EXTRACTED: Daily News Clips 3/18/22
PIPELINE NEWS
Canadian Press: Michigan wants ‘to have its cake and eat it too’ on Line 5: chambers of commerce
Petoskey News-Review: Next step taken in Line 5 tunnel permitting case with EIS process to begin
Bloomberg: For Sale: Trudeau’s Oil Pipeline. Wanted: Indigenous Buyers
Richmond Times-Dispatch: Developer ends plan for controversial Chickahominy Power plant in Charles City
WZTV: New TN bill would remove local voice from oil pipeline decisions
AgWeek: Landowner lawyer fights against eminent domain; pipeline hearings to start in South Dakota
KIOW: Iowa House Ready to Vote on Pipeline Eminent Domain Moratorium
WOI: Iowa lawmakers working to protect homeowners against pipeline projects
Norfolk Daily News: Open for business: Holt County supervisors deny zoning moratorium
Dakota Resource Council: DRC PROVIDES COUNSEL FOR LANDOWNERS REGARDING PROPOSED CARBON PIPELINE
Norfolk Daily News: Update provided on carbon-capture pipeline plans
Cleveland.com: Ohio has limited ability to punish Rover Pipeline over spills, Ohio Supreme Court rules
NPR: Conservatives call to revive Keystone XL, but the pipeline company has moved on
FOX Business: Rep. Carter introduces bill to restart Keystone XL pipeline, says Biden 'threw away' energy independence
WASHINGTON UPDATES
Politico: SOCIAL COST OF CARBON LIVES ANOTHER DAY
Politico: MAX LNG CAPACITY
New York Times: Climate Activists Flex Their Political Muscle
STATE UPDATES
Center for Biological Diversity: Federal Court Rejects Weld County’s Request to Delay Reductions of Dangerous Smog Pollution From Oil, Gas Operations
WHYY: Delaware’s rivers and streams are the most polluted in the U.S., a new report says
EXTRACTION
CNN: Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway is making a huge bet on this oil company
CLIMATE FINANCE
E&E News: Can Biden get a Fed climate candidate past Joe Manchin?
Bloomberg: HSBC Announces ‘Phase Down’ of Funding for Fossil-Fuel Clients
OPINION
Ashland Daily Press: LETTER: Let Enbridge’s history guide us
Globe and Mail: Ottawa must mandate oil sands producers to align with its emissions plans
PIPELINE NEWS
Canadian Press: Michigan wants ‘to have its cake and eat it too’ on Line 5: chambers of commerce
James McCarten, 3/17/22
“Business leaders from the United States and Canada are again wading into the fray over Line 5, accusing the state of Michigan of dragging its heels to ensure the controversial cross-border pipeline remains in a state of legal limbo even as both countries contend with a looming energy crisis,” the Canadian Press reports. “In a new joint amicus brief, the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, its U.S. counterpart and chambers in Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin reiterate their concern that shutting down the Enbridge Inc. pipeline would have “tremendous negative consequences” on both sides of the border.m“Such a shutdown would constrain an already disrupted energy supply, an especially problematic development given recent decisions related to importation of petroleum products from Russia,” reads the brief, a copy of which was obtained by The Canadian Press… “It is time for the federal court to resolve the question of the legality of the governor’s shutdown order,” Mark Agnew, the Canadian chamber’s senior vice-president of policy and government relations, told CP… “Environmental groups, however, aren’t giving up the fight. A new brief filed this week by a non-profit known as For Love of Water argues that Michigan is obliged to shut down any “non-public trust use” that poses a threat to public trust uses such as navigation and fishing — and also to revoke permission for that use in the event the public trust is violated.mThe group argues that when another Enbridge pipeline in Michigan, Line 6B, ruptured and polluted the Kalamazoo River in 2010, state authorities were obliged to reconsider the company’s easements.”
Petoskey News-Review: Next step taken in Line 5 tunnel permitting case with EIS process to begin
Tess Ware, 3/18/22
“The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced in a Monday press release the selection of a contractor to prepare the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for Enbridge’s Line 5 tunnel permit application,” the Petoskey News-Review reports. “Potomac-Hudson Engineering, Inc., a Maryland-based company, was chosen to be the third-party contractor and is expected to start the process soon… “According to Dowell, factors the Corps will be looking at during the EIS process include: conservation, economics, aesthetics, general environmental concerns, wetlands, historic properties, fish and wildlife values, food hazards, floodplain values land use, navigation, shore erosion and accretion, recreation, water supply and conservation, water quality, energy needs, safety, food, and fiber production, mineral needs, considerations of property ownership and in general, needs and welfare of the people… “In a Wednesday press release, the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians said, “The Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians has entered into an agreement with the United States Army Corps of Engineers to participate as a cooperating agency in the development of an Environmental Impact Statement to evaluate Enbridge Energy’s application to construct a pipeline tunnel under the bed of the Straits of Mackinac. The Tribe welcomes the opportunity to offer our extensive knowledge of the cultural and environmental resources associated with the Straits to be considered in the development of the EIS.”
Bloomberg: For Sale: Trudeau’s Oil Pipeline. Wanted: Indigenous Buyers
Ari Altstedter and Robert Tuttle, 3/18/22
“Strolling between the banks of glowing slot machines, Robert Morin seems very much like he’s still in charge at the River Cree Resort and Casino,” Bloomberg reports. “...In all the years Morin spent working at the casino, though, he couldn’t help but feel his people were getting a raw deal. Buried under the highway outside the casino’s front door runs the Trans Mountain pipeline, which generates revenue of almost C$430 million ($340 million) each year shipping Alberta crude to the Pacific coast… “Yet because the Trans Mountain pipeline was built long before Canadian courts began recognizing Indigenous people’s claims to land outside their reserves, the only benefit the Enoch Cree have seen from the pipeline since oil began flowing through it in 1953 was some temporary jobs and rent money a few years ago when work began to expand it… “Morin is now the chairman of Project Reconciliation, one of at least four Indigenous-led groups vying to take over ownership of Trans Mountain. Project Reconciliation estimates that if its bid is successful, the pipeline could bring about C$400 million annually over the next 30 years to the dozens of Indigenous groups whose traditional territory it traverses. For the Enoch Cree that would mean about C$14 million a year. Thanks to a volatile confluence of climate change, politics, and economic necessity, the Indigenous-led groups might have the opening they need. The pipeline’s proprietor is the government of Canada, and it’s looking to sell. For the past decade, opposition from environmentalists, Indigenous groups, and some provincial governments has stymied virtually all Canadian pipeline construction, forcing billions of dollars of heavy oil produced in Alberta to be sold at a discount in the U.S. rather than being loaded on tankers bound for more profitable markets in Asia. Among the threatened projects was a plan to boost Trans Mountain’s capacity from 300,000 barrels a day to almost 900,000—a badly needed spark for Alberta’s economy. So in 2018 the government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau bought the pipeline to make sure the expansion was completed. Now, with the project almost done, his government must decide what to do with it. A sale to Indigenous people could be the most politically expedient exit.”
Richmond Times-Dispatch: Developer ends plan for controversial Chickahominy Power plant in Charles City
Patrick Wilson, Holly Prestidge, 3/17/22
“The company that hoped to build a natural gas power plant in Charles City County has terminated the project following regulatory losses and strong opposition from people who live along a five-county route where a gas pipeline was to have been,” the Richmond Times-Dispatch reports. “The Chickahominy Power plant, proposed about 23 miles from downtown Richmond, was to be funded by private developers and would have been larger than any natural gas plant owned by Dominion Energy, the state’s largest electric utility. “It’s like a hundred pound weight dropped off our shoulders. It’s amazing,” Wanda Roberts, co-director of the group Concerned Citizens of Charles City County, told the Dispatch. The main concern for people locally was health because they’re already dealing with a large landfill. “Charles City County can now have a really bright future,” Roberts told the Dispatch. “We’re no longer going to be considered a sacrifice zone.” A statement on the Chickahominy Power website says the project has been terminated and that the company hopes to move forward with a plant in West Virginia or Ohio… “Unfortunately, opposition from outside interests and regulations, largely advanced by the renewable energy industry and state legislators that supported them, made it impossible to deliver natural gas to the site.” “...People along the route said they worried about negative environmental impacts, local government leaders said they had great difficulty getting information from the developer about the project, and environmental groups and some people in Charles City expressed concern about the pollutants created when natural gas is burned to create electricity.”
WZTV: New TN bill would remove local voice from oil pipeline decisions
Jackie DelPilar, 3/17/22
“A new bill would make it easier for new pipelines to come through Tennessee communities,” WZTV reports. “The bill would take away local government leaders’ abilities to stop or regulate new energy infrastructure, including oil, gas and electricity. This comes after a controversial pipeline project rocked Memphis last year. Activists loudly protested the Byhalia Pipeline, prompting the company to stop the project. The Memphis City Council put in new regulations for energy companies, following the controversy. But this bill would strip those regulations, along with power to restrict energy infrastructure in every county across the state. “It takes away the ability for the community to really hold their local officials accountable and make their thoughts known,” Sen. Raumesh Akberi told WZTV… “Supporters of the bill say it’s all about helping the economy, and to help add more access and supply to energy sources.”
AgWeek: Landowner lawyer fights against eminent domain; pipeline hearings to start in South Dakota
Jeff Beach, 3/17/22
“As public hearings on the Summit Carbon Solutions pipeline are set to begin in South Dakota, the legal jousting over the right eminent domain has begun in Iowa,” AgWeek reports. “Domina Law, a Nebraska law firm that says it has clients in all five states along the Summit pipeline route, has filed a motion in regard to what it calls Summit’s “defective filing” for a permit in Iowa, where the carbon capture pipeline would originate. Domina attorney Brian Jorde filed the motion with the Iowa Utilities Board on behalf of George Cummins, an Iowa landowner in the path of Summit’s Midwest Carbon Express, a $4.5 billion project that intends to gather carbon dioxide from 31 ethanol plants and store it underground in North Dakota. The motion contends that Summit should not be granted the right of eminent domain, giving it the power to force landowners to allow pipeline construction on their property, because Summit’s permit application lacks an “Exhibit H,” spelling out what property is needed… “Domina is making its filings on behalf of Cummins, of Charles City, Iowa, but Jorde says it could have been any number of landowners who are resistant to eminent domain. “Until this basic information sees the light of day in a transparent filing — as Exhibit H was intended to be — no action should be taken,” the filing said… “Cummins is a former Iowa State University Extension agronomist who is among those who questions whether there is a public benefit to justify the use of eminent domain. “The benefit is going to the investors, that’s what it's all about,” Cummins told AgWeek. “They’re going to cause permanent damage on all of this land for their benefit.”
KIOW: Iowa House Ready to Vote on Pipeline Eminent Domain Moratorium
AJ Taylor, 3/17/22
“Summit Carbon Solutions Incorporated continues to try and get farmers and landowners in the area to work with them on the construction of a carbon pipeline,” KIOW reports. “... In recent town hall meetings in Hancock County, the idea that if farmers and landowners do not cooperate with the pipeline company, they will be subject to possible eminent domain procedures, had many in the room upset and worried. House Republicans appear poised to vote for a year-long moratorium that would prevent the companies planning to build carbon pipelines from seeking eminent domain to seize property along the pipeline routes. Republican Representative Bobby Kaufmann of Wilton presented the plan in the House State Government Committee and all, but one Republican voted for it. House Speaker Pat Grassley says pipeline companies would still be able to negotiate easements with landowners, but this would let the legislature weigh in next year if the companies to seek mass condemnation of land.”
WOI: Iowa lawmakers working to protect homeowners against pipeline projects
3/17/22
“Iowa lawmakers introduced an amendment they say is to protect homeowners against pipeline projects using eminent domain,” WOI reports. “On Wednesday, legislators were set to discuss a bill focused on barber’s licenses, but Republican Representative Bobby Kaufmann introduced this amendment. It says pipeline companies cannot use eminent domain against private property homeowners until March 2023. Kaufmann acknowledged the amendment had nothing to do with the bill. He said it provides the assurance homeowners need before lawmakers adjourn for the session. “This to me was the best compromise I could come up with to ensure that landowners have the certainty that they need and have been asking for when we’re gone,” Kaufmann said. “Because everything changes when sine die happens, before we come back in January.” “...The amendment and barber’s license bill passed out of committee. They will now go to the full Senate for a vote.”
Norfolk Daily News: Open for business: Holt County supervisors deny zoning moratorium
LuANN SCHINDLER, 3/17/22
“After existing for 42 years, Holt County’s comprehensive plan will be updated. But a proposed 18-month moratorium on industrial pipelines, as well as wind and solar power, will not be in effect while updates take place,” the Norfolk Daily News reports. “Supervisors voted 6-0 on Wednesday to deny the moratorium, following a public hearing in O’Neill. The moratorium request came from the county’s planning and zoning commission, which voted 6-2 in favor of the moratorium on March 7, following a two-hour public hearing… “Holt County Attorney Brent Kelly told the News the idea for the update resulted from discussions with residents who approached the commission about the lack of zoning regulations after a hog facility was constructed in close proximity to their home… Nathan Nowlin, manager of Green Plains Atkinson, an ethanol plant, said he is against the moratorium… “If we are kept from reducing the carbon intensity of our plant, it could put us out of business,” Nowlin said. Seth Harder, general manager of Husker Ag, near Plainview, echoed Nowlin’s concerns, noting if some sections of the proposed CO2 pipeline aren’t allowed to participate, the entire project could be jeopardized… “Diana Steskal of Atkinson said a group of landowners have been attending planning and zoning commission meetings for the past six to eight months, to update rules and regulations for pipelines, which were penned in 2010. “No one or any company or operation is above the zoning rules and regulations,” she said. During the Keystone battle, Steskal said landowners dealt with emotional and financial stress for a dozen years. “Eighteen months, compared to 12 years, is a walk in the park,” Steskal said. Jane Kleeb of Bold Nebraska called the moratorium “common sense, even if you support carbon pipelines.” “Carbon pipelines (companies) have already been telling landowners that they will use eminent domain. We will take them to court. We believe they are not a common carrier…Once again, like we were with Keystone XL, before we got the PSC in place for oil pipelines, we are now in Wild, Wild West territory, where the only safeguard landowners have is their county board.” She reiterated that favoring the moratorium isn’t a “for or against” ethanol statement. “This is about pro or against property rights,” she said.
Dakota Resource Council: DRC PROVIDES COUNSEL FOR LANDOWNERS REGARDING PROPOSED CARBON PIPELINE
Dylan Bender, 3/16/22
“A plan that would store carbon underground in North Dakota and the pipeline that would transport it have area landowners asking questions,” the Dakota Resource Council reports. “...Landowners from the region met with representatives Scott Skokos, Elliot Huggins from the Dakota Resource Council, and Brian Jorde of Nebraska-based Domina Law Group on March 8, at the Oakes Community Center. The DRC is a non-profit organization that was formed in 1978 to protect land, air, and water resources within the state, as well as to protect the rights of rural communities, and agriculture economies. The purpose of the evening was to inform landowners of potential hazards, liabilities, and concerns that would come with Summit Carbon Solutions' proposed Co2 pipeline, as well as discussions about easements, eminent domain, and potential legal options… “Jorde, the lawyer from Domina Law Group, has experience with landowner-pipeline issues… “Jorde also gave an overview of the framework in the 5th Amendment that allows the government, and more recently, corporations, to pass through private property—eminent domain—if the project is considered to be for the public good. “But, the bar has been lowered on what is ‘public good,’” he said. To use eminent domain in ND, 52% of the easements must be acquired through landowner agreement. In McIntosh County, it is believed only three such agreements have been signed. There’s a collective legal pool for landowners affected, Jorde noted. It’s called the North Dakota Easement Team. It’s essentially a landowners co-op for legal representation. The pool allows landowners to be collectively and professionally represented in talks with Summit, with cost reduced with each member added. Jorde urged a cautious approach. “Don’t be seduced by a dollar amount (for an easement),” he said. “Delay is the landowner's best friend.”
Norfolk Daily News: Update provided on carbon-capture pipeline plans
By JERRY GUENTHER, 3/17/22
“Summit Carbon Solutions, one of two companies seeking to build pipelines across Northeast Nebraska to gather and transport carbon dioxide, is making progress with landowners through voluntary easements,” the Norfolk Daily News reports. “Chris Hill, the company’s director of environmental and permitting, said through the voluntary discussions with landowners, the company has a standard easement template it uses that contains “standard conditions.” Some opponents of the pipeline allege that once the easement is signed, the company can years later use the easement to transport another product or use it for another purpose… “So what about concerns that Nebraska doesn’t have a utility commission or service board to regulate these pipelines? Hill told the News Nebraska has a public service commission, and it hasn’t caught up to CO2 being in the regulations. Nevertheless, Summit is still required to go through a permitting process at the county level. The same requirements exist, but in a little different form that is more labor for the company. Concerns have been raised that if the pipeline were to leak, it would rupture. There was a video on YouTube that showed one rupture in Mississippi, with people in the area collapsing because of lack of oxygen. In addition, people could not drive away because cars would not run because of a lack of oxygen… “In the unlikely case there is a release, it will go out and dissipate. There are monitors on the pipeline, and people would probably hear any leak. There is no danger to public safety with small leaks, Hill told the News… “If a leak is detected, the system will be isolated and workers will be sent out to investigate, he said. If there is a large enough leak, there is a risk to someone’s safety, which is what happened in Mississippi, he said. Engineers have learned from that incident in Mississippi, he said, and the design is such that the integrity of the pipeline is maintained at all times and public safety is the top concern.”
Cleveland.com: Ohio has limited ability to punish Rover Pipeline over spills, Ohio Supreme Court rules
Peter Krouse, 3/17/22
“The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency has limited ability to punish Rover Pipeline for causing diesel spills in Ohio waterways because the agency did not act quickly enough to certify the compay’s discharge permit under the federal Clean Water Act, the Ohio Supreme Court ruled in a 4-3 decision on Thursday,” Cleveland.com reports. “The state had one year to act on the permit application, but after Rover submitted its application in November of 2015, the Ohio EPA did not grant certification until February 2017. “We conclude that the state waived its right to participate” in the certification process “and, therefore, that the state cannot assert rights related to that certification,” wrote Justice Michael Donnelly in an opinion joined by three other justices. “That waiver does not extend, however, to the state’s rights and authority that are unrelated to that certification.” In other words, there may be other avenues to sue Rover and the contractors over the spills. The case has been remanded to Stark County Common Pleas Court for further clarification. The case began after Rover and “several contractors experienced two major fluid spills -- one that included natural materials that were noted in its permits and the other containing diesel-laced water that the companies did not disclose they were using in the pipeline’s construction,” states Court New Ohio, the public information arm of the Ohio Supreme Court.”
NPR: Conservatives call to revive Keystone XL, but the pipeline company has moved on
ARIELLE ZIONTS, 3/17/22
“A popular conservative talking point about rising gas prices and the crisis in Ukraine calls for the U.S. to revive the Keystone XL Pipeline,” NPR reports. “President Biden revoked its permit on his first day in office under pressure from tribal members and environmental activists. Despite pleas to reverse course, the company behind Keystone XL is busy liquidating assets… ARIELLE ZIONTS, BYLINE: As soon as oil prices spiked after Russia invaded Ukraine, conservative politicians across the country started beating the drum to revive Keystone XL. KRISTI NOEM: When he canceled the Keystone pipeline on day one of his presidency, he sent a clear message to Putin. MIKE ROUNDS: President Biden should come back and authorize the pipelines, which he has stopped in his first days in office. The Keystone XL is an example. JOE MANCHIN: We should have built that pipeline. I still think we should build that pipeline… “ZIONTS:.. Not in front of the cameras, though, was Bill Taylor, an attorney representing TC Energy, the pipeline company. He spoke at a hearing in South Dakota this week, securing the return of a $15 million road bond. Keystone XL was supposed to carry oil from Canadian tar sands across Montana, South Dakota and Nebraska to refineries in the Gulf of Mexico. Experts said most of the crude would have been processed at the Gulf refineries, but there's debate over whether most of the final product would have been sold in the U.S. or to overseas markets. TC Energy has already removed underground pipes in Montana, sold land in South Dakota and dropped an eminent domain case in Nebraska. Still, Montana Governor Greg Gianforte this week joined the chorus, writing the White House asking Biden to approve the pipeline.”
FOX Business: Rep. Carter introduces bill to restart Keystone XL pipeline, says Biden 'threw away' energy independence
3/17/22
“Rep. "Buddy" Carter, R-Ga., joined FOX Business' Dagen McDowell on "Mornings with Maria" Thursday to discuss his proposed legislation to revive the Keystone XL pipeline,” FOX Business reports. “Carter argued that the Biden administration "threw away" American energy independence in favor of foreign energy supplies. “Let's face it, since day one, Joe Biden has declared war on fossil fuels here in the United States. He's declared war on energy independence. We recognize now, if we recognize anything out of Ukraine, just how important energy independence is to our national security. We have to have energy independence; we had it. When Joe Biden took office, he threw it away. Now we need it again,” Carter told FOX.
WASHINGTON UPDATES
Politico: SOCIAL COST OF CARBON LIVES ANOTHER DAY
Matthew Choi, 3/17/22
“A federal appeals court picked apart a lower court ruling Wednesday that gutted President Joe Biden’s social cost of carbon, meaning federal agencies will be able to get back to using the figure in writing rules and assessing projects,” Politico reports. “The Biden administration set the social cost of carbon last year at $51 per ton — the same as under the Obama administration — and environmentalists hoped that number would go up following further review. But Republican states challenged the SCC’s legality, with a federal court in Louisiana siding with them and preventing the Biden administration from using the figure, which the administration warned would lead to chaos by cutting out a major variable in their assessments. The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals found the whole GOP-led exercise specious and lifted the injunction. The judges rejected the argument that the metric could cause real, measurable harm, and dismissed the claims as “generalized grievance” against the administration. Their stay on the Louisiana decision is temporary, but the judges cast serious doubt on the red states’ case.”
Politico: MAX LNG CAPACITY
Matthew Choi, 3/17/22
“The Biden administration greenlit new liquefied natural gas exports from Cheniere Energy’s Sabine Pass in Louisiana and Corpus Christi in Texas — giving every operating U.S. LNG export project approval to export at full capacity to any country not under sanctions,” Politico reports. “The two orders will let the facilities ship out 0.72 billion cubic feet per day of natural gas to any country that doesn’t have a free trade agreement with the U.S., opening the door to all of Europe. The U.S. is currently the top global LNG exporter, and the Biden administration has worked to ramp up LNG imports in Europe to help offset Russian natural gas. Republican Rep. Garret Graves of Louisiana praised the Biden administration for the approvals, but suggested DOE only acted after being compelled by events.”
New York Times: Climate Activists Flex Their Political Muscle
Blake Hounshell and Leah Askarinam, 3/17/22
“At the urging of environmental groups, Democrats are going on the offensive on gas prices — hitting energy companies with a populist message that puts the party squarely at odds with Republicans and the oil industry,” the New York Times reports. “To do otherwise would be “dangerous and political malpractice,” Geoff Garin, a Democratic pollster, argued in a memo published on Thursday. In a survey, Garin found that 60 percent of voters viewed “price gouging and excessive price increases by oil companies to increase their profits” as major reasons that gas prices have risen to a national average of $4.29 per gallon. “They’re jacking up prices, and people see that,” Pete Maysmith, a senior vice president for campaigns at the League of Conservation Voters, which co-sponsored the poll, told the Times.Climate Power, an allied group, unveiled an ad this week, titled “We’ve Been Here Before,” that is running on cable television and online… “The ad is the beginning of a new $5 million push by a coalition of green groups to highlight what they claim is profiteering by oil companies and to raise the pressure on Congress to pass stalled climate legislation. It’s also the latest sign of the growing clout of the environmental movement, which has moved over the last decade from the periphery of Democratic political power to its very center.”
STATE UPDATES
Center for Biological Diversity: Federal Court Rejects Weld County’s Request to Delay Reductions of Dangerous Smog Pollution From Oil, Gas Operations
3/17/2
“A federal appeals court has rejected Weld County’s attempt to delay steps to reduce pollution from the Colorado county’s oil and gas operations that contributes to asthma-causing smog in the Metro-Denver and Front Range region,” according to the Center for Biological Diversity. “The area, which is home to 3.3 million people, has some of the worst air pollution in the world. That pollution is caused largely by fracking for oil and methane gas. The federal appeals court decision late Tuesday rejected Weld County’s request that the court stay, or pause, the Environmental Protection Agency’s decision requiring the entire county to strengthen its pollution-reduction measures for ozone, commonly known as smog… “Tuesday’s court ruling came after Weld County sued the EPA to try to keep northern Weld County, and its hundreds of pollution-producing oil and methane gas wells, from having to implement protective measures to reduce pollution. Weld County asked the court to put these protective measures on hold while the case was pending, but the court turned down that request… “The court’s ruling will lead to reductions in the oil and gas smog pollution that not only triggers asthma attacks and other health problems but harms aspen trees and imperiled species like the Mexican spotted owl and obscures vistas in Rocky Mountain National Park.”
WHYY: Delaware’s rivers and streams are the most polluted in the U.S., a new report says
Zoë Read, 3/17/22
“Delaware has a higher percentage of rivers and streams affected by pollution than any other state in the country, according to an Environmental Integrity Project report that evaluates the success of the Clean Water Act — 50 years after it was signed into law,” WHYY reports. “Released Thursday, the report evaluates waterways across the United States that are classified as impaired. That means they’re too polluted to meet standards for uses such as swimming and recreation, aquatic life, fish consumption, and drinking… “Streams and rivers across the United States still are encumbered with toxic algae and pollution, some of which stems from oil refineries, chemical plants, and slaughterhouses, the report’s authors say. They argue that waterways are vulnerable to these types of contamination because for decades the EPA has not updated technology-based standards for pollution control systems. Half the assessed river and stream miles in the United States are classified as impaired, as are 55% of lake acres that have been studied, according to the report. But those numbers don’t reveal the full scope of the problem, the report says, because 73% of river and stream miles across the U.S. — and almost half of lakes — have not been assessed in recent years.”
EXTRACTION
CNN: Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway is making a huge bet on this oil company
Paul R. La Monica, 3/17/22
“The Oracle of Omaha is making an even bigger bet on a major oil company as crude prices continue to surge,” CNN reports. “Berkshire Hathaway, the conglomerate and investing firm run by billionaire Warren Buffett, increased its ownership stake in Occidental Petroleum to nearly 15% this week. Berkshire Hathaway (BRKB) disclosed in a regulatory filing earlier this month that it had about a 9% stake in Occidental Petroleum. That's on top of a previous deal that gives Berkshire the right to buy nearly 84 million more Occidental Petroleum (OXY) shares. Berkshire first invested $10 billion in Occidental in 2019 to help the company buy rival Anadarko Petroleum… “Berkshire, along with top energy stocks, has benefited from skyrocketing oil prices in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Crude prices are now up more than 35% this year and are above $100 a barrel. The Occidental investment adds to Berkshire's already significant position in the energy industry. Berkshire has a massive energy subsidiary that owns leading electric utilities such as PacifiCorp and MidAmerican, oil and natural gas pipelines and several renewable power companies.”
CLIMATE FINANCE
E&E News: Can Biden get a Fed climate candidate past Joe Manchin?
By Avery Ellfeldt, 3/17/22
“Sen. Joe Manchin has turned into a real headache for President Biden on climate,” E&E News reports. “The latest example came this week when the West Virginia Democrat torpedoed the nomination of Sarah Bloom Raskin for the Federal Reserve. Biden wanted Raskin, a climate-savvy financial regulator, to serve as the Fed’s top bank cop, but Manchin disagreed — effectively killing her chances in the narrowly divided Senate and forcing Raskin to withdraw her nomination. Now the White House has to go back to the drawing board to fill the role, which has been vacant for months and is responsible for reining in big banks and monitoring emerging threats to the U.S. financial system. Tapping someone new for the Federal Reserve post won’t be easy. Observers tell E&E Biden’s major challenge will be finding a candidate who is attuned to the risks of climate change but still can survive a confirmation battle in the Senate. The Senate already has blocked two Biden nominees in part because of their views on the financial threats of global warming… “The setback on Raskin is a major development because it leaves the Federal Reserve without a qualified nominee in the pipeline who would be responsible for overseeing the regulation and supervision of the nation’s biggest banks… “Experts tell E&E Biden must fill the vacancy soon. That’s the case because in the near term, the Fed has a responsibility to work alongside the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., two other financial agencies, on regulatory efforts including bank mergers and stress testing.”
Bloomberg: HSBC Announces ‘Phase Down’ of Funding for Fossil-Fuel Clients
Alastair Marsh, 3/16/22
“HSBC Holdings Plc promised to “phase down” its financing of the fossil fuel industry, sending a warning to oil and gas clients as the bank works toward its target of net-zero emissions,” Bloomberg reports. “The step is in line with “what is required to limit the global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius,” HSBC said on Wednesday. Like most of its top-tier banking peers, HSBC is looking for ways to cut emissions without losing business. For now, it remains one of the major funders of big oil and gas. HSBC helped fossil-fuel companies raise about $52 billion from selling bonds since the Paris climate agreement was announced at the end of 2015, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Among European banks, only Barclays assisted in underwriting more debt for the oil, gas and coal industries. HSBC said it will continue to work with energy sector clients “who take an active role in the energy transition and who apply good industry practices around environmental, social, and governance issues.” “...ShareAction, a nonprofit, told Bloomberg the latest commitments from HSBC follow years of climate activism targeting the bank. “Importantly, HSBC has pledged to update the scope of its fossil fuel targets to cover capital markets activities by the fourth quarter of 2022, a key point omission in its recently published climate targets.”
OPINION
Ashland Daily Press: LETTER: Let Enbridge’s history guide us
John Adams, Washburn, 3/17/22
“Regarding the letter from an Enbridge engineer, describing the family-values-style safety and environmentalism of his employer for 10 years, I have a different take,” John Adams writes for the Ashland Daily Press. “Since he described anyone having a different point from that as being a liar, if you don't trust anything I say, just read about Enbridge oil spill in Michigan on Wikipedia, from 12 years ago. Read about how quickly Enbridge realized its oil pipe had a 6-foot-long hole in it: 18 hours. It took five years and more than $1.5 billion to clean up — if it is ever fully cleaned up. Why? The engineers in Edmonton, Canada, didn't trust the monitoring system in Michigan, a mere 1,800 miles away. Out the oil spewed and sank and nobody knew how to clean it up because Enbridge didn't tell the EPA what was in it and Enbridge couldn't clean it up easily, either. So they had to dig up a river bed because the heavy-tar oil sinks in water, just like it will in a Lake Superior tributary or in Lake Superior or in our aquifer. Then how will they clean it up? More engineers living here for years with good salaries — yippee!.. “Engineers are smart and can make good family-value decisions, but corporations are dumb and don't give a rip about our water, so they lie. But actions don't lie.”
Globe and Mail: Ottawa must mandate oil sands producers to align with its emissions plans
Chris Severson-Baker is senior director for the Calgary-based Pembina Institute and co-author of the report, Getting on Track: A primer on challenges to reducing carbon emissions in Canada’s oilsands, 3/17/22
“In thinking about climate change, it’s crucial to keep in focus the fundamental risks and challenges that it poses to our world,” Chris Severson-Baker writes for the Globe and Mail. “...What does that mean for Canada? And specifically, what are the implications for our oil and gas industry, which is the country’s largest emitter after experiencing significant growth in production and greenhouse gases, or GHGs, since 2005?... “The oil sands pathways plan represents an important commitment and will require significant investment by the companies themselves to meet their targets. However, the industry efforts will only align with Canada’s 2030 emissions-reduction targets and 2050 net-zero goal if Ottawa mandates such a track… “While the Oilsands Pathways strategy is welcome, it falls short of what is required and rests on some questionable assumptions about long-term demand for Canadian crude… “The alliance is proposing to build a CCUS network that would feed carbon dioxide captured at eight facilities into a pipeline to be sequestered underground. Companies want both federal and provincial government support for the project, but Ottawa has vowed to end subsidies for the industry. Another challenge is that CCUS adoption is not happening at the pace needed to achieve a net-zero target. Oil sands companies will need to design, win approval, finance and build the projects by 2030 if they are to establish a credible pathway. For all of these reasons, ambitious government policy needs to drive industry action. A rising carbon tax that applies to a growing proportion of oil sands production should help spur investments. A cap on emissions that provides a predictable target and clear compliance costs can support investment decisions.”