EXTRACTED: Daily News Clips 1/9/23
PIPELINE NEWS
Star Tribune: Minnesota regulators vote to require environmental impact statement for CO2 pipeline
Associated Press: Minnesota’s first possible carbon pipeline clears hurdle; impacts on ND
Bloomberg: Colonial Restarts New York Harbor-Bound Fuel Pipe After Leak
Danville Register & Bee: Colonial Pipeline restart pushed back to Sunday as crews continue to fix problem near Danville
Offshore Technology: Phillips 66 signs $3.8bn deal to acquire public units of DCP Midstream
WASHINGTON UPDATES
E&E News: White House releases climate guidance for permitting
InsideEPA: Facing Resistance, EPA Treads Carefully In Addressing Cumulative Impacts
E&E News: Could 2023 be a turning point for U.S. offshore oil?
STATE UPDATES
Los Angeles Times: Authorities working to determine source of oil slick off Santa Barbara coast
Carlsbad Current-Argus: Oil and gas looks to 'clean up energy' in the Permian Basin amid pollution concerns
EXTRACTION
Canadian Press: Company operating Hibernia offshore oil platform challenging oil spill charges
Guardian: Natural History Museum under fire for gagging clause with Danish oil sponsor
OPINION
Duluth News Tribune: Local View: On anniversary of Line 3 protests, rallying rolls on for rivers, rights
Washington Post: Oil and oil spills have long gone hand in hand
RBN Energy: Ruby, Ruby, When Will You Be Mine - Tallgrass Bid Breathes New Purpose Into Languishing Ruby Pipeline
PIPELINE NEWS
Star Tribune: Minnesota regulators vote to require environmental impact statement for CO2 pipeline
Mike Hughlett, 1/5/23
“Minnesota utility regulators on Thursday ruled that a proposed carbon dioxide pipeline should undergo the most thorough environmental review available under state law,” the Star Tribune reports. “...The Minnesota Public Utilities Commission voted 5-0 for an environmental impact statement (EIS), which was favored by environmental groups… “Christina Brusven, an attorney representing Summit, said at the PUC's Thursday meeting that an alternative to an EIS — a comparative environmental analysis (CEA) — would be just as "robust" and would take less time. PUC Chair Katie Sieben questioned whether an EIS would take longer, and said that if it did: "Taking longer to make sure we get it right, isn't that in everybody's best interest? We have certainly heard a lot of concerns about CO2 pipelines." “...Summit plans to file other route permit applications for sections of the pipeline in Minnesota, not for the project as whole. Its first application covers a 4.5-inch diameter pipe that would run from Green Plains' ethanol plant near Fergus Falls, Minn., to the North Dakota border south of Breckenridge, Minn. Environmental reviews must be done on each section. "It would make more sense to do one EIS for all of the segments," Amelia Vohs, an attorney representing the Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy and the Sierra Club in the Summit pipeline proceeding, told the Tribune. Still, she told the Tribune that she hoped the PUC's decision Thursday would set a precedent for the other sections… “But opponents of carbon capture say it promotes the continued use of fossil fuels, and if CO2 pipelines rupture. they pose threats to rivers, lakes and groundwater — as well as human health… "I understand there is some pushback in neighboring states," PUC Commissioner John Tuma said to Summit representatives Thursday. "I see a lot of unhappy farmers in South Dakota [concerned] about eminent domain, and it's the same in Iowa." Tuma asked Summit if the opposition would affect the company's pipeline timeline. The answer from Summit was "no": The company still expects to begin construction in the first quarter of 2024.”
Associated Press: Minnesota’s first possible carbon pipeline clears hurdle; impacts on ND
1/7/23
“Minnesota’s first possible carbon capture pipeline must undergo an environmental review, the state’s Public Utilities Commission said Thursday, as members unanimously approved the pipeline’s route permit application,” the Associated Press reports. “...With this being the first carbon pipeline in Minnesota, the Commission wants to ensure we are setting a process that is thorough, transparent and protective,” said Commissioner Chair Katie Sieben… “Landowners, tribal representatives and other stakeholders have asked for months how the pipeline would impact their water sources, farmland and neighboring communities… “Larry Liepold, whose family rents farmland near an ethanol plant in Heron Lake, Minnesota, told AP he hopes farmers will be treated respectfully during this process, whether they sign an easement agreement or not… “The technology has yet to be deployed at scale. Opponents maintain it is unproven and has been less effective than alternatives such as solar and wind at decarbonizing the energy sector.”
Bloomberg: Colonial Restarts New York Harbor-Bound Fuel Pipe After Leak
Sheela Tobben, 1/8/23
“Colonial Pipeline Co. resumed service to a vital conduit that supplies fuel to the US Northeast, fixing a leak from last week that the company took more than a day longer than expected to repair,” Bloomberg reports. “The company had originally planned to restart Line 3 Saturday at noon Eastern time, but that was pushed back twice. The pipe returned to normal operations as of 5:51 p.m. Eastern time on Sunday, after repairs were completed, the company said in an emailed statement. The company had originally planned to restart Line 3 Saturday at noon Eastern time, but that was pushed back twice. Equipment failure caused a roughly 60-barrel leak of diesel fuel at the Witt facility near Danville, Virginia, prompting its shutdown on Jan. 3. The outage had a limited impact on gasoline prices in the critical New York Harbor market last week because stockpiles already were ample amid soft seasonal demand… “The incident followed the shutdown of TC Energy Corp.’s Keystone pipeline after the biggest onshore oil spill since 2010.”
Danville Register & Bee: Colonial Pipeline restart pushed back to Sunday as crews continue to fix problem near Danville
Charles Wilborn, 1/7/23
“Colonial Pipeline crews were still working Saturday to restart operations after a leak was found earlier this week near Danville,” the Danville Register & Bee reports. “Meredith Stone, a spokesperson with Colonial, told the Register a restart is now projected for noon Sunday instead of the original Saturday forecast… “A problem was discovered Tuesday at the Witt booster station, located in the Blairs area of Pittsylvania County near Danville. “The loss of this piece of equipment resulted in a product release that was detected while a Colonial operator was conducting a routine station check,” Stone told the Register & Bee. “The release appears to be contained to our property.” Stone did not say how much product was lost, however, Aaron Proctor, a spokesman for the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, told the AP that approximately 2,500 gallons of diesel fuel spilled. All of it was contained on site between soil and an adjacent storm water retention pond, Proctor wrote to the AP. There’s been no sign of impacts to state waters or wildlife beyond fish and animals living in the retention pond.”
Offshore Technology: Phillips 66 signs $3.8bn deal to acquire public units of DCP Midstream
1/9/23
“Phillips 66 has agreed to acquire all of the publicly held common units representing limited partner interests in pipeline operator DCP Midstream LP, in an all-cash deal worth $3.8bn,” Offshore Technology reports. “The deal, which values the pipeline operator at approximately $8.7bn, will double Phillips 66’s stake in DCP Midstream to 86.8%, reported Reuters… “The acquisition forms part of Phillips 66’s commitment to expanding its natural gas liquids (NGL) business. Phillips 66 president and CEO Mark Lashier said: “Our wellhead-to-market platform captures the full NGL value chain. As we continue integrating DCP Midstream, we are unlocking significant synergies and growth opportunities.” “...The remaining 13.2% stake in DCP’s general partner is owned by Canadian pipeline operator Enbridge.”
WASHINGTON UPDATES
E&E News: White House releases climate guidance for permitting
Kelsey Brugger, 1/6/23
“The White House issued a new policy directive Friday that aims to spur clean energy development and fulfill President Joe Biden’s pledge to strengthen the green economy,” E&E News reports. “The greenhouse gas guidance directs federal planners to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions “to the greatest extent possible” when surveying the impacts of projects like highways, pipelines, transmissions, bridges and renewable energy ventures. The documents builds on an Obama-era edict that former President Donald Trump scrapped. “These updated guidelines will provide greater certainty and predictability for green infrastructure projects, help grow our clean energy economy, and help fulfill President Biden’s climate and infrastructure goals,” Council on Environmental Quality Chair Brenda Mallory said in a statement. The years-in-the-making guidance does not amount to a rulemaking and, to the chagrin of environmentalists, would be easy for a future president to quickly repeal… “Brett Hartl, government affairs director at the Center for Biological Diversity, told E&E the guidance strengthens agency consideration of greenhouse gas emissions, but said overall, he finds the nonbinding policy “meh.” “Republicans are going to decry this, and Democrats are going to say this is the most amazing document they’ve ever read,” Hartl told E&E. “It’s neither.”
InsideEPA: Facing Resistance, EPA Treads Carefully In Addressing Cumulative Impacts
1/9/23
“...Similarly, Fred Wagner, a National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) expert at the Venable law firm, told InsideEPA while there is some nervousness about the pending guidance and what it could mean for industry, ‘ironically, it could be a way for EPA to deny some of these [Title VI] petitions.’ The agency could find there is no discrimination because the permit has conditions to mitigate effects that recognize past environmental harms, he told InsideEPA. The guidance will ‘not just be a way to deny [permits] but also a way for EPA to say, ‘No, we didn’t find discrimination.’ It goes both ways.’ As for what is expected in the upcoming guidance, Wagner believes EPA and CEQ are closely coordinating so that the OEJECR guide will align with a major CEQ NEPA proposal expected in the first quarter of this year that, among other things, will add EJ requirements to environmental reviews. ‘The appropriateness of considering EJ in NEPA depends on how the methodology for considering cumulative effects is developed,’ he told InsideEPA.”
E&E News: Could 2023 be a turning point for U.S. offshore oil?
Heather Richards, 1/9/23
“The Interior Department’s plan for selling new leases to drill off U.S. coasts is due any day, a legacy-defining policy for President Joe Biden that could help hasten the decline of the nation’s offshore oil business,” E&E News reports. “What’s in the five-year offshore oil plan, a program required under federal law, likely comes down to a fossil fuel lifeline tucked into last year’s sweeping climate and clean energy law as a concession to pro-oil Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia. Overall, the road map could have long-lasting impacts on the Gulf of Mexico, the country’s largest offshore supplier of crude oil. The plan — which has been years in the making — highlights what’s been a difficult balancing act for the Biden administration, the first to fully tangle with the challenges of managing the nation’s vast resources of offshore oil and gas while also trying to address a worsening climate crisis. It is significant in that debate, as the plan determines how often the government sells new rights to drill in federal waters to oil and gas companies… “The calculus likely being made now in the White House is how much oil does the government have to lease to safely hit climate and clean energy goals, Kevin Book, managing director of ClearView Energy Partners LLC, told E&E. Book forecast that the administration would chart a cautious path that offers at least a few oil sales in the program. Others predicted Biden will try to keep his campaign promise to end federal oil leasing by zeroing out sales.”
STATE UPDATES
Los Angeles Times: Authorities working to determine source of oil slick off Santa Barbara coast
HARRIET RYAN, 1/7/23
“The U.S. Coast Guard was working with state officials Saturday to determine the cause of a large oil slick in the waters off Santa Barbara County,” the Los Angeles Times reports. “The 1½- to 2-mile sheen was spotted Friday about five nautical miles from Summerland Beach, an area with a petroleum-rich sea floor that is home to numerous abandoned gas and oil wells. Early Saturday morning, a Coast Guard helicopter flew over the slick to look for clues as to its source, Petty Officer Matthew West told the Times… “Oil and natural gas can enter the ocean naturally through fractures in the sea floor, known as seeps, that are common in Santa Barbara’s waters. But slicks can also come from leaky wells or other sources of pollution… “The waters off Summerland, which is six miles east of Santa Barbara, were home to hundreds of largely unregulated oil and gas wells in the 19th century, according to the commission. Many drilling operations were abandoned in the early 1900s with little oversight and pose an environmental threat that the state is working to address. Part of the investigation will be chemically analyzing the slick to see if it is consistent with the petroleum seeping naturally from the sea floor, Eric Laughlin, a spokesman for the state Department of Fish and Wildlife, told the Times.”
Carlsbad Current-Argus: Oil and gas looks to 'clean up energy' in the Permian Basin amid pollution concerns
Adrian Hedden, 1/5/23
“Midland, Texas-based Milestone Environmental Services announced its first oilfield waste facility opening in New Mexico last week, to process liquid and solid waste from operators throughout the Permian Basin in the southeast region of the state,” the Carlsbad Current-Argus reports. “The facility, which opened Dec. 26, 2022, at New Mexico State Road 128 and Battle Axe Road southeast of Carlsbad, was designed to inject liquid waste underground and dispose of solid waste on the surface… “Disposal injection was recently tied to a string of earthquakes throughout the Permian Basin in a study published by the New Mexico Tech and according to New Mexico regulatory agencies, mostly originating on the Texas side of the basin but being felt as far north as Albuquerque and as far west as Las Cruces. The area’s two biggest quakes in history were reported last year by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS): a magnitude 5.3 in November and an M 5.4 last month. But the practice remained a key component of cleaning up oilfield waste, and Milestone Chief Executive Officer Gabriel Rio told the Argus the Battle Axe facility would help the State achieve its goals of reducing the environmental impact of oil and gas.”
EXTRACTION
Canadian Press: Company operating Hibernia offshore oil platform challenging oil spill charges
1/6/23
“The company that operates the Hibernia offshore oil platform has pleaded not guilty to three charges related to a 2019 oil spill off the east coast of Newfoundland,” the Canadian Press reports. “...Earlier this year, the Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Petroleum Board alleged the company caused the spill and failed to stop it without delay. As well, the regulator alleged the company did not ensure compliance with its management systems and failed to follow its own processes for managing risks for identified hazards. The regulator says 12,000 litres of oil spilled into the Atlantic on July 17, 2019. The Hibernia oilfield, which is owned by several oil giants including ExxonMobil Canada, Chevron and Suncor, is about 315 kilometres east of St. John's.”
Guardian: Natural History Museum under fire for gagging clause with Danish oil sponsor
Wil Crisp, 1/8/23
“The Natural History Museum has been denounced for signing a contract with a gagging clause that prevented it from criticising a Danish oil company that sponsored its wildlife photography competition,” the Guardian reports. “The clause was put into a contract with Dong Energy in 2016 when the company was heavily invested in oil and gas. Dong changed its name to Ørsted in 2017 when it divested of fossil fuels to focus on renewables. By signing the contract, which was obtained by the investigative journalism organisation Point Source and shared with the Observer, the Natural History Museum agreed to refrain from making “any statement” that would “damage the reputation” of the company. The company has sponsored the Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition since 2016, and its current agreement runs until September 2023. One wall text at the 2016 exhibition stated: “Drilling for oil is not generally considered beneficial for wildlife, yet oil rigs can provide shelter and a rich food supply for many animals including Brandt’s cormorants.” The text was for an image titled “Rig Diver”, taken by the British photographer Alex Mustard and showing a bird hunting fish beneath an offshore oil platform. The exhibition did not provide any context about the oil industry’s negative environmental impact on marine ecosystems… “Under the current contract, the Natural History Museum is not permitted to “make any statement or issue any publicity which may reasonably be foreseen as discrediting or damaging the reputation” of the company. The use of the gagging clause has led to accusations of greenwashing by environmental groups and raised concerns about how large corporations can use sponsorship money to influence public discourse about environmental issues.”
OPINION
Duluth News Tribune: Local View: On anniversary of Line 3 protests, rallying rolls on for rivers, rights
Shanai Matteson of Palisade, Minnesota, in rural Aitkin County, is a writer and cultural organizer in support of treaty rights and environmental justice, 1/8/23
“Two years ago, on Jan. 9, hundreds gathered in rural Aitkin County, where Enbridge was constructing its Line 3 tar sands pipeline. On that snowy Saturday, I joined Indigenous and allied water protectors for a jingle dress dance and ceremony on Great River Road, where Enbridge was preparing to drill one of two Mississippi River crossings,” Shanai Matteson writes for the Duluth News Tribune. “People rallied throughout the year because oil pipelines are dangerous to water and climate and because Line 3 was unnecessary. Rampant extraction continues to degrade Indigenous lands and clean water, posing an ongoing threat to climate justice. Two years later, it’s clear the concerns of Line 3 protestors were valid. During Line 3 construction, Enbridge admitted to dozens of frac-outs in wetlands and river crossings, including in Aitkin County, where 10,000 gallons of drilling fluid were spilled in a wetland near the Mississippi River. An Enbridge frac-out also occurred in the Willow River area, next to the farm where my grandmother grew up. I was among the first people to notice and report this violation. In this case, as in many others, law enforcement focused on the “boogeymen” of pipeline protestors while aiding and abetting the real criminals… “Water protectors and citizen scientists, often the only ones visibly monitoring pipeline construction, are now taking the lead to document and seek accountability for damages… “Canada’s Enbridge corporation paid law enforcement to surveil citizens, in some cases mining our personal social-media pages to harass us and bring bogus criminal charges. Civil-liberty groups like the Brennan Center for Justice report that surveillance of movement organizers is increasingly common across the country. These practices remain largely unchecked and lead to the suppression of free speech and legal organizing. This poses a threat to our democratic principles — not to mention our personal safety. I was surveilled and targeted by law enforcement. They threatened me with a criminal charge, a gross misdemeanor carrying a sentence of a year in jail, for speaking about treaty partnership and mutual aid at that Jan. 9 rally. Several other women were also charged that day, including prominent Indigenous leaders like Winona LaDuke, based on videos law enforcement watched on Facebook… “Many applauded Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison charging Enbridge for an aquifer breach during Line 3 construction. Ellison could also launch an investigation into misconduct by law enforcement. Our rivers and aquifers need protection from corporate greed. So do our rights to free speech and protest.”
Washington Post: Oil and oil spills have long gone hand in hand
Nolan Varee is a graduate student in history at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, 1/9/23
“The recent Keystone Pipeline malfunction in Washington County, Kansas, has spilled over 14,000 barrels of oil into the water of Mill Creek in the northern part of the state. The cause of the malfunction is still being investigated, but images of blackened farmland sloping into the creek at the spill site evince the scale of the environmental impact,” Nolan Varee writes for the Washington Post. “The oil spill offers a devastating view into the reality of our modern oil infrastructure, but it is only the latest in a long line of modern environmental disasters caused by the industry. While cleanup continues on the largest oil spill in the Keystone Pipeline’s history, the spill has parallels that date back to the beginning of an industry mired by disaster. In fact, oil spills of this size are hardly new and the history of the early oil industry reveals that resistance to creating safer, more effective methods of transporting oil has unfortunately been the norm for well over a century. While rapid technological advancements led to the creation of pipelines, lack of ingenuity has long since left us cleaning up the messes early oilmen hoped to avoid… “After more than 160 years of innovation within the oil industry, pipeline malfunctions are a seemingly constant reminder that new methods of energy transportation are still required to meet our ever-growing needs. After all, if we do not find new ways to prevent these disasters from happening, we might as well just float oil barrels along our waterways and pray they make it in one piece.”
RBN Energy: Ruby, Ruby, When Will You Be Mine - Tallgrass Bid Breathes New Purpose Into Languishing Ruby Pipeline
Sheetal Nasta, 1/8/23
“Tallgrass Energy last month snagged an early Christmas present: It won a bid for Ruby Pipeline, the beleaguered Rockies-to-West Coast natural gas system that has long been underutilized and cash-poor,” Sheetal Nasta writes for RBN Energy. “ In doing so, it beat out one of the largest midstream companies in North America and a long-time co-owner of Ruby — Kinder Morgan. Ruby may be a languishing asset, but for Tallgrass it’s more like a crown jewel in its quest to be the only transcontinental header system in the country that would connect trapped Appalachian gas supply with premium West Coast markets. Tallgrass’s Rockies Express (REX) pipeline is already moving Marcellus/Utica molecules west to the Rockies — the opposite direction than it was originally built for in the pre-Shale Era. The Ruby acquisition, which has yet to close, would allow Tallgrass to extend its reach farther west, directly into the premium West Coast markets. The Ruby deal comes at a time when California’s aggressive decarbonization goals are leading to gas shortages and exorbitant fuel premiums out west, and there’s an immediate need to debottleneck routes to get gas there. In today’s RBN blog, we begin a series delving into how Ruby fits into the Western U.S. gas market and what the acquisition would mean for Tallgrass… “For Tallgrass, not only would Ruby allow its shippers to get Rockies gas to the West Coast, but it would also make Tallgrass the only operator with the ability to connect Marcellus/Utica gas supply with West Coast gas markets to expand its share of the Western gas market.”