EXTRACTED: Daily News Clips 3/11/24

PIPELINE NEWS

• Reuters: US carbon pipeline company pledges no oil recovery, but Bakken drillers want it

• Tri-State Livestock News: Governor Noem signs bill to eliminate local control of carbon pipeline setbacks, allow for county funding

• NWestIowa.com: Lyon County could add pipeline rules

• Bloomberg: EQT to Buy Mountain Valley Pipeline Owner for $5.5 Billion

• Reuters: TC Energy briefly shut Keystone oil pipeline on unfounded leak concern

• Dakota Scout: Field testing rules out Keystone pipeline oil spill in northeast South Dakota

WASHINGTON UPDATES

• Guardian: Biden backtracks on climate plans and ‘walks tightrope’ to court both young voters and moderates

• Press release: 560+ U.S., International Groups Applaud Biden’s LNG Permitting Pause, Urge Further Action

• Bloomberg: US Pause on New LNG Export Licenses May Last Months Under Review

• Reuters: Texas challenges US EPA limits on oil and gas industry methane emissions

• E&E News: Biden Admin Readies Plan To Save The Sage Grouse 

• Politico: Printer Jam Cleared 

• E&E News: Republican National Committee votes in former oil lobbyist Whatley as chair

STATE UPDATES

• Courthouse News Service: State appeals court halts Kern County plan to fast-track oil drilling near homes, schools

• Associated Press: New Mexico Halts Some Oil-Field Lease Sales In Standoff Over Royalty Rates In Permian Basin 

• KPLC: Federal agency visits SWLA to encourage public comments on LNG proposals

• E&E News: Louisiana utility plans $411M floating gas plant

• Inside Climate News: New Lake Will Fuel Petrochemical Expansion on Texas Coast

• Cowboy State Daily: Critics Say BLM ‘Doing Bare Minimum’ For Wyoming Oil And Gas Lease Auctions 

• KYMA: California officials investigate oil spill off the coast of Huntington Beach

EXTRACTION

• Grist: Big Oil faces a flood of climate lawsuits — and they’re moving closer to trial

• Reuters: Oil leak from capsized barge off Tobago stopped after a month

CLIMATE FINANCE

• E&E News: Republicans Vow To Keep Fighting Natural Asset Investing 

• Inside Climate News: ‘Insure Our Future:’ A Global Movement Says the Insurance Industry Could Be the Key to Ending Fossil Fuels

OPINION

• Detroit Free Press: Rashida Tlaib: Biden must revoke Line 5 permit before it destroys Great Lakes

• 10/12 Industry Report: Pipeline disputes could pose risks to Louisiana’s energy sector

• Stars and Stripes: Biden’s pause on new LNG exports is the right move for national security 

• The Hill: Big oil’s big deception: That plastics are recyclable

• The Hill: Our recycling system isn’t working — here’s what we can do instead 

• Morningstar: How Canada’s Oil Sands Companies Can Pave Their Way to Net Zero

• Edmonton Journal: If Alberta is serious about energy project cleanup, let’s start with the oilsands
  

PIPELINE NEWS

Reuters: US carbon pipeline company pledges no oil recovery, but Bakken drillers want it
Leah Douglas, 3/11/24

“Summit Carbon Solutions, which is trying to build the biggest carbon dioxide capture pipeline in the United States to transport and bury greenhouse gases, has repeatedly pledged its project will not be used by drillers to boost output from oil fields,” Reuters reports. “But Summit has a different message for prospective clients, including North Dakota’s oil sector, according to a Reuters review of state regulatory filings and recordings of public appearances by company executives: if you want to use our project for enhanced oil recovery (EOR), where gas is pumped into oil fields to increase production, just write a check. The dual messages illustrate Summit’s efforts to court broad support for its $5.5 billion project, which could capture as much as 18 million metric tons of CO2 annually from 57 Midwest ethanol plants and store it underground at a site in North Dakota… “But the oil industry wants to use the pipeline for EOR, reflecting a belief among drillers in North Dakota’s Bakken that oil recovery is necessary to reverse the once-booming region’s flagging output. North Dakota oil players launched the group Friends of Ag and Energy in December to promote carbon pipelines like Summit’s, including through thousands of dollars of radio ads. With the Summit project, “the potential is there, the size of the prize in the Bakken is significant, and ultimately, I see a tremendous long-term opportunity,” North Dakota Petroleum Council (NDPC) president Ron Ness told Reuters. Summit has long maintained, in both sworn testimony to state pipeline regulators and on its website, that it does not intend to use its project for EOR… “Environmental groups generally oppose EOR because of its potential to extend the life of the fossil fuels industry. But more recently, Summit officials have indicated that using the pipeline to ship carbon for boosting oil production is a future likelihood… “The state will need as much as ten times more CO2 than it can capture from stationary sources to free billions of barrels of oil trapped in Bakken fields, John Harju, vice president for strategic partnerships at the University of North Dakota’s Energy and Environmental Research Center, told Reuters. “Importing CO2 via pipeline is something that I think at the end of the day is going to be necessary,” Harju told Reuters… “Summit’s current focus on sequestration is in part due to the 45Q tax credit program, expanded by the Inflation Reduction Act, which offers $85 per ton of sequestered carbon and just $50 per ton for EOR. A shift in that policy could alter the company’s priorities around EOR, executives and oil industry players told Reuters.”

Tri-State Livestock News: Governor Noem signs bill to eliminate local control of carbon pipeline setbacks, allow for county funding
3/8/24

“South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem signed SB 201 into law on March 7, 2024, cementing a prohibition on county or township control over the location of pipelines in the state,” Tri-State Livestock News reports. “…I stand with South Dakota landowners and always will,” said Governor Kristi Noem. “I am looking forward to signing a Landowner Bill of Rights that will provide new protections for landowners and allow for economic growth to move forward through a transparent process,” was the official comment to come out of the Governor’s office. But Rep. Karla Lems, Canton, says this isn’t something landowners wanted, and it doesn’t address the issues they’ve voiced for the last two years as the carbon pipeline battle has raged on… “The final language of the bill, after many amendments, calls for the state permit to “supercede” any county, township, municipality or other government unit rule regarding “safety” standards for pipelines. Some counties, including Brown County, have established setback rules – 1,500 feet in Brown County’s case – to ensure the pipeline isn’t built too close to residences or businesses. The new laws requires the state PUC commission’s permit (if or when it is issued) to supercede and pre-empt local government rules… “Moore expressed several concerns. What happens if and when the tax credits are no longer available? Should the state be negotiating prices of property taxes? What safety issues might arise from the pipeline? He says the “landowner rights” in the bill are probably little comfort to the people who might be forced into easements via eminent domain. “I think the pipeline can get built without all of this. This is dividing neighbors against neighbors,” he said.

NWestIowa.com: Lyon County could add pipeline rules
Elijah Helton, 3/8/24

“CO2 pipelines were briefly back in the conversation at the Lyon County Board of Supervisors meeting as local governments across Iowa wrestle with energy projects,” NWestIowa.com reports. “Supervisors mentioned the carbon-capture lines Tuesday, Feb. 27, as something to consider as the county gets underway with its long-term review of zoning rules. It will take months for Ashley Lewis, county assessor and zoning commissioner, and her team to complete the review process… “In addition to uses and regulations for urban and rural land, the board added energy projects to the to-do list, including CO2 pipelines. “It could be the depth of the pipe, it could be how far away from the residence — that’s what we can do,” said supervisor Steve Herman. Board members have been skeptical and critical of the carbon-capture venture proposed by Summit Carbon Solutions… “If we would put the ordinances in, we’d probably be getting sued also,” Birkey said. Lewis said it might depend on the specifics of the would-be ordinance of which there is no current draft. The county could add rules about where and how a pipeline could be buried or try outright blocking CO2 lines from its borders.”

Bloomberg: EQT to Buy Mountain Valley Pipeline Owner for $5.5 Billion
Elizabeth Elkin, 3/11/24

“EQT Corp., the largest US natural gas producer, agreed to buy back its former unit Equitrans Midstream Corp. for about $5.5 billion in stock in the latest in a flurry of deals in the oil and gas pipeline industry,” Bloomberg reports. “Equitrans owns the controversial Mountain Valley Pipeline project, which is years behind its original schedule after facing legal battles and local opposition. The project, which is due to be completed in the second quarter, will take gas from the Marcellus shale basin in Appalachia — the biggest US source of the fuel — to markets in the Southeast.”

Reuters: TC Energy briefly shut Keystone oil pipeline on unfounded leak concern
Rod Nickel, 3/8/24

“TC Energy temporarily shut down the Keystone oil pipeline on Thursday to investigate a South Dakota landowner’s report about a possible leak that proved unfounded, the Canadian company and a U.S. pipeline regulator said on Friday,” Reuters reports. “TC told the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) about the reported leak and conducted aerial observation and water analysis that found no evidence of a spill before restarting the line, PHMSA told Reuters. A spokesperson for Calgary, Alberta-based TC Energy told Reuters a landowner in South Dakota’s Marshall County noted a sheen in water from his well, one mile from the pipeline corridor. “This was not an operational incident. The pipeline was shut down out of an abundance of caution,” the TC spokesperson told Reuters… “The pipeline has been dogged by problems, most recently a major spill in rural Kansas in 2022.”

Dakota Scout: Field testing rules out Keystone pipeline oil spill in northeast South Dakota
3/8/24

“Officials in a rural northeast South Dakota county are breathing a sigh of relief after what was feared to be an oil spill from the Keystone pipeline was determined to be a false alarm,” the Dakota Scout reports. “The Marshall County Emergency Management office responded Thursday to a report of a potential oil spill on farm ground near Langford, about a mile from the pipeline. The landowner who reported the potential leak discovered the questionable substance in a water well on his property. But after testing and investigation by both the county’s emergency management services and TransCanada (TC) Energy — owner and operator of the Keystone pipeline — the liquid was determined to be unrelated to oil or the pipeline itself… “The pipeline itself was shut down for about five hours Thursday afternoon, and laboratory tests by both TC Energy and a third-party investigator are in the process of being conducted to confirm the authenticity of the initial findings indicating the absence of oil. As a courtesy, the company also plans to test water samples from the landowner’s well, a spokesman with the company told The Scout… “In 2017, a Keystone pipeline leak spilled about 407,000 gallons in Marshall County.”

WASHINGTON UPDATES

Guardian: Biden backtracks on climate plans and ‘walks tightrope’ to court both young voters and moderates
Oliver Milman and Nina Lakhani, 3/8/24

“Joe Biden, touted as the US’s first climate president, is presiding over the quiet weakening of his two most significant plans to slash planet-heating emissions, suggesting that tackling the climate crisis will take a back seat in a febrile election year,” the Guardian reports. “During his state of the union speech on Thursday, Biden insisted that his administration is “making history by confronting the climate crisis, not denying it”, before reeling off a list of climate-friendly policies and accomplishments. “I’m taking the most significant action on climate ever in the history of the world,” he added. However, last week the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said it would delay a regulation that would reduce emissions from existing gas power plants, most likely until after November’s presidential election. The delay comes as the administration waters down requirements that limit pollution from cars, slowing the country’s adoption of electric vehicles. The backtracking could jeopardize Biden’s goal of cutting US emissions in half this decade, which scientists say is imperative to averting disastrous effects from global heating, and shows the competing pressures upon a president looking to hold together a wobbly coalition including climate activists, labor unions and centrist swing state voters before a likely showdown with Donald Trump later this year. Biden is faced by a cohort of younger, progressive voters who have denounced him for the ongoing leasing of oil and gas drilling on public lands, as well as a large slice of the electorate who have barely heard of Biden’s landmark climate bill and are more worried about inflation and the costs of a green transition… “They are really walking a tightrope,” Paul Bledsoe, a former climate adviser to Bill Clinton’s White House, now an environmental policy expert at American University, told the Guardian. “Biden has to retain the full-throated support of younger voters but he also has to speak to moderates in swing states who are focused on consumer issues. It’s a real balance…There’s a lot at stake, and if Biden needs to modify vehicle emissions standards to help tip the balance in his favor, he will go for it. This is the starkest choice on climate change for any election in history.” “…Far more resources have opened up through the IRA [Inflation Reduction Act] but communities have to jump through so many hoops that it’s not making an impact,” Eloise Reid, the manager of the Louisiana Against False Solutions Coalition, told the Guardian. “Mike Regan came to Cancer Alley and looked people in the eye but then dropped the investigation and gave primacy to the state over CCS…This has left such a bad taste in people’s mouths. The administration has not listened to communities. There’s been a lot of broken promises.”

Press release: 560+ U.S., International Groups Applaud Biden’s LNG Permitting Pause, Urge Further Action
3/7/24

“A letter delivered today to President Biden from more than 560 environmental, climate, health and advocacy organizations around the world applauded the administration’s decision to halt pending liquefied natural gas (LNG) export approvals to non-free trade countries and called on the administration to expand the pause to halt the permitting of new LNG infrastructure and export projects across all federal agencies and commissions. The letter was facilitated by Food & Water Watch, Oil Change International, Healthy Gulf and Frack Action. The letter also calls for the Department of Energy, as part of its review, to institute a broad and inclusive democratic process with public hearings and a comment period that allows for and empowers the voices of frontline communities, the scientific community, environmental advocates, economists, health professionals, Tribal governments, elected officials, business leaders and concerned individuals. The letter reads, in part: “While the pause in Department of Energy approvals is needed and welcome, it is important to recognize that without further action from your administration, gas exports in the United States are projected to nearly double by 2035. Further, there are other permits pending with a litany of federal agencies for LNG export projects and related infrastructure. These include the Environmental Protection Agency, Coast Guard, Department of Transportation and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission… It makes no sense to halt LNG on one hand and advance it with the other. All permits for new LNG and related infrastructure should be rejected.”

Bloomberg: US Pause on New LNG Export Licenses May Last Months Under Review
Aaron Clark and Stephen Stapczynski, 3/8/24

“The Biden administration’s pause on new liquefied natural gas export licenses could last months as the Department of Energy reviews the issue, according to a US energy official,” Bloomberg reports. “We anticipate the analysis that’s underway now taking several months because this is an issue of such significant importance,” Brad Crabtree, assistant secretary for the department’s Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management, told Bloomberg Responding “responsibly” to comments and analysis will “take a significant period of time,” he told Bloomberg.”

Reuters: Texas challenges US EPA limits on oil and gas industry methane emissions
Clark Mindock, 3/8/24

“Texas sued the U.S. government over Environmental Protection Agency rules published on Friday, that crack down on the oil and gas industry’s releases of methane, a potent greenhouse gas that contributes to climate change,” Reuters reports. “The lawsuit filed in the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit challenges EPA rules first announced last year that seek to reduce methane emissions through measures like bans on routine flaring of natural gas produced at new oil wells. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a Republican, said the rules amount to regulatory overreach by the EPA, and usurp the role of states in establishing emission standards. “The EPA is once again trying to seize regulatory authority that Congress has not granted,” Paxton said in a statement.”

E&E News: Biden Admin Readies Plan To Save The Sage Grouse 
3/78/24

“The Biden administration is expected to soon release its road map to save the greater sage grouse, which would impose most — but not all — of the Obama-era restrictions to block oil drilling and other activities near the imperiled bird’s habitat, according to people familiar with the plan,” E&E News reports. “How to save the grouse — the roly-poly bird known for its elaborate spring mating dance — has long been one of the most contentious issues in the West. The trade-offs are stark: Protecting the bird’s sagebrush habitat often means limiting drilling, renewable energy projects, mining and livestock grazing on wide swaths of land. After years of negotiations with environmentalists, state leaders and industries that operate on federal land, the Obama administration in 2015 came out with its plan to safeguard the most sensitive grouse habitat across 10 states. Then in 2019 the Trump administration rewrote those regulations, giving states more leeway to greenlight projects near grouse breeding grounds.”

Politico: Printer Jam Cleared 
3/8/24

“EPA’s much-touted final methane rule — unveiled at COP28 more than three months ago — is finally publishing in the Federal Register today,” Politico reports. “Agency officials have offered little explanation for the printing delay to POLITICO’s E&E News, other than noting the significant length and complexity of the rule. The publication will be a relief to environmental and public health advocates who pushed for the rule, but it also opens up the door for lawsuits — which are all but certain. The rule, Reg. 2060-AV16, will strengthen existing standards for new pollution sources and for the first time require producers to upgrade equipment and actively search for leaks at hundreds of thousands of wells and other oil and gas infrastructure. EPA has estimated it will eliminate 36 million tons of methane emissions through 2035. That’s equivalent to 810 million metric tons of carbon dioxide, or about the same as all greenhouse gas emitted from the nation’s fleet of coal-fired power plants in 2020. The Texas Railroad Commission, the oil industry regulator in the nation’s largest fossil fuel-producing state, voted in January to ask Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton to sue the EPA to block the rule.” 

E&E News: Republican National Committee votes in former oil lobbyist Whatley as chair
Ben Lefebvre, 3/8/24

“Members of the Republican National Committee voted Friday to make Michael Whatley its chair, putting a former oil lobbyist atop the party leadership,” E&E News reports. “Details: Whatley, the former chair of the North Carolina GOP who won a unanimous voice vote to chair the national committee, was a former partner of lobbying firm HBW Resources. The company counted BP, the American Petroleum Institute and other fossil fuel industry entities in the 2010s. Whatley himself worked on issues related to oil and gas development, hydraulic fracturing and approval of the Keystone XL pipeline, according to lobbying disclosure forms. Whatley went on to help lead Consumers Energy Alliance, an advocacy group backed by many fossil fuel industry companies, including Exxon Mobil, Chevron, Enbridge and Koch Industries’ company Flint Hills Resources. Background: Whatley, former President Donald Trump’s pick to lead the RNC, was voted into the position along with the former president’s daughter-in-law Lara Trump. Whatley has falsely claimed that Trump’s 2020 election loss was due to voter fraud.”

STATE UPDATES

Courthouse News Service: State appeals court halts Kern County plan to fast-track oil drilling near homes, schools
NATALIE HANSON, 3/7/24

“Kern County can no longer issue local permits for oil and gas projects after a state appeals court found, for the second time, that its local ordinance violated California environmental law,” Courthouse News Service reports. “On Thursday, a Fifth Appellate District panel ruled unanimously that Kern County relied on a flawed environmental review and violated California’s Environmental Quality Act to approve its local oil and gas ordinance, designed to fast-track permitting of oil and gas projects. County officials are prohibited from issuing local permits for oil and gas projects, including for a contested project that would occupy much of San Joaquin Valley… “The panel found that the county’s study of cancer risks for those living near multiple wells was deficient, as was its analysis of the impacts of drilling near houses and schools. Under a proposed project, the county intended to allow drilling just 210 feet from residences and 300 feet from schools. The county also failed to adequately evaluate and address the oil and gas industry’s use of water, which is expected to lower groundwater levels in local wells across the county — especially in disadvantaged communities, the court said… “If Kern County tries for a third time to fast-track an oil and gas project, it will first have to adopt a new ordinance and redo its environmental review process.”

Associated Press: New Mexico Halts Some Oil-Field Lease Sales In Standoff Over Royalty Rates In Permian Basin 
Morgan Lee, 3/7/24

“New Mexico’s State Land Office will withhold lease sales indefinitely on its most promising tracts for oil and natural gas development in the Permian Basin as it seeks approval by the state Legislature to increase top-tier royalty rates, Land Commissioner Stephanie Garcia Richard said Thursday,” the Associated Press reports. “Bills have repeatedly stalled in the Democratic-led Legislature, including this year, that would raise New Mexico’s top royalty rate for oil and gas development from 20% to 25%. Proponents of the change say neighboring Texas already charges up to 25% on state trust land amid intense competition to drill in the Permian Basin that overlaps southeastern New Mexico and parts of western Texas. In New Mexico, royalty payments from oil and gas development are deposited in a multibillion-dollar investment trust that benefits public schools, universities and hospitals. “I am a fiduciary on behalf of the school kids,” Garcia Richard told AP. “t’s my job to make them the most money possible, and leasing these tracts below market rate means that school kids are subsidizing the oil and gas activity.”

KPLC: Federal agency visits SWLA to encourage public comments on LNG proposals
Theresa Schmidt, 3/6/24

“The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, also called FERC, is involved in deciding where LNG facilities and pipelines will be located. FERC usually meets in Washington, D.C., but representatives came to Southwest Louisiana to gather with local people,” KPLC reports. “Concerned citizens, environmentalists and industry representatives went to what FERC called community connection events in Sulphur and Lake Charles… “Lori Cooke with the Louisiana Bucket Brigade asked whether those who do participate have any influence on the decision-makers. “It would be awesome if the people who actually made the decisions would come, buy some shrimp off a shrimp boat in lower Cameron and talk to those guys down there because I don’t think even with public commenting that message is getting through to how much it’s affecting communities,” Cooke said.

E&E News: Louisiana utility plans $411M floating gas plant
Carlos Anchondo, 3/11/24

“Louisiana’s largest electric utility is seeking state approval for an unusual plan to help keep the lights on: a floating natural gas power station,” E&E News reports. “Entergy Louisiana has filed a request with the Louisiana Public Service Commission to construct a 112-megawatt power plant on a barge near Leeville, Louisiana, southwest of New Orleans. Phillip May, CEO of Entergy Louisiana, told E&E in a statement that the Bayou Power Station is “a unique solution” to help meet the power needs of communities that have an important role in the state’s energy, tourism and seafood industries. Entergy Louisiana is a unit of New Orleans-based Entergy. The $411 million proposal would support areas like Port Fourchon, Golden Meadow, Leeville and Grand Isle via a microgrid system, Entergy said in a news release. The facility would include “black-start capability,” the company said, meaning it could help jump-start electricity production during a blackout.”

Inside Climate News: New Lake Will Fuel Petrochemical Expansion on Texas Coast
Dylan Baddour, 3/8/24

“Texas regulators last month approved water rights for a new, 2,500-acre reservoir to meet the growing needs of chemical plants, refineries and other industries on the Gulf Coast,” Inside Climate News reports. “A draft permit issued Feb. 23 by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality authorizes the Lavaca-Navidad River Authority (LNRA) to divert up to 31 billion gallons per year from the Lavaca River. It would go into a reservoir proposed on property Formosa Plastics owns, about two miles east of its massive Point Comfort chemical complex, where the company has quietly pursued permits to expand in recent years since its Louisiana megaproject has been stalled by legal complaints. The draft will undergo a 30-day period of public comment before being adopted.  It’s the first time in 50 years the small river authority has sought additional water rights, according to general manager Patrick Brzozowski. “There is interest in our area to develop industrial plants,” he told ICN. “That’s where the demand is going to come from.” “…Here, a single actor reins supreme: Formosa Plastics, a $460 billion Taiwanese company, and its 2,500-acre complex on Lavaca Bay, which turns Texas shale gas into the materials for common single-use plastics. The company has incurred hefty fines and complaints for years over unpermitted discharges into air and water. It currently faces steep opposition over its proposed new chemical complex in Louisiana, which has mired the project in challenges over environmental justice, climate impacts and wetlands destruction. Now, its prospects for expansion in Texas trouble environmental advocates. “Formosa got such hell from people in Louisiana stopping them that they keep it very quiet when they are trying to expand,” Diane Wilson, a retired Gulf Coast fisherwoman who won a $50 million settlement in 2019 from Formosa over its routine dumping of plastics into Lavaca Bay over decades, told ICN. “They want water for expansion.”

Cowboy State Daily: Critics Say BLM ‘Doing Bare Minimum’ For Wyoming Oil And Gas Lease Auctions 
3/7/24

“An oil and gas lease auction held this week by a federal land management office in Wyoming reflects a national picture taking shape to rebalance the supply and demand of energy-rich land offered to industry for drilling,” Cowboy State Daily reports. “The trend has evolved in recent years as clean energy advocates have largely gotten their way on these land lease sales. Critics of the auction process held by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management in Wyoming want more valuable federal land offered up for lease. In fact, that’s what they’ve requested — or nominated — for lease in the auctions when BLM has asked for ‘expressions of interest.’ However, supporters of the current auction process like the status quo and cite a 2-year-old federal law that addresses clean air and other green policies coming out of today’s government. The auction held Tuesday by the BLM Wyoming office shows that oil and gas interests in the Cowboy State bid on 11,738 acres of federal land, which makes up about 90% of the total acres offered for lease. The higher percentage is a shift from a year ago when only half bid on available leases.”

KYMA: California officials investigate oil spill off the coast of Huntington Beach
Dillon Fuhrman, 3/9/24

“Officials in California are investigating an oil spill that occurred off the coast of Huntington Beach on Friday,” KYMA reports. “Investigators from the California Governor’s Office Emergency Services filed a hazardous materials spill report which detailed an overflow of petroleum coming from an offshore platform belonging to Beta Offshore… “Coast Guard officials confirmed the report and said that the sheen is two-to-2.5 miles long.”

EXTRACTION

Grist: Big Oil faces a flood of climate lawsuits — and they’re moving closer to trial
Kate Yoder, 3/8/24

“It’s been six years since cities in California started the trend of taking Big Oil to court for deceiving the public about the consequences of burning fossil fuels. The move followed investigations showing that Exxon and other companies had known about the dangers of skyrocketing carbon emissions for decades, but publicly downplayed the threat. Today, around 30 lawsuits have been filed around the country as cities, states, and Indigenous tribes seek to make the industry pay for the costs of climate change,” Grist reports. “Until recently, most of these cases had been stuck in limbo. Oil companies were trying to move them from the state courts in which they were filed to federal courts, a more business-friendly setting. But just in the past year, the Supreme Court declined to hear their arguments to relocate these cases on three separate occasions, most recently clearing the way for Minnesota’s case to proceed in state court. That means executives from Exxon Mobil, BP, and other oil giants may soon have to defend their actions in front of a jury. The long delays might have strengthened the legal arguments against fossil fuel companies. Researchers have uncovered more details about what oil companies knew about climate change and when, and the science connecting fossil fuel emissions to climate disasters has matured, arming cities and states with more evidence.  One of the cases that’s furthest along, filed by Massachusetts against Exxon Mobil in 2019, is already in the process of “discovery,” the last major step before a trial. In this stage, both sides try to uncover evidence that could help their case in court. The discovery process could unearth further details of oil companies’ deception, such as what individual CEOs or other company executives did with the information they learned about climate change, Johl told Grist.  “It’s really what the industry fears the most,” Johl told Grist. “They don’t want anyone digging through their archives and divulging their innermost thoughts and secrets.” 

Reuters: Oil leak from capsized barge off Tobago stopped after a month
3/7/24

“An oil leak from a barge carrying up to 35,000 barrels of fuel oil that capsized in early February off the Caribbean island of Tobago has stopped, said the twin islands’ government on Thursday,” Reuters reports. “The spill, which was first spotted off the coast of Tobago’s Atlantic coast on Feb. 7, damaged some of the island’s mangrove and threatened its tourism and fishing sector. The spill also entered the Caribbean Sea, threatening nearby Venezuela and Caribbean islands, including Bonaire… “The volume of the spill, its origin, intended destination and ownership of the barge remain unknown.”

CLIMATE FINANCE

E&E News: Republicans Vow To Keep Fighting Natural Asset Investing 
3/8/24

“A House oversight hearing examining Biden administration proposals to place economic value on natural resources turned ugly, as Democrats accused their Republican colleagues of showing a ‘lack of respect’ toward expert witnesses who disagree with their views on the issue,” E&E News reports. “Republicans on the Natural Resources Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations continued to blast the administration’s proposed National Strategy for Natural Capital Accounting, which lays out a process for designating natural resources as an asset with a specific monetary value that should be considered when making policy decisions about these resources. The hearing also included debate on a now-withdrawn proposed rule by the Securities and Exchange Commission that would have allowed so-called natural asset companies to trade on the New York Stock Exchange. Republicans, as they did at an oversight hearing last month, described the administration’s efforts as part of a vast and shadowy effort to ‘lock up’ federal lands from energy development, mining and livestock grazing.”

Inside Climate News: ‘Insure Our Future:’ A Global Movement Says the Insurance Industry Could Be the Key to Ending Fossil Fuels
Keerti Gopal, 3/8/24

“Roishetta Ozane would have rather been sitting in a rocking chair at home in Louisiana with her seven-month old grandbaby than standing outside of a multinational insurance company’s office in New York City, surrounded by dozens of police officers, speaking to a rally,” Inside Climate News reports. “…By continuing to insure fossil fuel projects—including multiple liquified natural gas terminals in the Gulf South—the American International Group and its peers in the insurance industry are ensuring disaster, Ozane said. “Decisions being made in this building ensure my children’s asthma, ensure my children having chronic diseases, it ensures people in my community having cancer, it ensures my community having disasters like hurricanes,” she told ICN. Ozane, founder of the Louisiana mutual aid and disaster relief organization the Vessel Project and a national climate movement leader, was speaking at a rally in New York City as part of Insure Our Future’s global week of action, a mobilization targeting the insurance industry’s role in driving climate disasters with its continued underwriting of fossil fuel projects… “The insurance industry is the one that is sustaining this climate crisis,” Hillary Innocent Taylor Seguya, an activist with Stop EACOP, a campaign fighting to halt the construction of the East African Crude Oil Pipeline, told ICN. “If they pull out of insuring these carbon bombs—the oil, gas and coal projects—there is no way that the fossil fuel industry will survive.” Activists targeting insurance are savvy both to the levers of financial power and the realities of living in proximity to fossil fuel projects. Led by frontline communities who have been disproportionately burdened with toxins and worsening environmental disasters, the campaign is focused on crippling the financial viability of new fossil fuel infrastructure.”

OPINION

Detroit Free Press: Rashida Tlaib: Biden must revoke Line 5 permit before it destroys Great Lakes
Rashida Tlaib represents Michigan’s 12th District in the U.S. Congress, 3/9/24

“The Line 5 pipeline transports crude oil from Alberta through the Straits of Mackinac, the most critical part of the Great Lakes, operated by a Canadian company called Enbridge with a disturbing history of faulty infrastructure and environmental destruction, including right here in Michigan. For more than a decade, tribal leaders, environmental activists, elected officials and people from all walks of life across Michigan have been fighting to shut down Line 5, because anything that threatens the health of the Great Lakes threatens the health of our communities and our collective future,” Rashia Tlaib writes for the Detroit Free Press. “…This should be taken more seriously by elected officials. It is a threat to our most critical source of water. This Canadian polluter is operating an aging, dangerous pipeline in our backyard. We can’t wait for a disastrous oil spill in the Great Lakes. There must be immediate action to eliminate this threat, which is why we need to shut down Line 5… “The Straits are much more than a shipping lane — they are a place with deep meaning for our Indigenous neighbors, whose treaty rights protect their ability to steward this resource. There’s a resounding call in Michigan to shut down Line 5. Thousands of individuals have been organizing rallies, sending postcards and urging their elected officials to end this threat. Various legal challenges, permit processes, and environmental analyses are underway, but we can’t wait. President Joe Biden has the ability to protect our Great Lakes today by revoking Line 5’s presidential permit. I’m continuing to urge the president to step in to protect the Great Lakes and the millions of us who rely on this irreplaceable natural resource to survive and thrive. Tribal nations across the Great Lakes opposing Line 5 remind us that “water is life.” And it’s true: There is no more precious resource than water. We cannot allow the water we rely on to live, the water that helps make Michigan such a special place for so many, to be sacrificed for corporate greed. Our residents deserve better. Let’s shut down Line 5, and end this threat.”

10/12 Industry Report: Pipeline disputes could pose risks to Louisiana’s energy sector
Charlie Melancon is a former Democratic member of Congress and Louisiana Secretary of Wildlife and Fisheries, 3/10/24

“An ongoing court case over Louisiana pipelines could have far-reaching and dangerous consequences for Louisiana landowners and for future investments in the Bayou State. The issues at stake could affect regulatory structures, permitting customs, and property rights,” Charlie Melancon writes for 10/12 Industry Report. “…In 2009, midstream energy company Energy Transfer was granted permanent and exclusive rights to construct, operate, and maintain pipelines along a stretch of land across North Louisiana… “In addition, these exclusive rights, which are not uncommon with Louisiana pipelines, give companies security in knowing that other pipelines cannot cross that area and potentially disrupt their own operations. Unfortunately, not all energy companies acknowledge or adhere to the rights of others. This is what is happening in Louisiana and to Energy Transfer, as other energy companies are now seeking to circumvent Energy Transfer’s rights and undermine the company’s investments in an effort to fast track their own pipeline projects. The primary issue has been the Louisiana Energy Gateway (LEG) pipeline project.  In May of last year, LEG attorneys notified Energy Transfer that their proposed pipeline project would cross Energy Transfer’s pipeline 42 times. While it is not unprecedented for pipelines to cross one another, these crossing requests are usually limited to one or two per request, making LEG’s 42 crossings request an outlier… “If the projects were treated as transmission lines, Louisiana landowners, environmental groups, state agencies, and other interested parties would have an opportunity to comment and raise concerns… “If landowners lose the ability to challenge claims to their property, particularly when they have no legal basis, then they can expect their property to lose value and become vulnerable to frivolous claims that may just succeed… “The oil and gas industry plays a crucial role in the Louisiana economy, supporting 346,000 jobs and more than $54 billion in investments. This economic activity is made possible by a stable regulatory environment and respect for property rights. Louisiana courts should continue to stand by companies and landowners that have made good-faith investments in the state, and reject the reckless approaches being advanced by less responsible actors.”

Stars and Stripes: Biden’s pause on new LNG exports is the right move for national security 
Steve Anderson, a retired U.S. Army brigadier general, is a retired logistician, environmental advocate, project manager, business developer and service-disabled military veteran. He is a board member of Vet Voice Foundation, a nonpartisan veterans advocacy organization that represents more than 1.5 million veterans and military families, 3/7/24

“President Joe Biden recently announced his administration would pause the approval of new liquefied natural gas exports to reassess their impacts on our families, our country and our planet. This decision was celebrated as a major victory for climate action — and rightfully so, as the total emissions of all operating and planned LNG export projects would be equivalent to building 688 new coal-fired power plants. But this important step forward is more than just action on climate — it tackles an emerging national security threat that oil and gas CEOs would rather not talk about,” Steve Anderson writes for Stars and Stripes. “With the Pentagon’s emphasis on the climate crisis as an unprecedented security threat, the pollution associated with unchecked natural gas exports would compound an already dangerous gamble. However, the reckless and unlimited expansion of natural gas exports is currently turning what could be a security asset into a real liability. Right now, America’s rivals are increasingly buying up and importing American natural gas at a record pace. The controversial CP2 project in southwestern Louisiana is already contracted to export its gas to China Gas, for example. With this American energy in adversarial hands, China and others are expanding their influence over the global energy market, controlling a greater and greater volume of U.S. produced gas to build their own power. In other words, our rivals like China are leveraging American LNG to build more influence all over the world — all while our families pay higher energy prices as a result… “This excess supply is only said to increase if Biden moves forward with the proposed 20 LNG export facilities he recently paused… “By turning over U.S. gas to Chinese companies connected to the Chinese Communist Party, their government can stockpile and then sell critical U.S. energy sources to advance China’s interests across the world. In the event of future conflicts, their contractual control of U.S. energy resources could prove extremely dangerous to our country and empower our opponents, totally defusing any strategic value these LNG exports may have had. To put it plainly, letting China buy up huge quantities of American LNG and leverage it to expand their influence over the global energy market is a serious risk to our national security, one that could harm our ability to sufficiently respond in moments of crisis… “A pause and reassessment of new LNG exports can protect Americans now and in the future.” 

The Hill: Big oil’s big deception: That plastics are recyclable
Brian Frosh was attorney general of Maryland from 2015 to 2023, 3/8/24

“Plastic pollution is everywhere. We eat it. We drink it.  We breathe it. It is on the summit of Mount Everest and at the bottom of the oceans. Not only is it in human breast milk, but, according to one study, the average person now ingests as much as a credit card’s worth of plastic (5 grams) every week. New research by the Center for Climate Integrity reveals that the plastics industry knew this plastic waste crisis was coming. And so petrochemical manufacturers worked hard to persuade the public that we could recycle our way out of the problem,” Brian Frosh writes for The Hill. “Behind the scenes, however, they were admitting all along that such efforts were “virtually hopeless.” For more than 40 years, they knew that plastic recycling is not technically or economically feasible at scale. More than 90 percent of all plastic has ended up in landfills, ecosystems, or incinerators. Yet the generation of plastic, and the consequent pollution, continues to boom, to our collective peril… “Twenty petrochemical companies generate more than half of all the world’s single-use plastics. They include major oil and gas companies such as ExxonMobil, the world’s leading producer of single-use plastic waste… “Internal documents reveal that the industry knew by 1986, for example, that “recycling cannot be considered a permanent solid waste solution [to plastics], as it merely prolongs the time until an item is disposed of.” In 1994, an Exxon employee warned staffers at the American Plastics Council that they did not “want paper floating around” saying they could not meet recycling goals, since the issue was “highly sensitive politically.” These compelling admissions and many more are grounds for a thorough investigation… “Evidence of Big Oil’s plastic recycling deception demands action. It seems clear that the plastics industry has exploited our shared desire to live sustainably, polluted our air and water, and contaminated our bodies by churning out hundreds of millions of tons of plastic, even while they apparently knew better. It is time for attorneys general and other officials to hold them accountable.”

The Hill: Our recycling system isn’t working — here’s what we can do instead 
Alejandro Pérez is senior vice president of policy and government affairs at World Wildlife Fund, 3/10/24

“A mere 9 percent of plastic is recycled in the United States each year. Plastic waste in our country grows unabated because the U.S. operates a patchwork of largely ineffective recycling systems that don’t create enough incentives for consumers and businesses to reduce their plastic footprint,” Alejandro Pérez writes for The Hill. “But there’s a way we can fix this. Lawmakers should shift the financial responsibility of collecting, recycling and reusing plastic packaging materials from consumers and municipalities to the producers of plastic products by establishing a national Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) policy.   Under an EPR framework, companies would cover the costs of recycling their materials and face penalties for using packaging that’s difficult to recycle or for not including recycled materials in their packaging. As a result, recycled materials would become more readily available and economical over time. EPR policies have already been adopted in multiple states, including Colorado and California. In California, producers must meet plastic source reduction requirements and ensure that covered materials are recyclable or considered compostable by 2032. Other states, such as Minnesota, are considering following suit. These states are demonstrating how industry, environmentalists and policymakers can join forces to transform the way we use, reuse and recycle materials. Congress is now taking notice. This past Wednesday, the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee held a first-ever hearing to examine EPR policies for consumer packaging. Leading senators from both parties expressed openness to establishing a federal framework for more consistent domestic recycling and waste reduction policies… “By adopting these practical, bipartisan measures, lawmakers can lay the much-needed groundwork to loosen plastic’s chokehold on our planet. They should seize the opportunity to make it easier for all of us to do our part to keep plastic out of nature.” 

Morningstar: How Canada’s Oil Sands Companies Can Pave Their Way to Net Zero
Shane Tiley, 3/8/24

“Following the COP28 United Nations Climate Change Conference, the world has largely agreed to transition away from fossil fuels. As the home of the fourth largest proven crude oil reserve in the world,1 Canadian oil producers have a key role to play in global decarbonization and will undoubtedly face challenges as the world moves further down the transition pathway. These companies could be uniquely positioned to decarbonize and avoid stranded assets by not only diversifying their business streams, but also by capitalizing on hydrocarbon uses beyond combustion,” Shane Tiley writes for Morningstar. “…According to analysis conducted by the Global Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) Institute,7 the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin is one of the largest and most suitable basins for CCS globally. With this advantage, oil sands producers appear to be banking on CCS as the main method to decarbonize Alberta’s resource-rich economy… “However, Pathways Alliance’s activity and the long-term success of the proposed CO2 hub is heavily contingent on fiscal frameworks — at both the provincial and federal levels — as well as results of a formal consultation with 25 Indigenous communities located around the proposed pore space and CO2 transportation line. Oil sands producers are relying heavily on CCS to meet their decarbonization targets… “With so much riding on the success of CCS in the oil sands, it’s important to consider if producers have additional risk mitigation strategies in place to successfully navigate through the low-carbon transition – especially in relation to their scope 3 emissions, which essentially remain unmanaged. Another step oil and gas producers are taking in response to climate-related transition risks is diversifying their product portfolios to include sustainable or lower-carbon fuels and alternative streams of business… “Although the pathway to decarbonize the Canadian oil sands via what could be one of the world’s leading CCS hubs seems promising, producers could be in for a bumpy ride on their net zero journey if they don’t consider alternative and innovative opportunities to diversify away from fossil fuel combustion.”

Edmonton Journal: If Alberta is serious about energy project cleanup, let’s start with the oilsands
Phillip Meintzer is a conservation specialist with Alberta Wilderness Association; Aliénor Rougeot is climate and energy program manager at Environmental Defence Canada, 3/8/24

“Alberta has announced incoming restrictions on renewable energy projects including a ban on development in prime agricultural areas, buffers around protected areas and “pristine viewscapes,” plus a requirement for developers to post mandatory security deposits for potential cleanup costs. This announcement not only threatens the future of renewable energy in Alberta, it also highlights Alberta’s hypocritical approach to energy development, as these restrictions don’t apply to the more destructive oilsands industry, which already threatens to leave Albertans on the hook for billions in unpaid cleanup costs,” Phillip Meintzer and Aliénor Rougeot write for the Edmonton Journal. “According to information obtained from the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER), from 2010 to 2023, Alberta collected just 71 cents from oilsands operators to put toward cleaning up the vast toxic tailings spread across the landscape and to remediate mine sites. That’s less than one dollar collected over 13 years from some of the richest companies on the planet, which posted $38.3 billion in combined profits in 2022 alone. Less than one dollar toward cleanup liabilities that the AER pegged as high as $130 billion in internal estimates leaked to the media in 2018, and $47 billion in official public reports. If the government wants to shield taxpayers from picking up the energy sector’s tab, it should start there. Like the security deposits now required from renewable energy developers, Alberta’s Mine Financial Security Program (MFSP) was created in 2011 to collect funds from oilsands operators to cover reclamation costs. However, in a recent report from the University of Calgary, experts determined the program is “functionally equivalent to having no system at all.” “…There is currently no established or approved method in place for their reclamation. Even if there was a protocol to follow, Alberta lacks the necessary funds to cover the costs… “Yet while the government seems keen on addressing the environmental impacts of an emerging industry, what about those who have enjoyed over 50 years of profit at Alberta’s expense and have yet to pay their fair share towards cleanup? Action is needed now. If Alberta continues to let oil companies off the hook for their cleanup, and those same companies eventually pack up and move on, what will be left for Albertans? A once pristine landscape covered in toxic wastewater and a massive bill.”