Geoscience Policy Monthly Review
february 2014
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energy
House aims to hasten LNG permits
The House Energy and Commerce Committee (E&C) issued a report encouraging the Department of Energy (DOE) to expedite permitting for liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports to non-free trade agreement (FTA) nations, including India and Japan. Since 2010, DOE has approved five permits, and still has more than twenty pending requests. The E&C report cites a National Economic Research Associates (NERA) report that states U.S. LNG supply is capable of meeting domestic and foreign demands while benefitting the U.S. economy.
The report threatens legislative action, such as allowing exports to World Trade Organization nations rather than FTA nations, if the DOE does not comply.
Rep. Upton (R-MI), Chair of the Energy & Commerce Committee, and others worry about LNG export competition from Canada, which has a total of six proposed export facilities on both the Atlantic and Pacific coasts. British Columbia, where five of the projects are planned, just released their proposed tax on exports.
The DOE’s stance has remained firm since the E&C recommendation, stating it will continue to strictly adhere to permitting practices defined in the Natural Gas Act.
Sources: E&E News; Government Printing Office; Department of Energy; Bloomberg News; Government of Canada
State Department releases final Keystone XL impact statement
On January 31, the U.S. Department of State published the Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) for the Keystone XL Pipeline, following a 2013 draft of the SEIS that received over 1.5 million public comments. The report includes studies on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and effects of potential tar sands spills on water quality associated with the Keystone XL, while also addressing economic effects of the 875-mile pipeline’s construction and operation. The Final SEIS includes expanded analyses covering potential oil release and climate change as well as updated rail transport and oil market analyses that incorporate new economic modeling.
Proponents of the pipeline highlighted the report’s finding that the Keystone XL project would not change rates of Canadian oil sands extraction or U.S. demand for it. According to the SEIS, 180,000 barrels of crude are already transported by rail per day. Moving oil by rail produces from 28 to 42 percent more GHG emissions and is more prone to spillage than transporting oil through pipelines.
Environmentalists were bolstered by the report’s recognition of climate change as an issue of consequence, and the fact that the SEIS is only the first step in the State Department’s recommendation to President Obama, who has ultimate approval authority for the pipeline. Opponents of the Keystone XL also argue that securing energy independence is negligible as refiners plan to ship most of the tar sands oil overseas.
In his decision President Obama will weigh whether the Keystone XL is in the national interest. He is under pressure from all sides on the issue this election year as Democrats and Republicans fight over control of the House and Senate.
Sources: E&E ClimateWire; U.S. Department of State
EPA guidance released on diesel use in fracking
On February 11, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a new set of guidelines on the use of diesel fuel in hydraulic fracturing activities. The guidelines include suggestions on well integrity testing and water quality monitoring. The recommendations are intended to help state and tribe permitting decision makers protect underground sources of drinking water from contamination.
The guidelines can be traced back to the Energy Policy Act of 2005, which lists diesel fuels as the only component in the underground injection of fluids or propping agents used in hydraulic fracturing for oil, gas, or geothermal production activities that can be regulated under the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA). EPA is responsible for implementing SDWA.
According to an EPA analysis of data from voluntary chemical disclosure registry FracFocus, diesel as an ingredient in fracking additives makes up less than 2 percent of fracking fluid. The EPA has reported only one case of diesel being used as a base fluid in hydraulic fracturing instead of water.
Industry representatives fear the new guidelines could be used to form new regulations.
Sources: E&E News; EnergyWire; the Environmental Protection Agency; the Government Printing Office; Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works