EXTRACTED: Daily News Clips 3/16/22
PIPELINE NEWS
WPLN: State advances ‘pipeline bill’ that would expedite new fossil fuel infrastructure
Bloomberg: Mountain Valley Pipeline Seeks Rehearing on Species Review
KSDK: Wildlife experts working to save animals injured in oil spill
Healing MN: Water protector wins civil rights appeal against Morton County for excessive force used during DAPL resistance
Argus Leader: Concerned landowners lobby Minnehaha County Commission to oppose Midwest CO2 pipeline
Holt Independent: Holt County Planning And Zoning Looks In To Moratorium Options
Delaware Public Media: Eastern Shore Natural Gas pipeline expansion approved by Sussex Planning and Zoning
KXLG: SD PUC Grants Requests Essentially Ending Any Chance of Keystone Pipeline Passing Through State
NBC26: Wisconsin lawmaker to contact stakeholders in effort to replace closed Green Bay gas pipeline
WASHINGTON UPDATES
Politico: House liberals to urge Biden to declare climate emergency, ban drilling on federal lands
Politico: BUILD BACK WITH CLIMATE
Politico: THE CANADIAN CRUDE LINK
Press release: EJ Orgs Call for Halt In Buildout of New & Expanded Gas Exports
Politico: PHILLIPS’ VISION
STATE UPDATES
Sacramento Bee: Expanding California’s Oil Industry Won’t Stop Gas Price Increases
Capital and Main: Oil and Gas Industry Heavily Outspends Clean Energy and Environmental Groups on Lobbying in California
New York Times: How High Oil Prices Threaten a California Plastic Container Business
EXTRACTION
NM Political Report: Study finds flaring can impact the health of people 60 miles away
Reuters: Chevron set to trade Venezuelan oil if U.S. relaxes sanctions, sources say
Bloomberg: Alberta oilsands land sale earns most in decade as crude surges
WRIC: Oil prices dropped, so why haven’t gas prices?
CLIMATE FINANCE
E&E News: Sarah Bloom Raskin withdraws amid GOP, Manchin opposition
OPINION
Superior Telegram: Column: Pipeline relocation right for Wisconsin workers, families
The Atlantic: The U.S. Subsidy That Empowers Putin
Boulder Daily Camera: Ian Silverii: Big Oil profits when prices surge, and corporations will cash in on this crisis
PIPELINE NEWS
WPLN: State advances ‘pipeline bill’ that would expedite new fossil fuel infrastructure
CAROLINE EGGERS, 3/16/22
“Gas and oil companies are now closer to being able to build pipelines without local interference,” WPLN reports. “A Tennessee legislative committee approved a bill Tuesday that preempts local governments from stopping—or really even changing—fossil fuel projects that would impact their environment and communities. “This bill, as presently drafted, does more than just prohibit local governments from banning certain types of infrastructure. It says they can’t do anything that would impair the development of that type of infrastructure,” George Nolan, an attorney at the Southern Environmental Law Center, told WPLN. This bill wasn’t out of the blue. Last year, an oil company, Plains All American, wanted to build a 49-mile pipeline to carry oil through the Memphis area to the Valero oil refinery, which is one of Tennessee’s biggest climate polluters. The proposed route would have impacted several mostly Black neighborhoods in Memphis, where the companies expected to “more easily exploit” the communities than a suburban counterpart with more economic and social means,Justin J. Pearson, an environmental activist in Memphis who fought the pipeline, told WPLN… “The bill sponsors said this new legislation was in response to the defeated pipeline in Memphis. Sen. Ken Yager, R-Kingston painted these projects as economic issues burdened by local environmental concerns over fossil fuels. “Sometimes that campaign against fossil fuels has manifested itself in some local governments getting involved in what should otherwise be a statewide scope,” Yager told WPLN… “The arguments that are being made by the legislature are wrong, inaccurate and untrue. And the truth is that this legislation is written by pipeline companies for pipeline companies, and we as a state have to fight that,” Pearson told WPLN.
Bloomberg: Mountain Valley Pipeline Seeks Rehearing on Species Review
3/14/22
“The Fourth Circuit improperly second-guessed the federal government’s review of the Mountain Valley Pipeline and jeopardized billions of dollars of completed construction at a time when there’s a need for natural gas supplies from sources other than Russia, the pipeline company said in a petition for rehearing,” Bloomberg reports. “Mountain Valley Pipeline LLC wants the full Fourth Circuit to consider two rulings: One that tossed the federal government’s approval of a three-and-a-half-mile pipeline route through Jefferson National Forest in Virginia and West Virginia in January, and one that rejected the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s finding that the entire project wouldn’t jeopardize…”
KSDK: Wildlife experts working to save animals injured in oil spill
Brent Solomon, 3/15/22
“The clean-up continues at the site of a major oil spill in Edwardsville that dumped more than 160,000 gallons of oil into the Cahokia Creek,” KSDK reports. “That work includes a focus on rescuing wildlife and getting them back to health. Sadly, several animals have already died. Others are being treated right now. This as families deal with the effects of living so close to that oil spill… “Right now, the Treehouse Wildlife group in Illinois is working to save animals that were injured in the oil spill. "It's crucial. A lot of them will die if they don't get care. Even just a little bit of oil can make a big difference for them,” Dr. Allison Daugherty with the World Bird Sanctuary told KSDK. "A lot of times you have to stabilize the animal before you ever bathe them but the longer you wait to bathe them, the longer that material is on them, the more likely they are to ingest it if they're trying to clean their feathers or trying to preen,” she explained. "If you put them through the shock or stress of a bath too soon that could kill them too so it's kind of a fine line,” she continued. Tuesday, people donated resources to help with the mission. Meantime, families who live nearby have concerns of their own. "I don't know if what we're smelling all of this is not going to affect our health,” Loehr told KSDK.
Healing MN: Water protector wins civil rights appeal against Morton County for excessive force used during DAPL resistance
3/14/22
“Water protector Marcus Mitchell won a victory in the Eighth District Court of Appeals today; the ruling reversed a lower court decision that dismissed his excessive force claims,” Healing MN reports. “Mitchell’s lawsuit now goes back to lower court for further deliberations. Morton County Sheriff’s deputies shot Mitchell with lead-filled bean bags while he peacefully protested the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) in 2017. One of those bean bags hit him in the head, shattering his eye socket. Mitchell lost sight in his left eye, and has partial hearing loss in his left ear, an article in The Guardian said… “Mitchell, who is Diné, filed suit under a federal law that allows people to sue governments for violations of their civil rights. A lower court dismissed all of Mitchells’ six claims. The Appeals Court reversed the dismissal on three of them which the lower court must now reconsider… “According to the court ruling, Mitchell was charged with criminal trespass and obstruction of a government function. Mitchell agreed to pretrial diversion. The “state conditionally agreed to dismiss the charges.”
Argus Leader: Concerned landowners lobby Minnehaha County Commission to oppose Midwest CO2 pipeline
Nicole Ki, 3/15/22
“A group of 20 concerned residents filled Minnehaha County Commission's meeting room Tuesday morning, eager to hear about how the commission plans to address a proposed CO2 pipeline project that, for several, runs too close to home,” the Argus Leader reports. “At Minnehaha County Commission's weekly meeting Tuesday, nine landowners testified for more than half an hour against the pipeline and the liabilities that come with it. They alerted commissioners they are facing a reality that landowner and resident safety could be endangered if the CO2 pipeline malfunctions or bursts. "The reason we are opposed to this pipeline, whether it be Navigator or Summit, is that the business model is predicated on capturing federal carbon credits," said Rick Bonander, a rural Valley Springs landowner. "And that's to the tune over 12 years of $9 billion dollars." “...Bonander also brought up landowner concerns about Summit using eminent domain for "private gain," and added landowners don't have insurance coverage, making them 100% responsible should the pipeline leak… “Chancellor resident Peggy Hoogestraat said in public testimony she was contacted that the proposed pipeline would go through her property and denied them permission to cross her property to do a survey. "The reason is Dakota Access Pipeline also crosses that same property," Hoogestraat said. "When construction started on that pipeline in 2016, it was a nightmare." “...And there's already been a leak on her property. "There are four homes around that leak," she explained. "That is an oil leak, not a carbon dioxide leak, which would be devastating for anybody in Minnehaha County." Commissioner Jeff Barth chimed in at the closing of public testimony, voicing his support for residents. "It's a boondoggle to enrich a private party," Barth said. "It's going to damage the land permanently and endanger our citizens." Barth spoke specifically to residents who came to the meeting, saying, "I stand with you on this." He got a chorus of "thank you's" in response.
Holt Independent: Holt County Planning And Zoning Looks In To Moratorium Options
3/15/22
“The Holt County Board of Planning and Zoning met with a full house at the O'Neill Assembly of God Church last Monday evening. The meeting was dominated by a public hearing on a proposed moratorium concerning all industrial pipeline, wind and solar power development, and commercial livestock operations requiring a conditional use permit for 18 months,” the Holt Independent reports. “...The crowd, represented by people from all over the county, were concerned as to the effects the moratorium would have on economic development in the county over the proposed two year time. Most importantly was the effect for livestock producers… “Mary Kaczor stated, "The county came really close to getting sued by the pipeline and we think we need to look at things for the interest of the people… “The commission hired a company to help them revamp their plan... “The companies they looked at said they needed to have a moratorium because of the lack of information that the current comprehensive plan covers and with the potential of projects to come such as the CO2 pipeline and possibly another oil pipeline project, they need to be ready for the health and well being of the people of the county… “Concern as to the length of the moratorium as well as the livestock restriction grated on the crowd. After much discussion and many comments from the crowd, the board asked the crowd for a show of hands to have commercial livestock operations be taken off of the moratorium. An overwhelming show of hands told the board that the crowd wanted it off… “The board amended their proposal to leave commercial livestock off of the moratorium. The proposal will now go to the supervisors meeting this Wednesday, March 16 at 1:30 p.m.”
Delaware Public Media: Eastern Shore Natural Gas pipeline expansion approved by Sussex Planning and Zoning
Kelli Steele, 3/15/22
“The expansion of a natural gas facility in Bridgeville has cleared one hurdle but now faces another,” Delaware Public Media reports. “The Sussex County Planning and Zoning Commission recently approved the proposed pipeline capacity expansion at Eastern Shore Natural Gas’ Bridgeville facility. The plan has faced criticism by community members and environmental advocates like Food and Water Watch Delaware, a group that fights for safe food, clean water and a livable climate for First State residents. Greg Layton is an organizer with Food and Water Watch Delaware, “I was disappointed in the motion. They stated that there would be no detrimental effects on the projects’ neighbors. And I strongly disagree with that assertion. The project would be within 330 feet of a home, 1,100 feet from a playground and 1,300 feet from a school.” “...Layton notes the project also needs approval from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. He told DPM Food and Water Watch Delaware will continue to oppose this project at all levels.”
KXLG: SD PUC Grants Requests Essentially Ending Any Chance of Keystone Pipeline Passing Through State
Steve Jurrens, 3/15/22
“The South Dakota Public Utilities Commission has granted three requests from T-C Energy that essentially ends any chance that the Keystone XL pipeline could pass through the state,” KXLG reports. “Keystone attorney William Taylor requested release of road bonding for the project along with reporting requirements. Commissioner Gary Hanson had a number of questions for Taylor including the conditions of roads in counties where the pipeline would have passed. Hanson also asked about easements for the pipeline, which is an area the P-U-C doesn’t deal in. Also approved in the action by the P-U-C was the release of Public Liaison Officer Sarah Metcalf from her duties as a connection between the public and the pipeline project.”
NBC26: Wisconsin lawmaker to contact stakeholders in effort to replace closed Green Bay gas pipeline
Ben Bokun, 3/15/22
“A once bustling method of fuel transportation, Northeast Wisconsin's only gas pipeline still sits inactive after over five years since it was shut down,” NBC26 reports. “Now, Republican State Senator Roger Roth says it's a priority to get it reopened… “The 60-plus-year-old West Shore pipeline runs from Milwaukee to Green Bay. Roth says corrosion and leaks have left it beyond fixing. But the Appleton-based lawmaker says he's beginning to reach out to stakeholders to see what can be done to replace the pipe. "I know the economics didn't make sense six years ago, but certainly they do now when we're approaching $5 a gallon gas," he told NBC26. Roth plans to meet with anyone who would have interest, including producers, users and pipeline owners. "[There are] 1.2 million people relying on fuel being trucked in across Wisconsin," he told NBC26. "This is untenable. This is not a sustainable thing for our economic and energy security here in Northeast Wisconsin."
WASHINGTON UPDATES
Politico: House liberals to urge Biden to declare climate emergency, ban drilling on federal lands
JOSH SIEGEL, 3/15/22
“House progressives are planning to call on President Joe Biden this week to use his executive power to declare climate change a national emergency and to ban fossil fuel drilling on public lands,” Politico reports. “The request from the Congressional Progressive Caucus comes as many Democratic clean energy priorities have stalled in Congress. The push for the sweeping use of the executive powers expected from the group of nearly 100 lawmakers on Thursday will also touch issues such as student loan debt, voting rights and immigration. Rep. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.), a caucus member, told POLITICO that calling on Biden to declare a climate emergency would be one of the “centerpiece” actions to headline their executive order plan. A draft of the climate portion of the plan shared by a House Democratic office included the request for the national emergency declaration, along with requests for Biden to declare a ban on oil and gas drilling on federal lands, end domestic and international fossil fuel subsidies, and issue executive orders related to environmental justice and clean air and water.”
Politico: BUILD BACK WITH CLIMATE
Matthew Choi, 3/15/22
“As the administration is putting a lot of its attention toward ramping up fossil fuel production to deal with the current geopolitical crisis and its impact on energy prices, a cohort of 89 House Democrats is urging President Joe Biden to revive his Build Back Better agenda, kicking it off with the over $500 billion in climate investments,” Politico reports. “During your State of the Union address, you called for decisive action on clean energy and climate change. We were encouraged to hear you discuss how families will save an average of $500 per year on their energy costs through investments and tax credits. With your support, urging Congressional leaders to move forward with these climate provisions would mark the largest climate investment in our nation’s history,” the lawmakers wrote in a Monday letter to Biden. Signatories included six committee chairs and 12 appropriators.”
Politico: THE CANADIAN CRUDE LINK
Matthew Choi, 3/15/22
“Republican senators are urging Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to resolve a rail worker strike that could jeopardize a key rail link with the United States — and stall much needed Canadian crude with it,” Politico reports. “Sens. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), Steve Daines (R-Mont.), Mike Braun (R-Ind.) and John Hoeven (R-N.D.) write that “shutting down North America’s essential rail supply chain would create a freight capacity crisis” in a letter to Trudeau today. Canada has been sending about 140,000 barrels of oil each day by rail to the U.S.”
Press release: EJ Orgs Call for Halt In Buildout of New & Expanded Gas Exports
3/15/22
“Today, WE ACT for Environmental Justice, Deep South Center for Environmental Justice, Healthy Gulf and Tallahassee Food Network, Inc., and 40+ other environmental justice groups, and 28 allies and supporters sent a letter, calling on President Biden and high ranking members of his administration to halt the proposed buildout of new/expanded gas export facilities. These groups represent communities across the country that are disproportionately and adversely affected by the oil and gas industry. The letter asks for: President Biden to direct the Department of Energy to use its regulatory authority to halt gas exports; The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to embed climate and environmental justice in environmental and public interest reviews and stop LNG projects; The Environmental Protection Agency to be better engaged in the permitting and environmental review processes at FERC and Department of Transportation to block LNG export facilities or expansions; and The White House to urge Congress to align with the Build Back Better domestic agenda by expanding and increasing federal funding for the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program and Weatherization Assistance Program.”
Politico: PHILLIPS’ VISION
Matthew Choi, 3/15/22
“Willie Phillips, the newest FERC commissioner, caught up with POLITICO’s Catherine Morehouse on the sidelines of CERAWeek, where they discussed the hottest topics facing the commission, including its controversial policy statement on climate and environmental justice considerations in pipeline project approvals,” Politico reports. “Phillips has weathered criticism for his support for the policy statement from Republican senators who questioned if the statement was inconsistent with his previous commitment toward ensuring reliability and affordability… “The Democratic commissioners got a nudge in the direction of their policy statement from EPA late last week when it urged FERC to consider the potential downstream and upstream emissions of the pending CP2 LNG and CP Express Project. The agency particularly stressed FERC to take into account how the liquefied natural gas and pipeline project would play into the Biden administration’s as well as state and regional greenhouse gas reduction goals.”
STATE UPDATES
Sacramento Bee: Expanding California’s Oil Industry Won’t Stop Gas Price Increases
Dale Kasler, 3/14/22
“From the dusty fields of the San Joaquin Valley to the offshore platforms of Southern California, California's oil producers say they could help stabilize runaway gasoline prices — if only Gov. Gavin Newsom's administration would let them,” the Sacramento Bee reports. “Oil industry executives say the state Department of Conservation is sitting on an estimated 1,000 permit applications to drill new wells — frustrating their efforts to increase supplies as war rages in Ukraine and America cuts off imports from Russia… “But here's the reality: Any surge in production probably wouldn't make a dent in gasoline prices, averaging $5.72 a gallon statewide as of Friday. The price of oil is set by global market forces — and California doesn't have nearly the influence on supplies as, say, Saudi Arabia. More drilling in Kern County, the capital of the California oil industry, or off the coast of Santa Barbara almost surely wouldn't make a significant difference in price. "They would be a drop in the global oil market," Severin Borenstein, an energy economist at UC Berkeley, told the Bee. "The idea that ratcheting up production in California would change the price of gasoline isn't plausible." Environmentalists said California shouldn't give in to oil producers' demands. The industry is "trying to exploit this international conflict and higher gas prices to advance their own interests," Hollin Kretzmann, a lawyer with the Center for Biological Diversity, told the Bee. "The solution is to move us rapidly to renewables and electrification so we don't have to rely on oil and gas."
Capital and Main: Oil and Gas Industry Heavily Outspends Clean Energy and Environmental Groups on Lobbying in California
Josh Slowiczek, 3/14/22
“Oil and gas interests spent four times as much as environmental advocacy groups and almost six times as much as clean energy firms on lobbying efforts in California between 2018 and 2021, according to a Capital & Main analysis — reflecting the intensity of the industry’s efforts to influence policy in a state whose leaders have vowed to build an energy future free of fossil fuels,” Capital and Main reports. “Between 2018 and 2021, lobbying organizations representing oil and gas companies spent almost $77.5 million advocating for the industry’s interests in Sacramento. That’s approximately 400% more than environmental advocacy groups, which spent roughly $15 million over that same period. And it’s 560% more than the renewable energy sector, which spent $11.6 million. Even when combined, the environmental and renewable energy lobbying groups’ reported expenditures constitute less than a third of what the oil and gas sector has spent on lobbying over that four-year period. “It’s kind of like a David versus Goliath situation,” Brandon Dawson, the director of Sierra Club California, who heads the only chapter of the longtime environmental group that is dedicated solely to legislative and regulatory advocacy, told Capital & Main. As the group’s chief lobbyist, he tries to influence how laws are written and enforced, but he feels outmanned by the oil and gas industry. “They have a lot more lobbyists on staff. They’re able to entertain more legislators than the Sierra Club and other environmental organizations. And they definitely have the financial bandwidth,” he told Capital and Main. The numbers make his case. Last year, the Sierra Club California spent roughly $510,000 on lobbying efforts for more than 200 pieces of legislation. Its counterpart representing the interests of the oil and gas industry, the Western States Petroleum Association (WSPA), spent approximately $4.3 million lobbying on just 25 bills, deploying much more firepower to influence legislation.”
New York Times: How High Oil Prices Threaten a California Plastic Container Business
Peter S. Goodman, 3/14/22
“Long before President Vladimir V. Putin unleashed his war on Ukraine, Mosharraf Khalid was already contending with an expensive, bewildering and unrelenting assortment of problems afflicting the global supply chain,” the New York Times reports. “His company, Royal Interpack North America, makes plastic packaging for fresh fruit. Last year, its raw materials were routinely stuck for weeks on container ships left floating in traffic jams off the overwhelmed port of Long Beach. This past week, Mr. Khalid’s business was hit with another confounding variable when President Biden announced a ban on imports of Russian oil. Mr. Biden’s oil ban is not expected to leave the United States short much crude. But less oil landing on world markets — the result of the American ban on Russian sales — spells higher energy prices everywhere. It also means higher prices for petroleum products like plastic, whose prices track oil. Even the recycled plastic chips that Mr. Khalid’s company depends on as the primary ingredient for its packaging containers will cost him more. “The price is going to go up,” Mr. Khalid told the Times. “It’s going to be a dramatic change. It’s going to hit us again.”
EXTRACTION
NM Political Report: Study finds flaring can impact the health of people 60 miles away
Hannah Grover, 3/14/22
“A new paper looking at the health impacts of flaring in the Bakken area of North Dakota found that people 60 miles away can experience respiratory distress because of flaring,” according to NM Political Report. “The impacts have significant economic effects that should be considered in regulatory policy, the researchers said. The lead author, Wesley Blundell, told the Report these impacts could be even more pronounced in the Permian Basin, where flaring in 2020 was greater than the flaring in the Bakken during the study time period and population density, at least in west Texas, is greater than in North Dakota. Blundell is an assistant professor at the School of Economics at Washington State University and told the Report he approached the topic largely from an economic perspective, including placing a dollar value on the public health impacts of flaring. This estimated dollar impact is based on the amount of natural gas flared… “They found that an increase in flaring of 1 percent can lead to a 0.73 percent increase in hospitalizations. In North Dakota, the study found an increase of 11,000 hospital visits. The time period examined was early in the Bakken boom from 2007 to 2015… "Typically, Blundell told the Report, people think that those most impacted by oil and gas are the people who are also getting the economic benefits from that development. But, in the case of the Bakken, he said that is not necessarily true. This is one of the things he said surprised him the most while doing the study. He said 50 percent of the impacts from flaring were in areas where 20 percent of the resources were extracted.”
Reuters: Chevron set to trade Venezuelan oil if U.S. relaxes sanctions, sources say
By Marianna Parraga and Matt Spetalnick, 3/14/22
“Chevron Corp. is preparing to take operating control of its joint ventures in Venezuela if Washington relaxes sanctions on Caracas to boost crude supplies after banning Russia's oil imports, according to three people familiar with the situation,” Reuters reports. “...Chevron has asked the U.S. government for a license broad enough to have a greater say at its joint ventures in Venezuela, a first step to recovering crude output and exports, and to control where oil is sent, the three people said… “U.S. officials have made clear, however, that any new authorization will depend on whether Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro takes further political steps, two sources said, such as releasing more jailed Americans and setting a firm date for resuming negotiations with the Venezuelan opposition. Chevron's proposed moves could revitalize Venezuela's oil output and exports after years of underinvestment and sanctions shrank it to about 755,000 barrels per day (bpd) last month from 2.3 million bpd in 2016. Chevron's joint ventures with PDVSA had produced about 200,000 bpd before U.S. sanctions and lack of financing cut their output.”
Bloomberg: Alberta oilsands land sale earns most in decade as crude surges
3/15/22
“Alberta’s government earned the most in more than 10 years in a sale of rights to develop oilsands land just as crude prices surged after the Russian invasion of Ukraine,” Bloomberg reports. “In a public offering on Wednesday, the province raised about C$53 million ($42 million) for oilsands rights, the most earned in a single sale since December 2011, according to government data compiled by Bloomberg. The sale also included the largest single transaction in a decade: a company named Whispering Hills Resources Ltd. paid C$14.2 million for a parcel of land in the Peace River oil sands area. The oilsands, shunned by some international companies and investors for the region’s high carbon-emitting operations, has seen its fortunes improve as buyers look to replace Russian crude… “Alberta sells the rights to companies to develop parcels of oilsands land multiple times a year but most individual sales haven’t brought in more than C$1 million as development in the region slowed after prices collapsed in 2014.”
WRIC: Oil prices dropped, so why haven’t gas prices?
Alix Martichoux, 3/16/22
“A glimmer of hope appeared for drivers Tuesday as the price of oil dropped back below $100 per barrel. Yet gas prices remained high, averaging $4.32 per gallon nationwide, according to AAA,” WRIC reports. “Just a week ago, the price of a barrel of oil was substantially higher – over $130 – but gas prices were actually lower, at $4.17 nationwide. What gives? There’s a lag between changes in oil prices and changes in prices at the pump, and that lag is even slower when prices come down. When the price of oil starts to rise, you’ll see gas prices rise a few days later, as stations pass on that hike as quickly as possible to avoid losing money. A big spike in crude oil prices is typically followed by a gas price spike three to five days later, Patrick De Haan, lead petroleum analyst at GasBuddy, told WRIC. When crude oil prices start to fall, gas stations might not be in as big of a rush to cut prices. “When oil prices drop, stations take a little bit more time to lower prices as to recoup any losses taken when oil prices rose quickly,” Nicole Petersen, a GasBuddy spokesperson, told WRIC. .. “As crude oil prices have been falling for about a week, Petersen expects to see the effect trickle down to your local gas pump in the next three to five days.”
CLIMATE FINANCE
E&E News: Sarah Bloom Raskin withdraws amid GOP, Manchin opposition
Nick Sobczyk, 3/15/22
“Sarah Bloom Raskin has withdrawn her nomination to be the Federal Reserve’s vice chair for supervision just a day after Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) announced his opposition,” E&E News reports. “Manchin, the Senate Energy and Natural Resources chair, said yesterday he would not support Raskin on the floor because of her views on climate change. It effectively killed her nomination in the 50-50 Senate, particularly after fellow moderate Sens. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and Susan Collins (R-Maine) said they would not vote for Raskin either. “Despite her readiness — and despite having been confirmed by the Senate with broad, bipartisan support twice in the past — Sarah was subject to baseless attacks from industry and conservative interest groups,” President Biden said in a statement announcing her withdrawal… “Banking Chair Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) told E&E his committee would proceed with a markup on Powell and the other Fed nominees, including vice chair pick Lael Brainard, as well as Philip Jefferson and Lisa Cook. They are expected to be confirmed, and Powell is likely to get wide bipartisan support. “Republicans engaged in a disingenuous smear campaign, distorting Ms. Raskin’s views beyond recognition, and made unsubstantiated attacks on her character,” Brown said in a statement. “Committee Democrats were united, and we did our jobs.”
OPINION
Superior Telegram: Column: Pipeline relocation right for Wisconsin workers, families
Terry McGowan is president and business manager of the International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 139; John Schmitt is president and business manager of the Wisconsin Laborers' District Council; Corey Gall is president of the Wisconsin Pipe Trades Association, 3/15/22
“Collectively, our unions are made up of tens of thousands of Wisconsin workers who have been on the front line of developing and maintaining Wisconsin’s transportation and energy infrastructure,” write for the Superior Telegram. “ We know how important roads, bridges, transmission lines and pipelines are to the health and safety of Wisconsin families and to keeping our state’s economy moving forward. That’s why our unions, and a wide range of other organizations from agriculture to labor to manufacturing, have come together to support the Enbridge Line 5 relocation project in northern Wisconsin… “The work on the project will be led by a contractor from right here in Wisconsin, who employs our members — members who, in our opinion, are the best-trained tradesmen and women in the world. Additionally, over $45 million of the project will be spent on hiring Native owned businesses and workers. In total, it’s estimated this project will create more than 1,000 Wisconsin jobs, the majority of which will be located in the project area of Bayfield, Ashland and Iron counties. This project is not only important from an economic standpoint, it is also critical to maintaining a reliable and affordable energy supply… “Approval of the Enbridge Line 5 relocation project means more Wisconsin jobs, more union jobs, and prevents additional supply and price disruptions on our state’s families. We urge the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources to issue the permits needed to begin construction of this important project.”
The Atlantic: The U.S. Subsidy That Empowers Putin
David Frum, 3/15/22
“The United States is supporting Ukraine with aid and weapons and punishing Russian aggression with financial and economic sanctions. But the United States can do more to resolve the global crisis caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine: It can end the ethanol program,” David Frum writes for The Atlantic. “For decades, the U.S. government has, at great expense, encouraged farmers to grow more corn so that it can be turned into ethanol, a gasoline additive. Ethanol makers receive all kinds of grants and subsidies. Federal regulations require ethanol to be blended into gasoline, creating a giant industry that would not exist without large subsidies and imperious mandates. America’s largest ethanol company earned annual revenues of $8 billion pre-pandemic. Demand from the ethanol industry, in turn, bids up the price of corn, and the income of those who farm it… “Almost 70 percent of all U.S. grain production is now corn, up from 47 percent in the late 1960s. And of that immense crop of corn, almost half is formulated into ethanol to drive cars and trucks. Converting corn into fuel has never made economic sense. It happens only because of a mass of federal regulations and subsidies that began during the Carter administration and were widened and deepened in 2005 and 2007… “Ethanol was historically justified as an energy-independence strategy… “But whatever the (slim-to-none) merits of that argument in 2007, its merits are zero in 2022, when the United States has become the world’s largest producer of both oil and natural gas. And though ethanol may have some small environmental advantages over gasoline, those arguable benefits are nullified by ethanol’s terrible toll on world food output… “Americans and Europeans are discovering how much of the power in Russia’s hands is power that the West carelessly gave up by buying Russian gas, looking away from flows of corrupt money, failing to respond to past aggressions and provocations, and stinting on military aid to Ukraine. One of the biggest and most important of those grants of power was the decision to use U.S. agricultural resources so perversely… “The good earth of the U.S. Midwest can contribute more to growing the food to feed humanity. It’s past time to junk the rules and special favors that stand in the way.”
Boulder Daily Camera: Ian Silverii: Big Oil profits when prices surge, and corporations will cash in on this crisis
Ian Silverii is the founder of The Bighorn Company, a dad, a husband, and the former director of ProgressNow Colorado, 3/12/22
“As Russia perpetrates war crimes against the people of Ukraine, the fossil fuel industries in Colorado and across the country are licking their collective chops and preparing to cash in on the crisis, likely generating yet another round of record profits in adherence to one of Winston Churchill’s most famous maxims, “Never let a good crisis go to waste,” Ian Silverii writes for the Boulder Daily Camera. “...Big Oil is exploiting the Russian invasion of Ukraine and its effects on the price of gas to run up record profits and handsomely reward their shareholders and CEOs by using the American people as their own personal ATMs… “Republican politicians and their backers are doing absolutely everything they can to help these unscrupulous corporations bilk us for every penny while the gettin’s good, and disingenuously trying to lay the blame for the rising price of gasoline at the feet of President Joe Biden and Democrats everywhere, claiming that progressive policies are holding the industry back from unleashing American energy to the world… “In fairness, environmental and clean energy advocates are taking this moment to make the case that if we weren’t so dependent on fossil fuels, to begin with, no matter which hole they come out of, we would be insulated from these price shocks and put ourselves on the path to achieve true American energy independence. That seems obviously true, and while the prevailing narrative in the media seems to be all about gas prices, advocates should point to the rollercoaster of oil prices, the unscrupulous profiteering of the fossil fuel industry, to say nothing of the worsening dangers of climate change as three very good reasons that America should be investing in a 21st-century clean energy infrastructure instead of trusting that fossil fuel companies and their investors will ever put the country’s best interest over their shareholders’ financial interests.”