact in holding off disastrous climate change.”
Bloomberg: BP Looks Dirtier Than Exxon in New Data From Giant U.S. Oil Field
Zachary R. Mider and Rachel Adams-Heard, 11/2/21
“BP Plc aspires to be the oil industry’s climate champion. Last year, the London-based company became the first of the world’s supermajors to embrace an eventual phase-out of all greenhouse gas emissions,” Bloomberg reports. “But a Bloomberg News analysis of new data collected from the Permian Basin, the largest U.S. oil field, shows that BP’s operations are among the dirtiest of dozens of companies operating there. The same analysis shows Exxon Mobil Corp., which has resisted a net-zero target, is among the cleanest. The findings are based on research by the nonprofit Environmental Defense Fund that offers an unprecedented chance to compare major companies’ performances across tens of thousands of wells in the oil-rich region of West Texas and New Mexico. They’re far from comprehensive, though, covering only a portion of a single basin over a few days. Both companies operate in dozens of countries around the world… “BP emitted about 500 grams of methane per barrel of oil equivalent produced, a measure that incorporates the energy content of both gas and oil. The figure for Exxon was less than 50 grams. Chevron Corp.’s rate was higher but within the margin of error of Exxon’s. The other supermajors in the basin, Royal Dutch Shell Plc and ConocoPhillips, fell between Chevron and BP.”
Press release: ConocoPhillips Canada joins Oil Sands Pathways to Net Zero alliance
11/3/21
“The Oil Sands Pathways to Net Zero alliance has expanded to include ConocoPhillips Canada. The Pathways initiative was established with the goal of achieving net zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from oil sands operations by 2050. With this latest addition, the alliance, which includes Canadian Natural Resources, Cenovus Energy, Imperial, MEG Energy and Suncor Energy, now operates facilities representing about 95 per cent of Canada's oil sands production… The goal of this unique alliance is to help Canada meet its climate goals, including its Paris Agreement commitments and 2050 net zero aspirations, by eliminating 68 megatonnes of annual oil sands production emissions in three phases over the next three decades. "We're extremely pleased to have ConocoPhillips join our alliance, which now represents companies from almost all of Canada's major oil sands facilities," says Pathways Director Al Reid. "Climate change is one of the most pressing challenges of our time and having their global and Canadian oil sands expertise makes our alliance even stronger, adding to our efforts to achieve net zero GHG emissions from our operations by 2050."
CBC: Mark Carney talks about the oilsands and climate action funding [VIDEO]
11/2/21
“The United Nations' special envoy on climate action and finance, Mark Carney, says Canadian banks that signed on to the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ) can still invest in the oilsands under certain strict carbon emissions criteria,” the CBC reports.
CLIMATE FINANCE
Associated Press: Fossil fuel divestment gains momentum in philanthropy
By HALELUYA HADERO, 11/1/21
“A movement to divest from fossil fuel is gaining support among foundations as activists push for funding to be shifted away from coal, oil and natural gas,” the Associated Press reports. “The call from activists to the charitable world is simple: Ditch fossil fuels and direct your investments into climate-friendly companies and funds. The worldwide divestment campaign has sought commitments from universities, corporations and other entities. Now, two of the biggest names in philanthropy — the Ford and MacArthur foundations — are reorienting their investments away from fossil fuels, a move that leaders of the divestment movement hope will prove to be a tipping point for the charitable world... “Both foundations are joining nearly 200 charitable organizations and firms that manage investments for wealthy families that have committed to divest, according to Divest-Invest Philanthropy… “About $1 trillion is sitting in endowments of private foundations, which are required to pay out only 5% of their assets annually. The rest is invested for growth. Traditionally, the two sides of their operations have been seen as separate: Grants were given to advance the foundations’ mission. The foundations’ money managers, meantime, sought high investment returns to maintain their organizations’ financial health. But in recent years, activists have argued that it’s hypocritical for some foundations to fund initiatives that address climate change while potentially investing in fossil fuel-related companies. According to the ClimateWorks Foundation, global philanthropic funding for climate change mitigation totaled $6 to $10 billion in 2020, less than 2% of overall giving.”
National Observer: Canada takes the carbon crown when it comes to fossil fuel financing
John Woodside, 10/28/21
“On the eve of the most significant climate meeting since the Paris Agreement was signed, G20 leaders will be gathering in Rome this weekend, where Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will arrive with a new record in hand: Canada has given more from the public coffers to the oil and gas industry than any of its peers,” the National Observer reports. “.The new analysis from Oil Change International and Friends of the Earth U.S. found from 2018 to 2020, G20 countries provided at least US$63 billion per year to the fossil fuel industry. Over that same period, Canada was found to have given at least $11 billion (about C$13.6 billion) to the oil and gas sector, mostly through Export Development Canada, representing nearly 20 per cent of the G20 total. Canada “is clearly a huge laggard on this file, which does track with other ways to measure leadership on climate,” Oil Change International’s public finance campaign manager Bronwen Tucker told the Observer. Even though most of the financing spelled out in the report is international, nearly a third of Export Development Canada’s fossil fuel financing in the years analyzed was for domestic projects, like the Trans Mountain (TMX) expansion pipeline and the Coastal GasLink (CGL) pipeline, which received C$12.3 billion and $315 million, respectively, according to the report.”
OPINION
Petoskey News-Review: New cameras tracking ships won't protect Line 5
Barbara Stamiris, 11/3/21
Anchors will be dropped in emergencies or dragged inadvertently. A Great Lakes oil spill would make the California oil spill seem insignificant,” Barbara Stamiris writes for the Petoskey News-Review. “Both pipelines are in busy shipping lanes, but when anchors struck Line 5, Michigan was lucky. The 40-year-old California pipeline is encased in concrete on the ocean floor. Line 5, almost 70, is suspended in the Straits of Mackinac carrying Canada’s oil. In 2020, Governor Whitmer ordered it shutdown to protect the Great Lakes, but Enbridge continues to operate Line 5 using years of legal delay. An ocean oil spill disperses, but the same spill in a lake would be far worse and impossible to reach under ice. California‘s story is fading, but that won’t happen if 95% of U.S. freshwater is devastated in the Great Lakes. Enbridge flouts Michigan law to keep Line 5 earning $1-2 million per day, playing Russian roulette with our safety. President Biden must end this exploitation of our legal system and our Great Lakes — for foreign oil profit.”
The Hill: A tax on methane may appeal to some — but won't actually reduce emissions
Bernard L. Weinstein is emeritus professor of applied economics at the University of North Texas, former associate director of the Maguire Energy Institute at Southern Methodist University, and a fellow of Goodenough College, London, 11/2/21
“Climate change is a serious challenge. We want to take meaningful actions to battle global warming. But, at the same time, consumers and businesses in a recovering economy are demanding more energy,” Bernard L. Weinstein writes for The Hill. “...Some of their proposals would have serious unintended consequences, especially the proposed tax on methane emissions. In fact, this short-sighted approach to battling climate change will do little to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the oil and gas industry… “Would an extra tax incentivize further cuts in methane releases? Probably not. The proposed tax would be passed along to the homeowners and businesses that ultimately pay for the fuel cost in their energy bills. The tax also could reduce the financial resources available to invest in additional methane capture.The proposed methane tax is not about reducing greenhouse gases or encouraging greener operations by oil and gas companies. It’s about creating a new stream of revenue for government coffers… “The methane tax does nothing to penalize bad behavior, duplicates regulatory oversight that’s already in place, and funnels money from our pockets to the U.S. Treasury at a time when energy prices are already high and rising — while at the same time doing little or nothing to reduce methane emissions. The proposed methane tax is a solution in search of a problem. Let’s put an end to the idea once and for all.”