EXTRACTED: Daily News Clips 2/28/23
PIPELINE NEWS
Chicago Tribune: A battle simmers in Illinois over plans to pipe in and store millions of tons of planet-warming carbon dioxide underground
Press release: Navigator CO2 Expands Scope of Heartland Greenway with Updated ICC Permit Filing
AgWeek: Minnesota group files appeal on Summit Carbon pipeline environmental review
Iowa Capital Dispatch: Senate fails to move modest pipeline bill
Summit-Tribune: State capitol rally goers seek full ban on eminent domain for carbon pipelines
SF GATE: ‘Diabolical plan’: ExxonMobil seeks to restart oil spill pipeline
The Center Square: Economists: Railroad derailments highlight necessity of Line 5
CBC: B.C. MLA speaks out publicly against anonymous online threat to sabotage Coastal GasLink pipeline
The Times Leader: DEP approves permits for Transco's 7-county pipeline expansion project
WBTW: Hearing set Monday on challenge to Dominion Energy’s proposed Pamplico Pipeline
Pipeline Fighters Hub: “State of the States: CO2 Pipelines” [VIDEO]
WASHINGTON UPDATES
Press release: CAPITO, COLLEAGUES INTRODUCE LEGISLATION TO EXPEDITE U.S. NATURAL GAS EXPORTS
E&E News: Republicans working to woo Democrats against Biden rules
Politico: DeSantis, Pence Allies Launching Campaign To Speed Energy Approvals
Truthout: Oil and Gas Industry Spent $124.4 Million Lobbying Amid Record Profits in 2022
STATE UPDATES
Daily Breeze: Port of LA oil terminal project will get full environmental review. This is why
Colorado Public Radio: Xcel Energy played a leading role in a stealthy plan to defend natural gas in Colorado
Durango Herald: Confusion, dissension over La Plata County gas and oil regulations
The Nation: Why More Alaskans Aren’t Fighting a Huge Potential Oil Project on the North Slope
Wyoming Public Radio: A southwest Wyoming community college preps for the expanding energy industry
EXTRACTION
The Hill: UN secretary-general knocks ‘climate-wrecking corporations’ in human rights remarks
E&E News: Is LNG by rail safe?
National Observer: Alberta’s War Room accuses Catherine McKenna of misleading Canadians
Reuters: Canada's Imperial reducing contractor workforce at Kearl oil sands project
CLIMATE FINANCE
Washington Post: The conservative battle against ‘woke’ banks is backfiring
Jacobin: Canada Loves to Shower Fossil Fuel Companies With Public Money
OPINION
Salmon Arm Observer: Letter: Governments taking legal action to hold Big Oil accountable for climate emergency
The Hill: Does President Biden mean what he says on climate?
Boston Globe: The East Palestine disaster was a direct result of the country’s reliance on fossil fuels and plastic
PIPELINE NEWS
Chicago Tribune: A battle simmers in Illinois over plans to pipe in and store millions of tons of planet-warming carbon dioxide underground
Nara Schoenberg, 2/26/23
“On a subfreezing day in January, John Feltham drove his two-seat Kawasaki utility vehicle over neatly furrowed fields glistening with snow,” the Chicago Tribune reports. “...Feltham, a farmer in Knox County, 160 miles southwest of Chicago, paused to point out another local sight: His custom sign that reads, “No Trespassing by Navigator CO2 Surveyors”, directed at the Omaha company that wants to send part of a proposed 1,300-mile carbon dioxide pipeline under land his family has owned for more than 100 years. “If you post your ground and you catch these people trespassing, you can have them arrested,” Feltham told the Tribune… “The Prairie Research Institute at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign recently released a report showing that Illinois is well-positioned to become a leader in carbon capture, utilization and storage, in which planet-warming carbon dioxide is removed from industrial exhaust or the air and either used or injected into rock deep underground… “But as the fight over Navigator CO2’s pipeline illustrates, battle lines are being drawn, with opponents questioning carbon capture’s very reason for being — its real-world effectiveness in reducing greenhouse gases. There are also safety concerns. Landowners fear a pipeline could rupture, releasing a potentially suffocating gas not far from bedroom windows. “Right now, to move forward with a carbon dioxide pipeline is unconscionable,” Pam Richart, lead organizer of the Coalition to Stop CO2 Pipelines, which includes citizens and environmental groups, told the Tribune. “It just brings too much risk.” “...He’s concerned about the flooding and erosion that could occur if Navigator dug a 7-foot trench across his 220-acre property. And he’s not much impressed by Navigator’s $110,000 financial offer. But this goes beyond that, said Feltham, 66. “Attachment to farmland out here, for families like mine, is almost spiritual, and when a company says it wants to get eminent domain authority to run a pipeline across the farm, I view that with about the same attitude I would view an attempt at home invasion,” he told the Tribune.” “...Now president of Citizens Against Heartland Greenway Pipeline, a group representing opponents, Feltham noted with satisfaction that Navigator isn’t making much headway with landowners. Despite over 8,500 contacts with Illinois landowners since August, Navigator has managed to get only 6% of those along the proposed path of the pipeline to sign easements or options, according to a Navigator document the Tribune obtained from a lawyer representing opponents of the pipeline project in proceedings before the Illinois Commerce Commission.”
Press release: Navigator CO2 Expands Scope of Heartland Greenway with Updated ICC Permit Filing
2/24/23
“Navigator CO2 Ventures LLC ("Navigator") announced today that it has filed an updated permit application with the Illinois Commerce Commission. This new proposal reflects an expanded scope of the carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) project, Heartland Greenway, and includes the addition of 42 miles of proposed pipeline that will connect to additional permanent storage locations in central Illinois.The revised application is a significant step toward the acceleration of carbon sequestration in the region. Central Illinois is home to some of the world's most well-studied and proven geology for carbon storage, and Navigator is working diligently to help advance this opportunity… "Our team is excited to advance the development of additional permanent storage locations for the Heartland Greenway platform," said Navigator CEO Matt Vining. "The updated permit and expanded footprint allow us to address the increasing commercial demand regionally, especially within the Illinois industrial complex." Navigator remains committed to not only delivering long-term, sustainable decarbonization solutions for its valued customers but also being a responsible neighbor in the communities where it operates. The company looks forward to continuing to work with its partners, landowners, and other stakeholders to advance the deployment of CCUS technologies.”
AgWeek: Minnesota group files appeal on Summit Carbon pipeline environmental review
Jeff Beach, 2/27/23
“A Minnesota group is asking the state’s Public Utilities Commission to take another look at a carbon capture pipeline proposal to take in the environmental impact of the whole project, not just a small piece,” AgWeek reports. “The PUC is looking only at the stretch of the proposed Summit Carbon Solutions pipeline in Otter Tail and Wilkin counties, where Summit has filed a permit application. The PUC on Feb. 6 denied a request from Montevideo-based organization CURE (Clean Up the River Environment) to look at the entirety of the Summit Carbon Solutions project, the bulk of the pipeline miles being in west-central and southern Minnesota… "By artificially separating the Northern and Southern portions of the pipeline, the Commission ignored the will of more than 100 Minnesotans and failed to consider the cumulative impacts of the entire Midwest Carbon Express project on the state. By doing so, the Commission allowed a private company to decide how and to what extent it will proceed through the environmental review process, in direct contradiction to the intent of (the Minnesota Environmental Policy Act),” according to the filing… “But some landowners have been reluctant to sign an easement agreement with Summit, citing concerns about damage to crop production and lost property values because of a hazardous liquid pipeline running through their property… “Hundreds of Minnesotans, including those who live in the southern counties impacted by this project, asked the PUC to review the whole thing because they’re in the dark about what the impacts will be, who will bear the real burden, and who will benefit,” Maggie Schuppert, CURE campaigns director, told AgWeek. “Meanwhile, the company is going all over this part of the state signing easements and asking for access to water and other resources they’ll need for construction and operation. These pipelines are real to the people who live here.”
Iowa Capital Dispatch: Senate fails to move modest pipeline bill
JARED STRONG, 2/27/23
“There isn’t enough support in the Iowa Senate to enact new legislation that would restrict eminent domain for three proposed carbon dioxide pipelines, the Republican leader of a Senate panel said Monday,” the Iowa Capital Dispatch reports. “I don’t believe there’s a legislative answer to this, currently,” said Sen. Jason Schultz, R-Schleswig. He was part of a Senate subcommittee on Monday that declined to approve a recently introduced bill that would prevent pipeline companies from using eminent domain without voluntary permission from two-thirds of landowners of the affected properties. The bill would also exempt current carbon dioxide pipeline proposals from that restriction. Other legislation in the Senate that would either bar eminent domain for the pipelines or require voluntary easements for 90% of their routes has not been given a hearing despite being introduced more than a month ago… “One of the pipeline companies, Summit Carbon Solutions, has said it already has voluntary easement agreements for about 67% of its proposed route of roughly 680 miles in western and northern Iowa. “I have no doubt we will easily get to 90, 95%,” Jake Ketzner, vice president of government and public affairs for the company, told the Dispatch. On Monday, the new bill was widely panned by people on both sides of the issue. It does not target carbon dioxide pipelines specifically and would be applicable to other utility projects. Pipeline opponents said it doesn’t do enough to protect landowners. “We need legislators to commit to protecting our land and to protect the safety of our families, our neighbors, our livestock, our wildlife and our environment,” said Cynthia Hansen, whose farm in Shelby County is in the path of Summit’s proposed pipeline.”
Summit-Tribune: State capitol rally goers seek full ban on eminent domain for carbon pipelines
2/25/23
“On Feb. 21 in Des Moines, 150 landowners impacted by proposed hazardous liquid carbon pipelines rallied at the state capitol alongside legislators and advocates, calling for a ban on eminent domain for the projects,” the Summit-Tribune reports. “According to Food and Water Watch, 12 bills have been introduced this session in Iowa on the carbon pipeline issue including Senator Jeff Taylor’s SF 101 which would enact such a ban… “Buoyed by substantial federal tax credits and eligible for $40 billion of federal taxpayer funding, these carbon pipelines pose serious safety risks currently under investigation by the federal Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), according to a Food and Water Watch news release… “Iowa farmers also voiced their opposition to the use of eminent domain for proposed carbon pipelines. “Our legislature created the law that gave the Iowa Utilities Board the power to use eminent domain and the legislature can take it away,” said Butler County farmer Kim Junker, who is impacted by the Navigator pipeline proposal. “We, the impacted landowners, are the experts. Not Farm Bureau, not Summit’s lobbyists, not the Iowa Renewable Fuel Association. It’s time our legislators listened to us, the hardworking Iowans who put them into office in the first place. We want a full ban on eminent domain for carbon pipelines. It’s the only solution that permanently addresses all the issues of these needless pipeline projects.” "We're glad that leadership has put some thought into HF 368, but it's simply not what landowners are calling for," said Cindy Hansen, Century Farm Owner in Shelby County, impacted by the Summit pipeline proposal. “We need a full ban on eminent domain for carbon pipelines. If this threshold bill is going to move forward, it needs some work. It needs to apply to all of the pipeline applications and it needs to apply to private parcels, not total miles of the route.”
SF GATE: ‘Diabolical plan’: ExxonMobil seeks to restart oil spill pipeline
Andrew Pridgen, 2/25/23
“Big oil is attempting to get the ruptured pipelines that caused the 2015 Refugio Beach oil spill on the Central Coast back up and running again,” SF GATE reports. “And locals, environmentalists and watchdog agencies are not happy about it. “ExxonMobil is kind of stirring the pot that began in the late ’60s with the big spill,” Doug Kern, executive director of the Gaviota Coast Conservancy, told SFGATE. “There’s really — in this community — that will just never be forgotten. I’ve had people send me photos after that big spill in the late ’60s came out of water with oil all over themselves, just hideous.” The first oil spill off the coast of Santa Barbara, on Jan. 28, 1969, was at the time the biggest in U.S. history, and it had a profound and lasting impact… “In the wake of the spill, Santa Barbara became an environmental epicenter, giving birth to Earth Day. Nonetheless, history repeated itself during the May 19, 2015, disaster. The Plains All American Pipeline (Plains LP) ruptured and spilled an estimated 630,000 gallons of oil onto Refugio State Beach, half an hour up the coast from Santa Barbara. The 2015 spill impacted a 7-mile stretch of ecologically and culturally sensitive land; it was so dramatic, the damaged pipeline was originally slated to be removed. Almost eight years later, not only is the pipeline still intact — but proposed improvements are in the offing. “They’re trying to start the oil transport through old pipelines as soon as they can,” Tevin Schmitt, a watershed scientist for Wishtoyo Chumash Foundation, told SFGATE. “We’re risking another oil spill, and any oil spill is a problem.” Though the pipeline has been dormant since the Refugio spill, over the past year ExxonMobil has been focused on restarting oil production in the area by any means possible, critics tell SF GATE. “They’ve got a new plan in front of the planning commission, where they’re going to install valves,” Schmitt told SF GATE, “and they’re going to start pushing hundreds of thousands of gallons of oil through this pipeline and people should know about it.” “...Looking through reports, there’s substantial corrosion for the 901 pipeline,” Schmitt told SF GATE. “These pipelines shouldn’t exist anymore. They shouldn’t have existed when they caused an oil spill in 2015…But [ExxonMobil] clearly wants to get them going again, so they went with an even easier and more diabolical plan.”
The Center Square: Economists: Railroad derailments highlight necessity of Line 5
Scott McClallen, 2/27/23
“As two train derailments – one in Ohio and one in Michigan – remain national news, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Attorney General Dana Nessel continue their crusade to shut down the Line 5 pipeline,” The Center Square reports. “If successful in their efforts, moving the petroleum products would transition from pipelines to tanker truck and rail transportation, according to experts interviewed by The Center Square. This transition would likely drive up prices for consumers, increase carbon emissions, and prove less safe, they told The Center Square… “Hillsdale College Economics Professor Gary Wolfram told The Center Square that if the current governor and attorney general are successful in shutting down Line 5, prices of fuel and petroleum derivatives would skyrocket. Wolfram told The Center Square shutting down the pipeline won’t necessarily stop oil transportation – it’ll shift to more costly and less efficient methods, like by rail or truck, that could lead to higher emission output relative to using the Line 5 pipeline… “A spokesperson for Nessel said a rupture in Line 5 would be "catastrophic" to the Great Lakes. “A rupture in the Line 5 pipeline would be catastrophic to our Great Lakes, our robust tourism industry and the thousands of residents who live on or near the shores," the spokesperson told The Center Square. "This matter impacts Michigan residents directly, and we look forward to bringing our concerns before a Michigan court.”
CBC: B.C. MLA speaks out publicly against anonymous online threat to sabotage Coastal GasLink pipeline
2/27/23
“A British Columbia MLA says he's outraged by an anonymous online threat of sabotage against the Coastal GasLink pipeline,” CBC reports. “A message on the website B.C. Counter-info from an anonymous source claims parts of the pipeline were sabotaged with holes drilled in a section of pipe and welds broken to delay the project and drive up Coastal GasLink's costs… “CBC hasn't been able to determine the source of the original message or whether its claims are true… “In an email to CBC News, Coastal GasLink's parent company, TC Energy, said there's no evidence of tampering, but it's launching a safety review. It says the sabotage claim, even if unsubstantiated, spreads fear and violence. Ellis Ross, the B.C. Liberal MLA for the riding of Skeena took to social media on Sunday to say he was outraged by what he read online. "They're trying to intimidate not only CGL, Coastal Coastal GasLInk, the pipeline company — but there's Aboriginal workers out there, there's non-Aboriginal workers out there that have nothing to do with it," Ross told CBC… “Coastal GasLink's parent company says attacks on energy infrastructure should concern all Canadians. "Regardless of their authenticity, we believe these claims are intended to delay our project and spread fear and violence," the company told CBC. British Columbia's energy regulator told CBC it is aware of the claims and is working with RCMP, Coastal GasLink, and other relevant parties to investigate.”
The Times Leader: DEP approves permits for Transco's 7-county pipeline expansion project
Bill OBoyle, 2/27/23
“The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection announced Monday that it has issued permits for the construction and operation of the Regional Energy Access Expansion Pipeline project by Transcontinental Gas Pipeline Company, LLC (Transco),” The Times Leader reports. “...The pipeline will provide an incremental 829,400 dekatherms per day of natural gas capacity and will consist of new pipelines, a new gas-fired turbine driven compressor station, addition of gas-fired turbine driven compressor units at existing compressor stations, modification and uprate of existing compressors, abandonment of existing gas-fired compressors, modifications to existing compressor stations, modifications to existing pipeline tie-ins, addition of regulation controls at an existing valve setting, and modifications to existing regulators. DEP held a virtual public hearing on the project on Oct. 5, 2022, to accept public comment on the above mentioned three permits.”
WBTW: Hearing set Monday on challenge to Dominion Energy’s proposed Pamplico Pipeline
Dennis Bright, 2/27/23
“A South Carolina court will hear a challenge Monday to Dominion Energy’s plans to build a 16-inch natural gas pipeline along a 14.5-mile stretch of the Great Pee Dee River, also known as the Pamplico Pipeline,” WBTW reports. “A hearing is planned in Administrative Law Court in Columbia, where the South Carolina Environmental Law Project, representing the Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League, will challenge a water quality certification permit that would allow Dominion to proceed with the project. The SCELP said in a news release that the pipeline will impact 32 wetland areas and cross six named tributaries of the Great Pee Dee River… “Some Florence County landowners opposed to the project said in September that they have been left feeling helpless because of Dominion’s plans to use eminent domain to obtain roughly 20 properties for the pipeline, which is being built alongside another pipeline built in the 1960s. The SCELP and others argued that they were not been given enough information to “meaningfully participate in the decision-making process” and asked the South Carolina Department of Environmental Control to deny the certification because the project failed to “demonstrate that it will satisfy South Carolina water quality standards.” However, the permit was approved, which led to the current legal challenge.”
Pipeline Fighters Hub: “State of the States: CO2 Pipelines” [VIDEO]
Mark Hefflinger, 2/28/23
“This month’s Pipeline Fighters Hub webinar will focus on state-level actions being taken to protect communities from carbon pipeline projects. Our organizer comrades from several of the states impacted by CO2 pipelines (NE, IA, SD, ND, MN, IL) will join to give an overview of the flurry of carbon pipeline-related bills introduced at state legislatures including Iowa, South Dakota, North Dakota and Illinois. Some bills seek to ban eminent domain for carbon pipelines, while others impose a similar moratorium that counties have chosen, and some target the unfair laws for landowners that govern surveying and other aspects of unwanted interactions with pipeline companies. We'll also cover organizing efforts at County Boards and intervening at state agency permitting processes. SPEAKERS: Eliot Huggins, Dakota Resource Council, North Dakota Easement Team (North Dakota); Chase Jensen, Dakota Rural Action, South Dakota Easement Team (South Dakota); Jane Kleeb, Bold Nebraska & Pipeline Fighters Hub (Nebraska); Jessica Mazour, Sierra Club Iowa Chapter (Iowa); Pam Richart, Coalition to Stop CO2 Pipelines (Illinois); Maggie Schuppert, CURE (Clean Up Our River Environment) (Minnesota).”
WASHINGTON UPDATES
Press release: CAPITO, COLLEAGUES INTRODUCE LEGISLATION TO EXPEDITE U.S. NATURAL GAS EXPORTS
2/27/23
“U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), along with Senators Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), and John Kennedy (R-La.), recently reintroduced the Natural Gas Export Expansion Act. The legislation would expedite the federal approval process for exporting liquefied natural gas (LNG) and increase free trade, particularly as European countries are rapidly seeking new sources of clean, reliable energy. In addition to creating and supporting thousands of domestic jobs, this legislation would help to fortify our nation’s energy security, reduce emissions at home and abroad, and strengthen America’s strategic and economic relationship with our allies. “Since first introducing this legislation in 2021, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has only further highlighted the urgency for the U.S. to expedite the permitting process for the exportation of natural gas to our allies. This legislation would not only advance West Virginia’s energy sector and create many new jobs, but it would also ensure that our allies do not have to rely on rogue nations for their energy needs,” Senator Capito said. Specifically, the Natural Gas Export Expansion Act: Amends the Natural Gas Act to expedite non-free trade agreement (FTA) export permits.”
E&E News: Republicans working to woo Democrats against Biden rules
Emma Dumain, Jeremy Dillon, Kelsey Brugger, 2/28/23
“Republicans are mounting a campaign to challenge multiple Biden environmental regulations, and they are increasingly hopeful the effort will bear some fruit,” E&E News reports. “The plan is to deploy a congressional tool that eliminates recently finalized rules, which requires only simple majorities in both chambers, and lure a growing list of vulnerable Democrats to join them. That calculus has the potential to force the White House to dust off the presidential veto pen for the first time under the Biden administration, even as the president’s own party controls half of Capitol Hill. Multiple rules are on the chopping block, including environmental, social and governance considerations for investing; Clean Water Act regulations; and a waiver on solar tariffs. Lawmakers acknowledge that the effort will likely not result in substantive changes, but they tell E&E it will serve as an important messaging tool. “It’s not going to drive much policy, because the president will veto anything he doesn’t like,” Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) told E&E. “It’s largely politics, but it’s not unimportant politics.” If Republicans are able to dare President Joe Biden to veto legislation in divided government, Cramer told E&E, “it would matter, because what it does is, it identifies the culprit.” The GOP’s first attempt to force Biden’s hand will take place as soon as Tuesday: The House will consider a Congressional Review Act resolution, H.J. Res. 30, to roll back the Department of Labor’s rulemaking to allow fiduciaries to take environmental, social and governance — or ESG — factors into consideration when choosing retirement investments.”
Politico: DeSantis, Pence Allies Launching Campaign To Speed Energy Approvals
Zack Colman, 2/28/23
“Republican operatives are launching a multimillion-dollar campaign to pressure swing-state lawmakers to make it easier to build energy projects such as pipelines and power lines — with a special focus on squeezing vulnerable Senate Democrats,” Politico reports. “Leaders of the new effort include allies of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former Vice President Mike Pence, two potential GOP contenders in next year’s presidential race, as well as a former top aide to Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia. The push could speed federal approvals for energy initiatives that members of both parties champion — including renewable energy projects such as solar farms that are vital for President Joe Biden’s climate agenda. But it could alienate some parts of Biden’s environmentalist base by clearing the way for mines, pipelines and other fossil-fuel projects that green activists oppose. … ‘I’m not naive to think it’s going to break through where some of the cultural issues are inside Republican debates right now, but I do think it’s an important one for our economy and for the conversation to be had,’ Marc Short, the former chief of staff to Pence, told POLITICO.”
Truthout: Oil and Gas Industry Spent $124.4 Million Lobbying Amid Record Profits in 2022
Inci Sayki & Jimmy Cloutier, 2/24/23
“The oil and gas industry spent about $124.4 million lobbying the federal government in 2022, according to an OpenSecrets analysis of lobbying disclosures,” Truthout reports. “The industry’s 2022 lobbying spending is a nominal increase from 2021 but down slightly when adjusted for inflation… “Lobbying disclosures indicate the industry targeted a range of issues that will impact oil and gas companies as the global economy weans itself off fossil fuels, including rules governing methane emissions, oil and gas development on federal land and waters, and subsidies for carbon capture technology. Koch Industries, the country’s second-largest privately held company, alone spent about $11.3 million, more than any other oil and gas company. Half a dozen other fossil fuel corporations — including Occidental Petroleum, ConocoPhillips, Exxon Mobil and Chevron Corp — spent another $44.3 million on lobbying… “Industry groups also topped the list of 2022 lobbying spenders. The American Petroleum Institute, which represents nearly 600 oil and gas companies, spent about $4.4 million on federal lobbying. The American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers spent about $3.8 million. The combined lobbying, political contribution and advertising efforts of trade groups opposed to climate change legislations outspent climate advocacy groups by 27 to 1 between 2008 and 2018, a recent Pennyslvania Capital-Star analysis found. These groups have historically contributed to GOP candidates and political committees, with the trend continuing during the 2022 cycle… “Last year’s most-lobbied congressional bill by the oil and gas industry, and all other industries, was the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, the nation’s largest climate spending package ever… “But several provisions in the law also address some of the fossil fuel industry’s top priorities. The Inflation Reduction Act requires the federal government to auction offshore leases to oil and gas companies before issuing permits to offshore wind and solar projects… “The Inflation Reduction Act also increased the tax credit for capturing carbon dioxide. Several of the largest oil and gas companies in the U.S., including ExxonMobil and Occidental Petroleum, have made investments in large-scale carbon removal projects, which aim to mitigate the climate effects of burning fossil fuels by capturing emissions from power plants and industrial facilities or pulling CO2 directly from the atmosphere… “Critics maintain that the industry’s solution is expensive, ineffective and difficult to scale. They also note that most existing projects use captured CO2 to stimulate oil production in depleted fields through a process known as “enhanced oil recovery,” which studies have found can result in more CO2 emissions. All but two of the 13 carbon removal projects currently operational in the U.S. produce oil, according to a November report from the think tank Global CCS Institute. The Global CCS Institute’s “mission is to accelerate the deployment of carbon capture and storage,” and their members include Shell, Exxon and Occidental.”
STATE UPDATES
Daily Breeze: Port of LA oil terminal project will get full environmental review. This is why
DONNA LITTLEJOHN, 2/25/23
“The Port of Los Angeles will conduct a full environmental study on a proposal to upgrade the nearly 14-acre Phillips 66 Marine Oil Terminal and Wharf, which has come under criticism by community members and several environmental groups,” the Daily Breeze reports. “The massive project is intended to bring the terminal up to all present-day oil terminal health and safety standards… “While the port did not provide additional details during the meeting, a spokesperson told the Breeze that the coming study, called an Environmental Impact Review, stemmed from public response to the mitigated negative declaration, which essentially listed all the ways officials planned to reduce the project’s potential environmental impacts. “After evaluating the public responses to the MND,” POLA spokesperson Rachel Campbell told the Breeze, “the port has released (the new notice) to address potential environmental impacts” associated with the project.” “...Environmental groups, meanwhile, lauded the decision to have an EIR. “This is a very positive development,” David Pettit, senior attorney for the Natural Resources Defense Council, told the Breeze, “that the port is going to do a full EIR, which we and a whole bunch of community groups asked them to do.” The port, Pettit told the Breeze, has also agreed in the preparation document to look at the issue of greenhouse gas impacts, something critics also had asked the port to do.”
Colorado Public Radio: Xcel Energy played a leading role in a stealthy plan to defend natural gas in Colorado
Sam Brasch, 2/27/23
“Anyone who's seen ads for Xcel Energy knows the company is in the green energy business. Its frequent television spots show workers erecting new wind turbines and touting its promise to deliver 100 percent carbon-free electricity by 2050. What's less featured is its massive role in Colorado's natural gas industry,” Colorado Public Radio reports. “While Xcel Energy has put solar and wind at the center of its electricity plans, newly released federal tax documents show the utility also took a prominent role in launching Coloradans for Energy Access — a non-profit dedicated to fighting a growing movement to shift buildings from natural gas heat to renewable electricity. The group’s 2021 tax documents show Joni Zich, the senior director of gas strategy for Xcel Energy, served as a board member when the group formed in late 2021… "It's now clear the company helped launch a stealthy political project to defend the investment. The tax forms for Coloradans for Energy Access showed it received $205,000 in donations from five different individuals. As a social welfare nonprofit, it faces no legal requirement to publicly disclose the identity of those donors… “Coloradans for Energy Access has always been an effort to present the business interests of natural gas utilities as grassroots activism. The project comes amid a growing movement to end the expansion of natural gas systems in climate-conscious cities. Crested Butte became the first Colorado community to ban gas hookups in new buildings last year, following the lead of progressive cities like Berkeley, Calif., and New York City. Both Boulder and Denver are now exploring similar policies… “Coloradans for Energy Access announced its formation in a Colorado Sun op-ed early last year, saying the coalition had formed to battle "forced electrification." It was signed by members including two union managers, the head of a trade group representing realtors and the leader of a political nonprofit advocating for southern Colorado. The truth was those supposed authors weren't the driving force behind the new group. A recording obtained by CPR News last year revealed the coalition was led by Atmos Energy, the country's largest gas-only utility… “To assist the new coalition, the group hired FTI Consulting, a firm with a well-documented history of managing public relations campaigns for the fossil fuel industry.”
Durango Herald: Confusion, dissension over La Plata County gas and oil regulations
Reuben Schafir, 2/24/23
“As the La Plata County Planning Commission convened Thursday night to consider the second draft of the county’s proposed gas and oil regulations, the atmosphere strayed from its usual tenor of decorum. Tense passive aggression punctuated moments of the evening, while vitriolic exchanges between members of the public highlighted the controversial nature of the intricacies in the land-use code,” the Durango Herald reports. “...The county has been working on revising Chapter 90 of the land-use code, which establishes regulations on gas and oil operations, since last year. The issues that arose point to the wide-ranging implications of the code, which will ultimately dictate how close wells can be to residential structures and schools, and the scope of drillers’ cleanup responsibilities after wells run dry. Some public comments consisted of cordial pre-written statements, such as those shared by Executive Director of the Energy Council Michelina Paulek, who represents the gas and oil trade organization, and Energy and Climate Program Associate at San Juan Citizens Alliance Emelie Frojen… “Mary O’Hare, who is part of a family company, Maralex Resources Inc., told the planning commission “there needs to be an attitude of gratitude to the oil and gas industry,” before getting into a verbal spat with another member of the public later that evening. “There is a push to destroy oil and gas. And oil and gas is a friend to all. Everything we touch is from petroleum products or delivered by petroleum products,” she said. “I want to urge less regulation and I think there needs to be an attitude of gratitude to the oil and gas industry. I’m tired of being lied about, I’m tired of people inventing things, saying we cause nosebleeds ... that fracking causes earthquakes.”
The Nation: Why More Alaskans Aren’t Fighting a Huge Potential Oil Project on the North Slope
Madeline Ostrander, 2/28/23
“It’s hard to imagine any place in the United States that is more precarious, more rugged, or home to people more tenacious than the North Slope of Alaska,” The Nation reports. “...The region’s economy is driven mostly by activities on and near the largest oil field in the country, Prudhoe Bay, which operates under some of the most extreme conditions on Earth… “Once you spend time in this place, it’s clearer why it’s so difficult for Alaska to unwind its economic dependence on oil and gas, and why many political leaders in the state are pushing for developments like the Willow Project, the largest proposed new oil project in the US, despite the fact the climate change is already wreaking havoc here and could get far worse… “This is hotly contested land because it is both an oil field and a vast wilderness full of migratory birds, bears, and caribou… “Environmental groups and other progressives have urged the Biden administration to block the Willow Project. But this month, several North Slope leaders visited Washington, D.C., to voice their support for the project “to sustain our way of life,” Crawford Patkotak, board chairman of the Arctic Slope Regional Corporation, a native corporation owned by Iñupiaq shareholders and the largest Alaska-based company, told the Nation. Others have strenuously objected, including Rosemary Ahtuangaruak, mayor of Nuiqsut, the village closest to the proposed project. “We have the most to lose,” she wrote in an opinion piece in The Hill. Our people feed their families with traditional subsistence activities like fishing and hunting caribou, moose, birds, and more. The Willow project’s massive infrastructure would bulldoze straight through these crucial habitats, redirecting the animal’s migratory paths, moving them away from nearby villages, and endangering the food security of local people. That’s not to mention the damage from exposure to air and water pollution that we face. Both Patkotak’s and Ahtuangaruak’s views may hold truth. The North Slope and the state of Alaska depend on oil and gas to sustain themselves—and that economy is simultaneously wreaking permanent damage on both the Arctic and the rest of the planet.”
Wyoming Public Radio: A southwest Wyoming community college preps for the expanding energy industry
Caitlin Tan, 2/24/23
“...Data shows that over the last ten years, about half of Wyoming high school graduates left the state, and many say it is because of a lack of opportunity,” Wyoming Public Radio reports. “Rock Springs’ economy has long been driven by the nearby coal plants and natural gas fields – neither of which are booming like they had 10 to 20 years ago. But there are jobs opening up in other energy sectors, like the nuclear power plant that is being built at a former coal plant in Kemmerer. It is expected to create 2,000 jobs, including welders, mechanics, plant operators and electricians… “Amy Murphy, WWCC dean of outreach and workforce development, told WPR there is an anticipated need for skilled blue collar workers, and WWCC is planning ahead by offering opportunities for young Wyomingites to stay in the state. They are doing this by investing in existing programs like welding and diesel mechanics, but also adding new ones… “WWCC actually teamed up with Rocky Mountain Power and the state of Wyoming to create a powerline technology program this past fall – it is the only one in the state. It preps students to get apprenticeships to become a journeyman that works on powerlines. They can make upwards of $200,000 annually… “The oil and gas program funneled students into that industry but was paused in 2020. “Every single power utility company I know across the country right now is screaming for guys,” Lance Caldwell, the powerline technology instructor, told WPR… “There are six other young men in the class with similar stories to Jones. Several times a week they practice climbing wooden poles that are the height of about a four story building. They use heavy ropes and spiked shoes, and in the winter, are typically climbing in sub-zero temperatures. It simulates a real life scenario in Wyoming.”
EXTRACTION
The Hill: UN secretary-general knocks ‘climate-wrecking corporations’ in human rights remarks
LAUREN SFORZA, 2/27/23
“United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres called on “climate-wrecking corporations” to be held accountable through legal challenges in remarks to the Human Rights Council on Monday,” The Hill reports. “I welcome moves towards accountability for human rights abuses at the national and regional levels, including those committed by the private sector,” he said. “Legal challenges against climate-wrecking corporations are an important step forward.” “Fossil fuel producers and their financiers must understand one simple truth: pursuing mega-profits when so many people are losing their lives and rights, now and in the future, is totally unacceptable,” he continued… “From the climate emergency to the misuse of technology, the answers to today’s crises are found in human rights,” he continued. “Human rights are innate to being human.”
E&E News: Is LNG by rail safe?
Shelby Webb, 2/28/23
“The train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, is renewing concerns about the safety of moving natural gas by rail and whether existing federal rules governing the industry should be changed,” E&E News reports. “Seven Democratic House lawmakers from Pennsylvania, for example, sent a letter to Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg on Friday, asking that he work to suspend a Trump administration rule that would allow the transportation of liquefied natural gas by rail. During the Biden administration, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration proposed to halt that authorization until it could finalize a rule or until June 20, 2024, whichever comes first. But calls to change the rule more quickly have swelled since the Norfolk Southern derailment in Ohio, which forced the evacuation of thousands in the town near the Pennsylvania border, caused the deaths of tens of thousands of aquatic animals and left residents questioning whether the air and water in their town is safe… “The Trump rule would allow the bulk transport of LNG in specialized rail tank cars and was created in response to a 2019 executive order. Environmental groups, followed by 12 Democratic-leaning states, filed petitions to review the plan in the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit months later… “Even a small amount of LNG in the right circumstances can prove pretty catastrophic should it reach a confined system and ignition source,” Bradley Marshall, a senior attorney for Earthjustice and the lead of the environmental groups’ petition, told E&E. “It could get into a storm water sewer and still have enough concentration to ignite and destroy good chunk of area with it.” “...But Marshall, with Earthjustice, told E&E pipelines present their own challenges and risks, including potential spillage and environmental damage. “There are better alternatives than locking in fossil fuel infrastructure, and hazardous fossil fuel infrastructure, that could have major consequences for us,” he told E&E.
National Observer: Alberta’s War Room accuses Catherine McKenna of misleading Canadians
John Woodside, 2/28/23
“Alberta’s oil and gas war room is accusing former federal environment minister Catherine McKenna of trying to mislead the public after she called the sector out on greenwashing Monday,” the National Observer reports. “In an op-ed published in the Globe and Mail, McKenna — who serves as the UN’s greenwashing expert — said Canadian oilsands companies are greenwashing themselves and responsible public policy must address increasing emissions from the sector. “Here in Canada, oil and gas companies, the single largest source of greenhouse gas emissions, need to step up and take meaningful climate action now,” wrote McKenna, chair of the United Nations Secretary General’s High-Level Expert Group on Net-Zero Commitments of Non-State Entities. “But instead, we have the Pathways Alliance — which represents major oilsands companies — taking out full-page newspaper advertisements claiming they are on their way to net zero despite all evidence to the contrary.” “...We cannot allow companies to claim they are on the path to net zero if they are investing in new fossil-fuel infrastructure, if their absolute emissions are not decreasing, if they are only reporting on part of their emissions or if they are lobbying to undermine climate policy,” she wrote… “The Canadian Energy Centre (CEC), commonly called the War Room, is an Alberta Crown corporation tasked with promoting the province’s fossil fuel industry. In a thread on Twitter, the CEC said McKenna’s op-ed “questioning Canada's oil and gas industry's commitment to emission reduction is an attempt to mislead Canadians.” The CEC’s counter to McKenna’s argument centred on the Pathways Alliance’s plans to use speculative carbon capture technology to capture emissions that come from extracting oil and gas. However, carbon capture cannot be widely used to capture planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions when the fuel is burned, like in the engine of a car. In fact, carbon capture is aimed at only capturing approximately 20 per cent of emissions from oil and gas over the fuel’s full life cycle.”
Reuters: Canada's Imperial reducing contractor workforce at Kearl oil sands project
Nia Williams, 2/27/23
“Canada's Imperial Oil Ltd is reducing the number of contractors working at its Kearl oil sands site in northern Alberta as part of measures to cut operating costs at the project, a company spokeswoman said on Monday,” Reuters reports. “Imperial is deferring some non-critical work or moving it off site, spokeswoman Lisa Schmidt said, adding the company has not laid off any employees. There is no impact on oil production at Kearl, a 240,000 barrel-per-day bitumen mining project that has been operating since 2013… ”Imperial's decision echoes a move from rival oil sands producer Suncor Energy Inc, which last November announced it would cut 20% of its contractors in mining and upgrading operations to help improve site safety.”
CLIMATE FINANCE
Washington Post: The conservative battle against ‘woke’ banks is backfiring
Maxine Joselow, 2/28/23
“Over the past two years, Republican state officials have sought to blacklist banks that factor climate change into their investment decisions, saying the firms are engaging in “woke” capitalism,” the Washington Post reports. “But in several Republican-led states, lawmakers have recently defeated proposals to boycott financial institutions that have adopted ESG — environmental, social and governance — goals and policies. In North Dakota, lawmakers this month soundly rejected a pair of the proposals, with one losing by a 90-3 vote. Some Republican lawmakers argued that the measures contradicted the long-held conservative belief that the government shouldn’t tell businesses how to operate… “Republican lawmakers in Congress are nonetheless forging ahead. The House will vote Tuesday on a resolution from Rep. Garland “Andy” Barr (R-Ky.) to repeal a Labor Department rule that gives money managers greater freedom to consider ESG factors when selecting investments. (President Biden can veto the resolution under the Congressional Review Act if it passes the Senate and reaches his desk.)”
Jacobin: Canada Loves to Shower Fossil Fuel Companies With Public Money
JEREMY APPEL, 2/27/23
“Between 2018 and 2020, Canada ranked as the world’s top subsidizer of the fossil fuel industry,” Jacobin reports. “Now the province of Alberta is trying to outdo the nation by paying oil and gas producers to fulfill their legal obligation to clean up their own mess. Alberta premier Danielle Smith has introduced a plan to reward oil and gas companies — which have been producing and profiting at record levels — for cleaning up the environmental mess their projects have left behind, which they’re already required to do by law. What’s more, Smith lobbied the government to adopt this proposal as recently as last year, when she was still a corporate lobbyist. This means that in the very recent past, when she was on the other side of the revolving door between the private sector and government, Smith was representing the interests of the very companies she’s now seeking to subsidize. Smith’s initial proposal was rejected by then energy minister Sonya Savage. Savage deemed the proposal beyond the pale, despite being a former oil and gas lobbyist herself. In the interim, Smith replaced Savage with Peter Guthrie, a legislator who supports her hairbrained proposal, resulting in the potential advance of a $100 million pilot. Smith revealed on February 24 that the program’s implementation rollout will be delayed until the fall, making the provincial election scheduled for May in part a referendum on this subsidy to big oil and gas companies.”
OPINION
Salmon Arm Observer: Letter: Governments taking legal action to hold Big Oil accountable for climate emergency
Virginia Smith, 2/27/23
“According to news reports, Vancouver may become the first Canadian city to sue Big Oil for its role in causing the climate emergency,” Virginia Smith writes for the Salmon Arm Observer. “Companies such as Exxon Mobil, which owns oilsands producer Imperial Oil, are being singled out because they privately researched climate change decades before it was a mainstream issue and determined that burning fossil fuels creates dire global threats. One of the oil executives involved in creating the first oilsands project in Alberta, Robert Dunlop, was warned about the dangers of climate change as early as 1959. But instead of acting on that information, the major oil companies then ran ads throughout the 1990s and 2000s to convince the public that human-induced warming isn’t real. It’s a disinformation campaign that continues to this day. No Canadian city has yet taken Big Oil to court over climate denial and delay, but such litigation is more common in the U.S., where more than 20 jurisdictions have filed lawsuits asking fossil fuel polluters to pay for the damage caused by their products… “The evidence cannot be denied or disputed. Big Oil misled the public. They have taken a page out of Big Tobacco’s playbook, and if the results of even one of the lawsuits that have been filed is successful, there will be no more bitumen extraction in the Alberta oil sands.”
The Hill: Does President Biden mean what he says on climate?
Abigail Dillen is the president of Earthjustice, the country’s largest nonprofit public-interest environmental law organization, 2/27/23
“In his recent State of the Union address, President Biden acknowledged the “existential threat” posed by climate change, citing an obligation to our children and grandchildren to confront it. Now, his administration is about to test its fidelity to that obligation. It will soon decide whether to approve a major drilling project in Alaska that could pump 280 million tons of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, derailing the administration’s ability to meet its own climate commitments,” Abigail Dillen writes for The Hill. “...Yet, despite scientific consensus urging us to cut emissions as much as possible, we find ourselves approving projects that will dig our climate hole deeper… “The possibility that it will greenlight ConocoPhillips’s Willow Project in Alaska threatens to render that promise hollow. If approved, Willow would rank among the worst sources of pollution in the country. Its emissions would exceed those of any other planned project on federal lands. To put the wreckage in perspective, Willow could produce more than twice as much emissions than the administration’s renewable energy projects on public lands by 2030 would cut combined… “The good news is that the Biden administration can still say no. It is fully within the administration’s legal authority to reject or simply defer the project. This far along into the climate crisis, it is not enough to hand out federal funding for clean energy projects. To meet its obligation to future generations, the administration must also deny permits for operations that lock us into a fossil fuel future. The question is whether Biden is willing to use both the carrots and the sticks at his disposal. His final decision on the Willow Project, which could come in early March, will offer a definitive answer. It will show whether he believes his own words.”
Boston Globe: The East Palestine disaster was a direct result of the country’s reliance on fossil fuels and plastic
Judith Enck is a former EPA regional administrator, the president of Beyond Plastics, and a professor at Bennington College, 2/24/23
“Last December, I testified in the US Senate at its first-ever public hearing about plastics. I called for a 50 percent reduction in the nation’s production of plastics over the next decade,” Judith Enck writes for the Boston Globe. “That was immediately met with criticism by the plastics and chemical lobbyists. These lobbyists are not the ones living in East Palestine, Ohio, where a train derailment spewed dangerous chemicals into the air, soil, and water. They’re not the ones living in neighborhoods next to railroad tracks. They’re not the ones facing health risks from plastic production plants in their backyards every single day. The East Palestine disaster was a direct result of the country’s reliance on fossil fuels and plastic. The hazardous chemicals being transported by the derailed train — including vinyl chloride, a known carcinogen — are used to make PVC, the world’s third most used type of plastic, typically used in pipes to deliver drinking water, packaging, gift cards, and toys that kids chew on. So let’s be clear about what happened this month in Ohio: Thousands of residents were ordered to evacuate — all to make PVC plastics. People reported rashes, headaches, and other symptoms associated with chemical exposure — all to make PVC pipes used to deliver drinking water, when alternatives to PVC piping exist. Thousands of fish in nearby streams were killed — all to make plastic toys our children play with and chew on. Ohioans’ drinking water may have been threatened — all to make cheap vinyl shower curtains. When I talk to restaurant owners about the need to eliminate plastic packaging, they often say they use plastic because it’s cheap. Don’t tell residents of eastern Ohio and western Pennsylvania that plastics are cheap — or the people of Louisiana and Texas, living in the shadow of where PVC is manufactured… “It’s time our elected officials put their collective foot down, hold companies accountable, protect people from plastic, and pass policies curbing plastic production. Americans deserve better.”