EXTRACTED: Daily News Clips 12/18/24
PIPELINE NEWS
WLUK: Wisconsin DNR confirms investigation into oil spill from Enbridge's Line 6 pipeline
Inside Climate News: An Enbridge Oil Spill in Wisconsin Is Eroding Trust as the Fight Over Line 5 Continues
KMTV: Steve King, Sierra Club get cease & desist letters from pipeline company
South Dakota Searchlight: Second filing fee for carbon pipeline project raises total potential fees to $1.47 million
North Dakota Monitor: 13 more GOP states sign on to oppose Standing Rock Sioux in new lawsuit over DAPL
Hydrogen Insight: UK's hydrogen pipeline plans are a safety risk and a waste of money, warns former gas network boss
Elko Daily: BLM taking comments on proposed Humboldt County pipeline
Public News Service: Documentary brings WI tribe's pipeline resistance to national stage
WASHINGTON UPDATES
Press release: Permitting “Dirty Deal” dead: 680 orgs opposed EPRA, Sen. Manchin set for retirement
E&E News: What’s in, what’s out of the year-end funding deal
Washington Post: Biden throws up a last-minute obstacle to Trump’s natural gas plans
E&E News: DOE study leaves path for Trump to ramp up LNG exports
Sierra Club: DOE Releases Updated LNG Export Studies Underpinning Public Interest Determination
InsideEPA: CEQ Urges Court To Ignore Key Appellate Ruling In Phase 2 NEPA Rule-Suit
E&E News: Biden Eyes Final Rules At DOE, Interior, FERC
Nebraska Examiner: In win for biofuels, stopgap spending bill allows year-round sales of E15 gas nationwide
E&E News: Ohio Republican Tapped To Lead ‘Energy Independence’ Team
STATE UPDATES
Axios: Scoop: Haaland Eyes N.M. Governor's Race
Texas Standard: Orphan well, carbon capture regulations top energy reform group’s legislative wish list
Kansas Reflector: Kansas Geological Survey expands core library for energy, sequestration research
EXTRACTION
Reuters: Canada pushes out target for net-zero electricity grid by 15 years
Euronews: Carbon capture: The inside story of how a ‘delay tactic’ became a darling of the EU
Mother Jones: From Africa to America, Here’s How Climate Protest Is Being Criminalized
The Gateway: Indigenous and environmental coalition hold media conference during oil sands conference
Houston Chronicle: Who is ‘big oil’? It's complicated — and it's increasingly blurred by the fracking revolution
Reuters: Third tanker sends distress call as oil washes up on Russia's Black Sea coast
TODAY IN GREENWASHING
ReachFM: Chill out at Grande North Winter Festival January 10 to 12
Sarnia Journal: Enbridge Gas teams up with Point Edward Fire & Rescue to reduce fire and carbon monoxide deaths through Safe Community Project Zero
OPINION
Appalachian Voices: Pittsylvania County, Va., is at the center of an overbuilding of fossil fuel infrastructure
Piscataquis Observer: We’re running out of time to shut down Dakota Access Pipeline
Earthworks: Why the YaREN Ammonia Project Should Concern Us All
Colorado Newsline: Carbon removal is here. What does that mean for Coloradans?
Ohio Capital Journal: Huge majorities in Ohio oppose fracking our state parks, but state leaders just ignore all concerns
Energy News Network: Ohio should replicate Pennsylvania’s success cutting methane pollution
Forbes: Liquefied Gas Blows Away Pipeline Gas And Coal In Emissions To Europe, Asia
City Limits: If Gov. Hochul Cares About Working Parents, She’ll Sign the Climate Change Superfund Act
Los Angeles Times: Opinion: Gov. Newsom, no more delays in shutting Aliso Canyon down
PIPELINE NEWS
WLUK: Wisconsin DNR confirms investigation into oil spill from Enbridge's Line 6 pipeline
Mallory Allen, 12/17/24
“The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources announced Tuesday it has opened an investigation into a spill of more than 69,000 gallons of crude oil from a pipeline along Enbridge Energy's Line 6,” WLUK reports. “...Three days later, Enbridge revised the estimated spill quantity from two gallons to three barrels, or 126 gallons. On Dec. 13, that amount increased again from three barrels to 1,650 barrels, or 69,300 gallons… “Enbridge is providing weekly updates to the DNR regarding their investigation and cleanup progress. The DNR continues to evaluate the next steps, including possible enforcement actions, such as a corrective action order. DNR officials made several visits to the site in the aftermath of the spill and say they plan to revisit the site within the next week.”
Inside Climate News: An Enbridge Oil Spill in Wisconsin Is Eroding Trust as the Fight Over Line 5 Continues
Kristoffer Tigue, 12/18/24
“A recent oil spill in Wisconsin is exacerbating already tense relationships between state officials and several groups that are fighting to stop a controversial pipeline project from moving forward,” Inside Climate News reports. “For years, the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, along with several environmental groups, have been fighting to stop Enbridge Energy from replacing 41 miles of its Line 5 pipeline that runs through northern Wisconsin… “Wisconsin officials approved two key permits for that project last month following a lengthy environmental review that concluded the Line 5 project could be safely constructed and maintained. But opponents are calling that decision a mistake, pointing to an oil spill at a separate Enbridge pipeline in the state that was reported just days before the Line 5 permit approvals… “Opponents of the Line 5 project say the Line 6 spill, as well as how it was handled, has further eroded their trust in state regulators. Some also criticized the DNR for not making information about the spill immediately available to the public… “But Robert Blanchard, chairman of the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, told ICN he didn’t learn about the incident until last week. He called it “a red flag” that authorities didn’t publicly release details of the leak until a month after Enbridge reported finding it. “Why weren’t we notified on Nov. 11 instead of a month later?” he told ICN. “I wondered, ‘Is 70,000 gallons the right number that they’re talking about or is there more to it than that?”
KMTV: Steve King, Sierra Club get cease & desist letters from pipeline company
Katrina Markel, 12/17/24
“Steve King, the former congressman known for die-hard conservative views, and a staff member for the left-leaning environmental group, Sierra Club, are among the Iowans who received cease and desist letters from Summit Carbon Solutions,” KMTV reports. “The carbon capture pipeline company accused King of making false and defamatory statements. Brian Jorde — an Omaha attorney who represents some of the landowners opposed to the pipeline — told KMTV he's seen some of the letters. He believes "they're designed to intimidate. King called the letter a "bully tactic." “...One of the reasons I find this story interesting: this issue has placed historical political opposites like the left-leaning Sierra Club to former U.S. Representative and staunch conservative, Steve King, on the same side… “I reviewed the letters with Omaha-based attorney Brian Jorde. "Well, first and foremost these are designed to intimidate," he told KMTV.”
South Dakota Searchlight: Second filing fee for carbon pipeline project raises total potential fees to $1.47 million
Joshua Haiar, 12/17/24
“South Dakota regulators will charge a carbon dioxide pipeline company up to $876,000 to help cover the cost of evaluating its new permit application,” the South Dakota Searchlight reports. “...The filing fee for the first application was $592,500, which the Iowa-based company paid in full. The new fee brings the company’s total potential filing costs to $1.47 million. New costs will be assessed up to the maximum $876,000 that commissioners approved Tuesday during a meeting in Pierre… “The project has a storage permit in North Dakota and route permits in North Dakota, Iowa and Minnesota, although opponents continue to mount various legal and administrative challenges. Nebraska has no state permitting process for carbon pipelines.”
North Dakota Monitor: 13 more GOP states sign on to oppose Standing Rock Sioux in new lawsuit over DAPL
Mary Steurer, 12/17/24
“A federal judge this week allowed 13 more Republican-led states, including South Dakota, to intervene as co-defendants in the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe’s new lawsuit against the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers,” the North Dakota Monitor reports. “The lawsuit, filed in October, accuses the Army Corps of unlawfully allowing the Dakota Access Pipeline to operate without an easement, a complete environmental assessment or sufficient emergency spill response plans. The tribe ultimately wants a federal judge to shut the pipeline down… “North Dakota joined the case on the side of the Army Corps earlier this month, arguing that closing DAPL would cost the state hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenue, put thousands of jobs at risk, hamper regional supply chains and harm the environment. State attorneys also argue that a federal court order shuttering DAPL would violate North Dakota’s right to regulate its own land and resources… “The 13 states that joined the lawsuit this week are Iowa, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas and West Virginia. According to the states’ brief, the pipeline has paid over $100 million in property taxes to Iowa counties and over $33 million in property taxes to South Dakota counties since it began operating in 2017.”
Hydrogen Insight: UK's hydrogen pipeline plans are a safety risk and a waste of money, warns former gas network boss
Rachel Parkes, 12/18/24
“The former CEO of one of Europe’s biggest gas network companies has slammed proposals put forward by the UK’s gas transmission pipeline operator to create a 1,500-mile (2,414km) hydrogen “backbone” in the country — arguing that it is unnecessary, wasteful and likely to cause technical problems,” Hydrogen Insight reports. “Speaking exclusively to Hydrogen Insight, George Verberg (pictured below), who served as CEO of Dutch gas transmission service operator Gasunie for 12 years until 2004, also warned that National Gas’s Project Union proposal to convert existing pipelines to run on 100% hydrogen could jeopardise the system’s safety and operational efficiency. First announced in 2021, Project Union envisages a vast transmission network of pipelines carrying 100% hydrogen spanning the width and breadth of the UK — from St Fergus in Scotland’s far northeast to Southampton in southern England, and to industrial centres in England’s northwest and northeast — and connecting with hydrogen distribution networks in industrial clusters across the country.”
Elko Daily: BLM taking comments on proposed Humboldt County pipeline
12/17/24
“The U.S. Bureau of Land Management is seeking public comments on the proposed Valmy Lateral Pipeline Project, which would consist of a 16-mile, 24-inch buried natural gas pipeline between the existing Ruby Pipeline and the Valmy Power Plant in Humboldt County,” the Elko Daily reports. “...If approved, Pinyon Pipeline Co. LLC could construct, operate and maintain a new natural gas pipeline and associated above-ground facilities through a mix of public and private lands in a “checkerboard” ownership area north of Valmy, according to the BLM’s Winnemucca District. The project would support conversion of the North Valmy Generating Station from being coal-fired to a natural gas-fired power plant, the BLM said on Dec. 17… “Additional information, including the environmental assessment, is available at the BLM National NEPA Register, where comments may be submitted through the “Participate Now” option. Comment deadline for the environmental assessment is Jan. 13.
Public News Service: Documentary brings WI tribe's pipeline resistance to national stage
Amy Felegy, Judith Ruiz-Branch, 12/18/24
“Patty Loew attended five screenings of a new film this year. She wasn't joining box office masses at Wicked or Inside Out 2, but Bad River: A Story of Defiance,” Public News Service reports. “The independent documentary, directed by Mary Mazzio and released in March, drew in masses of its own. AMC Theatres put it up on select big screens across the United States. Peacock started streaming it last month. The documentary highlights longstanding issues facing the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa in northern Wisconsin. Loew 'Waswaagonokwe' (Torch Light on the Water Woman) is a citizen. She and other Band members are interviewed in the film, which explores tragic boarding school histories and how members of the Band have faced violence and racism. The documentary heavily focuses on the Line 5 dispute between the Band and Canadian energy company Enbridge. Loew, who recently retired as director of the Center for Native American and Indigenous Research at Northwestern University (among many other titles), addresses it in the film… “But Loew and other Band members who are interviewed in the film say that isn't enough to protect Mashiiziibii land and nearby areas from a potential pipeline burst. They want it shut down… “Despite the continued debate, Loew has hope. "The right thing will eventually happen," she told PNS. "I think everyone-whether you live in a red or a blue state, or whether you are Native or non-Native-[wants] clean water and clean air, not just for themselves, but for their children and grandchildren."
WASHINGTON UPDATES
Press release: Permitting “Dirty Deal” dead: 680 orgs opposed EPRA, Sen. Manchin set for retirement
12/17/24
“Outgoing fossil fuel booster Sen. Joe Manchin’s latest effort at passing “permitting reform,” characterized as a “Dirty Deal” because it would grease the wheels for expanded oil and gas drilling on public lands and mandate liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports as called for by Project 2025, has failed. “A just transition demands we center people and place in all climate action,” said Erik Schlenker-Goodrich, executive director of the Western Environmental Law Center. “Unfortunately, this bill was a Trojan horse for fossil fuels that would have wreaked havoc in the West, harming public lands and encouraging new fossil fuels development in communities already overburdened by a legacy of ill-considered U.S. energy policy.” Fossil fuel interests, from the American Petroleum Institute, the U.S. Oil and Gas Association, and the Independent Petroleum Association of America, strongly supported the Energy Permitting Reform Act. Unfortunately, so did renewables interests, who had lobbied for the bill’s electricity transmission reforms. “It is an imperative that we build out renewable energy and transmission infrastructure,” Schlenker-Goodrich emphasized. “But a senseless ‘build, baby, build’ mentality that provides ever more concessions to the very fossil fuel interests causing the climate crisis and prioritizes the interests of developers over people and place would undermine, not accelerate, a just transition.” While EPRA has failed, Washington insiders have warned that Congress could mine the bill and other parts of anti-environmental legislation pending in the House Committee on Natural Resources, bootstrapping those provisions onto other, must-pass legislation. “Vigilance is needed. We urge climate champions in Congress to stand tall for love of the land, waters, wildlife, and people of the West and fight any attempts to roll back bedrock environmental and community protections,” said Schlenker-Goodrich. “The path ahead is rough, but we must traverse it together with the long-sighted wisdom that a just transition must be rooted in people and place, not the demands of energy developers.”
E&E News: What’s in, what’s out of the year-end funding deal
Andres Picon, Emma Dumain, Garrett Downs, 12/18/24
“Congressional leaders finalized a deal Tuesday to extend government funding, approve more than $100 billion in disaster aid and advance a slew of bipartisan priorities that had been awaiting action for months,” E&E News reports. “...However, as congressional leaders raced against the shutdown clock to finish the package, and as Johnson worked to balance competing demands from various factions of the House Republican conference, a number of key priorities failed to make the cut. A bipartisan proposal to overhaul the country’s energy permitting rules did not come together in time. Negotiators, including Senate Energy and Natural Resources Chair Joe Manchin (I-W.Va.) and House Natural Resources Chair Bruce Westerman (R-Ark.) — sparred over proposed revisions to the National Environmental Policy Act. Lawmakers declared the negotiations dead on Monday… “Lawmakers’ inability to get a beleaguered energy permitting package into the CR likely spells doom for the yearslong bipartisan push. Rep. Sean Casten (D-Ill.), who has been working for months on a Democratic proposal for permitting reform, told E&E it was a “missed opportunity” that lawmakers failed to land a bipartisan deal in time for it to be included in the stopgap spending measure given next year’s Republican control of Congress and the White House.”
Washington Post: Biden throws up a last-minute obstacle to Trump’s natural gas plans
Maxine Joselow, 12/17/24
“The Biden administration on Tuesday released a long-awaited analysis of the dangers that liquefied natural gas exports pose to the environment and the economy, raising a potential hurdle to a central part of President-elect Donald Trump’s energy agenda,” the Washington Post reports. “The Energy Department study could undermine Trump’s plans to immediately issue permits for billions of dollars’ worth of facilities that export liquefied natural gas, or LNG. Environmentalists plan to cite the analysis in future lawsuits over the Trump administration’s approvals of these projects, which some have called “climate bombs” because of their enormous environmental footprints. The incoming administration “clearly wants to take a different approach and start approving permits as fast as they can. But the study’s findings could complicate that approach,” Ben Cahill, an energy scholar at the University of Texas at Austin, told the Post… “The Trump administration is expected to rebut the study and replace it with more industry-friendly findings. But that process could take “anywhere from several months to several calendar quarters,” analysts with the firm ClearView Energy Partners wrote in a recent note to clients… “The analysis also found that sending more gas overseas would leave less gas available at home, raising wholesale domestic natural gas prices by roughly 31 percent. That would raise energy costs for American consumers by more than $100 per year by 2050, according to the findings… “In addition, the study found that LNG export facilities tend to be concentrated in disadvantaged communities along the Gulf Coast… “Even before the Energy Department unveiled the study, FERC last month had tossed out a prior approval for part of a mammoth LNG project on the Louisiana coast known as Calcasieu Pass 2, or CP2. The commission said its earlier analysis of the project’s air pollution was flawed and it would conduct a fresh review in the coming months. A spokeswoman for the project’s owner, Venture Global, told the Postl that the project “unquestionably meets or exceeds all required environmental air standards,” adding that the fresh review “is unnecessary and we remain ready to commence on-site construction as soon as we receive a Notice to Proceed.”
E&E News: DOE study leaves path for Trump to ramp up LNG exports
Brian Dabbs, Carlos Anchondo, 12/18/24
“A highly anticipated Department of Energy study released Tuesday found that big increases in liquefied natural gas exports would cause U.S. prices to spike — but it didn’t deliver a knockout blow to LNG supporters awaiting President-elect Donald Trump’s return to the White House,” E&E News reports. “DOE’s new report is likely to provide fodder for legal challenges to LNG projects in the future, though the Trump administration is expected to move ahead quickly with new gas export approvals. The report didn’t directly call for a hard limit on U.S. LNG exports… “Still, the opening for Trump is related in part to timing. DOE announced a 60-day comment period for the study that won’t end until well after Trump takes office on Jan. 20… “Scott Segal, a partner at the Bracewell law firm, told E&E the comment period will allow for an administrative record that calls into question some of the document’s flaws. “In all likelihood, the report will be withdrawn by the next Administration to remove any patina of authoritativeness it might have,” Segal told E&E. “One thing that should not be tolerated would be the use of this report in future legal challenges on whether export approvals are in the public interest.” But Mark Brownstein, senior vice president for energy transition at the Environmental Defense Fund, told E&E Congress requires any administration to make a “national interest” determination on gas exports regardless of who occupies the White House. “Whether or not the next administration chooses to use the work of this study or not, they need to make a national interest determination” and that decision must be made “on the basis of data and facts,” Brownstein told E&E. If they fail to make a determination — or make one that’s “on its face arbitrary and capricious” — that’s going to result in a challenge, he added.”
Sierra Club: DOE Releases Updated LNG Export Studies Underpinning Public Interest Determination
12/17/24
“Nearly a year after the historic decision by President Biden and Department of Energy Secretary Granholm to pause consideration of new and pending liquefied methane gas, known as LNG, export applications, the DOE has released updated analysis underpinning the criteria used to make a public interest determination for these applications. The studies were released as final, and there will be a 60-day public comment period that will inform the implementation of the studies… “Through this fact-finding process, DOE concluded that LNG exports lead to a “triple-cost increase to U.S. consumers;” further burden communities already saddled with high levels of industrial and fossil fuel pollution; and expanded LNG exports exacerbate the climate crisis and threaten to displace renewable energy rather than coal over time… “With the final studies now released, Sierra Club is urging DOE to deny export applications pending with the agency before President Biden leaves office. In response, Sierra Club released the following statements: Director of the Beyond Dirty Fuels campaign Cathy Collentine said: “We are grateful that the Department of Energy’s updated studies clearly demonstrate what we and communities living with these facilities know to be true: methane gas exports are not in the public interest. US LNG exports raise energy prices, harm communities, and exacerbate the climate crisis. The facts are on our side. Neither the American people nor our planet can afford expanded LNG exports, and as such, we urge the Department of Energy to immediately deny six key, pending LNG export applications that are FERC-approved, including CP2 and Commonwealth LNG.”
InsideEPA: CEQ Urges Court To Ignore Key Appellate Ruling In Phase 2 NEPA Rule-Suit
12/16/24
“The Council on Environmental Quality is urging a federal court hearing GOP states’ challenge to its phase 2 National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) rule to ignore their calls to account for the recent appellate ruling that held CEQ lack authority to write binding NEPA rules, arguing the decision is being appealed and states failed to raise the issue,” InsideEPA reports. “The court “should decline to follow” the Nov. 12 ruling from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in Marin Audubon Society v. Federal Aviation Administration because ‘all parties have petitioned for rehearing en banc in Marine Audubon, and this Court should decline to apply its rationale to this matter while the resolution of those petitions is uncertain,’ CEQ says in a Dec. 13 supplemental brief in the suit over its phase 2 NEPA rule. Additionally, CEQ says the states’ complaint and briefing “declined to raise the issue” of CEQ’s authority to issue NEPA rules and as such the plaintiff states “have forfeited that argument, and it would be inappropriate for the court to reach it.”
E&E News: Biden Eyes Final Rules At DOE, Interior, FERC
Shelby Webb, Francisco "A.J." Camacho, Brian Dabbs, Carlos Anchondo, 12/17/24
“The Department of Interior said it would prioritize more than 25 proposed rulemakings on everything from geothermal power to offshore oil and gas infrastructure, but most provisions affecting the energy sector are not set to be finalized before Trump takes office,” E&E News reports. “One proposed rule is a joint effort by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management and the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement to open up the outer continental shelf to carbon dioxide pipelines and sequestration. It would affect federal carbon capture and storage (CCS) leases, citing of storage reservoirs, injection operations and safety measures. Interior previously missed deadlines on the rule, which was sparked after Congress opened the outer continental shelf to CCS in the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act. The plan released Tuesday did not provide an update on when the rule may be proposed. Several other proposals would make changes to how the agency oversees the oil and gas industry. One rule from BOEM would create a framework allowing the Interior secretary to disqualify offshore oil and gas operators in federal waters if they ‘have poor environmental or safety records.’ A notice of proposed rulemaking was published in September of this year.”
Nebraska Examiner: In win for biofuels, stopgap spending bill allows year-round sales of E15 gas nationwide
Jacob Fischler, 12/17/24
“A spending bill U.S. House appropriators released Tuesday evening to keep the government open into next spring includes a provision to allow sales of a gasoline blend that includes up to 15% ethanol nationwide throughout the year,” the Nebraska Examiner reports. “...The provision in the stopgap funding bill would allow E15 sales in all states throughout the year. The provision is a major win for corn producers and their allies in Congress from both parties. Supporters of ethanol, which is derived from corn, say it boosts U.S. production and lowers gas prices. Sen. Deb Fischer, a Nebraska Republican who sponsored a bill to make the blend available all year, said the move was part of the GOP agenda to “unleash American energy.” “...House Energy and Commerce ranking Democrat Frank Pallone of New Jersey applauded inclusion of the measure, saying it would help reduce gas prices and bolster U.S. energy production.”
E&E News: Ohio Republican Tapped To Lead ‘Energy Independence’ Team
Emma Dumain, 12/17/24
“A long-standing House GOP energy messaging and education arm could take on a bigger profile in the next Congress. Rep. Troy Balderson (R-Ohio) has been selected to run the House Energy Action Team, or HEAT, which touts itself as “the leading voice among House Republicans on energy independence,” E&E News reports. “Once run by and through the office of House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.), the operation was last year moved under the umbrella of the conservative Republican Study Committee. This realignment could actually give HEAT more of a platform now, given its outgoing chair, Rep. August Pfluger (R-Texas), will be chair of the RSC starting next year and has made energy issues a centerpiece of his portfolio. Texas Republican Rep. Randy Weber, meanwhile, will serve as HEAT vice chair. All three lawmakers sit on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, which has jurisdiction over the actual policies HEAT will be seeking to promote.”
STATE UPDATES
Axios: Scoop: Haaland Eyes N.M. Governor's Race
Hans Nichols, 12/16/24
“Interior Secretary Deb Haaland is quietly preparing to run for governor in New Mexico, setting up a potential Democratic showdown with Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) in 2026, Axios has learned. Why it matters: Haaland, a former New Mexico congresswoman, would attract national attention — and donors — for her bid to keep the governorship under Democratic control. Heinrich, who just won a third term to the Senate, would come to the race with his own unique advantages. Win or lose in the primary, he will remain a sitting senator in New Mexico. If victorious, he might be able to appoint his replacement in the Senate, giving him even more political capital in his party… “Between the lines: Haaland can’t make any official moves to run as a sitting member of President Biden’s Cabinet. But once Biden’s term ends at noon on Jan. 20, her allies are preparing for her to formalize her candidacy.”
Texas Standard: Orphan well, carbon capture regulations top energy reform group’s legislative wish list
Alexandra Hart, 12/17/24
“...Legislation to address closing those orphan wells, as well as regulations around carbon capture projects, are at the top of Virgina Palacios’ legislative wish list. She’s executive director of the nonprofit Commission Shift and Commission Shift Action,” the Texas Standard reports. “Palacios spoke with Texas Standard as part of our look at what some advocacy groups are hoping to see during the upcoming 89th legislative session… “What issues are you pushing for the most when it comes to oil and gas regulation this upcoming session? Virginia Palacios: I think our top two issues are orphaned oil and gas wells and a new technology called carbon capture and storage… “Our second priority has to do with carbon capture and storage. That’s a new experimental technology that most people hope will reduce greenhouse gas emissions and lead to net zero emissions to help prevent climate change. But it hasn’t really been proven, and some of the bills that have been proposed at the Legislature would completely remove liability from carbon capture and storage companies and make it very dangerous for people who live next to carbon pipelines or injection facilities… “The kind of bills that we’ve seen proposed are unlike any bills that we’ve seen before for this sector and would prevent anybody impacted from these pipeline explosions or injection well releases from filing any claims for noneconomic damages. And so these are the things like disfigurement or death. It’s really important to maintain these kinds of liabilities early on when this technology is being deployed, because it will set the standard for how to build these facilities so that they’re safe in the future… “We also want to see funding for first responders training so that they can respond to incidents related to carbon capture and storage facilities more rapidly.”
Kansas Reflector: Kansas Geological Survey expands core library for energy, sequestration research
Tim Carpenter, 12/16/24
“Expansion of the Kansas Geological Survey’s drill core library will support analysis of oil and gas reservoir properties, hydrogen and carbon storage and identification of critical minerals,” the Kansas Reflector reports. “Construction is to begin in early 2025 on a 5,500-square-foot addition to KGS’ facility on the Lawrence campus of the University of Kansas. The project will triple the amount of storage for rock samples collected from drilling and double laboratory space for scientists and engineers analyzing the material… “Funding for the building came me from a one-time state appropriation of $3.8 million. Construction should be completed by the end of 2025.”
EXTRACTION
Reuters: Canada pushes out target for net-zero electricity grid by 15 years
Nia Williams, 12/17/24
“Canada unveiled finalized Clean Electricity Regulations (CER) on Tuesday that aim to create a net-zero electricity grid by 2050, abandoning its previous target of having an emissions-neutral grid by 2035,” Reuters reports. “Ottawa dialled back its original target after feedback from some provinces and energy industry participants, who said the draft CER regulations would make electricity supply in Canada less reliable and more expensive and risked creating stranded assets, government officials said in a briefing… "I wouldn't say we've backed off the ambition in terms of decarbonization of the grid, but we have learned through consultation that there was a need for some more flexibility," Canada's Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson told Reuters in an interview. "It can't just be about reducing emissions, it has to be done in a manner that results in a reliable grid in all provinces and is affordable for ratepayers." “...Co-generation facilities that produce electricity that does not feed into the grid, such as those operated by some oil sands companies in northern Alberta, will not be subject to the CER.”
Euronews: Carbon capture: The inside story of how a ‘delay tactic’ became a darling of the EU
Lottie Limb, 12/18/24
“A technology designed to extract more oil from oil fields does not sound like the most auspicious start for a solution to climate change. But carbon capture and storage (CCS) - a means of capturing CO2 as it is released and stashing it away - has become an increasingly loud answer to the question of how we will keep the planet habitable,” Euronews reports. “The problem is, experts say, it is being overinflated to the detriment of genuine climate action - aided by a lack of public understanding… “For climate campaigners with an unblinking eye on global heating, this wider shift to talking about ‘net’ emissions - instead of cutting emissions at source - is a deeply dangerous one. “CCS, the industry’s lifeline and latest delay tactic, is a smokescreen we must not fall for,” Lili Fuhr, director of the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL)’s fossil economy programme, told Euronews. Public awareness of CCS is hazy. But with vast plans to upscale, the infrastructure is set to get a lot more physically present in people’s lives… “You look at what’s on the agenda and it’s always escape hatches to stay in business,” Belén Balanyá, researcher and campaigner at Corporate Europe Observatory (CEO), told Euronews. “It’s where they move when they’ve been forced to - when there’s more knowledge and more acceptance about climate change and their role and that they have to decarbonise.” Balanyá sees a number of factors behind the “revival” of CCS in recent years, but primarily traces it to the net zero drive… “Yet the working group on public perception’s first paper last year reveals a more specific intention to “establish the legitimacy of CCUS technology among the public”. “...In Pau, Kennerley heard panellists workshopping the best ways and times for promoters to go public with projects in order to get local communities on side. “The carbon capture industry is using the term “carbon management” as a smokescreen. It sounds benign but in reality we cannot ‘manage’ away emissions,” she told Euronews. “The scale of CCS infrastructure that would be needed for Europe’s plans is massive, including thousands of kilometres of pipelines across land and in coastal and deep water. The technical and safety challenges of this are formidable. The industry will be pushing a boulder uphill forever to convince the public that this is a good idea.”
Mother Jones: From Africa to America, Here’s How Climate Protest Is Being Criminalized
Nina Lakhani, 12/17/24
“Back in early August, I reported on the arrest of two climate activists outside the New York headquarters of Citibank, one of the world’s largest fossil fuel financiers and target of a campaign known as Summer of Heat,” Mother Jones reports. “John Mark Rozendaal, a former music instructor at Princeton University, and Alec Connon, director of the climate nonprofit group Stop the Money Pipeline, were detained for 24 hours and charged with criminal contempt, which carries up to seven years in prison. Why? Rozendaal was playing a Bach solo on his cello while Connon sheltered him with an umbrella—which police claimed broke the conditions of a temporary restraining order that related to another bogus charge of assault (that was later dropped). Mary Lawlor, the UN special rapporteur on human rights defenders, took up the pair’s case, and together with three other UN experts wrote a formal letter to the US government explaining their fears that the charges were without foundation, and appeared to be a punishment for participating in peaceful protests on the climate crisis and human rights… “Around a third of the climate activists Lawlor’s team helped between May 2020 and the end of 2023 had faced criminal or civil action in retaliation for their work. They’ve dealt with even more cases this year, as deploying the justice system against environmental and climate defenders is a modus operandi being adopted by democracies and autocratic states alike… “In the US, Energy Transfer Partners, the company behind the Dakota Access pipeline, is suing Greenpeace for $300 million related to the 2016-17 Standing Rock protests. The case is scheduled to go to trial in North Dakota in February and, if the jury sides with the company, it could create a new legal precedent that would have major ramifications for environmental groups organizing against fossil fuels.”
The Gateway: Indigenous and environmental coalition hold media conference during oil sands conference
Kathryn Johnson, 12/18/24
“On December 10 at 12:00 p.m., a coalition of Indigenous and environmental organizations held a media conference in response to the International Oil Sands Tailings Conference (IOSTC). The University of Alberta hosted the IOSTC from December 9–10,” The Gateway reports. “...The media conference focused on oil sands tailings. Tailings are the waste leftover from the oil sands extraction process. Nigel Robinson, a co-ordinator for Keepers of the Water, began the conference. According to Robinson the IOSTC “isn’t necessarily solving the problems that we need to have solved.” For Eriel Tchekwie Deranger, executive director of Indigenous Climate Action, the IOSTC’s discussion on technologies for “cleaning up the tailings” comes “a little too late.” “We’re talking about 65 years of oil and gas development that has created hundreds of kilometres of toxic tailings that have been leaching into our groundwater and aquifer systems,” Deranger said. “Enough is enough.” Laurie Adkin, professor emerita of political science and Climate Action Coalition at the U of A (CAUA) member, also spoke. She discussed her research on university support for the fossil fuels industry. Adkin referred to these universities — the U of A included — as “petro-universities.” “The prestige of university researchers who collaborate with industry is appropriated by corporations to greenwash their operations,” she said.
Houston Chronicle: Who is ‘big oil’? It's complicated — and it's increasingly blurred by the fracking revolution
Amanda Drane, 12/14/24
“Big oil is a term used in headlines and hot takes, but its meaning is ill-defined and poorly understood,” according to the Houston Chronicle “...Big oil traditionally refers to oil “majors” — several publicly traded oil giants that operate internationally and are vertically integrated, meaning they have refineries and petrochemical plants that process their oil into fuel, plastics and other products. They include Exxon Mobil, Chevron, Shell, BP, TotalEnergies, and Eni… “Exxon, which is based outside Houston, is handily the world’s second-largest oil company, with an estimated market value of $487 billion, according to Capital IQ and based on Friday trading. Chevron, which plans to move its headquarters to Houston, is the third-largest with an estimated market value of $277 billion as of Friday..,. “Fracking shale rock over the past decade benefited a number of Texas companies, such as ConocoPhillips, EOG Resources and Occidental Petroleum, whose market values have matched or outpaced some of the European oil majors. “The Permian certainly has been the focal point of the shale revolution, especially on the oil side, and that's created a lot of large companies over the last several years,” Lysle Brinker, S&P Global Commodity Insights’ executive director of equity research and analysis, told the Chronicle.
Reuters: Third tanker sends distress call as oil washes up on Russia's Black Sea coast
Vladimir Soldatkin, 12/17/24
“Spilled oil has washed up along "tens of kilometres" of the Russian Black Sea coast after two tankers were badly damaged in a storm at the weekend, a regional official said on Tuesday, and state media said a third ship was now in trouble,” Reuters reports, “TASS news agency said the third tanker had issued a distress signal but its hull was still intact, there was no oil spillage and the crew was safe… “The ships, both more than 50 years old, were carrying some 9,200 metric tons (62,000 barrels) of oil products in total, TASS reported, raising fears it could become one of the largest environmental disasters to hit the region in years… “Veniamin Kondratyev, governor of the southern Krasnodar region, said fuel oil had been found along the coast between the towns of Temryuk and Anapa… “A video posted by Zvezda TV showed a black, oil-like substance along the coast at Anapa, and tarry stains along a beach strewn with tree branches… “TASS news agency, citing a scientist, said the nearby Kerch Strait, which separates Russia's Krasnodar region from the Crimean peninsula that Moscow annexed from Crimea in 2014, is an important area for migrating dolphins and other sea mammals.”
TODAY IN GREENWASHING
ReachFM: Chill out at Grande North Winter Festival January 10 to 12
12/17/24
“Get ready for the event of the season at Grande North Winter Festival (GNWF), happening from January 10 to 12 at three downtown locations: Montrose Cultural Centre (MCC), Bonnetts Energy Centre and Muskoseepi Park,” ReachFM reports. “Bonnetts Energy Centre is the hub of live entertainment during GNWF, hosting the following activities as part of the event: TC Energy ice carving demonstrations…”
Sarnia Journal: Enbridge Gas teams up with Point Edward Fire & Rescue to reduce fire and carbon monoxide deaths through Safe Community Project Zero
12/17/24
“Today, Enbridge Gas Inc. (Enbridge Gas) and Point Edward Fire & Rescue announced they are working together to improve home safety and bring fire and carbon monoxide-related deaths down to zero,” the Sarnia Journal reports. “Point Edward Fire & rescue received 72 combination smoke and carbon monoxide alarms through Safe Community Project Zero–a public education campaign with the Fire Marshal’s Public Fire Safety Council (FMPFSC) that will provide more than 14,500 alarms to residents in 75 communities across Ontario. This year, Enbridge Gas invested $450,000 in Safe Community Project Zero, and over the past 16 years, the program has provided more than 101,000 alarms to Ontario fire departments… “We are extremely privileged to have an organization like Enbridge support fire safety within our communities. We would like to express our sincere thanks to Enbridge for their support,” says Point Edward Fire Chief Doug MacKenzie.”
OPINION
Appalachian Voices: Pittsylvania County, Va., is at the center of an overbuilding of fossil fuel infrastructure
Jessica Sims is Appalachian Voices's Virginia Field Coordinator fighting against fracked-gas pipelines, 12/16/24
“In Pittsylvania County, Virginia, a beautiful county situated in Southern Virginia at the North Carolina border, communities simultaneously face pollution risks from three proposed major fossil fuel projects: a new gas plant from the developer Balico, a massive extension of the existing Transco pipelines and an extension of the ruinous Mountain Valley Pipeline,” Jessica Sims writes for Appalachian Voices. “In mid-October 2024, residents noticed zoning documents on the Pittsylvania County government website that revealed that Balico, LLC had proposed a 3,500-megawatt gas plant to generate power for a campus of 84 data centers in Chatham, Virginia. The gas plant would create significant air pollution, and the data centers — a sea of two-storied buildings to be scattered across the land — would generate noise and air pollution. Balico had tried and failed to build a gas plant in another rural area in Eastern Virginia, Charles City County, some years back, but abandoned the project after massive community opposition and funding uncertainty… “The community swiftly reacted in staunch opposition to the re-zoning and project. Adding to the ire was the fact that the process made it so far along without community knowledge or input. Hundreds immediately worked together to seek and share information, educate neighbors and voice their concerns to local elected officials on the Pittsylvania County Planning Commission and Board of Supervisors. That fierce opposition worked — and within weeks, county supervisors, feeling pressure from their constituents, re-examined their own stance on the project and reflected on the hurt caused by the secrecy of this process. On Oct. 30, Banister District Supervisor Robert Tucker announced his opposition to the project. He said that he and other supervisors would ask Balico to withdraw its application. This victory was due to the hard and impassioned work of so many community members who galvanized opposition to Balico’s unsolicited plan for their beloved area… “Pittsylvania County is at a center of overbuilding of fossil fuel infrastructure. As community members, experts on their beloved region, continue to work hard to reject harmful projects like the Balico gas plant, SSEP and Southgate, their inspiring organizing also makes Pittsylvania County a center for determined community advocacy.”
Piscataquis Observer: We’re running out of time to shut down Dakota Access Pipeline
Sidney Mitchell, Dover-Foxcroft, 12/17/24
“With just one month left before Donald Trump returns to the White House, we are running out of time to lock in protections for our climate and communities. One critical action President Biden can take right now is to permanently shut down the Dakota Access Pipeline,” Sidney Mitchell writes for the Piscataquis Observer. “The pipeline is currently operating illegally, even as the ongoing legal battles surrounding it are reaching a critical point. The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe continues to fight against corporate and state interference to protect their sacred land and the safety of surrounding communities. In 2020 concerned citizens urged President Biden to cancel the Keystone XL pipeline and he listened. Now, we must continue to press him to take immediate action on DAPL before Trump takes office. The risk of further environmental harm and disruption to Indigenous land is too great to ignore. President Biden must prioritize the permanent shutdown of DAPL in his final days in office.”
Earthworks: Why the YaREN Ammonia Project Should Concern Us All
Rodney Brown, 12/17/24
“...But for the communities of Ingleside, Ingleside on the Bay, and the greater Coastal Bend area, there’s a looming threat that could dampen that holiday spirit. If the YaREN Ammonia Project gets the green light, it’s not jingle bells they’ll be hearing—it’s alarm bells,” Rodney Brown writes for Earthworks. “The YaREN facility, a project by Yara (a Norwegian company) and Enbridge (a Canadian company), is set to release a staggering 66 tons of toxic chemicals into the air annually. This includes carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide and carbon monoxide… “The production of ammonia is a dangerous and complex process, often linked to leaks, transportation accidents, and catastrophic failures… “If that wasn’t troubling enough, Yara and Enbridge failed to show up to a recent TCEQ public meeting in Portland, Texas—an opportunity for them to address community concerns and answer questions. When a company plans to profit at the expense of public health while refusing to engage with those most affected, they earn a spot on the Naughty Polluter List—and Yara and Enbridge are front and center. For the Coastal Bend, this isn’t just about air quality; it’s about protecting the safety, health, and future of the children and families who call this region home. In 2024, the Coastal Bend community made their voices heard about the risks of the YaREN Ammonia Project. In 2025, we will be alongside them advocating for accountability, and holding Yara and Enbridge responsible for their actions—or lack thereof.”
Colorado Newsline: Carbon removal is here. What does that mean for Coloradans?
Dr. Lauren Gifford is associate director of the Soil Carbon Solutions Center at Colorado State University; Giana Amador is executive director of the Carbon Removal Alliance,12/16/24
“Colorado has emerged as a climate leader with ambitious goals to reach net-zero emissions by 2050. The state has more than tripled the amount of electricity derived from renewable energy, modernized its infrastructure, and made smart climate tech investments. And now, there’s a new industry that Colorado is beginning to invest in: carbon removal,” Lauren Gifford and Giana Amador write for Colorado Newsline. “Carbon removal pathways take carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere and store it permanently. Scientists have figured out how to accelerate many of Earth’s natural processes to store carbon in plants, soils, rocks and deep underground. There’s direct air capture (giant fans that suck carbon out of the air), enhanced weathering (carbon-rich rock dust spread on fields), bio-oil sequestration (a dense substance including carbon that can be stored in abandoned oil wells), and more… “A recent study by the Rhodium Group said direct air capture could contribute to around 85,000 annual jobs in Colorado alone by 2050: That’s nearly the same amount of workers currently supported by Colorado’s energy and natural resources industry. In particular, communities hit by the state’s shifting energy infrastructure stand to benefit. Ultimately, the carbon removal industry should establish more homegrown job opportunities for Coloradan talent across technology, engineering, on-site operations, marketing and other spaces, while keeping important regional expertise and buying power in the state for the long term… “To make good on this momentum, the Colorado Energy Office will publish an updated Carbon Management Roadmap to help shape the industry at the state level… “Coloradans have also formed coalitions with Wyoming to help bring more (and bigger) carbon removal projects to the Rocky Mountain Region. Back in Washington, D.C., Sen. Michael Bennet of Colorado partnered with Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska to introduce the Carbon Dioxide Removal Investment Act to right-size the current tax code to support American companies removing carbon.”
Ohio Capital Journal: Huge majorities in Ohio oppose fracking our state parks, but state leaders just ignore all concerns
Marilou Johanek, 12/17/24
“Who do Ohio lawmakers represent in the fracking free-for-all carving up acres of our state parks and public land for oil and gas money? They sure as heck don’t represent the people. Public resistance to fracking in Ohio State Parks is almost universal. Ever since a Republican-facilitated law went into effect last spring that required a state commission to lease huge tracts of state parks and wildlife areas for fracking for natural gas, opposition from park-loving Ohioans has only grown,” Marilou Johanek writes for the Ohio Capital Journal. “Recently, the Oil and Gas Land Management Commission fielded public comments from nearly 600 citizens about pending oil and gas company bids to frack under almost 900 acres of Salt Fork State Park. The vast majority — about 98% — opposed more fossil fuel drilling in the state’s largest park, a rural recreational magnet for tens of thousands of yearly visitors. People know that the risks and harms of fracking for public health and the climate are real and growing. Besides a history of leaking loads of planet-warming methane into the atmosphere and eroding local air quality, fracking industrial zones and wells threaten ground water — including drinking water. The drilling process involves injecting enormous quantities of fluid (mixed with a cocktail of chemicals) deep into the earth at super high pressure to fracture rock formations and extract methane gas or oil… “Republicans voted to expand fracking in state parks despite the recent groundswell of constituent objection to that very expansion. In doing so, the GOP gerrymandered supermajorities in the General Assembly made clear who they represent when oil and gas money is on the table and state parks are cash cows to be milked for all they’re worth. Human and environmental consequences be damned.”
Energy News Network: Ohio should replicate Pennsylvania’s success cutting methane pollution
Jesse Velasquez is Climate Justice Manager at the Ohio Environmental Council, 12/17/24
“In his victory speech, President-elect Donald Trump promised to further boost ‘liquid gold,’ also known as oil and gas. Today, oil and gas production is at record highs and continues to grow. As the industry expands, so do concerns about methane pollution,” Jesse Velasquez writes for Energy News Network. “The primary component of natural gas is methane, a potent greenhouse gas that warms the planet more than 80 times as much as carbon dioxide over 20 years. It’s also a significant contributor to smog and public health issues like asthma and respiratory disease, disproportionately affecting vulnerable communities. Yet, efforts to reduce methane emissions present a rare win-win opportunity: they not only curb pollution but also create jobs and foster innovation… “Ohio is at a crossroads. We can continue business as usual, or we can follow Pennsylvania’s lead, investing in proven technologies and practices that cut emissions, prevent waste, protect public health, and drive economic growth. By prioritizing methane mitigation, the state can chart a path that aligns with both the nation’s energy ambitions and the pressing need for climate action. This is not just a moral imperative but an economic one that promises cleaner air, healthier communities, and a thriving workforce for generations to come.”
Forbes: Liquefied Gas Blows Away Pipeline Gas And Coal In Emissions To Europe, Asia
Ian Dexter Palmer, 12/17/24
“Everyone knows that coal burns twice as dirty as liquefied natural gas (LNG), insofar as emitting greenhouse gases (GHG) such as carbon dioxide, CO2,” Ian Dexter Palmer writes for Forbes. “But comparing pipeline gas with LNG is something new, and is relevant to Europe and Asia who import a lot of pipeline gas, even after Europe shut down Russia’s supply after 2022,” Forbes reports. “The 2024 analysis by BRG Energy makes these comparisons. The report presents a lot of insightful data and the conclusions are critical, especially for exports of LNG from the U.S. to Europe and Asia. This is because future exports of LNG will have stricter limits placed on their life-cycle GHG intensity by these importers… “First, in emissions, USLNG is on a par with pipeline gas, but blows away coal. Since these are averages, the report looked at individual pipelines to understand this better. Norway gas is close by which is partly why its emissions are 25% less than USLNG. Azerbaijan has about the same emissions. But pipeline gas from Algeria and Russia have about 25% greater emissions than USLNG… “Second, emissions from burning the fuels (downstream) eclipse the emissions in production and transport (upstream and midstream)... “Third, if the upstream and midstream sectors of the figure are added together, for LNG or pipeline gas, the level of emissions rises to about half of the fuel-burning emissions. So, its still worth cleaning up the production and transport footprints for these energies. Fourth, burning of LNG or pipeline gas is a bit less than half of the emissions from burning coal (righthand panel of Figures 1, 2). This makes it clear that gas should be used to displace coal in Europe and Asia, and it explains why gas in either form is a bridge fuel to additional renewable resources… “Last, USLNG blows away pipeline gas and coal in Asia, with one exception: Pipeline gas from Russia, which is in Asia, is on a par with USLNG. Other than this, Asia will be a welcome market for USLNG for many years to come, to displace coal… “Despite his stated hesitancy about climate change, incoming president Trump should support these efforts to reduce GHG emissions on U.S. soil and when transported overseas. For one big reason—it’s the golden age of LNG exports for the U.S. Overseas buyers of LNG, including Europe and Southeast Asia, want cleaner product, and they are setting limits… “Scope 3 are emissions that come from products a company makes then sells, such as oil and gas. The responsibility for Scope 3 emissions is debatable.”
City Limits: If Gov. Hochul Cares About Working Parents, She’ll Sign the Climate Change Superfund Act
Eliza Clark is a member of Climate Families NYC and lives in Manhattan with her husband and three daughters; Liat Olenick is a parent, educator and organizer with Climate Families NYC. She lives in Brooklyn with her family. Abby Loomis is a parent, 4th grade teacher and member of Climate Families NYC, 12/16/24
“Right now, working families like us are footing the bill for the billions in damages caused by these climate disasters, while the fossil fuel companies sowing climate misinformation and poisoning the planet make record profits. As parents of young children, we teach our kids that they need to clean up the messes they make. But Gov. Kathy Hochul is dragging her feet on signing a crucial climate bill that would compel corporate polluters to do just that: The Climate Change Superfund Act,” Eliza Clark, Liat Olenick and Abby Loomis write for City Limits. The Climate Change Superfund Act, which passed on the last day of the 2024 legislative session, would hold polluters financially accountable for fueling climate disasters like the storms, wildfires, and drought our state experienced over the past year. Right now, working families like us are footing the bill for the billions in damages caused by these climate disasters, while the fossil fuel companies sowing climate misinformation and poisoning the planet make record profits. This is profoundly unfair and we’ve had enough. That’s why we joined Climate Families NYC in disrupting the Albany Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony last weekend to demand Gov. Hochul sign the Superfund Act… “The clock is ticking: Gov. Hochul has until the end of 2024 to sign the Climate Change Superfund Act. It’s time to pick a side: Working families or polluters. We hope she makes the right choice.”
Los Angeles Times: Opinion: Gov. Newsom, no more delays in shutting Aliso Canyon down
Mark Jacobson, 12/17/24
“It was a cold, breezy October evening in 2015 when a foul odor swept through neighborhoods in the north San Fernando Valley. The smell — reminiscent of rotten eggs — invaded homes, forcing residents to seal windows and doors in vain. Soon many fell ill with headaches, rashes, nosebleeds and nausea. Those symptoms were only the beginning of a disaster that unfolded over the next 112 days,” Mark Jacobson writes for the Los Angeles Times. “A massive gas leak at Aliso Canyon released 97,000 metric tonnes of methane, 7,300 tonnes of ethane, and other gases, forming carcinogens and smog. The blowout — one of the largest natural gas releases in U.S. history — upended lives and routines. More than 8,000 families had to be relocated, with both humans and pets experiencing health complications. The event highlighted the inherent risks of an aging fossil fuel infrastructure.