Geoscience Policy Monthly Review
may 2018
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energy
House committee approves three bills supporting scientific research at the Department of Energy
May 23, 2018
On May 23, the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology approved three bipartisan bills that support and expand science programs at the Department of Energy (DOE).
The Department of Energy Science and Innovation Act of 2018 (H.R. 5905) would reauthorize basic research programs in the DOE Office of Science at its current appropriation level of $6.26 billion for fiscal year (FY) 2018 and at $6.6 billion for FY 2019. During the full committee markups of the FY 2019 appropriations bills, the House Appropriations Committee approved $6.6 billion and the Senate Appropriations Committee approved $6.65 billion for the Office of Science. H.R. 5905 outlines agendas and missions for specific program initiatives and the Office of Science overall. For instance, the bill directs the Office of Biological and Environmental Research to carry out research in various fields such as biofuels, global carbon cycles, and biological mechanisms of contaminant neutralization. It also instructs the Office of Science to establish four bioenergy research centers to conduct research on plant and microbial systems biology and genomics.
The committee also considered the ARPA-E Act of 2018 (H.R. 5906), which would expand the mission of the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) program beyond supporting research on energy technology to include research addressing environmental, economic, and national security challenges. This expanded mission would specifically include research on nuclear waste cleanup, greenhouse gas reduction, and energy efficiency and independence. The bill also states that ARPA-E does not provide funding for a project unless potential grantees demonstrate “sufficient attempts to secure private financing” or “that their project is not yet independently commercially viable.” Although the President’s FY 2018 budget proposal requested eliminating ARPA-E entirely and the House FY 2018 appropriations bill would have provided no funding for the program, ARPA-E was ultimately funded at $353 million for FY 2018, a 15 percent increase from the previous year. The President’s FY 2019 budget request again proposed elimination of the program. Nevertheless, the recently approved House and Senate FY 2019 Energy and Water Appropriations bills included $325 million and $375 million, respectively, for ARPA-E. The passage of the bipartisan ARPA-E Act of 2018 marks a potential shift in the House committee majority’s stance on ARPA-E, since the previous ARPA-E reauthorization bill was not approved by the Republican-led committee last year.
The third energy bill considered by the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, called the National Innovation Modernization by Laboratory Empowerment Act (H.R. 5907), would allow the directors of national laboratories enter into cooperative research agreements costing $1 million or less. According to Chairman Lamar Smith (R-TX-21), the bill "provides the labs with more flexibility and removes red tape that makes it more difficult for businesses to partner with the labs.”
Sources: Library of Congress; U.S. House, Committee on Appropriations; U.S. House, Committee on Science, Space, and Technology; U.S. Senate, Committee on Appropriations.
BSEE proposes revisions and reductions in offshore drilling regulations
May 11, 2018
On May 11, the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) published a proposed rule in the Federal Register that would revise and reduce regulations on offshore drilling outlined in the Blowout Preventer Systems and Well Control Final Rule of 2016 (WCR). The original WCR was developed and implemented in response to the Deepwater Horizon disaster of 2010.
In 2016, President Donald Trump signed an executive order instructing BSEE to review these regulations. Of the 342 provisions of the 2016 WCR, fifty-nine have been selected and proposed by BSEE for revision, including regulations on drilling margins, real-time monitoring (RTM), blowout prevention (BOP) systems, mechanical barriers, and inspection and reporting requirements. Under the proposed regulations, certifications of BOP systems would be conducted by independent third parties and not BSEE Approved Verification Organizations (BAVO). According to BSEE, these revisions will address implementation, consistency, and redundancy issues of the original rules and will “reduce significant burdens on oil and natural gas operators… while ensuring safety and environmental protection.” The proposed rules have received conflicting positive and negative reviews from industry leaders and environmental organizations, respectively.
BSEE is soliciting comments by July 10 on the proposed rulemaking, particularly relating to BOP testing materials, the 0.5 ppg (pounds per gallon) drilling margin rule, and alternative ways to meet the RTM provisions.
Sources: E&E News; Federal Register.
House passes legislation to advance nuclear waste storage in New Mexico and Nevada
May 10, 2018
On May 10, the House passed the Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act of 2018 (H.R. 3053) by a vote of 340 to 72, despite strong opposition from the New Mexico and Nevada delegations. The bill would resume and expedite licensing for the proposed Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository and authorize the Department of Energy (DOE) to construct an interim storage facility for consolidation and temporary storage of nuclear waste in New Mexico until the completion of a permanent facility. Such interim facilities have long been the favored solution of the Senate when it comes to nuclear waste storage.
In 1987, Congress amended the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 to investigate Yucca Mountain for a national nuclear waste repository. The site would be the nation’s first and only permanent geologic repository for high-level nuclear waste. Due to a litany of complicated issues related to safety, longevity, public opinion, and other aspects of the project, progress on establishing the Yucca Mountain facility since 1987 has been slow to stagnant.
Furthermore, the Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act of 2018 seeks to advance the process of permitting the Yucca Mountain project, as well as increase the cap for waste storage by 57 percent – from 70,000 metric tons to 110,000 metric tons. The bill generally carries strong bipartisan support in the House, aside from the Nevada and New Mexico lawmakers who oppose the project due to concerns about the facility’s potential impacts on the health and safety of their residents and ask for a consent-based storage solution.
Now that H.R. 3053 has passed the House, it will have to pass the Senate, which may prove more daunting. In particular, Senator Dean Heller (R-NV) has fought against continuing the Yucca Mountain project in the past and stated that he will continue to do so. Heller and fellow Nevada Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D) cosigned a letter to the Chair and Ranking Member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy urging them to not appropriate funds to Yucca Mountain during the FY 2019 appropriations cycle. The FY 2019 Senate Energy and Water Development Appropriations bill (S.2975) does not include funding for Yucca Mountain storage, but the House bill (H.R.5895) would provide $268 million to restart the adjudication of the Yucca Mountain license application – an increase of $100 million above the president’s request.
Sources: E&E News; Library of Congress; Roll Call; U.S. Department of Energy; U.S. Government Accountability Office.
House lawmakers introduce legislation to reauthorize DOE Office of Fossil Energy
May 10, 2018
On May 10, 2018, Representative Marc Veasey (D-TX-33) introduced the Fossil Energy Research and Development Act (H.R. 5745), cosponsored by Representative David McKinley (R-WV-1) and Representative Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX-30). The bill seeks to amend the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 16291) and the Methane Hydrate Research and Development Act of 2000 (30 U.S.C. 2003b) in order to improve the conversion, use, and storage of carbon dioxide generated through the burning of fossil fuels, which can reduce carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere.
Specifically, the Fossil Energy Research and Development Act would reauthorize the Department of Energy’s Office of Fossil Energy for the first time in over a decade to expand research on new carbon capture, sequestration, and utilization technologies. It authorizes $825 million for fiscal year (FY) 2019, with slight funding increases each year through FY 2023, for these research expansions. The bill requests additional research funding for the prevention, monitoring, detection, and mitigation of methane leaks as an effort to reduce emissions. It also outlines numerous pilot programs involving collaborations with private industry, state and local government organizations, and academic institutions to accomplish these goals.
Additionally, the Fossil Energy Research and Development Act would repeal the Clean Coal Power Initiative (CCPI), with the intent to focus federal resources on the new research objectives and programs mentioned above. The CCPI was initiated in 2002 and authorized in the Energy Policy Act of 2005; as of mid-2018, the program has completed four out of eighteen projects proposed since its inception. The program supports projects that seek to reduce coal-fired power plant emissions, such as the joint Petra Nova venture between NRG Energy Inc. and JX Nippon Oil and Gas Exploration in Thompsons, Texas. This project captures a portion of the carbon dioxide emitted by a coal-fired power plant; the carbon dioxide is then transported to a nearby oilfield where it is injected underground to enhance oil production.
This bill was referred to the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, in addition to the Committees on Energy and Commerce, and Transportation and Infrastructure, for consideration of its provisions as they fall within the jurisdiction of each of the committees concerned.
Sources: Cornell Law; E&E News; Library of Congress; U.S. Department of Energy; U.S. Government Publishing Office; U.S. House of Representatives.
Senate and House appropriations bills increase funding for the Department of Energy
May 24, 2018
For fiscal year (FY) 2019, the Department of Energy (DOE) is poised to receive a significant increase in funding as both the Senate and House Committees on Appropriations rejected the administration’s proposed cut of $4 billion. Following a record increase of funding for DOE in FY 2018, the House Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2019 (H.R. 5895) would increase DOE funding by $925 million for a total budget of $35.5 billion, while the Senate’s version of the FY 2019 energy and water appropriations bill (S. 2975) would provide a slightly lower total for DOE at $35.0 billion.
Both bills would increase funding for the DOE’s Office of Science, with a Senate mark of $6.60 billion and a House mark of $6.65 billion. In the Office of Science, Basic Energy Sciences would receive an increase of $103 million in the Senate bill and $39 million in the House bill. The House bill would provide flat funding for Biological and Environmental Research (BER) and for Workforce Development for Teachers and Scientists, while the Senate bill would provide modest increases for both of those programs. Although the administration proposed eliminating the DOE’s Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy, or ARPA-E, for the second year in a row, the FY 2019 appropriations bills would sustain the program with the Senate increasing funding from $353 million to $375 million and the House decreasing funding to $325 million.
In regard to DOE’s energy programs, the House bill provides an increase of $58 million Fossil Energy Research and Development and reduces Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy funding by $244 million; the Senate bill would provide flat funding for each program. Both the House and Senate bills would also provide flat funding for the Energy Information Administration in FY 2019.
Sources: Library of Congress; U.S. Department of Energy; U.S. House of Representatives, Committee on Appropriations; U.S. Senate, Committee on Appropriations.