EXTRACTED: Daily News Clips 8/22/22
PIPELINE NEWS
HuffPost: The U.S. Finally Has A Real Climate Law. Get Ready For More Pipelines.
Iowa City Press-Citizen: Johnson County considers ways it can oppose potential carbon capture pipeline
KMCH: Informational Meeting on Proposed Carbon Pipeline Project in Manchester Today
WNAX: The Weekend FIle – The CO2 Pipeline
KTIV: Iowa landowner says he wasn’t pressured in carbon pipeline deal
News Herald: Proposed pipeline project impacts Hertford and Northampton
Food & Water Watch: 8 Seattle Activists Arrested Occupying Sen. Murray’s Office To Protest Manchin Pipeline “Side Deal”
Reuters: France favours gas terminals over new pipeline to tackle crisis
WASHINGTON UPDATES
Quartz: The new US climate law has a gigantic methane leak
STATE UPDATES
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: A Pa. House committee killed oil and gas regulations. Now half a billion dollars in federal funding is at risk.
Associated Press: Oil spill stopped from reaching tributary on Navajo Nation
CLIMATE FINANCE
Houston Chronicle: Oil companies struggle to secure financing, as banks feel climate pressure
Reuters: Analysis: Oil prices turn more volatile as investors exit the market
OPINION
Columbian: Letter: Reject pipeline expansion
The Conversation: The Big Four oilsands companies' influence threatens Alberta democracy, argues political scientist
Globe and Mail: Ottawa’s unrealistic emissions plan could drive away investment
The Hill: Banking on clean energy instead of climate chaos
Carlsbad Current Argus: Reversing oil and gas rules threatens the health of Permian families
PIPELINE NEWS
HuffPost: The U.S. Finally Has A Real Climate Law. Get Ready For More Pipelines.
Alexander C. Kaufman, 8/20/22
“On a cloudless afternoon last week, Dan Tronchetti stood amid a field of leafy soybeans and struck a scarecrow pose,” HuffPost reports. “...While his wife, Susan, fixed her camera on him, Tronchetti, wearing a gray Carhartt T-shirt and a red mesh-back hat, held his arms out straight to either side to indicate where a developer wanted to route a pipeline through the 1,500 acres that his family farms in northwest Iowa. He hoped that illustrating just how close to his home the pipeline would run might catch a reporter’s attention. He rejected Summit Carbon Solutions’ offer of $90,000 for the right to build there last December, but the Ames-based company “would not accept no.” After months of what Tronchetti described as “harassing” calls and emails, the firm asked state regulators last week to seize portions of his land through eminent domain. The last time a controversial pipeline wanted to take private farmland from unwilling sellers, the powerful Iowa Utilities Board approved. “I wish I would have become a political activist sooner and helped fight the Dakota Access Pipeline,” Tronchetti said by phone. “I think the Iowa Utilities Board is going to try to use that as a precedent.” “...Depending on how you see it, CCS either saves us from the emissions of inevitable fossil fuel use, or it guarantees oil, gas and coal a share of the future decarbonized economy. CCS has struggled to work at scale, yet industry groups have at times overstated its capabilities in a bid to stop government policies from boosting non-fossil alternative energy sources… “Pipelines certainly aren’t easy to build, but there’s a lot of precedent for how long it takes to build and permit one,” Peter Findlay, the principal CCS analyst at the energy consultancy Wood Mackenzie, told HuffPost. “It’s more accepted and easier to predict.” The hard part, he told HuffPost, would be permitting permanent storage wells… “Constructing the Dakota Access Pipeline compacted the soil in fields so much that farmers are still struggling to grow crops on the land the oil line crosses, The Wall Street Journal reported. If the Summit pipeline burst, Tronchetti fears what would happen to him and to Susan, especially if they couldn’t even drive away to safety. If it’s a climate tradeoff, he told HuffPost, then what’s the benefit? Will this really make enough of an impact on emissions to make the Tronchetti farm any safer from extreme weather? “They’re going to use the CO2 to force more crude oil to the surface, they’re going to refine it to use for motor fuels, and we will burn the motor fuels in vehicles on the road that will produce more CO2,” he told HuffPost. “It just blows my mind that they think the people of the United States are so stupid that we can’t see through their gimmick.”
Iowa City Press-Citizen: Johnson County considers ways it can oppose potential carbon capture pipeline
George Shillcock, 8/19/22
“The Johnson County Board of Supervisors is working to prepare its staff and make key decisions ahead of the Iowa Utilities Board's consideration of a carbon capture pipeline that could run through the county,” the Iowa City Press-Citizen reports. “...The pipeline is intended to transport carbon dioxide from ADM’s ethanol and cogeneration facilities in Clinton and Cedar Rapids to be stored permanently underground at ADM’s already-operational sequestration site in Decatur, Illinois… “Other pipeline proposals in Iowa have avoided running through Johnson County, where opposition is expected. The Board of Supervisors unanimously voted to send a letter of opposition to the IUB… “Josh Busard, the director of the county planning, development and sustainability department, said the county has limited authority to set zoning and code standards for how the companies can build on Johnson County land, like it would with more local projects… "Wow, so basically we're screwed," Supervisor Lisa Green-Douglass responded. "It feels very much like our ability to have any kind of input is so tight and limited and at their discretion whether we get any at all." “...The Johnson County Supervisors do have the ability to make the pipeline's construction here a tougher venture for Wolf-ADM and provide oversight of the project. The Supervisors have also sent letters of opposition to the other two proposed pipelines in Iowa, even though they do not run through the county… “The board's opposition is made more complicated by the fact that the Inflation Reduction Act signed by President Joe Biden on Tuesday includes significant benefits for industries pursuing this technology, which could drive the creation of more of these pipelines.”
KMCH: Informational Meeting on Proposed Carbon Pipeline Project in Manchester Today
Janelle Tucker, 8/22/22
“Landowners will be gathering today in Manchester for an informational meeting about a carbon capture pipeline project that’s proposed to come through the area,” KMCH reports. “The pipeline was initially proposed to run under farmland from the Dyersville ethanol plant through eastern Delaware County down into Linn County. But the route has changed since last fall and winter, with the pipeline now proposed to run from Dyersville just north of Earlville and Manchester and west through northern Buchanan County and into the southwest tip of Fayette County as it makes its way across Iowa. It’s called the Heartland Greenway project, proposed by a company called Navigator CO2 Ventures. They held an informational meeting for the initial landowners with the Iowa Utilities Board last December in Manchester – which got heated at times as landowners voiced their opinions and concerns – and another meeting is planned for today.”
WNAX: The Weekend FIle – The CO2 Pipeline
8/21/22
“Summit Carbon Solutions is planning a pipeline to transport liquid carbon dioxide from ethanol plants in Iowa, South Dakota, Nebraska and Minnesota to underground storage in North Dakota,” WNAX reports. “A forum was held at Dakotafest this week on the pipeline proposal. South Dakota Farm Bureau President Scott Vanderwal moderated the forum.”
KTIV: Iowa landowner says he wasn’t pressured in carbon pipeline deal
Matt Hoffmann, 8/19/22
“The march to build a carbon pipeline through northwest Iowa carries on,” KTIV reports. “We previously told you about the tax incentive the federal government is offering along with these types of pipelines, but the divisiveness doesn’t stop there. The Sierra Club is leading the charge against the pipelines… “And it’s going to be just a bad precedent that private companies can come in and take land for their benefit. And I think that that right there alone is why we’re seeing people all across the state say no, not on my land,” Jessica Mazour, an official with the Sierra Club of Iowa, told KTIV. “Jeff Dorr lives in Marcus, Iowa, and he’s already signed up to have one of the pipelines underneath his farm. He told KTIV Summit Carbon Solutions, one of the pipeline companies, addressed all of his concerns about safety. He adds he felt no pressure to sign, even though eminent domain could come into play in some cases. “No, actually, I didn’t feel any pressure. And like I said, earlier, I actively had to engage them. So, you know, they were a little more hands-off, in my opinion,” Dorr told KTIV.
News Herald: Proposed pipeline project impacts Hertford and Northampton
8/19/22
“Federal officials here are in the process of preparing an environmental impact statement on a proposed project that has ties to Ahoskie and Pleasant Hill (Northampton County),” the News Herald reports. “Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Company, LLC (Transco) has developed the Southside Reliability Enhancement Project. Transco proposes to construct and operate one new compressor station and modify two existing compressor stations and three existing meter stations in North Carolina and Virginia. The project would provide 160,000 dekatherms per day (Dth/d) of incremental firm transportation capacity from Transco’s Compressor Station 165 in Pittsylvania County, VA and 263,400 Dth/d from the Pine Needle liquified natural gas storage facility to delivery points in North Carolina. Transco’s stated purpose of the additional capacity is to reduce supply constraints when natural gas demand is the highest, support overall reliability and diversification of energy infrastructure in the mid-Atlantic, and benefit the public by promoting competitive markets and increasing the security of natural gas supplies to major delivery points serving the mid-Atlantic… “The deadline to file comments is 5 pm on Aug. 24.”
Food & Water Watch: 8 Seattle Activists Arrested Occupying Sen. Murray’s Office To Protest Manchin Pipeline “Side Deal”
8/19/22
“Eight activists were arrested after staging a sit-in at the Seattle office of U.S. Senator Patty Murray to demand she oppose the fossil fuel expansion deal proposed by West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin in exchange for his support of the Inflation Reduction Act,” Food & Water Watch reports. “According to a leaked draft, the proposal would fast-track fossil fuel projects like the Mountain Valley Pipeline, undercut basic environmental protections and reduce the ability of state agencies, tribes and community groups to review dangerous fossil fuel projects. Activists delivered a letter to Sen. Murray’s staff and asked that Murray commit to opposing Marchin’s proposal. When they didn’t get that commitment, eight activists with the People vs Fossil Fuels coalition staged a peaceful sit-in at the office and held a banner reading “Senator Murray: stop fossil fuels! No fast track deal for pipelines.” Police were called in and arrested all eight activists, who were later cited and released… “Meanwhile, dozens of activists and coalition members rallied outside the Federal Building, chanting and holding signs reading “No fast track deal for pipelines,” “No permit deal for Big Oil,” and “Don’t sacrifice communities to Big Oil”. “The proposal from Senator Manchin is nothing more than a wish list from Big Oil, whose only goal is more profit at the expense of people and the planet,” said Thomas Meyer, National Organizing Manager with Food & Water Watch.
Reuters: France favours gas terminals over new pipeline to tackle crisis
Forrest Crellin and Isla Binnie, 8/19/22
“A third gas pipeline between Spain and France would cost at least 3 billion euros ($3 billion) and take years to complete, making it a less attractive option to address Europe's supply worries than new terminals to receive fuel by boat, France's energy transition ministry said,” Reuters reports. “...The French ministry said in a statement that new LNG terminals, which can be made to float, in Northern and Eastern Europe, particularly Germany, would be a quicker and cheaper option than a new pipeline… “Regulators on both sides of the border decided at the time the project did not meet market needs. It met local opposition in the Rhone Valley and from environmental associations, the French ministry said, adding: "Such a project would take many years to become operational ... and would therefore not respond to the current crisis." “...Broader aims to slash planet-warming carbon emissions must also be taken into account, the French ministry said, underlining the use of hydrogen, which can be produced with renewable electricity, is in its infancy.”
WASHINGTON UPDATES
Quartz: The new US climate law has a gigantic methane leak
Tim McDonnell, 8/18/22
“The Inflation Reduction Act, the biggest climate bill in US history, marks a turning point in the battle against methane,” Quartz reports. “It imposes a fee of $900 per metric ton of methane emissions starting in 2024, rising to $1,500 by 2026. It’s the first time the US has imposed a fee or tax on any form of greenhouse gas emissions. The only problem is: The fee won’t apply to most of the country’s methane emissions… “The methane fee also applies only to sources that emit more than the equivalent of 25,000 metric tons of CO2 per year. According to an analysis by the Congressional Research Service (CRS), that threshold applies to 2,172 facilities—including wells, pipelines, and storage facilities—that together account for just 43% of the oil and gas sector’s total methane emissions. Even that number is an over-estimate, because the law allows facilities to get away with a certain percentage of emissions for free, depending on the type of facility it is. For the biggest sources, that discount could shave a third off the total covered emissions, according to CRS. Moreover, rather than directly measuring emissions, companies are allowed to self-report based on a federally approved estimation method that relies on assumptions about average emissions from certain types of equipment. Depending on how that method is applied, companies can dramatically underreport their emissions. Even in a generous interpretation, the federal method undercounts real methane emissions by up to 60%, according to the Environmental Defense Fund.”
STATE UPDATES
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: A Pa. House committee killed oil and gas regulations. Now half a billion dollars in federal funding is at risk.
ETHAN DODD, 8/22/22
“A state House committee chaired by Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, R-Cranberry, rejected a much-delayed emissions regulation this month, possibly jeopardizing over half a billion dollars in federal highway funds Pennsylvania could use to maintain its deficient roads and bridges,” the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports. “The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency informed the state’s Department of Environmental Protection earlier this year that if it does not regulate the oil and gas industry to reduce smog-forming emissions by Dec. 16, the federal government is required by the Clean Air Act to impose sanctions on the state and will withhold funds used to maintain the state’s highways. Those sanctions could cost the state $500 million to $750 million in federal highway funds next year, according to a spokeswoman for the state Department of Transportation… “By blocking the regulations, some long-awaited transportation improvements and construction jobs could be eliminated, House Democrats and agency officials said. Meanwhile, Mr. Metcalfe and his Republican colleagues say the federal government is making a “hollow threat” and that the state’s proposed regulations would kill jobs in the oil and gas industry.”
Associated Press: Oil spill stopped from reaching tributary on Navajo Nation
8/18/22
“An oil spill has been stopped from reaching a tributary to the San Juan River and clean-up work continues at Standing Redrock Creek, Navajo Nation officials said Wednesday,” the Associated Press reports. “They said the Capitol Operating Group had a release from a corroded pipeline between the salt water tank and an injection well located in Red Valley on Aug. 7. and up to 80 barrels of brine water was released. Tribal officials said the brine water contained oil, brine, and saltwater and the release traveled over three miles through an unnamed drainage to the Standing Redrock Creek. “We continue to monitor the situation together and we will continue to hold the responsible party, the Capitol Group, accountable and ensure that they provide the highest level of remediation as a result of the spill that occurred,” Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez told AP.
CLIMATE FINANCE
Houston Chronicle: Oil companies struggle to secure financing, as banks feel climate pressure
James Osborne, 8/18/22
“Increasing questions around the future of oil demand are making it harder and harder for oil companies to secure financing from banks and other large investors for drilling projects,” the Houston Chronicle reports. “As governments move to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through the expansion of electric vehicles, some financial institutions are becoming wary about investing in oil projects that take years to develop when demand could be substantially lower once production begins. As a result, the cost of securing capital through loans and selling stock is expected to double for oil companies in the years ahead, making projects more expensive and less desirable to investors, Jim Burkhard, head of oil markets research at S&P Global, told the Chronicle. “The investment threshold for investing in new oil is higher today,” he told the Chronicle.. “There’s much greater uncertainty about the future of oil demand. You have all these markets saying we don’t want your oil at some point in the future.” Driving the trend are asset management firms and investments banks less inclined to put money into an industry that has not only struggled financially since the oil price crash of 2014 but is also in conflict with internal mandates to reduce the carbon footprints of the companies in which they invest… “But investment banks remain reluctant to issue long-term debt to oil companies, a trend that began even before the loss of demand that came with the COVID-19 pandemic, Dean Foreman, chief economist at the trade group American Petroleum Institute, told the Chronicle. “Some banks will not lend into the sector,” he told the Chronicle.. “It’s fair to say the availability of capital continues to be one of our key issues.” Banks such as JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs have come under increasing pressure from investors to prove the sustainability of their investment portfolio, a trend known as environmental, social, governance investing.”
Reuters: Analysis: Oil prices turn more volatile as investors exit the market
Stephanie Kelly and Noah Browning, 8/17/22
“Traders and fund managers have left crude oil markets in recent months, dropping activity to a seven-year low amid the worst global energy crisis in decades as investors become unwilling to deal with persistently high volatility,” Reuters reports. “The exodus of participants, especially hedge funds and speculators, has made daily price swings far greater than in previous years, making it harder for companies to hedge against physical purchases of oil. The volatility has harmed companies that need energy market stability for their operations, which includes oil-and-gas companies, but also manufacturing and food-and-beverage industries… “The high volatility is delaying increased capital expenditures that would help supply keep pace with energy demand, Arjun Murti, a veteran energy analyst, told Reuters… "There will be concern that prices could fall back to lower levels that wouldn't justify new capex," Murti told Reuters. Many different types of investors, including banks, funds and producers, have exited the market, participants told Reuters, as the market on some days surges on threats to supply, while on other days the cloudy economic outlook causes equally wild selloffs… “Because of declining market participation, oil prices are moving around $25 per barrel for every 1 million barrel-per-day variation in supply or demand, JP Morgan told Reuters. That is nearly double the $15 move before Russia's invasion, it added. This creates a cycle in which the wild swings make investors less inclined to trade the markets.”
OPINION
Columbian: Letter: Reject pipeline expansion
Lucy Schneid, Camas, 8/21/22
“As the Pacific Northwest is weaning itself off fossil fuels, TC Energy’s demand for pipeline expansion is unnecessary,” Lucy Schneid writes for the Columbian. “The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission should deny this dangerous expansion. We need to combat climate change with green energy, not increase the flow of fracked gas from Canada.”
The Conversation: The Big Four oilsands companies' influence threatens Alberta democracy, argues political scientist
Robert (Bob) L. Ascah, Research Fellow, The Parkland Institute, University of Alberta, 8/21/22
“Over the past five years, ownership of oilsands production has become hyperconcentrated in four companies: Cenovus Energy, Canadian Natural Resources Limited (CNRL), Imperial Oil Limited and Suncor Energy. These four producers — known as the Big Four — account for about 84 per cent of Alberta’s daily production of 3.3 million barrels of bitumen, a type of crude oil found in oilsands deposits,” Bob Ascah writes for The Conversation. “...In the face of growing environmental concerns and regulatory requirements, some international companies have decided to exit the oilsands… “But other major Canadian producers, like CNRL and Cenovus Energy, have doubled down. They see the emission-intensive extraction operation as a golden opportunity to dominate an increasingly single-industry province… “By comparing the amount of bitumen royalties and corporate income taxes from the Big Four to Alberta’s total revenue, it is possible to estimate the province’s fiscal dependency on these companies… “The revenue expected from the Big Four oilsands producers in 2022, assuming an average per barrel price of $115, will be a staggering $116 billion — about 25 per cent of Alberta’s GDP… “The concentration of economic and financial power in the Big Four means Alberta’s next premier must heed the needs of these massive oilsands players. As oil prices rise, the financial dependency of the provincial treasury on the Big Four will grow… “The Big Four’s political influence has most recently manifested in its dominant position in the Pathways Alliance. This lobbying consortium — known as COSIA — consists of the Big Four, ConocoPhillips and MEG Energy… “Central to this lobby effort has been successfully convincing Ottawa to give the firms a tax credit in the 2022 federal budget. This sets a dangerous precedent — if Ottawa itself is willing to grant the wishes of the Big Four, what chance will the Alberta premier have in refusing similar requests? The fiscally dependent Alberta government will continue its battles against Ottawa on behalf of the Big Four. Whether or not this is good for Alberta’s democracy, its residents and the planet is another matter entirely.”
Globe and Mail: Ottawa’s unrealistic emissions plan could drive away investment
Kendall Dilling is President of the Pathways Alliance, 8/21/22
“Canada’s oil sands industry recognizes we are one of our country’s largest greenhouse-gas emitters, and that we have a major role to play in helping meet the national climate-change commitment of net-zero emissions by 2050,” Kendall Dilling writes for the Globe and Mail. “We have a plan, which we have shared with the federal government, to reduce emissions by 22 million tonnes by 2030. And we support the larger emission-reduction goals set out by Ottawa. However, we are concerned about the timelines recently proposed. We can reduce our emissions by 42 per cent from 2019 levels – we have, after all, set a goal of net zero by 2050 – but reaching that as early as 2030 is simply not realistic given current technology, construction and regulatory requirements. In reality, impractical time frames for emissions-reduction targets could drive investment away from our industry and our country, reducing production in Canada while increasing output and emissions in other countries… “Building projects on the scale we are proposing will require regulatory certainty and significant co-investment by industry and government. Up to $20-billion will be needed between now and 2030 for carbon capture and other technologies in the Pathways plan. Our industry is looking for support comparable to what is being provided by governments in other countries with similar plans, such as the Netherlands, Norway and the United States… “However, others, such as the recent decision by Environment and Climate Change Canada to prevent lower-carbon oil or fuel intended for export from receiving Clean Fuel Regulation credits, erode the economics of CCUS and run counter to the benefits provided by the ITC.”
The Hill: Banking on clean energy instead of climate chaos
Ivan Frishberg is the chief sustainability officer for Amalgamated Bank, 8/20/22
“Congress passing the most ambitious climate bill in U.S. history is cause for celebration, which some estimates say can reduce the country’s emissions by as much as 40 percent. But even with this much-needed breakthrough, the U.S., other countries and the private sector have delayed reducing emissions for so long that the door to limit warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, necessary to avoid the worst impacts of climate change, is still closing,” Ivan Frishberg writes for The Hill. “...The private sector, and especially the banking industry, has begun to set the right targets but is still too heavily invested in activities and industries that are loading more carbon pollution into the atmosphere. The amount of capital finance from banks that gets allocated to fossil fuel projects is a major driver of the globe’s worsening climate predicament. The world’s 60 largest banks have loaned nearly $742 billion to 100 corporations expanding fossil fuel operations in just the last year and a total of $4.6 trillion to fossil fuels since 2015 (the year the Paris Agreement was adopted). Capital expenditures for upstream oil and gas are climbing and evaluation of more than 100 of the largest emitters shows that no companies in their analysis are meeting investor expectations for climate aligned capital allocation… “Changing the trajectory of billions of dollars in investments will require regulations from policymakers to establish standardized benchmarks for disclosure and correct for market inefficiencies like negative externalities. The Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) proposed climate risk disclosure law, which helps create more transparency on climate risks, is an example of policy that can help mitigate the risks and support capital formation for the transition we need to make… “With the 1.5-degree door closing, another window can open: It’s time for us to change how we bank on the future of our planet.”
Carlsbad Current Argus: Reversing oil and gas rules threatens the health of Permian families
Kayley Shoup, 8/18/22
“New Mexico’s groundbreaking rules to improve air quality by limiting air pollution from the oil and gas industry just took effect this month and already the Independent Petroleum Association of New Mexico (IPANM) has launched a legal attack against them,” Kayley Shoup writes for the Carlsbad Current Argus. “Make no mistake – this legal wrangling and foot dragging from IPANM is not only bad for our air, it also wastes time and money that producers should be using to cut pollution. It is also a direct threat to the health of families in the Permian Basin because it could allow oil and gas operators to walk away from their responsibility to clean up after themselves and reduce the impacts on their workers, neighboring communities and all New Mexicans… “Governor Lujan Grisham understood the public health imperative of reducing oil and gas emissions when she committed to enacting air and methane pollution rules. The final rules allow no exemptions to leak detection and repair requirements and protect those living closest to development with requirements for more frequent inspections to find and fix leaks. IPANM’s lawsuit attempts to reverse those protections and would impact air quality and the health of New Mexicans… “IPANM’s legal maneuvers show an insulting disregard for communities like ours that are closest to oil and gas well sites where families experience the greatest impacts of operations. New Mexicans should not accept failing grades when it comes to protecting the state’s air, and the courts should reject this blatant attempt by the industry to dodge accountability for its waste and pollution.”