EXTRACTED: Daily News Clips 11/18/24

PIPELINE NEWS

• Pipeline Fighters Hub: Landowners Continue Fight After North Dakota Public Service Commission Approves Summit CO2 Pipeline Permit

• Associated Press: Regulators approve North Dakota section of planned 5-state Midwest carbon dioxide pipeline

• North Dakota Monitor: North Dakota approves Summit carbon pipeline route 

• Public News Service: Carbon pipeline debate reaches new stage after ND permit OK’d

• Iowa Capital Dispatch: Summit one step closer to pipeline construction with North Dakota permit

• Cedar Rapids Gazette: Summit proceeds with pipeline expansion amid uncertainty in Dakotas

• Iowa Capital Dispatch: Summit sues a third Iowa county over local pipeline ordinances

• KSFY: Landowners prepared for more pipeline struggles, hope for new ordinances

• KDLS: Guthrie County Supervisors Moving Forward with Plans to Put Together Hazardous Pipeline Ordinance

• Noozhawk: Coastal Commission Issues Cease and Desist Order for Sable Pipeline Work

WASHINGTON UPDATES

• InsideEPA: Backers Fear Lame Duck Could Be Bipartisan Permit Bill’s Best Chance 

• New York Times: Burgum Will Be Trump’s Energy Czar

• North Dakota Monitor: Trump names North Dakota Gov. Burgum to combined Interior, energy role

• New York Times: President-Elect Names Gas Executive as Energy Secretary

• E&E News: ‘The planet weeps’: Climate hawks slam Trump’s DOE pick

• E&E News: Trump’s DOE pick cements fossil fuel focus

• States Newsroom: ‘Drill, drill, drill’: New energy council signals Trump to prioritize energy production

• E&E News: Top Republicans ask Granholm to hit brakes on LNG study

• E&E News: CO2 well backlog awaits Zeldin at EPA

STATE UPDATES

• Floodlight: Experts warn oil and gas can’t save Louisiana’s economy — even under Trump

• Cardinal News: Virginia Tech team receives $11 million to lead carbon storage project

• The Courier-Times: Citizens oppose, local leaders support Duke Energy air permit

• North Dakota Monitor: North Dakota tribal leaders see Burgum as an ally in Interior, energy role

• Richmond Confidential: Chevron working to clean up spill that dumped more than 100 gallons of oil in San Francisco Bay

EXTRACTION

• Associated Press: Dutch appeals court overturns landmark climate ruling against Shell

• E&E News: Explaining the trillion-dollar question that’s disrupting COP29

• E&E News: Republican lawmakers channel Trump at climate summit

• Guardian: Almost 500 carbon capture lobbyists granted access to Cop29 climate summit

• Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC): A climate solution or distraction? The carbon capture facility at Chevron’s Gorgon project tells a cautionary tale

• DeSmog: Canada Promises Climate Reparations at COP29 While Courting Big Oil at Home

• New York Times: The Quest to Build a Star on Earth

OPINION

• Bridge MI: Michigan AG should cease ‘lawfare,’ avoid interfering with energy prices

• NOLA.com: Editorial: Carbon capture debate puts rural residents in a bind

• Forbes: Carbon Capture Progress Is Low Hanging Fruit For Lee Zeldin

• DeSmog: COP Won’t Survive for Long Unless We Tackle Climate Corruption

• The Hill: Trump’s second term will devastate the US climate agenda 

• Evergreen Action: The Most Important Action President Biden Can Take on Climate Before Trump Takes Office
  

PIPELINE NEWS

Pipeline Fighters Hub: Landowners Continue Fight After North Dakota Public Service Commission Approves Summit CO2 Pipeline Permit
Mark Hefflinger, 11/15/24

“Landowners in North Dakota impacted by Summit Carbon Solutions’ proposed multi-state CO2 pipeline vowed to continue fighting against eminent domain, and to protect their communities – after the North Dakota Public Service Commission (ND PSC) issued a decision on Friday authorizing a permit for Summit to construct the pipeline in North Dakota,” the Pipeline Fighters Hub reports. “The PSC said that it is not concluding today with its decision that Summit Carbon Solutions is a “common carrier,” nor that they qualify for eminent domain. If Summit were to seek to enforce eminent domain seizure of a landowner’s property against their will for the project, an affected landowner could ask the court to determine whether Summit qualifies as a common carrier and be empowered to use eminent domain against landowners. “My first thought would be that we need to challenge the common carrier status of CO2 pipelines and restore power over zoning for pipelines to our County Commissions. This is an attack on our property rights. Summit Carbon has shown my community who they are, after threatening the use of Eminent Domain at an Emmons County Commission meeting,” said landowner David Moch, a farmer in Emmons County. “The PSC has not allowed us to even understand how safe this pipeline is, by hiding the plume modeling from us. If our counties can’t rule on their safety, and the PSC doesn’t either, then no one in the state is looking out for our safety,” said Kevin Frederick, a Bismarck Resident. “No surprise on the decision. We need to analyze the written decision. Like in Iowa, the courts will sort this out and ultimately decide if the PSC decision will stand or be reversed. The PSC did not determine Summit is a common carrier and did not determine if Summit is able to use eminent domain. Those questions are likely also headed to the courts. Stay tuned,” said Brian Jorde, attorney for North Dakota landowners with the North Dakota Easement Team, and Omaha-based Domina Law Group… “With an alarming 200 parcels now facing condemnation, the depravity of Summit’s project continues to grow. It’s disappointing to see the Commission attempt to legitimize this greed-fueled landgrab. Summit’s shameless disregard for the lives and liberties of North Dakotans only reinforces the need to continue challenging this unsound project at every possible turn,” said Emma Schmit, Pipeline Fighters Director, Bold Alliance. Despite receiving the permit in North Dakota, Summit still must obtain pipeline permits in South Dakota – which rejected its previous application, and Minnesota, as well as a permit for its sequestration site in North Dakota with the state’s Industrial Commission. Meanwhile, the South Dakota Supreme Court ruled recently that Summit has not proven CO2 is a commodity or that it qualifies as a “common carrier” that should be granted eminent domain authority. Two Iowa counties sued by Summit will be in federal court next week, defending ordinances they passed in oral arguments before the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals in Omaha. Impacted Iowa landowners with the Iowa Easement Team also filed an amicus brief in support of the counties, which if victorious could impact Summit’s permit issued by the Iowa Utilities Commission.”

Associated Press: Regulators approve North Dakota section of planned 5-state Midwest carbon dioxide pipeline
Jack Dura, 11/15/24

“North Dakota utility regulators granted approval on Friday for a span of a proposed carbon dioxide pipeline that would cross five Midwestern states — a key victory for the company that has faced vociferous landowner objections and various hurdles and setbacks in its plans,” the Associated Press reports. “The state Public Service Commission voted unanimously to approve a siting permit for Summit Carbon Solutions’ modified, 333-mile route in North Dakota… “No construction has begun anywhere on Summit’s proposed route. Iowa has approved the project, but other hurdles remain in North Dakota as well as South Dakota, Minnesota and Nebraska. The approval is a win for the company after North Dakota initially denied a permit in 2023, shortly followed by rejection in South Dakota. Another company, Navigator CO2 Ventures, canceled its project around the same time due to the “unpredictable nature of the regulatory and government processes involved, particularly in South Dakota and Iowa.” “…Summit opponents, including many landowners across the Midwest, decry the potential of a pipe rupture releasing hazardous, heavy CO2 gas to flow over the land, endangering people’s health and lives. They also fear the taking of their land through eminent domain. North Dakota Public Service Commission Chairman Randy Christmann urged Summit not to use eminent domain, “at least not more than absolutely necessary.” “…Republican state Sen. Jeff Magrum, an opponent whose district the pipeline would cross, told AP he’d rather see investments in roads, bridges and dams instead of “Green New Deal projects that don’t create any benefit for our state or our country.” He expects the panel’s decision to be challenged. In a statement, landowner attorney Brian Jorde said, “No surprise on the decision. We need to analyze the written decision. Like in Iowa, the courts will sort this out and ultimately decide if the PSC decision will stand or be reversed.” “…Summit submitted three storage facility permit applications to North Dakota’s Department of Mineral Resources, but no decision has been made.”

North Dakota Monitor: North Dakota approves Summit carbon pipeline route 
Jeff Beach, 11/15/24

“North Dakota regulators on Friday approved a route permit for the Summit Carbon Solutions pipeline, a significant win for what the company says is the world’s largest carbon capture project,” the North Dakota Monitor reports. “The three-person Public Service Commission voted unanimously to approve the pipeline permit. The commission had denied Summit a route permit in 2023, but changes the company made to its route helped convince the commission to reverse its position… “Opponents cite safety concerns, damage to farmland and property values and an infringement on property rights. Some landowners also have complained about Summit’s business practices. Troy Coons is president of the Northwest Landowners Association, a North Dakota property rights group that has challenged Summit over survey access and other issues. “I don’t know that the PSC really answered adequately the citizens’ questions, or held the company accountable enough to move forward,” Coons told the Monitor. Brian Jorde of Nebraska-based Domina Law, which represents landowners fighting the pipeline in North Dakota and other states, told the Monitor the decision was expected based on comments and questions by the PSC during the re-hearing process. “We will carefully review the written order for errors and address those accordingly,” Jorde told the Monitor. “The PSC decision is phase one in a multi-phase process.” While Summit has said the plan to capture greenhouse gas emissions is good for the environment, several environmental groups, including the North Dakota-based Dakota Resource Council, have opposed the project as doing more harm than good… “Commission Chair Randy Christmann emphasized that the PSC approval in North Dakota does not guarantee that Summit has the right to use eminent domain to force landowners to provide easements for the pipeline. A decision on eminent domain would have to be made in the courts… “We need to challenge the common carrier status of CO2 pipelines and restore power over zoning for pipelines to our county commissions,” landowner David Moch, a farmer in Emmons County, said in a news release through the Dakota Resource Council. “This is an attack on our property rights. Summit Carbon has shown my community who they are, after threatening the use of eminent domain at an Emmons County Commission meeting.” 

Public News Service: Carbon pipeline debate reaches new stage after ND permit OK’d
Mike Moen, 11/18/24

“More regulatory action is needed, but a controversial pipeline project in North Dakota is moving forward after a permit was approved last week,” Public News Service reports. “…Zach Cassidy, CO2 pipeline organizer for the Dakota Resource Council, told PNS the latest outcome raises a big question. “Who in our state government, or our local governments, has the power to make safety decisions on this pipeline for their residents?” Cassidy told PNS. “Because if county commissioners can’t do it, and if the PSC won’t do it, that means that no one is looking out for us.” “…Cassidy told PNS in North Dakota, Summit still needs a storage permit and opponents will focus on that, along with legislative changes.”

Iowa Capital Dispatch: Summit one step closer to pipeline construction with North Dakota permit
Cami Koons, 11/15/24

“Summit Carbon Solutions’ pipeline route was approved Friday morning in North Dakota, bringing the company one step closer to meeting conditions set by the Iowa Utilities Commission to begin construction,” the Iowa Capital Dispatch reports. “…North Dakota’s Public Service Commission had previously denied Summit’s permits in the state, but after the company made some modifications to the plan, the commission unanimously approved the permit on Friday. The Iowa Renewable Fuels Association said, in a statement, it was “encouraged” by the decision. “In agriculture, if you’re not growing, you’re dying. On the heels of approval in Iowa, today’s permit approval in North Dakota is a crucial step in making sure this vital project comes to fruition,” the association’s Executive Director Monte Shaw told the Dispatch… “Opponents of the pipeline leaned into this fact in their statements about the North Dakota news.  Brian Jorde, an attorney for North Dakota and Iowa landowners opposed to the pipeline said to “stay tuned,” in a statement with BOLD Alliance.  “The PSC did not determine Summit is a common carrier and did not determine if Summit is able to use eminent domain,” Jorde said. “Those questions are likely also headed to the courts.”

Cedar Rapids Gazette: Summit proceeds with pipeline expansion amid uncertainty in Dakotas
Jared Strong, 11/17/24

“Summit Carbon Solutions in recent weeks has filed formal petitions for permits that seek to expand its proposed carbon dioxide pipeline system to include 13 more ethanol plants in Iowa, according to documents filed with the Iowa Utilities Commission,” the Cedar Rapids Gazette reports. “…The expansions would add about 370 miles of pipe, including about 64 miles in Bremer, Buchanan, Butler, Fayette and Floyd counties. Bremer recently filed a motion to dismiss the petition that affects it because Summit obtained land easements too early… “Navigator CO2 abandoned its project last year. Summit’s expansions are largely the result of that abandonment — ethanol producers that had initially signed with Navigator switched to Summit… “Summit has forged profit-sharing agreements with the ethanol producers, the details of which it has not publicly disclosed… “But opponents of the project think it is unsafe and shouldn’t be eligible for eminent domain, a governmental power that forces unwilling landowners to host it in exchange for compensation. Many of the counties through which Summit’s system would pass have adopted resolutions that oppose the use of eminent domain for the project… “Bremer County recently asked the commission to reconsider the penalty and dismiss Summit’s petition for a permit that was filed Oct. 17. That would, in effect, force the company to renegotiate for the land easements for the expansion route that goes through the county. “If the informational meeting requirements were not met, which is a condition precedent to filing a petition, then approval of the route proposed in the petition is also not appropriate under” Iowa law, wrote Tim Whipple, an attorney for the county. It’s unclear when the commission might rule on Bremer’s motion to reconsider. But the fate of the overall project might hinge on what happens in South Dakota.”

Iowa Capital Dispatch: Summit sues a third Iowa county over local pipeline ordinances
Clark Kauffman, 11/16/24

“Another Iowa county is being sued by Summitt Carbon Solutions over attempts to regulate the company’s planned carbon dioxide pipeline across Iowa,” the Iowa Capital Dispatch reports. “In 2022, Summit sued Story County and Shelby County in U.S. District Court for Southern District of Iowa. Both lawsuits alleged the locally elected county boards of supervisors were attempting to impose on the project siting requirements that are the exclusive province of federal regulators… “This week, Summit sued Bremer County over the same issue… “The company says that on Oct. 30, 2024, Bremer County Attorney Darius Robinson wrote a letter to Summit’s legal counsel, stating that Summit was not in compliance with ordinances passed in September 2024, and threatening to fine Summit. In the letter, Robinson allegedly warned Summit that “that any non-compliance with the Bremer County ordinance can result in all legal remedies being pursued” and formally requested that company representatives attend an upcoming public meeting to discuss the matter. As a result, the company says in its court filings, Sumit must now seek declaratory and injunctive relief against the enforcement of the Bremer County ordinances.”

KSFY: Landowners prepared for more pipeline struggles, hope for new ordinances
Parker Brown, 11/16/24

“On Friday, the North Dakota Public Service Commission unanimously approved a route permit for Summit Carbon Solutions and its CO2 pipeline project,” KSFY reports. “…South Dakota is now one of the last things standing in the way of the project. Landowners opposing the project like Ed Fischbach are still optimistic that they can prevent the pipeline, but they believe more action is needed to protect South Dakotans. Fischbach told KSFY it wasn’t a surprise that North Dakota approved the permit. “North Dakota’s laws are unfortunately not as good as ours are,” Fischbach told KSFY. “Their law basically is what we just defeated in the referral. They have that in place up there similar to what RL 21 was.” Opponents said that Referred Law 21, which South Dakota voters shot down, would have allowed Summit Carbon Solutions to supersede local and county laws and ordinances. Some landowners pointed out that some counties have been slow to incorporate their own regulatory ordinances, like Turner or McCook Counties. “I just can’t understand why they wouldn’t want to do that. They have the authority. They have the power,” Fischbach told KSFY. Northern South Dakota Counties like Brown, McPherson and Spink counties have all set a standard for what these ordinances might look like. Fischbach is proud of the work that was done to provide setbacks to route any potential pipeline project further away from homes schools, hospitals, feedlots and more… “Any county that’s not doing that, I think they’re just not representing their people like they should be,” Fischbach told KSFY. “For the citizens of those counties, they just need to go to their county commission meeting and keep speaking out and asking them to step up and do it.” “…Outside of county ordinances and showing up in opposition of Summit Carbon Solutions’ permit application, South Dakotans who oppose the pipeline project are hoping that legislation to change eminent domain laws in South Dakota will be passed in the upcoming session.”

KDLS: Guthrie County Supervisors Moving Forward with Plans to Put Together Hazardous Pipeline Ordinance
Marcus Mackey, 11/17/24

“The Guthrie County Board of Supervisors met in regular session yesterday,” KDLS reports. “…They then approved to engage with Ahlers and Cooney Representative Tim Whipple on creating an ordinance regarding hazardous pipelines.”

Noozhawk: Coastal Commission Issues Cease and Desist Order for Sable Pipeline Work
Giana Magnoli, 11/15/24

“The California Coastal Commission ordered Sable Offshore Corp. to fill open pits and do erosion control for unpermitted work sites on the Santa Barbara County oil pipeline,” Noozhawk reports. “…Crews were replacing sections of the coastal pipeline, installing safety valves and doing other projects in September and October. Sable claims that counts as maintenance and repairs; Coastal Commission enforcement staff alleges that requires a new permit, and ordered the company to stop work. This week, in a cease and desist order, Coastal Commission Executive Director Kate Huckelbridge told Sable to apply for coastal development permits and, more immediately, submit a plan to remediate damage and “button up” the work sites before the winter rainy season — fill in the open pits, for one thing.”

WASHINGTON UPDATES

InsideEPA: Backers Fear Lame Duck Could Be Bipartisan Permit Bill’s Best Chance 
11/14/24

“Some supporters of a pending Senate energy permit streamlining bill are expressing worries that a failure to enact the measure during the current lame-duck session of Congress will jeopardize the chances of passing any permitting package next year, when Republicans are poised to control the White House and both chambers of Congress,” InsideEPA reports. “If we don’t get [a permit bill] done in a lame duck, I’m very concerned we can’t get it done next year,” former Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) Chairman Neil Chatterjee (R) said at the Nov. 13 event hosted by the outlet Heatmap. However, other observers argue that Republicans’ gains in the Nov. 5 election sapped any momentum for a lame-duck permitting agreement due to GOP lawmakers’ belief that they would have far greater leverage next year to tailor the legislation toward their priorities such as fossil fuel expansion and eased environmental review mandates. The Senate bill — drafted by Sens. Joe Manchin (I-WV) and John Barrasso (R-WY) — “is indeed dead” given those post-election dynamics, argued Alison Rumsey, co-chair of the Arnold & Porter environmental practice group, during a Nov. 12 event her firm hosted.”

New York Times: Burgum Will Be Trump’s Energy Czar
Coral Davenport, 11/15/24

“President-elect Donald J. Trump said Friday that Gov. Doug Burgum of North Dakota, his pick to run the Interior Department, will also serve as the administration’s point person to coordinate energy policy across the federal government,” the New York Times reports. “In that role, Mr. Burgum will be charged with executing Mr. Trump’s vision of a government that drives up fossil fuel production while it demolishes environmental regulations… “The position was inspired by President Barack Obama and President Biden, Democrats who created White House “climate czars,” people close to Mr. Trump’s transition team, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter publicly, told the Times. Those climate advisers drove a “whole-of-government” approach to ensure that all federal agencies advanced efforts to reduce the nation’s use of planet-warming coal, oil and gas and to accelerate the use of wind and solar power and electric vehicles. Mr. Trump’s energy czar is expected to have similar authorities — but effectively the opposite mandate. “The White House should have someone who oversees energy policy because it cuts across almost all federal agencies,” Thomas J. Pyle, president of the American Energy Alliance, a conservative research group focused on energy that helped shape Mr. Trump’s first-term energy agenda, told the Times. “Obama and Biden set a lot of precedents. It’s an effective model.” John Podesta, the current White House climate czar, who also briefly served in that role in the Obama administration, chuckled dryly at the compliment. He told the Times that if Mr. Burgum truly wanted to ensure supplies of affordable electricity, he would seek to retain the Biden administration’s signature climate law, the Inflation Reduction Act. The 2022 law pumps more than $370 billion into tax incentives for wind and solar power and electric vehicles… “Mr. Trump’s transition team is already strategizing with Republicans on Capitol Hill about how to undo portions of that law… “Mr. Pyle noted another feature of the White House czar position that is likely to appeal to Mr. Trump: While the work and correspondence of officials in federal agencies are subject to government transparency laws, including Freedom of Information Act requests, the work of White House czars has more legal shields from those requirements. “There is an advantage that they don’t have to be as transparent,” he told the Times.”

North Dakota Monitor: Trump names North Dakota Gov. Burgum to combined Interior, energy role
Amy Dalrymple, Jeff Beach and Michael Achterling, 11/15/24

“North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum will serve as Interior secretary and chairman of the newly formed National Energy Council, President-elect Donald Trump announced Friday,” the North Dakota Monitor reports. “The new council will consist of all departments and agencies involved in the permitting, production, generation, distribution, regulation, transportation of “ALL forms of American Energy,” Trump said in the announcement… “Trump also said in his statement that his administration will “undo the damage done by the Democrats to our Nation’s Electrical Grid, by dramatically increasing baseload power.” In addition, Trump said Burgum will have a seat on the National Security Council. The $18 billion Department of the Interior manages federal natural and cultural resources, with about 70,000 employees… “Burgum blames the Biden administration for limiting U.S. oil production and natural gas exports, killing the Keystone XL pipeline and for implementing environmental regulations that threaten the coal industry… “Burgum has been a proponent of a controversial pipeline proposed for North Dakota and neighboring states that would transport carbon dioxide from ethanol plants and permanently store the CO2 underground, taking advantage of federal tax credits for carbon storage… “U.S. Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., acknowledged that some environmentalists will not be happy with the direction the Trump administration’s policies on federal lands. Cramer said having Burgum in that role should ease some concerns. “Doug’s a good conservationist,” Cramer told the Monitor. “It’s not a ‘Drill, baby, drill’ attitude, it’s a, ‘Utilize the resources of the federal government for the benefit of the country and its people,’” Cramer told the North Dakota Monitor.

New York Times: President-Elect Names Gas Executive as Energy Secretary
Michael Gold, 11/16/24

“President-elect Donald J. Trump said Saturday that he would name Chris Wright, a gas executive and fossil fuels evangelist who has no government experience, as his secretary of energy,” the New York Times repots. “Mr. Trump said Mr. Wright, the chief executive of Liberty Energy, a Denver-based fracking company, had worked for years with Doug Burgum, the North Dakota governor chosen to be the next interior secretary and the head of a new national energy council. Mr. Trump said Mr. Wright and Mr. Burgum would “drive U.S. energy dominance,” in part by cutting regulations.”

E&E News: ‘The planet weeps’: Climate hawks slam Trump’s DOE pick
Nico Portuondo, 11/18/24

“Hill Democrats unleashed a gusher of criticism at President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for Energy secretary, calling fracking executive Chris Wright a climate science denier, a “fossil” and “sanctimonious,” E&E News reports. “Rapid climate change from fossil fuels is humanity’s greatest challenge,” Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) told E&E. “But Trump — fueled by fossil bucks — is making sure humanity fails that challenge. Look no further than his nomination for the Energy Department, Chris Wright, a fracking executive who funds anti-climate disinformation propaganda. He added, “The planet weeps.” Despite that outcry, Senate Republicans seem poised next year to confirm Wright, a Trump donor and CEO of Denver-based Liberty Energy, for the top job at the Department of Energy… “Wright’s close ties to the fossil fuel industry and previous comments on climate change exasperated Democrats committed to protecting the clean energy wins achieved by the Biden administration. In a video uploaded to LinkedIn last year, Wright said: “There is no climate crisis, and we’re not in the midst of an energy transition, either.” “Chris Wright is a science-denying, self-serving, sanctimonious fracker who consistently puts the wants of energy producers over the needs of American energy consumers,” Rep. Sean Casten (D-Ill.), a progressive climate hawk, told E&E. “To put him in charge of the Department of Energy is to fulfill the dreams of every fossil fuel company who hopes to boost their profits by raising energy costs for Americans.” Democrats were particularly disturbed to see the influence of the fossil fuel industry in Trump’s selection process. Wright was widely seen as the favorite pick of top oil and gas industry officials, including Harold Hamm, an informal adviser to Trump and chair of oil company Continental Resources.

E&E News: Trump’s DOE pick cements fossil fuel focus
Brian Dabbs, 11/18/24

“President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for Energy secretary signals a boost for U.S. fossil fuels,” E&E News reports. “Trump tapped Chris Wright, the CEO of fracking services company Liberty Energy, for the position this weekend. The oil and gas executive is a passionate proselytizer for fossil fuels, often touting the benefits of energy access while downplaying the threats posed by climate change. Wright is celebrated in the oil and gas sector, where executives anticipate he will clear the way for more American exports of liquefied natural gas. The country’s LNG exports have already skyrocketed in recent years, but the Department of Energy paused approvals for new permits earlier this year to assess the climate and economic impacts of the surge. “We look forward to working with him once confirmed to bolster American geopolitical strength by lifting DOE’s pause on LNG export permits and ensuring the open access of American energy for our allies around the world,” American Petroleum Institute CEO Mike Sommers said Saturday on X… “But Wright would be tasked with approving or denying LNG exports, which environmentalists decry as a major threat to global temperature rise. Some controversial LNG projects that could get the go-ahead under Wright include the sprawling CP2 project in Louisiana and Alaska’s $43 billion LNG project. “He’ll be hell-bent on abusing his power to prolong the use of deadly fossil fuels and give his corporate polluter executive friends a rubber stamp for the unfettered buildout of LNG exports,” Sierra Club Executive Director Ben Jealous told E&E “Chris Wright is not merely unqualified, he’s a direct threat to our future and the planet’s.” Wright was a donor to the Trump campaign and reportedly met with the president-elect earlier this year, according to The Wall Street Journal. Last week, he gained the backing of fossil fuel magnate and Trump ally Harold Hamm… “Wright has said “there is no climate crisis” and labeled net-zero emissions goals “neither achievable nor humane.” “Any negative impacts of climate change are clearly overwhelmed by the benefits of increasing energy consumption,” he said last year. “We have seen no increase in the frequency or intensity of hurricanes, tornadoes, droughts or floods despite endless fear mongering of the media, politicians and activists.” “…Jean Su, director of the Center for Biological Diversity’s Energy Justice Program, called on other countries to “reject American fracked exports and instead embrace the renewable future we desperately need.” “Picking someone like Chris Wright is a clear sign that Trump wants to turn the U.S. into a pariah petrostate,” Su told E&E.”

States Newsroom: ‘Drill, drill, drill’: New energy council signals Trump to prioritize energy production
Jacob Fischler, 11/15/24

“President-elect Donald Trump’s announcement Friday afternoon that his pick for Interior secretary, North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, would also coordinate a new council on energy policy is a sign the incoming administration will make energy production a core part of its domestic policy,” States Newsroom reports. “Few details of the new National Energy Council were available Friday, as activists and lawmakers processed the surprise 4 p.m. Eastern announcement. But the move likely reflects a focus by Trump and his next administration on energy production, including fossil fuels. “They’re signaling ahead of time that this is one of their priority areas,” Frank Maisano, a senior principal at the energy-focused law and lobbyist firm Bracewell LLP, told the Newsroom. Burgum “will be joining my Administration as both Secretary of the Interior and, as Chairman of the newly formed, and very important, National Energy Council, which will consist of all Departments and Agencies involved in the permitting, production, generation, distribution, regulation, transportation, of ALL forms of American Energy,” a written statement from Trump said… “It was unclear what the role of the Department of Energy would be in such an arrangement. The current secretary in the Biden administration is Jennifer Granholm, a former governor of Michigan… “Another key difference is that Burgum will also be tasked with running an entire, separate Cabinet-level department with a nearly $18 billion annual budget. Balancing the priorities of the Interior Department — which includes public lands management, protecting endangered species, maintaining national parks and overseeing tribal relations — with an initiative to vastly expand fossil-fuel production could be difficult, Frank told Newsroom… “Some Democrats and left-leaning groups voiced immediate opposition to the selection of Burgum. The U.S. House Natural Resources Committee Democrats sent a series of tweets Friday dubbing the governor “Big Oil Burgum” over ties to the oil and gas industry.”

E&E News: Top Republicans ask Granholm to hit brakes on LNG study
Nico Portuondo, 11/15/24

“Republicans on the House Energy and Commerce Committee are worried the Biden administration is “rushing” to finalize its study on liquefied natural gas exports to hamper President-elect Donald Trump’s energy agenda,” E&E News reports. “A Friday letter to Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm, led by Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.), instead pushes the Department of Energy to halt its effort to update the economic and climate impacts of LNG exports. “The results of the 2024 presidential election are clear, and DOE leadership will soon change,” the Republicans said in the letter. “As a traditional part of the peaceful transfer of power, DOE should immediately stop work on any plans to expand the scope of review or add new conditions to LNG export licenses.” A release accompanying the letter demands DOE to “stop rushing to prematurely release its anti-liquefied natural gas (LNG) study.”

E&E News: CO2 well backlog awaits Zeldin at EPA
Carlos Anchondo, 11/15/24

“If Lee Zeldin becomes EPA administrator, the former New York congressman may find over 150 applications for underground carbon dioxide injections waiting for him,” E&E News reports. “Zeldin would have sprawling responsibilities at EPA, but backers of carbon storage are optimistic that the agency under his leadership could shrink its review period for CO2 well permits. President-elect Donald Trump tapped Zeldin as one of his first major picks for the incoming Republican administration, and the incoming EPA job is widely seen as focused on rolling back regulations. With Class VI permits needed to store CO2 permanently in rock formations, EPA has faced pressure to shorten wait times. “We know Lee Zeldin as a very pragmatic lawmaker in Congress and think he will make a great [EPA] Administrator who will no doubt build a team with a lot of deep regulatory expertise,” Jeremy Harrell, CEO of conservative clean energy advocacy group ClearPath, told E&E.”

STATE UPDATES

Floodlight: Experts warn oil and gas can’t save Louisiana’s economy — even under Trump
Pam Radtke, 11/14/24

“…But a new report and long-time observers of the state’s economy say continuing to expect the oil and gas industry to provide an economic renaissance in Louisiana is unrealistic,” Floodlight reports. “Not only do those industries no longer drive Louisiana’s economy — providing just 4.5% percent of state revenue, compared with 40% percent in the late 1990s — but slowing global demand for those commodities is poised to further diminish the industry’s benefits to the state… “The report also notes that in 1999, the oil and gas sector accounted for 33% of the state’s GDP. By 2022, it had sunk to 14%. Because of its ties to fossil fuels — either through production of natural gas and oil or by burning it and using it at petrochemical plants — Louisiana is the sixth largest emitter of carbon dioxide, a major greenhouse gas, in the United States… “The oil and gas industry has a hold on the popular imagination, our self-image and our politics that is way disproportionate to their actual economic impact and their impact on actual communities,” Jan Moller, executive director of the Invest in Louisiana, a nonpartisan economic think tank, told Floodlight… “Louisiana State University economics professor emeritus Jim Richardson agrees the state must diversify. He served 30 years as the economist on the Louisiana Revenue Estimating Conference, the state’s economic forecasting panel. “We’re an oil and gas state, but, well, we need to be more than that,” Richardson told Floodlight.”.

Cardinal News: Virginia Tech team receives $11 million to lead carbon storage project
Tad Dickens, 11/15/24

“Making cement puts a lot of carbon dioxide into the skies. Rocks far below a Botetourt County cement plant might hold that greenhouse gas in the ground instead,” Cardinal News reports. “A Virginia Tech research team is leading a study to find out if those rocks are good for carbon storage. The team’s Project Cardinal will receive a $9 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy, and another $2.6 million from Roanoke Cement Co., where the research will happen. If it works out — and researchers won’t know for sure for a few years — it could have the same impact as removing more than 350,000 gas-burning cars from the road, Ryan Pollyea, a Virginia Tech professor who will lead the effort, told the News. It could be a decade before the plant can even store its gaseous byproduct down below… “Roanoke Cement and its corporate parent, Titan America, already are working on a process to cut emissions by using clay to reduce the amount of heat required and the amount of carbon dioxide released in production. The company is negotiating with the Department of Energy for an award of up to $61.7 million. That wouldn’t bring the carbon emissions to zero. Project Cardinal, which is a separate effort, could deal with the remaining emission… “The carbon comes up with oil and gas. The carbon comes up with limestone products,” Pollyea told the News. “We’re continually bringing the carbon up. Carbon storage is the idea of putting it back underground.” 

The Courier-Times: Citizens oppose, local leaders support Duke Energy air permit
George Willoughby, 11/14/24

“Twenty speakers voiced their opinions Tuesday night on an air quality permit revision for Duke Energy to retire its four generating units consisting of six coal-fired boilers, and replace them with four new natural gas-fired turbines at the company’s Roxboro Steam Electric Plant at Hyco Lake,” The Courier-Times reports. “The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Air Quality (DAQ) held a public hearing on the air quality permit Tuesday in the Piedmont Community College Auditorium… “In their comments, speakers voiced their concerns about the new natural-gas generation’s impact on the health of the community. When their time came to speak, local leaders spoke highly of Duke Energy and welcomed new generation and the presence of Duke Energy in the community. Julie Nye said she was happy to hear of Duke’s plan to retire its coal units at Hyco Lake, but not to hear that natural gas was the planned replacement. “I do applaud any transition away from coal, but natural gas plants are also significant air polluters,” Nye said. “Even worse, Duke plans to operate both plants simultaneously for an unspecified period of time. … Person County has already suffered more than its fair share of Duke Energy’s air pollution.” Representatives from nonprofits like Appalachian Voices, the Southern Environmental Law Center, the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, Clean Water for North Carolina spoke Tuesday night against issuing the air permit. Juhi Modi, North Carolina Field Coordinator with Appalachian Voices, said DAQ should reject the permit or delay until Duke demonstrates how it will comply with state and federal regulations.”

North Dakota Monitor: North Dakota tribal leaders see Burgum as an ally in Interior, energy role
Mary Steurer, 11/15/24

“Mark Fox, chairman of the Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara Nation, called Gov. Doug Burgum’s recent nomination for secretary of the Interior and National Energy Council chair a “match made in heaven” for North Dakota tribes,” according to the North Dakota Monitor. “…Burgum, who first took office in 2016, is credited with improving North Dakota’s once-tenuous relationship with local tribes… “Governor Burgum understands Indian country and the challenges we face, such as the need for public safety, better tribal education, and economic development in Indian country, among other needs,” David Flute, former chair of the Sisseton Wahpeton Sioux Tribe, said Friday in a statement to the North Dakota Monitor. Flute is now secretary of the South Dakota Department of Tribal Relations… “Brad Hawk, executive director of North Dakota’s Indian Affairs Commission, told the Monitor Burgum has a unique opportunity to reduce red tape for Native nations… “Fox told the Monitor he’s hopeful Burgum will use his position in Washington to help create a friendlier regulatory environment for the MHA Nation and other oil-rich tribes.”

Richmond Confidential: Chevron working to clean up spill that dumped more than 100 gallons of oil in San Francisco Bay
Riley Ramirez and Daniella Jiménez, 11/15/24

“Chevron says it has contained an oil spill that contaminated the San Francisco Bay at the Richmond Wharf on Thursday, and is working to clean it up,” Richmond Confidential reports. “…The company said less than three barrels of a diesel-based liquid leaked into the bay because of a pump failure at the Richmond Long Wharf. Caitlin Powell, a Chevron spokesperson, told the Confidential the company is still trying to determine the exact time the spill began. “Chevron immediately initiated its response protocol, stopped the release, and notified all applicable agencies,” the company said in a written statement Friday. “The released material is fully contained, there are no known impacts to wildlife or the shoreline, and air monitoring found no impact to the community. The safety and health of our workforce, our communities and the environment remain our highest priorities.”

EXTRACTION

Associated Press: Dutch appeals court overturns landmark climate ruling against Shell
Mike Corder, 11/12/24

“A Dutch appeals court on Tuesday overturned a landmark ruling that ordered energy company Shell to cut its carbon emissions by net 45% by 2030 compared to 2019 levels, while saying that “protection against dangerous climate change is a human right,” the Associated Press reports. “The decision was a defeat for the Dutch arm of Friends of the Earth and other environmental groups, which had hailed the original 2021 ruling as a victory for the climate. Tuesday’s civil ruling can be appealed to the Dutch Supreme Court. “This hurts,” Friends of the Earth director in the Netherlands Donald Pols told AP. “At the same time, we see that this case has ensured that major polluters are not immune and has further stimulated the debate about their responsibility in combating dangerous climate change. That is why we continue to tackle major polluters, such as Shell.” “…A court in The Hague in 2015 ordered the government to cut emissions by at least 25% by the end of 2020 from benchmark 1990 levels. The Dutch Supreme Court upheld the ruling five years ago… “In a written summary of Tuesday’s ruling, the court said that Shell has a duty of care to limit its emissions, but it annulled the lower court’s decision because it was “unable to establish that the social standard of care entails an obligation for Shell to reduce its CO2 emissions by 45%, or some other percentage. “There is currently insufficient consensus in climate science on a specific reduction percentage to which an individual company like Shell should adhere.”

E&E News: Explaining the trillion-dollar question that’s disrupting COP29
Sara Schonhardt, Zia Weise, Karl Mathiesen, 11/18/24

“This year’s global climate talks are all about the money needed to prevent the effects of global warming from accelerating. Easier said than done,” E&E News reports. “The nearly 200 countries represented here in Azerbaijan need to agree over the coming week how much money they can deliver every year. Halfway through the talks, they remain far apart — anywhere from about $100 billion to $2 trillion in potential pledges annually. It’s largely a political battle between rich and poor countries. Wealthy nations that have long relied on polluting energy sources have the money to move away from them. Poorer ones don’t. But if they invest in oil, gas and coal as they develop, instead of cleaner alternatives, global emissions will continue to rise — hurting everyone… “Wealthy countries like the U.S. and many European nations aim to keep the global target for public finance and the private investments it encourages from rising too far above its current level — $100 billion annually. If that’s the floor, the ceiling is miles higher. A bloc of 134 developing countries say the yearly target beginning in 2026 should be $1.3 trillion, at least. The latest report from a U.N.-backed expert group says the $100 billion target for public finance-related flows needs to triple by 2030, and overall money, including private capital, needs to reach $1 trillion to help developing countries (minus China) meet their growing energy needs with cleaner sources of power. Rich countries have so far declined to offer a dollar figure, saying only that it should be more than the current $100 billion goal. That’s less than 10 percent of what poorer countries are asking for… “The U.S. and other wealthy nations want the donor group to be larger than what other countries are asking for. That would keep the cost down for each donor nation. But there’s a bigger motivation: moving China into the giving class of countries… “Negotiators from Western nations argue that China and rich Gulf states such as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates should step forward with financial pledges, because they are “capable of contributing.” But those countries are not part of the official donor group under the terms of the 1992 U.N. climate treaty… “Until developed countries are sure more countries will pay up, they don’t want to agree to a dollar amount.”

E&E News: Republican lawmakers channel Trump at climate summit
Sara Schonhardt, Emma Dumain, 11/18/24

“Republican lawmakers on Saturday foreshadowed America’s global climate message for the world under President-elect Donald Trump: Buy more U.S. natural gas,” E&E News reports. “The assertions by five GOP Congress members at the COP29 climate talks contrasted sharply with global pledges to phase down fossil fuels, an overriding theme of the international summit. “American natural gas has helped us reduce emissions more than any other nation, and we have the capacity to continue helping our allies reduce their emissions by exporting clean, reliable sources like LNG and nuclear,” Texas Rep. August Pfluger told reporters Saturday. The visit by Republican members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee came as Biden administration officials and allies sought to assure other nations that U.S. climate action will continue at the state level and in corporate boardrooms.”

Guardian: Almost 500 carbon capture lobbyists granted access to Cop29 climate summit
Dharna Noor, 11/16/24

“At least 480 lobbyists working on carbon capture and storage (CCS) have been granted access to the UN climate summit, known as Cop29, the Guardian can reveal. That is five more CCS lobbyists than were present at last year’s climate talks, despite the overall number of participants shrinking significantly from about 85,000 to about 70,000. CCS lobbyists at Cop29 in Baku, Azerbaijan, outnumber the core national delegations from powerful nations including the US and Canada. Nearly half of the lobbyists were granted access as members of national delegations, affording them greater access to negotiations, including 55 who were invited as “guests” by the Azerbaijani government, which is hosting this year’s climate summit, and given what some at the conference are calling “red-carpet treatment.” The figure, calculated by the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) and shared exclusively with the Guardian, comes amid concern from activists that the climate summit is too heavily featuring “false solutions”. “We are witnessing fossil-fuel greenwashing by those attempting to delay the inevitable fossil fuels phase-out,” Rachel Kennerley, a campaigner at CIEL, told the Guardian. “This large presence of lobbyists is a confirmation that the carbon capture industry is working hard to promote the misguided CCS technology. But governments and companies simply cannot ‘clean’ their coal, oil, and gas by capturing and ‘managing’ emissions.” “…But activists have long derided the technology, noting it does not yet exist at scale and doesn’t address the local harms of fossil fuel extraction, and that it can be dangerous. And despite its branding as a climate solution, it has so far mostly been used to recover carbon from oil wells and then inject it back underground to help squeeze more fuel from depleted fields – a process known as enhanced oil recovery… “The significant number of CCS lobbyists at Cop29 highlights the fossil fuel industry’s substantial investment in attempting to secure its future, despite the urgent need to phase out fossil fuels,” Kennerley told the Guardian. “Investing in this expensive and unreliable technology will lock in fossil fuels and waste precious time and money that we cannot afford. Large-scale CCS transport and storage also comes with significant health and safety risks.”

Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC): A climate solution or distraction? The carbon capture facility at Chevron’s Gorgon project tells a cautionary tale
Daniel Mercer, 11/17/24

“…For all the attention the LNG plant demands from the observer, it is another, much more modest construction nearby that arguably attracts just as much, if not more, scrutiny,” the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) reports. “Sitting amid the spinifex and low sandy dunes to the north of Barrow Island is the plant Chevron hopes can — and has long claimed will — prevent many of the emissions that would otherwise be caused by Gorgon… “And, as the name suggests, it involves taking carbon from the Gorgon project and burying it deep underground to avoid releasing it into the atmosphere… “In theory, the plant is supposed to bury — or sequester — 80 per cent of the carbon dioxide from Gorgon’s gas fields over the life of the project… “But seemingly endless problems and delays with the CCS plant on Barrow Island have dashed those plans, at least in the short term. Such have been the setbacks, Chevron estimates it has so far buried just over 10 million tonnes of CO2, or barely a third of what was promised by now… “But critics of the technology — and the fossil fuel industry’s embrace of it — say it is a dangerous distraction. Geoscientist Dimitri Lafleur, who used to work at Dutch-Anglo oil behemoth Shell, told ABC carbon capture and storage did practically nothing to deal with the root cause of global warming — the combustion of fossil fuels. If anything, he told ABC it would only prolong their use and make it harder to rein in emissions in later years. To illustrate his point, he cited Chevron’s own numbers for Gorgon… “Ms Chiang told ABC the jury was still out on whether — or the extent to which — carbon capture and storage could be brought down in cost to a level that made it viable. And she acknowledged there was a world of difference between the hype around CCS and what it was currently delivering.”

DeSmog: Canada Promises Climate Reparations at COP29 While Courting Big Oil at Home
Mitch Anderson, 11/15/24

“Steven Guilbeault came to the COP29 climate change negotiations in Azerbaijan ready to make what the federal Liberal government deemed a “major” announcement,” DeSmog reports. “The Canadian minister of environment promised a financing platform worth more than $2 billion which can help developing countries prepare for the worst impacts of climate change and shift their economies to cleaner sources of energy.  But though a rapid acceleration of climate finance – sometimes referred to as climate reparations – is badly needed, Canada is set to undermine that goal back home by potentially funneling billions of dollars to oil and gas producers at the heart of the climate crisis. Behind the scenes, oil patch lobbyists are apparently hard at work seeking expensive subsidies from the Canadian taxpayer. In the last year Pathways Alliance, a coalition representing six of the largest oil sands companies, booked 78 meetings with almost 40 senior federal officials including the deputy prime minister, three ministers, three deputy ministers, six assistant deputy ministers, three chiefs of staff, seven members of parliament and two senators. The deputy secretary to the cabinet for clean growth had 38 separate meetings with lobbyists for the Pathways Alliance… “The Globe and Mail featured an op-ed last month entitled “It’s time for Alberta’s oilsands to land the Pathways carbon project,” which suggests the Pathways Alliance was offered $10 billion in federal and provincial incentives that would cover about two thirds of the capital costs. Taxpayers are learning of these additional gifts to Big Oil — not through a public consultation — but in a newspaper article that asks, “when could there ever be a deal this good for Alberta’s energy companies again?” “…In addition to the government covering over 60 percent of the capital costs, Pathways apparently wants carbon pricing guarantees backstopped by – you guessed it – the taxpayer. “

New York Times: The Quest to Build a Star on Earth
Raymond Zhong, 11/14/24

“The quest for fusion energy — the clean, potentially limitless source that could end mankind’s power woes — began as an answer to an old question, one we’ve been asking since we first raised our heads toward the sky,” the New York Times reports. “…A century later, a handful of start-ups say we are closer than ever before to making it happen. In the next few years, these companies told the Times, their fusion machines will produce more energy than they take to run. Soon after, they will start generating electricity for factories, data centers, steel mills and more, helping humanity take a decisive step away from fossil fuels, away from global warming and air pollution, away from powering our lives by setting tiny fires in engines and boilers and furnaces. Big-name investors including Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos, Vinod Khosla and Sam Altman have staked hundreds of millions of dollars on this, fusion’s potential Kitty Hawk moment: the one that shows that the limits of our species’s mastery have once again been catapulted forward. Today’s fusion start-ups aren’t just preparing for this moment in the lab. They are signing presale deals with customers, developing supply chains, cultivating a work force, talking with regulators — all the elements that will be needed to make fusion an affordable, practical power source, not just a science experiment. And yet, closer than ever does not necessarily mean close. Fusion’s history is a graveyard of missed deadlines and thwarted milestones, bursts of excitement followed by bruising disappointments. The sunny view is that the start-ups are moving more quickly than government labs ever could. They can try, fail and try again. But the lesson from more than half a century of fusion research, Gerald Navratil, a professor of plasma physics at Columbia, told the Times, is that failure happens in ways nobody anticipates… “David Gates worked in government labs for three decades before helping to found Thea Energy in 2022. “If you’d asked me 10 years ago, ‘Should I start a fusion company?’ I would’ve said you’re out of your mind,” Dr. Gates told the Times. “The private sector wasn’t interested in fusion in the slightest.” “…And when will fusion’s dawn be upon us? The plan for Eos, at least, is to have it running by 2030.”

OPINION

Bridge MI: Michigan AG should cease ‘lawfare,’ avoid interfering with energy prices
Bill Schuette is the former Michigan Attorney General who now represents the 95 th House District, 11/14/24

“In May 2024, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced a plan to sue energy producers, seeking monetary damages over their alleged role in contributing to climate change. Nessel’s case mimicked a set of coordinated suits filed by more than two dozen municipal entities with this single-minded objective,” Bill Schuette writes for Bridge MI. “As a former attorney general of Michigan, I view AG Nessel’s decision to deploy our state’s resources in these baseless activist cases as entirely inappropriate, especially given that they target energy producers that Michiganders continue to depend on for their livelihoods. This is for three important reasons. First, given that these suits are intended to make fossil fuels more expensive — California’s Attorney General made this point explicitly about his analogous lawsuit — these cases would be counterproductive to our state economy and the job market… “Should Attorney General Nessel’s form of activism become the rule rather than the exception, it could deter businesses from moving into our state… “Second, Michigan’s economy is more dependent on stable national fuel prices than other states… “Third, and perhaps most crucially, there are better ways to address the issue of climate change than with frivolous lawsuits… “These lawsuits against energy producers are what is called lawfare: using the legal system to damage an opponent… “AG Nessel should make the right decision — for Michigan, and for the country — and immediately stop these frivolous lawsuits from proceeding any further.”

NOLA.com: Editorial: Carbon capture debate puts rural residents in a bind
Staff Editorial, 11/17/24

“Louisiana’s rapid embrace of carbon capture and sequestration has put rural residents on the forefront of a technology some are not sure is safe,” the staff of NOLA.com writes. “Carbon capture and sequestration has been hailed by many as a novel and efficient way to cut carbon emissions by, essentially, grabbing them and storing them deep underground… “But the process requires thousands of acres of land. Because Louisiana landowners also own the spaces underground where the carbon would be stored, companies must secure their consent if the carbon might go under their land. That means stitching together a patchwork of leases for tracts large and small. As reporter David Mitchell found, that leaves some landowers in a difficult bind. Keith Payne, a St. Helena resident who purchased a small plot more than 20 years ago as a place he could hunt and enjoy the outdoors, found himself with the offer of a small upfront payment in return for his consent. And if he declined? The project would have probably gone forward anyway because his land is surrounded by that owned by a large timber company which had already signed a deal to lease its more than 8,000 acres… “The depth of some of those concerns was on display last year at a series of packed public meetings regarding a planned carbon sequestration project under Lake Maurepas. Meanwhile, state leaders have aggressively boosted the industry, and LSU has created a first-in-the-nation carbon capture concentration within its petroleum engineering curriculum and plans to put a carbon sequestration well on campus… “But we are certainly sympathetic to the local landowners who feel squeezed. This is where an active and diligent state government should come in. State permitting and environmental officials should be vigilant about holding the companies accountable to high standards. They must also make communication a priority so that residents have a trusted authority from which to get answers to their questions. If the state wants to embrace the bright promise of cutting-edge technologies, its residents should not be left floundering in the dark.”

Forbes: Carbon Capture Progress Is Low Hanging Fruit For Lee Zeldin
David Blackmon is a Texas-based public policy analyst/consultant, 11/15/24

“As President-elect Donald Trump’s announced nominee to become Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator, one of Lee Zeldin’s (R-NY) major tasks will be to find ways to streamline the permitting and approval processes within the EPA. The realm of carbon capture and storage could become a prime opportunity for the new administrator to show quick results,” David Blackmon writes for Forbes. “The slowness of permitting and delegations of authority at the agency have become bottlenecks to progress in meeting some of the carbon reduction goals laid out in the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), President Joe Biden’s signature piece of legislation. Barring an unlikely major rewrite or repeal of the IRA, those goals will remain among the priorities that Zeldin will find on his plate when he assumes office next year. Bipartisan frustration has mounted in recent years over carbon capture and storage (CCS) permitting, approving carbon capture injection wells (Class VI Wells), and in granting state primacy, delegating the authority for states to permit these wells independently. Louisiana’s recent state primacy delegation illustrates this bottleneck: while 60 permits were transferred to its jurisdiction, a sizable federal backlog remains… “Offshore CO2 storage potential is being wasted. The Department of the Interior (DOI) has been slow to establish rules that would allow companies to store CO2 beneath the seabed on the outer continental shelf (OCS)… “While the common perception of the Trump energy and climate agenda focuses on its “drill, baby, drill” aspects, it is key to remember that former President Trump did not abandon US carbon reduction coals in his first term and has not pledged to do that in the second term to come. In fact, US carbon emissions fell significantly across Trump’s previous four years in office. With so many millions having already been invested in CCS projects by major players like ExxonMobil, finding ways to streamline EPA processes related to carbon capture permitting and state primacy delegations will present a bit of low hanging fruit in which Zeldin and his team can show quick progress.”

DeSmog: COP Won’t Survive for Long Unless We Tackle Climate Corruption
Brice Böhmer is the climate and environment lead at Transparency International, 11/12/24

“The world’s leading climate diplomats, scientists and policy experts convene in Baku, Azerbaijan, this week to begin the 2024 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP29),” Brice Böhmer writes for DeSmog. “Framed as the “finance COP”, this year’s summit will be defined by negotiations around the amount of public money dedicated to tackling climate change. Less remarked on, but by no means less important, is the issue of corruption that threatens to undermine the integrity of this year’s entire conference. Corruption may not be the first thing that comes to mind when considering the fight against climate change – but it should be. For the second year in a row, COP will be hosted by a petrostate… “Our new report with the Anti-Corruption Data Collective (ACDC) investigated the many clear signs of potential corruption in the lead up to Baku. We found that this year’s summit risks being co-opted by a fossil fuel industry whose interests run counter to those of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) but clearly benefit those of the family of Azerbaijan’s authoritarian president. If you’re wondering why this is the first time you’ve heard about this, it might have something to do with the massive public relations campaign Azerbaijan has embarked on to sanitise its international reputation. At almost $5 million, the money spent on its PR campaign rivals the $5.8 million paid by the country to UNFCCC to host the conference itself. A fortnight ago, Global Witness uncovered 71 suspicious X accounts that appear to have been artificially manipulating COP29 content on the platform by sharing pro-regime narratives. This PR effort contrasts sharply with the severe repression of independent media and civil society that dare to criticise Baku’s human rights abuses and kleptocracy. In the absence of robust integrity and conflict of interest management measures, this year’s COP is in real danger of being co-opted by the government as diplomatic cover to advantage its domestic oil and gas interests. Unless and until protections are put in place, there’s nothing to stop the same thing from happening at every COP. To preserve COP’s purpose, we must take bold steps to uphold its integrity. This must include strengthening the decision process around host nations by ensuring that only countries who have been vetted by the Bureau of the COP, and whose proposal aligns with the Paris Agreement, can be considered… “Unless we confront this issue head-on, the relevance of COPs will wither.”

The Hill: Trump’s second term will devastate the US climate agenda 
William S. Becker is executive director of the Presidential Climate Action Project and a former senior official at the U.S. Department of Energy, 11/18/24

“…However, what happens when an incoming leader has an opinion so ill-informed that it threatens national security, economic stability, millions of new jobs, public health and the safety of virtually every American?  We’re about to find out, because voters have elected Donald Trump as the next president,” William S. Becker writes for The Hill. “Five months ago, 78 percent of Americans polled by the University of Chicago said climate change is real, including 62 percent of Republicans. More than eight in 10 said they had experienced an extreme climate event. Of those, 68 percent said it was an important issue in the election, and 53 percent wanted the next president to reduce global warming emissions. But by Nov. 5, those priorities had been eclipsed by other issues — perhaps the worry that Haitian migrants were eating family pets in Ohio. Now, the man about to take charge of the world’s biggest carbon-fuel producer and second-biggest source of carbon emissions thinks climate change is a “hoax” and climate scientists are “alarmists.” Trump has little nice to say about the clean energy technologies necessary to stop climate change from getting worse. He makes wild, unsubstantiated and provably untrue comments about wind and solar energy, perhaps because oil interests give more money to political campaigns. They gave over $75 million to Trump PACs in the 2024 cycle. Trump had asked for a billion… “Wind and solar power are already less expensive than new fossil-fueled power plants. With market forces aligning behind wind, solar and other clean resources, prolonging fossil energy’s dominance and jobs are losing propositions… “As the world’s energy transformation unfolds, Trump’s stated policies would leave the United States behind with his anachronistic, ill-advised and ill-fated effort to help the fossil fuel industry sustain its status as America’s dominant energy source… “What we know for sure is that the U.S. and the world should be redoubling itsefforts to deploy clean energy and speed up decarbonization. Instead, Trump’s election will cause another major setback. The American people, and the world’s, will suffer for it.”  

Evergreen Action: The Most Important Action President Biden Can Take on Climate Before Trump Takes Office
11/14/24

“There’s no denying it: President Biden’s hard-won climate progress is at risk under a second Trump presidency. This leaves the president less than three months in office to do everything in his power to defend our communities and democracy—and cement his strong climate legacy,” Evergreen Action writes. “Number one on that to-do list should be working with the Department of Energy (DOE) to conclusively determine that liquefied “natural” gas (LNG) exports are not in the public interest and quickly deny pending applications for more giant terminals. In January 2024, President Biden listened to communities and stood up to Big Oil by pausing new LNG export terminal authorizations, pending a review of their impact on climate and the economy… “Rejecting all six pending LNG export authorizations before DOE would single-handedly and significantly curb unnecessary fossil fuel expansion. This action would be difficult to overturn and leave a lasting positive impact on both Biden’s legacy and the frontline communities counting on him… “The task of preserving our democracy, values, and a safer climate future from a Trump administration will no doubt be challenging and will require a movement-wide effort that goes beyond these next few months. But President Biden has a chance to do even more to help us succeed. That means finishing the job on LNG.”