Extracted: Daily News Clips 8/4/21

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PIPELINE NEWS

• Democracy Now: Water Protectors Shot with “Less Lethal” Police Munitions at Line 3 Pipeline Protests
• Healing MN: MN law enforcement has been paid nearly $1.7 M from Line 3 escrow account
• Minnesota Reformer: Public may not know Enbridge’s progress on Line 3 jobs promises until construction ends
• MLK50: Will the Memphis City Council take steps to keep Byhalia and other pipelines out?
• WV Gazette Mail: Federal regulators recommend leaving pipeline and felled trees in place along Atlantic Coast Pipeline route
• KYUK: State allows Donlin Gold to lease land for 315-mile pipeline
• Globe and Mail: Why Canada is fighting to save an oil pipeline in Michigan
• Williston Herald: Pipelines in backyards can complicate homeownership

WASHINGTON UPDATES

• Associated Press: Bipartisan bill leaves out key climate, clean energy steps

STATE UPDATES

• Denver Post: Is there enough room on Colorado’s High Plains for both new homes and drilling? Some communities taking different approach to the question

EXTRACTION

• E&E News: Court Orders New NEPA Review For Texas LNG Plants
• Reuters: Abu Dhabi National Energy Co nears deal to sell some Canadian assets to Blue Sky -sources
• Financial Post: Petronas eyes $1.3B project in Alberta to export hydrogen to Asia
• Chesapeake Bay Journal: As Federal Support Emerges, PA Wants To Be A Carbon Capture Hub
• S&P Global: Many fossil fuel CEOs saw pay increase in 2020 amid severe industry downturn

RESEARCH & SCIENCE

• Guardian: Siberian heatwave led to new methane emissions, study says
• Reuters: Why cutting methane emissions is key to fighting climate change [VIDEO]

CLIMATE FINANCE

• Insure Our Future: 15TH INSURER RULES OUT COVERAGE FOR THE TRANS MOUNTAIN PIPELINE

TODAY IN GREENWASHNIG

• Oklahoman: Would you pay more for ‘responsibly sourced natural gas’? Producers think many consumers will

OPINION

• Financial Post: People need to accept that Canada is the fourth biggest producer of oil in the world: Seamus O’Regan
• Money and Markets: The New Big Tobacco? Buy 6.2% Dividend as Big Pipeline Bridges Energy Gap
  

PIPELINE NEWS

Democracy Now: Water Protectors Shot with “Less Lethal” Police Munitions at Line 3 Pipeline Protests
8/3/21

“In Minnesota, the Giniw Collective is reporting at least 20 water protectors were brutally arrested over the weekend — including Indigenous lawyer and activist Tara Houska — as resistance to the Enbridge Line 3 pipeline continues,” Democracy Now reports. “Water protectors say state and local police used tear gas, rubber-coated bullets and pepper bullets, and denied medical care to those held in jail. Some were reportedly held in solitary confinement. Houska on Monday published photos of herself with bruises on her arms and several wounds from police rubber bullets.”

Healing MN: MN law enforcement has been paid nearly $1.7 M from Line 3 escrow account
8/3/21

“The Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (PUC) approved a scheme for Enbridge to reimburse local law enforcement and fire departments for any Line 3-related expenses they incurred. This blog recently updated the reimbursements and it turns out it under reported the amount. Based on new information from the PUC, the total is now $1.67 million,” Healing MN reports. “…In addition, Enbridge has paid $237,000 to police and nonprofit organizations for human trafficking stings and services to victims of human trafficking… “As we reported earlier, the Cass County Sheriff’s Office has received the most money of any single entity from Enbridge’s Public Safety Escrow Account. Much of this money appears to be for proactive patrols of Line 3 worksites. The Beltrami County Sheriff’s Office submitted a number of smaller reimbursement requests, revealing more about its requests. The invoices included Mobile Field Force Training that date back to May 31, 2016. So far, the Beltrami County Sheriff received the most money ($107,000 or 58 percent of the total) for equipment. It received $40,800, or 22 percent of the total, for training. The Bemidji Police Department so far has received $100,000 in reimbursements. Much of it, $69,000, paid for equipment and training.”

Minnesota Reformer: Public may not know Enbridge’s progress on Line 3 jobs promises until construction ends
RILYN EISCHENS, 8/3/21

“Enbridge pledged to hire thousands of local workers for its Line 3 pipeline project. But we may not know whether they fulfilled that promise until the pipeline is completed,” according to the Minnesota Reformer. “The Canadian energy company’s pledge to create jobs in rural communities was a major selling point for the $4 billion project. But Enbridge only has to publicly report worker residency numbers annually, according to a Public Utilities Commission project permit, and an update isn’t due until after November 2021. The pipeline is more than 60% complete and scheduled to be operational by the fourth quarter of this year, Enbridge says. When asked Tuesday if Enbridge would share recent worker residency numbers or planned to provide an update before November, spokesperson Juli Kellner told the Reformer the company is “on track with reporting per the PUC Line 3 Replacement permitting requirements.”

MLK50: Will the Memphis City Council take steps to keep Byhalia and other pipelines out?
Carrington J. Tatum, 8/3/21

“Update: The Shelby County Commission on Tuesday held without discussion the third and final reading of a joint city-county ordinance that would require 1,500 feet between an oil pipeline and residential areas. The body passed on second reading a city-only ordinance that would create a new permitting process for such projects,” MLK50 reports. “Nearly six months since the first pipeline-regulating ordinance was placed before the Memphis City Council and one month since developers canceled the Byhalia Connection Pipeline,  local governments have yet to pass any measures that would make similar pipeline projects tougher, if not impossible, to build. The council will consider Tuesday afternoon the third and final reading of a joint city-county ordinance that would require 1,500 feet between an oil pipeline and residential areas. Also on the council agenda is the second of three readings for a city-only ordinance that would create a new permitting process for such projects. Even though the project was halted, passing the two ordinances have been a priority of Justin J. Pearson, a co-founder of Memphis Community Against the Pipeline, which led the charge to stop the pipeline. “We are as vulnerable today against crude oil pipelines as we were in (before the project was announced),” Pearson told MLK50. “Without legislation and just regulation, our aquifer and our people will remain vulnerable.”

WV Gazette Mail: Federal regulators recommend leaving pipeline and felled trees in place along Atlantic Coast Pipeline route
By Mike Tony, 8/3/21

“Before it was canceled in July 2020, the bulk of the installation of the Atlantic Coast Pipeline slated to cross through West Virginia, Virginia and North Carolina had taken place in the Mountain State. Now federal energy regulators have recommended to leave it in place,” the WV Gazette Mail reports. “The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission recommended in its review of a plan to restore land disturbed by the aborted construction of the $8 billion pipeline leaving all installed pipeline and previously felled trees in place… “Ruby previously said that Atlantic Coast Pipeline planned to keep the easement agreements it had on landowners’ properties, including those secured through eminent domain. But Ruby left the future of the easements more open-ended Monday, telling the Mail that Atlantic Coast Pipeline will coordinate individually with each landowner to determine the long-term disposition of the easements. “In short, we need to retain the easements until the restoration work and post-restoration monitoring are complete,” Ruby told the Mail, noting a May filing in which Atlantic Coast Pipeline told the commission it would communicate with landowners on a case-by-case basis after restoration. Atlantic Coast Pipeline retains 2,603 permanent easements spanning 4,290 acres, according to the company. “The worst part about the ACP project is the lasting impact it will have on the property owners,” Crowe told the Mail, adding that West Virginians will not get full use of their land returned to them in a timely manner and would be “in limbo for years to come.”

KYUK: State allows Donlin Gold to lease land for 315-mile pipeline
Olivia Ebertz, 8/3/21

“On July 20, the Alaska Department of Natural Resources for the second time granted Donlin Gold the right to lease state land to build a pipeline that will power its mine,” KYUK reports. “DNR has granted land-use rights for a proposed 315-mile long pipeline that would stretch from Cook Inlet to the proposed mine site about 12 miles north of Crooked Creek on the Kuskokwim River. The pipeline will supply natural gas to the mine to power its operations… “Tribes opposing the mine sought a re-review, and DNR agreed to put the decision on hold to look at the pipeline again… “The reason for the re-review, according to a statement issued by DNR, was to “review and clarify the cumulative effects of the project.” That was a key part of the tribes’ concerns and the reason they asked for the review. But now attorneys from environmental law firm Earthjustice say DNR didn’t do enough in their re-analysis, citing that they reissued the exact same decision. Earthjustice attorney Tom Waldo told KYUK the DNR needs to look at the total impacts of the project, rather piecemeal, he said… “Earthjustice represented five Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta tribes — Orutsararamiut Native Council, Chuloonawick Native Village, Chevak Native Village, the Native Village of Eek, and the Kasigluk Traditional Council — and nonprofit Cook Inletkeeper in the most recent regulatory battle against the pipeline. Tribes opposing the pipeline say it will disastrously affect their land use and subsistence resources.”

Globe and Mail: Why Canada is fighting to save an oil pipeline in Michigan
8/4/21

“Beneath the Straits of Mackinac, the connecting waterway between Lake Michigan and Lake Huron, lies Enbridge Line 5: a pipeline built in 1953 bringing natural gas and crude from the oil sands in Alberta to refineries in Ontario and Quebec,” the Globe and Mail reports. “Opponents of the pipeline worry that it could rupture, poisoning the fresh water supply, blocking shipping routes, and crushing tourism. Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer ordered it shut down, but Enbridge refused; they’re now in mediation. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Trudeau is lobbying the Biden administration to keep the pipeline open. Having already blocked Keystone XL, it remains unclear whether Biden will favour shutting down an already-operating pipeline. On today’s show, Globe U.S. correspondent Adrian Morrow joins us to talk about what makes this pipeline battle different, why anti-pipeline activists were able to gather such a broad coalition of supporters, and why shutting down Line 5 could mean higher gas prices for Ontario and Quebec.”

Williston Herald: Pipelines in backyards can complicate homeownership
By Renée Jean, 8/3/21

“A pipeline in the backyard can complicate home ownership, and that brought an Enbridge representative to the Williams County meeting on Tuesday, to comment on an item that requested a variance from the county’s 50-foot setbacks,” the Williston Herald reports. “Mike Dolbec requested the variance for certain lots in the Windsong Country Estates Subdivision zoned urban residential in the Missouri Ridge Township. Planning and Zoning recommended against allowing the variance, in part due to a pipeline that runs along the eastern edge of the property, which has its own 100-foot easement. That easement combined with the county’s 50-foot setback is making the lots unbuildable. Dolbec asked the County to reduce their setback to the prior specifications. That’s 25 feet for the setback, and 75 feet for the section line easement… “Dolbec told Commissioners he feels Enbridge already has plenty of room with its existing 100-foot easements and added he had asked Enbridge if they’d consider going back to their 30 to 35-foot easement “like other pipelines,” but they refused. “I’m actually just asking to be able to build on my property,” Dolbec said. “I don’t believe an oil company can set the standard for people where they build and where they can’t build.”

WASHINGTON UPDATES

Associated Press: Bipartisan bill leaves out key climate, clean energy steps
By MATTHEW DALY, 8/3/21

“The $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure package unveiled by the Senate includes more than $150 billion to boost clean energy and promote “climate resilience” by making schools, ports and other structures better able to withstand extreme weather events such as storms and wildfires,” the Associated Press reports. “But the bill, headed for a Senate vote this week, falls far short of President Joe Biden’s pledge to transform the nation’s heavily fossil-fuel powered economy into a clean-burning one and stop climate-damaging emissions from U.S. power plants by 2035. Notably, the deal omits mention of a Clean Electricity Standard, a key element of Biden’s climate plan that would require the electric grid to replace fossil fuels with renewable sources such as solar, wind and hydropower. Nor does it include a Civilian Climate Corps, a Biden favorite and a nod to the Great Depression-era New Deal that would put millions of Americans to work on conservation projects, renewable energy and helping communities recover from climate disasters. The White House says the bipartisan deal is just the first step, with a proposed $3.5 trillion, Democratic-only package following close behind. The larger bill, still being developed in Congress, will meet Biden’s promise to move the country toward carbon-free electricity, make America a global leader in electric vehicles and create millions of jobs in solar, wind and other clean-energy industries, supporters say.”

STATE UPDATES

Denver Post: Is there enough room on Colorado’s High Plains for both new homes and drilling? Some communities taking different approach to the question
By JUDITH KOHLER, 7/30/21

“A showdown that has been building for several years on Colorado’s High Plains could come to a head as cities and counties take aim at trying to make room for two of the state’s major industries: homebuilding and oil and gas,” the Denver Post reports. “The state recently approved new buffers, or setbacks, that drillers have to maintain between new wells and homes to tamp down conflicts along the northern Front Range. The area is home to a growing population and the vast majority of the state’s roughly 50,000 active oil and gas wells. But what if new home construction encroaches on well sites? In that case, cities and counties are flipping the concept of setbacks by restricting how close new homes can be built to existing wells and well sites that have been approved but not drilled yet… “Homebuilders, scrambling to meet demand in the Denver area’s booming housing market, are urging Erie to reject bigger setbacks for new houses, saying they could lead to a loss of future homes and “millions in future fees and tax revenue” for local governments. The Colorado Oil and Gas Association said the biggest problem with the debate around reverse setbacks is “the use of fear as a political weapon” rather than understanding the safeguards practiced by the industry, Dan Haley, the trade group’s president and CEO, said in an email… “But a member of the Broomfield City Council told the Post a 2019 study by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment showed that people living within 2,000 feet of well sites face a risk of short-term exposure to harmful emissions. And Jean Lim told the Post the city has its own information about impacts based on health complaints from residents.”

EXTRACTION

E&E News: Court Orders New NEPA Review For Texas LNG Plants.
Niina H. Farah, 8/4/21

“The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission must reconsider the climate and environmental justice impacts of a pair of proposed liquefied natural gas terminals in Texas, a federal court ruled yesterday,” according to E&E News. “The decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit is a notable win for environmental groups and local advocates that had argued that FERC had failed to fully address the greenhouse gas and public health effects of the Texas LNG facility, as well as the Rio Grande LNG terminal and its associated Rio Bravo pipeline (Energywire, Aug. 3). In a unanimous opinion, Judge Robert Wilkins ordered FERC to go back to work on its certificates authorizing the construction and operation of the facilities but stopped short of scrapping the approvals.”

Reuters: Abu Dhabi National Energy Co nears deal to sell some Canadian assets to Blue Sky -sources
By Shariq Khan, 8/3/21

“Abu Dhabi National Energy Company is nearing a deal to sell some light oil and natural gas-producing assets in Alberta and British Columbia to privately owned Blue Sky Resources Ltd, three sources familiar with the matter told Reuters. “…Several global oil majors have rushed to sell Canadian oil sands assets over the last four years over concerns ranging from high production costs and emissions to scarcity of capital. If finalized, TAQA’s sale of the assets would make it the second large international oil company to trim its holdings in Canada in recent months. Last week, Japanese state-backed oil producer Japan Petroleum Exploration Co (Japex) announced the sale of its Hangingstone oil sands project on Thursday.”

Financial Post: Petronas eyes $1.3B project in Alberta to export hydrogen to Asia
Geoffrey Morgan, 8/3/21

“The Canadian division of Malaysia’s state-owned oil giant Petroliam Nasional Berhad, or Petronas, plans to study the feasibility of building a $1.3 billion petrochemical plant in central Alberta with the goal of exporting hydrogen to an Asian markets,” the Financial Post reports. “Petronas Energy Canada Ltd. announced Tuesday it has teamed up with Japan’s Itochu Corp. and an unnamed Calgary-based pipeline company on a feasibility study on a facility capable of producing 1 million tonnes of ammonia per year while capturing the carbon emitted in the process. “Ammonia is a very efficient means for the transportation of hydrogen,” Petronas Energy Canada president and CEO Mark Fitzgerald told the Post. The combination of nitrogen and hydrogen, which in this case would be sourced from Petronas’ natural gas operations in northeast British Columbia, produces ammonia. “At the end point, the user, which in this case would be markets overseas, would split it into nitrogen and then hydrogen, which would be used as a fuel source,” Fitzgerald said, adding the project would be considered a “blue ammonia” or “blue hydrogen” because it would capture the associated carbon emissions. Both Petronas and Itochu, a Japanese conglomerate, would jointly market the ammonia produced at the facility in Asian markets, “potentially for thermal power generation in Japan, replacing hydrocarbon-based fuels for power plants, steel, chemical production and other applications.”

Chesapeake Bay Journal: As Federal Support Emerges, PA Wants To Be A Carbon Capture Hub
By Ad Crable, 8/3/21

“Pennsylvania is ideally suited to help the nation fight global warming by becoming a leader in the effort to capture and store emissions of carbon dioxide, state officials say,” according to the Chesapeake Bay Journal. “Their quest has just received a jolt of legitimacy from President Joe Biden’s massive climate plan, which calls on a greater nationwide effort to capture, store and re-use carbon dioxide… “To make the mass collection of CO2 economically feasible, the U.S. would need to develop a vast network of pipelines to transport the gas, mainly in liquid form. It would also need industrial hubs where CO2 could be stored underground or diverted to other uses. Pennsylvania wants to be one of those hubs. Advocates say the state is well positioned for carbon storage, touting its deep-underground, porous rock reservoirs as places to safely store large amounts of carbon. Those reservoirs are 2 or more miles underground in the state’s western and northern reaches. “There is no better place to do [both carbon capture and storage] than right here in Pennsylvania,” Denise Brinley, executive director of the Pennsylvania Office of Energy, told state senators at a March meeting… “But some in Congress and some — not all — environmental groups see carbon capture as perpetuating the use of fossil fuels and prolonging the inevitable need to make a fundamental switch to renewable energy. “Carbon capture, utilization and storage are all predicated on [continuing to do] a terrible thing. People are worried that it is a scam, that it is dangerous and will keep fossil fuels afloat,” Tamara Toles O’Laughlin, a national climate strategist from Baltimore who has worked for a number of environmental and human-health groups, told the Journal. “Injecting bad stuff inside the Earth isn’t anything more than an experiment, and a very expensive one,” Toles O’Laughlin said. “We can’t continue to alter the makeup of the Earth without consequences.”

S&P Global: Many fossil fuel CEOs saw pay increase in 2020 amid severe industry downturn
Allison Good, Anna Duquiatan, 8/3/21

“Several of the highest-paid CEOs of big names in U.S. fossil fuel production, refining and transportation saw their compensation increase in 2020 despite the record-low crude prices and COVID-19 pandemic demand deficit that brought the industry to its knees,” S&P Global reports. “Independent producer Continental Resources Inc. occupied the top spot on a list of the 10 top-earning CEOs in the oil, gas and coal industries, S&P Global Market Intelligence data shows, with William Berry raking in $29.2 million even as the company’s stock price plummeted over 50% during the period… “One of the most consistent criticisms of E&P compensation has been above target bonuses despite lagging shareholder returns,” Meridian Compensation Partners LLC told clients in March. “We expect E&P bonuses for 2020 performance will average below target in the industry, with the vast majority of companies expected to pay at or below target for the first time in recent history, particularly those with oil-focused operations.” Meridian also predicted a “general pullback” in those long-term incentive awards, but Denbury’s Christian Kendall still saw his increase by over $15 million in 2020.”

RESEARCH & SCIENCE

Guardian: Siberian heatwave led to new methane emissions, study says
Damian Carrington, 8/2/21

“The Siberian heatwave of 2020 led to new methane emissions from the permafrost, according to research. Emissions of the potent greenhouse gas are currently small, the scientists said, but further research is urgently needed,” the Guardian reports. “Analysis of satellite data indicated that fossil methane gas leaked from rock formations known to be large hydrocarbon reservoirs after the heatwave, which peaked at 6C above normal temperatures. Previous observations of leaks have been from permafrost soil or under shallow seas. Most scientists think the risk of a “methane bomb” – a rapid eruption of huge volumes of methane causing cataclysmic global heating – is minimal in the coming years. There is little evidence of significantly rising methane emissions from the Arctic and no sign of such a bomb in periods that were even hotter than today over the last 130,000 years… “Prof Nikolaus Froitzheim, at Rhenish Friedrich Wilhelm University of Bonn, Germany, and who led the Siberian research, told the Guardian: “We observed a significant increase in methane concentration starting last summer. This remained over the winter, so there must have been a steady steady flow of methane from the ground. “If, at some point in the future, large global temperature rises lead to a big volume being released, “this methane would be the difference between catastrophe and apocalypse.” The study concluded with the suggestion that “permafrost thaw does not only release microbial methane from formerly frozen soils, but also, and potentially in much higher amounts, [fossil] methane from reservoirs below. As a result, the permafrost–methane feedback may be much more dangerous than suggested by studies accounting for microbial methane alone.”

Reuters: Why cutting methane emissions is key to fighting climate change [VIDEO]
by Asher Isbrucker and Martha Holeyman, 8/4/2`

“Reducing methane emissions is crucial to fighting climate change. The invisible gas traps over 80 times more heat than carbon dioxide—and we’re emitting more than we thought,” Reuters reports. “The greatest potential for methane reduction lies with fossil fuels, and solutions are readily available. So what’s getting in the way?”

CLIMATE FINANCE

Insure Our Future: 15TH INSURER RULES OUT COVERAGE FOR THE TRANS MOUNTAIN PIPELINE
8/3/21

“Lloyd’s of London syndicate Cincinnati Global Underwriting has ruled out insuring the existing Trans Mountain tar sands pipeline and the Trans Mountain Expansion Project. Cincinnati Global, a subsidiary of Cincinnati Financial, joins fourteen other insurance companies that have vowed not to touch Trans Mountain. In an email to Greenpeace Toronto, Cincinnati Global Underwriting’s CEO Derek Eales stated: “I can confirm that Cincinnati Global has no current involvement in the Trans Mountain Pipeline / Expansion project and will not offer any participation on an insurance or reinsurance basis in the future.” Grand Chief Stewart Phillip, President of the Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs, said: “This is the 15th insurance company to refuse to provide the millions of dollars in coverage the pipeline needs to become operational. Not only must Liberty Mutual, Chubb and AIG follow suit and refuse to provide insurance to the Trans Mountain pipeline, but the entire oil and gas industry needs to commit to commit to rigorous environmental protection policies and standards that explicitly accept and align with the UN Declaration and Indigenous People’s  right to Free, Prior and Informed Consent.” Trans Mountain is currently on the market to secure coverage by August 31, 2021, when its policy for the existing pipeline expires. In advance of that deadline, a global campaign is calling on insurers to rule out providing coverage. At the end of June, there were actions in more than 25 cities and towns across four continents calling on insurers to take action to stop insuring tar sands pipelines like Trans Mountain and respect Indigenous rights.”

TODAY IN GREENWASHNIG

Oklahoman: Would you pay more for ‘responsibly sourced natural gas’? Producers think many consumers will
Jack Money, 8/2/21

“Many consumers will pay a premium for products they believe could help others, lead to more ethical treatment of animals or save the environment,” the Oklahoman reports. “…These sorts of behaviors are leading some energy and utility companies to ask, is there a market for responsibly sourced natural gas that isn’t harmful to people or the planet? Would some consumers pay extra on their utility bills if they knew they were supporting a cleaner product for the environment? In some ways, the answer to the second question is a resounding, “Yes.” Consumer desires to use cleaner alternative energy sources have already helped utilities like Oklahoma Gas and Electric Co. introduce and expand wind and solar energy into their portfolios. There’s reason to believe that demand would translate to responsibly-sourced natural gas. Responsibly-produced natural gas can earn as much of a premium on markets as 10 cents per thousand cubic feet of production right now, according to one analyst… “But some critics don’t think responsibly sourced natural gas is a true difference-maker when it comes to the environment. “The science is clear: methane emissions from the oil and gas industry are a huge contributor to our worsening climate crisis, and the gas industry has done all it can to scuttle meaningful regulation to reduce these emissions for years,” Christina Swanson, director of the science center at the Natural Resources Defense Council, told the Oklahoman. “We need to transition to a clean energy economy, and a transparent attempt to try to justify expansive new oil and gas production will lock us into decades of dependence on fossil fuels.”

OPINION

Financial Post: People need to accept that Canada is the fourth biggest producer of oil in the world: Seamus O’Regan
Gabriel Friedman, 8/4/21

“Carbon Capture, the name for the process of burying CO2 emissions underground so they’re not released into the atmosphere, sounds like it would be good for the environment. But not everyone thinks so. This week, on Down to Business, Seamus O’Regan, Minister of Natural Resources, discussed what carbon capture means for Canada’s oilsands and whether the government would consider funding a large portion of the costs of carbon capture in Alberta so the oilsands could reduce the emissions released during mining and processing of oil,” the Financial Post reports. “Importantly, in July, about 500 mostly environmental organizations wrote a letter to O’Regan and other federal ministers, saying that if the government were to fund such a project, it would actually make the oilsands more competitive, so more oil could be produced, which would lead to greater emissions. O’Regan talked about how he feels about the oilsands and why he believes the carbon tax is the “most elegant solution.”

Money and Markets: The New Big Tobacco? Buy 6.2% Dividend as Big Pipeline Bridges Energy Gap
Charles Sizemore, 8/4/21

“Tobacco stocks were always an anomaly. Even while smoking rates plummeted across the globe, and governments trying their hardest to tax and regulate cigarettes out of existence, Big Tobacco stocks managed to thrive over the past several decades. And they paid out monster dividends along the way,” Charles Sizemore writes for Money and Markets. “Pariah stocks aren’t always bad. Because they are shunned in polite company (pension funds and other institutional investors), they tend to be cheap. Investors that are willing to buck the trend can enjoy solid returns. I see a similar dynamic today in energy stocks — pipeline stocks in particular. If there were a proverbial boogieman to rival Big Tobacco, it would have to be Big Pipeline. As climate change becomes more of a political issue, there needs to be a villain in the narrative. And all too often a pipeline operator is that villain. Now, let me be clear: I’m wildly bullish on clean energy. This is a theme that Adam O’Dell and I cover on a regular basis in Green Zone Fortunes. It’s the future. But the reality of the big, bad pipeline operator is far different than the narrative. Pipelines are the safest and most environmentally-friendly way to transport oil and gas … energy sources our economy still needs. You can see that petroleum and natural gas still accounted for more than two-thirds of energy consumption last year, according the U.S. Energy Information Administration.”