Preview Newsletter
AM ACC 4/7/2017
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(ACC Mentioned) PE and ABS Prices Up in March, PET Slightly Down
Apr 7, 2017 | Plastics News
After some deliberation, North American polyethylene resin prices ticked up by an average of 3 cents per pound in March. -
(ACC Mentioned) Former Senator Who Crafted Chemicals Law to Lobby for Chemicals Industry
Apr 7, 2017 | The Hill - E2 Wire
By Megan R. Wilson
A former Republican senator who worked in Congress to overhaul toxic chemical regulations has signed his first lobbying clients, including two in the chemical industry, according to newly filed disclosure forms. -
(ACC Mentioned) Subject Matter Signs FIrst Republican
Apr 6, 2017 | Politico - Influence
By Theodore Meyer
Jamie Wall, the director of global government relations for Honeywell, is heading to Subject Matter as the Democratic firm’s first Republican lobbyist. She’ll be focused on taxes, trade and financial services... -
Zinke Taps Two Women for Senior Posts at Interior
Apr 7, 2017 | PoliticoPro - Whiteboard
By Esther Whieldon
Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke is appointing two women, including a President Donald Trump's beachhead team member, to official positions in his office. -
Lab Error Leads Solvent Makers to Urge EPA Rule Delay
Apr 7, 2017 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Pat Rizzuto
Solvents manufacturers want an opportunity to redo a toxicity study that could show a machinery degreaser is less harmful than previously thought before the EPA makes a final decision on whether to restrict its use. -
The Hidden – and Potentially Dangerous – Chemicals in Your Diet
Apr 6, 2017 | Environmental Working Group
By Tom Neltner
While picking up groceries for the week, a shopper may compare brands, prices, and nutritional information to ensure they make economical and healthy choices for their family. Unfortunately, there’s much more to our food than meets the eye – or makes the label. -
Trump Said to Ready Order to Expand Oil Drilling in U.S. Waters
Apr 7, 2017 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Jennifer A. Dlouhy
President Donald Trump is preparing to issue an executive order with the goal of giving oil companies more opportunities to drill offshore, reversing Obama-era policies that restricted the activity. -
Dems Look for Stricter Regulation of Oil and Gas Production
Apr 7, 2017 | E&E Daily
By Jennifer Yachnin
House Democrats this week called for stricter federal regulation over oil and gas production, asserting that federal protections for clean air and water have failed to keep pace with industry practices, including hydraulic fracturing. -
Lawmakers Introduce Bills to Reduce CO2 from Coal, Gas Plants
Apr 7, 2017 | E&E Daily
By Christa Marshall
Democratic and Republican House lawmakers introduced a pair of bills yesterday to cut carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuel generators. -
PA Fiscal Office Again Says Proposed NatGas Tax Would Set Nation's Highest Rate
Apr 6, 2017 | Natural Gas Intelligence
By Jamison Cocklin
Pennsylvania's Independent Fiscal Office (IFO) said this week that Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf's renewed proposal for a 6.5% severance tax on natural gas production would give the state the highest effective rate in the country. -
Neb. Regulators Set Pipeline Permit Hearing
Apr 6, 2017 | E&E News PM
By Sam Mintz
An agency in Nebraska, the only state that has not yet approved its portion of the controversial Keystone XL pipeline, will hold a public hearing on the project this summer. -
Boosting Energy Sector is About More Than Just Cutting Regulations
Apr 7, 2017 | The Hill - E2 Wire
By Ryan M. Yonk and Josh T. Smith
At the signing of his most recent executive order, President Trump expressed sympathy for the failing coal industry and coal country, along with his hope that removing unnecessary barriers and stifling regulation would lead to a revitalization of coal country. -
Chemical Board, OSHA Send Teams to Box Factory After Blast Kills 4
Apr 7, 2017 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Sam Pearson
A Missouri packaging manufacturer is the subject of two federal agency probes after one worker and three others were killed from an explosion April 3 at the company's plant. -
Sustaining CSB Funding Is Key to Our Nation's Safety
Apr 6, 2017 | Houston Chronicle
By Sam Mannan
For the well-being and safety of all Americans, we should pause and rethink the potential defunding and elimination of a small federal agency known as the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board, the CSB. -
Thousands of Safety Issues on Oil Train Routes, Report Finds
Apr 7, 2017 | King5
By Alison Morrow
An oil train derailment in Oregon last year was blamed on broken bolts. It's the same kind of safety defect documented nearly 24,000 times in a recent Federal Railroad Administration report. -
EPA Defends Science Justifying Utility MACT Air Toxics Rule
Apr 6, 2017 | Inside EPA
EPA in a new legal brief is defending the science justifying its landmark utility air toxics rule, fighting industry attacks that it relies on “contaminated” data and is therefore deeply flawed, ahead of May 18 oral argument in related cases that consolidate suits... -
Wyoming Lawsuit Poses Test for Trump EPA's Policy on Interstate Ozone
Apr 7, 2017 | Inside EPA
By Stuart Parker
Wyoming is suing EPA over its disapproval of the state's plan to curb interstate transport of ozone-forming air pollution, setting up a test for the Trump administration's policy on limiting emissions that drift across states lines in order to prevent air pollution... -
California's Cap-and-Trade Auctions Are Lawful: Appeals Court
Apr 7, 2017 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Carolyn Whetzel
California's auctions of carbon allowances are not an illegal tax, a state appellate court said April 6. -
World Leaders Watch in Silence as Trump Cuts Climate Efforts
Apr 7, 2017 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Joe Ryan
As President Donald Trump tries to rip U.S. climate change efforts out by the roots, world leaders are watching in silence.
Industry and Association News
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(ACC Mentioned) PE and ABS Prices Up in March, PET Slightly Down
Apr 7, 2017 | Plastics News
After some deliberation, North American polyethylene resin prices ticked up by an average of 3 cents per pound in March.
Regional ABS prices also rose in March, while PET bottle resin prices saw a slight decrease.
Initial reports indicated that the full 6 cents that PE makers had been seeking would take hold. Then it appeared for a brief time that market prices would roll over flat vs. February. Producers and buyers finally split the difference, moving prices up 3 cents and announcing plans to try for the other 3 cents in April.
A combination of events allowed the 3-cent hike to stick, according to Mike Burns, a market analyst with the Resin Technology Inc. consulting firm in Fort Worth, Texas.
“There were low prices in November and high exports in December,” he said. “Then there was restocking in January. This all lined up to reduce [PE] supply.”
Supply also was limited by production issues experienced by several resin makers, including Chevron Phillips Chemical Co. CP Chem on March 13 declared force majeure on high density PE because of a power outage at its plant in Orange, Texas.
“Since we’re not feedstock-driven on polyethylene in North America, price increases always are supply-driven,” Burns added.
The March hike was the second consecutive monthly increase for regional PE prices, following a 5-cent January hike. Prices had been flat in January, after falling an average of 2 cents per pound in December. They were up a net of 4 cents for full-year 2016.
U.S./Canadian sales of low and linear low density PE came charging out of the gate in the first two months of 2017, with HDPE trailing behind. Two-month sales of LDPE were up 7 percent, according to the American Chemistry Council. Domestic LDPE sales growth of almost 3 percent was boosted by an increase of almost 21 percent in export sales.
US/Canadian LLDPE sales through February were up almost 7 percent, as 10 percent domestic sales growth was lessened by a 4 percent drop in export sales. HDPE in the region managed two-month sales growth of almost 1 percent, with domestic sales growth of almost 8 percent wiped out by a 21 percent drop in export sales.
ABS, PET changes
Regional ABS prices jumped an average of 6 cents per pound in March, after being up 8 cents in February. Prices for the material are being driven up by higher prices for acrylonitrile and butadiene feedstocks, as well as higher prices for benzene, which is used to make styrene monomer. ABS makers now are seeking further increases of 5 cents per pound for April.
PET bottle resin prices headed in the other direction, ticking down an average of 0.5 cents per pound for March. The March drop ends a steak of six consecutive monthly price increases for the material. The decline reflects lower prices for feedstocks such as paraxylene and purified terephthalic acid. The six previous increases had have totaled 9.5 cents per pound.
http://www.plasticsnews.com/article/20170406/NEWS/170409942/pe-and-abs-prices-up-in-march-pet-slightly-down
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(ACC Mentioned) Former Senator Who Crafted Chemicals Law to Lobby for Chemicals Industry
Apr 7, 2017 | The Hill - E2 Wire
By Megan R. Wilson
A former Republican senator who worked in Congress to overhaul toxic chemical regulations has signed his first lobbying clients, including two in the chemical industry, according to newly filed disclosure forms.
David Vitter, a former Republican senator from Louisiana, joined the public affairs and lobbying firm Mercury in February. He left Capitol Hill in 2015 after a failed Louisiana gubernatorial bid.
But before he departed Congress, Vitter took a leading role in negotiations with Democrats to reform the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), which had not been updated in decades.
Now, he’s advocating on behalf of the American Chemistry Council, an industry group, and one of its members, Cabot Corporation. The council aggressively lobbied Congress on TSCA reform, successfully pushing for provisions to restrict states' abilities to regulate chemicals, in favor of federal standards.
The newly released forms state that Vitter will be tackling “regulatory issues” for the American Chemistry Council. For Cabot Corporation, he will be advocating on issues related to the Clean Air Act.
The Trump administration recently moved to delay an Obama-era rule that required chemical plants to strengthen their plans to prevent and mitigate accidental chemical release emergencies.
Environmental Protection Agency administrator Scott Pruitt has also launched the process for repealing the rule altogether.
Vitter will also be working for wholesale pharmaceutical distributor Morris And Dickson on issues related to improper prescriptions, and for Atlantic Development Group, a real estate development and property management company, on “disability issues.”
He spent nearly two decades in Congress, serving in both the House and the Senate. He once served as part of the Senate majority whip team. Former senators are required by ethics rules to take a two-year “cooling off” period before they are able to lobby for clients.
— Timothy Cama contributed
http://thehill.com/business-a-lobbying/business-a-lobbying/327713-former-senator-who-crafted-chemicals-law-to-lobby-for
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(ACC Mentioned) Subject Matter Signs FIrst Republican
Apr 6, 2017 | Politico - Influence
By Theodore Meyer
With David Beavers and Aubree Eliza Weaver
SUBJECT MATTER ADDS GOP LOBBYIST: Jamie Wall, the director of global government relations for Honeywell, is heading to Subject Matter as the Democratic firm’s first Republican lobbyist. She’ll be focused on taxes, trade and financial services — a crucial area as Republicans turn their attention to tax reform. “My goal is to really help maintain the momentum around tax reform,” Wall said in an interview. She’s optimistic Republicans will be able to strike a deal despite failing to move the health care bill.
— Wall will be relying on her contacts on the Hill and in the administration to help Subject Matter’s clients navigate tax reform. Before joining Honeywell, she worked for Sen. Roy Blunt and former Sen. Kit Bond, both Missouri Republicans. “I’m close friends with Shahira Knight,” who’s the special assistant to the president on tax and retirement policy with the National Economic Council, she said. She’s also close with Eli Miller, who is chief of staff to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin.
SPEAKING OF TAX REFORM: Firms have been hiring lobbyists to help them navigate tax reform at a rapid clip. According to disclosure filings from the last week alone, the American Wind Energy Association and Pier 1 Imports have signed Bracewell; Verizon has signed Capitol Hill Strategies; the National Venture Capital Association has signed Capitol Tax Partners; Horizon Global has signed Forbes-Tate; Under Armour has signed Miller & Chevalier; and Alliant Energy has signed Steptoe & Johnson, all working on issues related to the coming tax battle.
HOW WELL LOBBYISTS ARE DISCLOSING: The Government Accountability Office is out with a new report on how closely lobbyists are following the law that requires them to disclose who they’re working for and how much they’re making. The upshot: For “reports filed during the third and fourth quarters of 2015 and the first and second quarters of 2016, GAO estimates that 90 percent of lobbyists filed required reports for the quarter in which they first registered...83 percent (down from 92 percent in 2015) could provide documentation for income and expenses; and 94 percent filed year-end 2015 LD-203 reports as required.”
— Enforcement remains a big question. Officials at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, which is charged with enforcing the law, said they have sufficient resources. But the office has just “four active cases involving chronic offenders that they are investigating,” according to the report. “In one of those cases, they anticipate the government will either settle with the lobbying firm and its members or file a civil complaint against them shortly. They expect to resolve these four cases sometime in 2017.” Here’s the full report. Tom Spulak of King & Spalding has some more thoughts on the report here....
...NEW LOBBYING REGISTRATIONS:Behan Communications, Inc.: Glens Falls Hopsital [sic]
Bose Public Affairs Group: Indianapolis Public Transportation Corporation
Bracewell LLP: American Wind Energy Association
Bracewell LLP: Pier 1 Imports, Inc.
CGA Strategies LLC: Resource Management Service
Cozen O'Connor Public Strategies: Felman Production LLC
Cozen O'Connor Public Strategies: Visiting Nurse Service of New York
Envision Strategy: Ft. Ticonderoga
Fox Potomac Resources, LLC: Pro2Serv
Fox Potomac Resources, LLC: SoAR Foundation
Kadesh & Associates, LLC: The International Council of Shopping Centers
Mercury: American Chemistry Council
Mercury: Atlantic Development Group
Mercury: Cabot Corporation
Mercury: ForeScout Technologies, Inc.
Mercury: Morris And Dickson
Mrs. Maggie Crosswy: Kelley Drye & Warren LLP
New World Group Public Affairs LLC: Higland Pharmacuticals [sic]
Public Sphere, Inc.: Mainstreet Asset Management, Inc.
Redmond Assoc, Lawrence M.: LeafLine Labs
Rich Feuer Anderson: Institutional Limited Partners Association
The Estell Group, LLC: Bexar County
The Estell Group, LLC: PADI Worldwide Corporation
Van Scoyoc Associates: Federal Resources Supply CompanyNEW LOBBYING TERMINATIONS:
Alpine Group, Inc.: BP America Inc
Hall, Render, Killian, Heath & Lyman, P.C.: Bryan Health
Nathanson+Hauck: Montefiore Medical Center
The Normandy Group, LLC: Adams County, Coloradohttp://www.politico.com/tipsheets/politico-influence/2017/04/subject-matter-signs-first-republican-219641
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Zinke Taps Two Women for Senior Posts at Interior
Apr 7, 2017 | PoliticoPro - Whiteboard
By Esther Whieldon
Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke is appointing two women, including a President Donald Trump's beachhead team member, to official positions in his office.
Zinke will today name Katharine MacGregor as deputy assistant secretary for land and minerals management, an Interior spokesman told POLITICO. Zinke is also appointing Aurelia Skipwith, co-founder of agricultural consulting firm AVC Global, as deputy assistant secretary for fish, wildlife and parks.
MacGregor was a staffer on the House Natural Resources' Energy and Mineral Resources Subcommittee, where she worked on issues involving oil and gas development and royalties as well as offshore renewable energy development. She also previously served as a legislative director for former House Republican Majority Leader Eric Cantor and as a legislative assistant for former Republican Rep. Thelma Drake of Virginia.
Skipworth previously worked at the Bureau for Food Security at the United States Agency for International Development and is a former USDA research intern.
The White House has yet to nominate candidates for any of the top political positions at Interior or its nine bureaus, but Zinke appears to be moving ahead with appointing political staffers who do not require Senate confirmation.
Zinke in March appointed Mike Nedd as acting director of the Bureau of Land Management. Nedd had been assistant director for energy, minerals and realty management since 2007.
Ben Lefebvre contributed to this article.
https://www.politicopro.com/energy/whiteboard
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Lab Error Leads Solvent Makers to Urge EPA Rule Delay
Apr 7, 2017 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Pat Rizzuto
Solvents manufacturers want an opportunity to redo a toxicity study that could show a machinery degreaser is less harmful than previously thought before the EPA makes a final decision on whether to restrict its use.
The Halogenated Solvents Industry Alliance's request raises the question of when and whether the Environmental Protection Agency will delay rulemakings to incorporate additional chemical safety data generated by industry or other parties—delays that concern the environmental community.
The alliance asked the EPA to extend by 120 days the comment period on a rule (RIN 2070-AK11) it proposed Jan. 19 that would prohibit commercial use of trichloroethylene (TCE) in vapor degreasing applications of machinery.
Trichloroethylene (CAS No. 79-01-6) is used to clean machine parts across a wide swath of industries including cleaning aircraft parts, defense-related maintenance of vehicles and metal fabrication processes.
The EPA already extended the public comment period for that rule by 30 days following a previous request by the solvents alliance. The comment period now is set to end April 19 unless the EPA extends it again.
Science Provision in Law
The alliance argues it needs more time to rerun a toxicity study specifically designed to replicate a previous study the EPA used to conclude TCE exposure could cause heart problems during development.
The group said its study must be rerun because the laboratory that conducted the test realized late last year that the experimental animals did not receive sufficient trichloroethylene in their drinking water. That invalidated the study's results.
The EPA should not rely on a “so far unreproducible” study if it wants to comply with the 2016 amendments to the Toxic Substances Control Act, which require it to use the “best available science,” the alliance said.
Opposition
In comments filed April 4 and 5 respectively, a coalition of environmental health organizations led by Safer Chemicals, Healthy Families and the Environmental Defense Fund told the EPA it should not extend the comment period.
“The proposed rule is essential to protect tens of thousands of workers and consumers against serious and widespread risks of adverse health effects,” wrote the Safer Chemicals, Healthy Families coalition.
“Protection of public health demands prompt action by EPA,” the Environmental Defense Fund said. The body of data the EPA evaluated “overwhelmingly support” its determination of that using TCE for vapor degreasing was an unreasonable risk, it said.
The agency's proposed rule is designed to protect workers in small shops that do vapor degreasing.
The study the alliance seeks to replicate was published more than 13 years ago, giving it ample time to have reproduced or rebutted it before, the Environmental Defense Fund wrote.
The EPA did not reply April 6 to a Bloomberg BNA inquiry as to whether it would extend the comment period. An official with the Halogenated Solvents Industry Alliance could not be reached for comment.
http://news.bna.com/deln/DELNWB/split_display.adp?fedfid=108774009&vname=dennotallissues&fn=108774009&jd=108774009
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The Hidden – and Potentially Dangerous – Chemicals in Your Diet
Apr 6, 2017 | Environmental Working Group
By Tom Neltner
While picking up groceries for the week, a shopper may compare brands, prices, and nutritional information to ensure they make economical and healthy choices for their family. Unfortunately, there’s much more to our food than meets the eye – or makes the label.
Approximately 10,000 food additives are allowed in our food. Food additives are substances used to flavor, color, preserve, package, process, and store our food. While some of the chemicals added to food or used in packaging are harmless, others are downright dangerous and linked to health concerns. Certain additives are linked to reproductive problems, developmental issues, and even cancer.
Perchlorate was approved in 2005 as a component of plastic packaging for dry food despite the fact that it is a known endocrine disruptor that impairs infant brain development. Benzophenone – an artificial flavor added to baked goods, dessert, beverages, and candy – is classified as a possible human carcinogen. The list goes on. No matter where you shop, your family’s health may be at risk.
Check out the cupboard below to see what else could be lurking in your food.
How did we get here?
The Food Additives Amendment of 1958 was intended to better protect the public by giving the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) the authority to regulate food additives. Unfortunately, the flawed, 59-year old law, coupled with weak enforcement, has allowed thousands of chemicals to be added to food with little oversight and limited safety information.
Moreover, the law exempts ingredients “Generally Recognized As Safe” (GRAS) from formal FDA review and approval. Originally intended for common ingredients like vinegar and olive oil, industry now abuses the loophole by bypassing FDA review and making safety determinations without oversight. FDA has never reviewed an estimated 1,000 GRAS substances for safety. And many of the 10,000 additives allowed in our food today were authorized by the FDA or industry decades ago.
This broken system leaves both FDA and consumers in the dark. Under the 1958 law, FDA has no way to know what chemicals are actually being used in which food or in what quantities—even in baby food.
How can we make food safer?
The food regulatory system does not ensure the safety of our food. To fix our broken food system, we must:
· End secrecy: Companies should no longer be permitted to decide the safety of their own ingredients without FDA’s review or the public’s knowledge. Congress needs to create a more streamlined, public process for FDA to make decisions and encourage safer innovation.
· Update the science: When FDA reviews chemicals in our food, it makes our food supply safer. But the agency needs to update its guidance to industry to use modern scientific methods to better protect us.
· Ensure existing chemicals are safe: Thousands of chemicals were approved by FDA decades ago, when we had far less understanding about their impacts on human health. FDA needs to reassess their safety. Congress needs to provide FDA with the tools so the agency can get the information it needs to set priorities and make decisions about the 10,000 chemicals in our food.
Ultimately, to solve the problems in the food system and protect public health, industry should not wait for action by FDA or Congress. Companies should lead on removing the worst chemicals of concern and ensure that FDA reviews all chemicals used for safety.
Consumers are increasingly concerned about chemicals in food. It is long past time for the food regulatory system to do its job and ensure the safety of all the food we give to our families.
http://blogs.edf.org/health/2017/04/06/the-hidden-and-potentially-dangerous-chemicals-in-your-diet/
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Trump Said to Ready Order to Expand Oil Drilling in U.S. Waters
Apr 7, 2017 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Jennifer A. Dlouhy
President Donald Trump is preparing to issue an executive order with the goal of giving oil companies more opportunities to drill offshore, reversing Obama-era policies that restricted the activity.
The offshore drilling directive is set to be issued soon, Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke told an industry conference in Washington April 6, according to three attendees who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss a session closed to the press.
Trump has promised to expand domestic energy development and his administration has already signaled its interest in opening up coastal waters where President Barack Obama blocked new oil and gas development. Energy companies are lobbying the Interior Department to schedule sales of new offshore oil and natural gas rights in U.S. Atlantic and Arctic waters, amending a five-year Obama administration leasing plan that left out auctions there.
Administration officials also have been considering how to revoke Obama's decision to withdraw almost all U.S. Arctic waters and some Atlantic Ocean acreage from future leasing. Environmentalists say it would be unprecedented for any president to rescind such a designation, and the reversal would almost certainly be challenged in court.
Lease Sales
Although Trump can set those policy changes in motion with an executive order, the real work falls to bureaucrats in the Interior Department and could span years. Wedging new Arctic and Atlantic lease sales into the government's five-year plan would require environmental analysis and public comment periods—perhaps consuming a year for seas north of Alaska and even longer for parcels along the U.S. East Coast.
The move could benefit energy companies which are now focusing mostly on offshore drilling in the Gulf of Mexico, including Royal Dutch Shell, Chevron Corp., Exxon Mobil Corp. and Statoil.
Zinke did not provide specific details on the executive order during his April 6 presentation to the National Ocean Industries Association. An Interior Department spokeswoman did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.
http://news.bna.com/deln/DELNWB/split_display.adp?fedfid=108774014&vname=dennotallissues&fn=108774014&jd=108774014
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Dems Look for Stricter Regulation of Oil and Gas Production
Apr 7, 2017 | E&E Daily
By Jennifer Yachnin
House Democrats this week called for stricter federal regulation over oil and gas production, asserting that federal protections for clean air and water have failed to keep pace with industry practices, including hydraulic fracturing.
Democratic Reps. Matt Cartwright of Pennsylvania, Diana DeGette of Colorado, Jared Polis of Colorado and Jan Schakowsky of Illinois put forth a package of five bills, calling their proposal the "Safe Energy Future Plan."
"We support mineral extraction as long as it's done responsibly," the lawmakers said in a joint statement. "But the current patchwork of regulations and loophole-filled laws doesn't ensure that this is the case. For the safety of all our communities, we need to ensure that the oil and gas industries are held accountable."
The package includes Cartwright's "Focused Reduction of Effluence and Stormwater runoff through Hydrofracking Environmental Regulation Act," known as the "FRESHER Act".
The measure would amend the Clean Water Act to require oil and gas operators to obtain permits for stormwater discharges related to their operations. The bill would also require the Interior secretary to study and issue a report on the impacts of stormwater runoff from those facilities.
The Pennsylvania lawmaker is also the author of the "Closing Loopholes and Ending Arbitrary and Needless Evasion of Regulations Act," or "CLEANER Act."
That measure would amend the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act to apply hazardous waste safety regulations to waste materials from oil and natural gas production.
The package also includes DeGette's "Fracturing Responsibility and Awareness of Chemicals Act," or "FRAC Act," which aims to reverse the "Halliburton loophole."
The measure would require that hydraulic fracturing be considered under the Safe Drinking Water Act's underground injection provisions, which would put U.S. EPA in charge of overseeing permits related to the practice (Energywire, Sept. 29, 2016).
The measure would also require the disclosure of fracking chemicals.
Under the "Bringing Reductions to Energy's Airborne Toxic Health Effects Act," or "BREATHE Act," sponsored by Polis, emissions from multiple related wells would be required to be aggregated to determine their total pollution.
Schakowsky is the author of the "Safe Hydration is an American Right in Energy Development Act," or "SHARED Act," which requires base-line testing of drinking water sources prior to drilling, as well as the public disclosure of test results.
Kathleen Sgamma, president of Denver-based Western Energy Alliance, dismissed Democrats' latest efforts to further regulate the oil and gas industry, noting that the bills — most of which were introduced last cycle as the "Frack Pack" — have little chance of passing the House (Energywire, March 18, 2015).
"The bills and all the messaging around them show a complete lack of understanding on how oil and natural gas is heavily regulated by the states," Sgamma told E&E News. "They're designed to increase federal control at the expense of the states, and weren't even viable when Democrats held all the levers of government."
Reporter Scott Streater contributed.
http://www.eenews.net/eedaily/2017/04/07/stories/1060052773
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Lawmakers Introduce Bills to Reduce CO2 from Coal, Gas Plants
Apr 7, 2017 | E&E Daily
By Christa Marshall
Democratic and Republican House lawmakers introduced a pair of bills yesterday to cut carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuel generators.
The "Carbon Capture Improvement Act" from Reps. Carlos Curbelo (R-Fla.) and Marc Veasey (D-Texas) would allow carbon capture and sequestration projects to be financed with private activity bonds, which are issued by local and state authorities but tax exempt at the federal level.
The measure is a companion to legislation from Sens. Rob Portman (R-Ohio) and Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) introduced earlier this week (E&E Daily, April 6).
Both the House and Senate versions would allow 100 percent of CCS equipment to be financed with the tax-exempt bonds, if the targeted facility would capture and store more than 65 percent of its CO2 emissions.
Groups backing the legislation include North America's Building Trades Unions; the Natural Resources Defense Council; and the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers.
Separately, Reps. Paul Tonko (D-N.Y.) and David McKinley (R-W.Va.) introduced legislation to improve the efficiency of gas turbines used for electricity.
The bill would direct the Department of Energy's Office of Fossil Energy to conduct multiyear research to identify technologies that can improve gas turbine combined-cycle efficiency to 67 percent.
http://www.eenews.net/eedaily/2017/04/07/stories/1060052776
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PA Fiscal Office Again Says Proposed NatGas Tax Would Set Nation's Highest Rate
Apr 6, 2017 | Natural Gas Intelligence
By Jamison Cocklin
Pennsylvania's Independent Fiscal Office (IFO) said this week that Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf's renewed proposal for a 6.5% severance tax on natural gas production would give the state the highest effective rate in the country.
Wolf's 2017-2018 budget plan calls for the severance tax. It is the third time he has asked lawmakers to consider it. Like last year's proposal, shale producers would be able to take a credit against the severance tax for the impact fees they already pay. The fees have generated more than $1 billion for local communities and state agencies.
In an analysis of Wolf's proposed revenue sources the IFO found that if a severance tax is enacted this year, producers would pay an effective rate of 9% on their natural gas volumes. The IFO essentially said the same in last year's analysis. The only state that comes close is West Virginia, with a 5% effective rate, according to current projections. Lawmakers there eliminated a volumetric fee on natural gas production last year.
The Marcellus Shale Coalition said Wolf's proposal would be a "job-crushing tax burden" that "would restrict energy production" in the state. The trade group said the IFO's "research should send off alarm bells to policymakers in Harrisburg." The Wolf administration could not be reached to comment about the analysis on Thursday.
The IFO's estimates are based on the projected market value of natural gas using prices from the Dominion South and Leidy trading hubs. The estimates also include natural gas production projections. During fiscal year (FY) 2018-2019 -- the first full year a severance tax would be in effect -- the IFO said the state could generate $712 million under Wolf's proposal if more than 5 Tcf is produced. That would grow to nearly $2 billion in revenue during FY 2021-2022 at around 7 Tcf of production, according to the IFO's projections.
The analysis also noted that while "producers are liable for the proposed severance tax, others will generally bear the tax burden through lower royalty payments or higher energy prices."
Lawmakers in the state have tried but failed for years to agree on a natural gas severance tax. Wolf proposed a $32.3 billion budget in February that included the severance tax proposal to help plug a projected $3 billion budget deficit next fiscal year, which begins in July.
The Republican-controlled House of Representatives passed its first version of the state budget this week, approving $31.5 billion in spending. The plan does not include a severance tax or any other tax increases. It relies instead on spending cuts, setting the stage for what's likely to be months of negotiations with Wolf and Democratic lawmakers.
Wolf is not alone in his efforts to raise revenues from the region's abundant natural gas production. Ohio Gov. John Kasich, a Republican, renewed his call for a 6.5% tax on unconventional oil and gas production earlier this year. Producers in Ohio enjoy one of the nation's lowest severance taxes, where they pay 2.5 cents/Mcf for natural gas and 20 cents/bbl of oil.
Kasich has repeatedly called for an increased severance tax during his time in office, but members of his own party, which controls the state legislature, have balked at those proposals.
The Pennsylvania IFO offers non-partisan revenue projections for use in the state budget process. It also analyzes other fiscal, economic and budgetary issues that help lawmakers and residents evaluate policy decisions.
http://www.naturalgasintel.com/articles/110034-pa-fiscal-office-again-says-proposed-natgas-tax-would-set-nations-highest-rate
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Neb. Regulators Set Pipeline Permit Hearing
Apr 6, 2017 | E&E News PM
By Sam Mintz
An agency in Nebraska, the only state that has not yet approved its portion of the controversial Keystone XL pipeline, will hold a public hearing on the project this summer.
The five-member Nebraska Public Service Commission said yesterday that it would hold the hearing over five days from Aug. 7 to 11 at the Marriott Cornhusker Hotel in Lincoln.
Following the hearing, the commission has until Nov. 23 to approve the pipeline's route, reject it or propose an alternative. The state's Department of Environmental Quality has already signed off on the contentious project.
The PSC is allowing environmental groups, Native American leaders and landowners along the proposed route to participate in opposition (Energywire, April 3). The panel could also hold public meetings to receive additional input.
President Trump last month approved TransCanada Corp.'s request for KXL to cross from Canada into the United States, reversing a denial by President Obama in 2015.
http://www.eenews.net/eenewspm/2017/04/06/stories/1060052756
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Boosting Energy Sector is About More Than Just Cutting Regulations
Apr 7, 2017 | The Hill - E2 Wire
By Ryan M. Yonk and Josh T. Smith
At the signing of his most recent executive order, President Trump expressed sympathy for the failing coal industry and coal country, along with his hope that removing unnecessary barriers and stifling regulation would lead to a revitalization of coal country.
But coal isn't dying out just because it's unfairly targeted by regulation, although some regulations make it tougher for coal to compete with cheaper natural gas and other energy sources. Regulations are only part of the coal industry's problem.
The only real and lasting solution to the problems that coal country faces are not found in new government-granted privileges for coal companies, but rather in innovation, and competition that drives value for consumers.
For example, one of the reasons natural gas has been able to out-compete coal is because of innovations in fracking technology that have dramatically lowered the cost of gas production. Innovations like these drive the economy and are where the solution to coal country's problems can be found.
As much as they might long for the past glory days of coal country, that approach is fixated on the technology of the past. If those implementing the executive order are not careful, they may miss the potential for innovation to create something new and better for coal country. No policy's focus should be on the past — successful energy policy must focus on the future.
One way to ensure that focus on the future is by employing permissionless innovation — the philosophy that undergirds the runaway success of the tech industry. Permissionless innovation allows individuals the freedom to innovate and deal with problems as they arise instead of trying to divine what they will be in the future. This is the process that drove much of the technological revolution. Individuals and companies who could experiment and freely compete with each other found new ways to serve the needs of others and revolutionized human life.
The energy sector holds the same potential, but it is stymied by regulation and extensive government support for existing sources. On this point, Trump's rolling back of regulations may be exactly what the sector needs. But if economic freedom is good for coal, as Trump noted in his speech, it is also good for renewables and any other potential energy source.
It's certainly true coal has been pushed out by regulators in favor of solar and wind energy. But it's also true that other energy sources have hit similar hurdles. For example, solar faces significant hurdles due to the design of the grid system. It is the one-way design from producers to consumers that means integrating solar power is difficult and often costly.
Other distributed generation systems run into similar problems with existing rules or the grid's design. Already, people are designing solutions and calling for updates to the grid, but these attempts run into regulatory hurdles. Slow-moving bureaucrats and entrenched institutions discourage the new in favor of the old.
A truly revolutionary energy policy framework would focus on creating opportunities for innovation in the energy sector. This means doing more than removing barriers to a single energy source's success. It means removing unnecessary and cumbersome barriers to innovation and development for all energy sources, even ones that may not exist yet.
The key to improving the economy of coal country won't be anything like its past, unless paired with technological advances. It is not enough to promote old energy sources, and in the case of coal country, old sources of wealth. Individuals must look for the next way to serve others when their old methods become outdated.
Embracing permissionless innovation and getting out of the way of innovation is a wise course of action for policymakers. Prosperity will only be realized through the innovation currently burdened and deterred by regulation.
Ryan M. Yonk Ph.D. is assistant research professor at Utah State University, and one of the founders of Strata Policy. Josh T. Smith is a policy analyst at Strata.
http://thehill.com/blogs/pundits-blog/energy-environment/327681-boosting-energy-sector-is-about-more-than-just-cutting
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Chemical Board, OSHA Send Teams to Box Factory After Blast Kills 4
Apr 7, 2017 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Sam Pearson
A Missouri packaging manufacturer is the subject of two federal agency probes after one worker and three others were killed from an explosion April 3 at the company's plant.
The Chemical Safety Board says it is sending a team of investigators to the site of the Loy-Lange Box Co. in St. Louis after reports that a boiler exploded at the plant at about 7:30 a.m. killing a worker. Two others died when the boiler flew about 500 feet in the air and landed on a nearby laundry facility. A fourth person died April 5, according to news reports.
The St. Louis medical examiner's office identified the victims as Loy-Lange engineer Kenneth Trentham, 59, and married couple Christopher Watkins, 46, and Tonya Suarez-Gonzalez, 43, who died at the Faultless Healthcare Linen laundry facility, according to the Associated Press.
A fourth person, 53-year-old Clifford Lee, died April 5 at an area hospital after suffering injuries from the boiler crash, the Associated Press reported after the board's announcement.
Early Steps
The CSB team will look at “what if any safeguards were in place to protect the workers at the Loy-Lange Box Co., as well as for those in the adjoining building,” CSB Chairperson Vanessa Sutherland said.
OSHA spokesman Scott Allen said in an email April 6 the agency has opened an investigation into the explosion.
Allen said OSHA employees have been at the facility to speak to witnesses and attempt to determine the cause of the explosion and whether the company was following health and safety regulations at the time. The investigation could take up to six months, Allen said.
The CSB's action is “a good development and underscores the important work of the Board,” Jeff Ruch, the executive director of Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, said in an email April 6.
Ruch said that since OSHA doesn't investigate off-site fatalities, the CSB had a meaningful role to play, such as by examining “the siting of the boiler in proximity to other businesses, as well as the safety of the boiler's design and operation.”
Bloomberg BNA couldn't reach Loy-Lange Box Co. for comment April 6.
http://news.bna.com/deln/DELNWB/split_display.adp?fedfid=108774016&vname=dennotallissues&fn=108774016&jd=108774016
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Sustaining CSB Funding Is Key to Our Nation's Safety
Apr 6, 2017 | Houston Chronicle
By Sam Mannan
For the well-being and safety of all Americans, we should pause and rethink the potential defunding and elimination of a small federal agency known as the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board, the CSB. For an annual budget of about $11 million dollars, the CSB is charged with the daunting responsibility of investigating industrial chemical accidents, developing lessons learned, and communicating those lessons and recommendations with the objective of preventing or mitigating future accidents.
The CSB was authorized by the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990. Utilizing the successful model of the National Transportation Safety Board, Congress directed that the CSB's investigative function be completely independent of the rulemaking, inspection and enforcement authorities of EPA and OSHA. Congress recognized that CSB investigations would identify chemical hazards that were not addressed by those agencies.
Lessons learned from objective investigation of past accidents can be of great use in keeping the chemical industry safer and thereby increase public safety. Chemicals play a key role in the modern world. Only a handful of the goods and services we enjoy on a daily basis would exist without essential chemical products. However, the use of chemicals is a two-edged sword. Safe use creates a higher standard of living and a healthier economy; unsafe use can threaten our lives, our businesses and our communities. For this reason, working and living safely with chemicals are the ultimate focus of the CSB.
The CSB does not issue fines or citations, but does make recommendations to companies, regulatory agencies, industry organizations and labor groups. Congress designed the CSB to be non-regulatory and independent of other agencies so that its investigations might, where appropriate, review the effectiveness of regulations and regulatory enforcement. Since becoming operational in January 1998, the CSB has investigated 132 accidents, issued 794 recommendations, and produced 164 publications and animations to promote learning. The CSB has accomplished so much with so little in this important area of safety.
The 2018 federal budget proposed by President Trump defunds the CSB completely. As a nation we must make tough choices and look at the need and effectiveness of every dollar that is spent; however, the $11 million needed to keep the CSB operational is worth every penny. The unique mission of the CSB cannot be fulfilled by another agency or industry organization.
In presenting the 2018 budget blueprint, President Trump stated that: "A budget that puts America first must make the safety of our people its number one priority - because without safety, there can be no prosperity… a budget that emphasizes national security and public safety."
In fact, it can be argued that public safety and national security are intricately tied with process safety in the chemical industries. And in effect, process safety is directly tied with the sustainability and continued development of the nation. Incidents like the methyl isocyanate incident in Bhopal in 1984 and the Deep Water Horizon incident in 2010 are classic examples in this regard. The Bhopal incident resulted in more than 2,000 fatalities, hundreds of thousands of injuries and major environmental impacts. The Deep Water Horizon incident resulted in 11 fatalities and the worst oil spill in modern times causing major environmental impacts. The financial impact of each one of these two incidents was also far-reaching. There are a multitude of other incidents that have caused harm to employees, the public and the environment.
Today, if the budget called for the defunding of the NTSB, Americans would rightfully be asking that we give it another thought. We should not defund and eliminate the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board, an agency that for $11 million dollars supports a mission that is highly critical to maintaining and supporting the safety and national security of American communities.
Mannan is Regents Professor and executive director of the Mary Kay O'Connor Process Safety Center at Texas A&M University.
http://www.houstonchronicle.com/opinion/outlook/article/Mannan-Sustaining-CSB-funding-is-key-to-our-11055284.php
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Thousands of Safety Issues on Oil Train Routes, Report Finds
Apr 7, 2017 | King5
By Alison Morrow
An oil train derailment in Oregon last year was blamed on broken bolts. It's the same kind of safety defect documented nearly 24,000 times in a recent Federal Railroad Administration report.
There were also 1,118 violations, which are considered more serious.
"What stood out to me about this report was it confirmed our fears," said Rebecca Ponzio, Washington Environmental Council oil campaign director. "We've been lucky here in Washington that we haven't had a major derailment, but this report identified thousands of violations that were the exact same kind of thing that created derailments across the nation. That's scary."
The Washington Environmental Council is a group admittedly opposed to oil train expansion, but they're also fighting for tighter regulations of oil trains statewide.
"Bolts were unscrewed, parts of the rail line were unhinged. Fasteners were not there; they were missing. That's created problems across the nation, and that's what I'm concerned about," Ponzio said.
Union Pacific, the company responsible for the Oregon derailment, said "Union Pacific has always paid close attention to track conditions and inspections."
It's main competitor, BNSF, also reports spending billions on improvements each year.
"In 2016, our capital expenditures in Washington were approximately $200 million. And in 2017, the planned expenditure in the state is $175 million. In 2017, our maintenance expenditures in the state will go toward replacing nearly 150,000 railroad ties and 920 miles of ballast," said BNSF spokesman Michael Trevino.
The FRA says many of the problems they found can be fixed, and cites a 10 percent decrease in track-caused derailments in the last couple years.
But as accidents continue, activists believe the derailments are still far too common.
"I think the oil industry has a lot of work to do to make sure that their products are being transported safely," Ponzio said. "Our communities are on the front line, and we're concerned."
http://www.king5.com/tech/science/environment/thousands-of-safety-issues-on-oil-train-routes-report-finds/429365130
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EPA Defends Science Justifying Utility MACT Air Toxics Rule
Apr 6, 2017 | Inside EPA
EPA in a new legal brief is defending the science justifying its landmark utility air toxics rule, fighting industry attacks that it relies on “contaminated” data and is therefore deeply flawed, ahead of May 18 oral argument in related cases that consolidate suits over the information used for the rule and EPA's updated cost assessment for it.
In ARIPPA, et al. v. EPA, now pending in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, industry body the Utility Air Regulatory Group (UARG) is attacking EPA's decision not to reconsider emissions limits known as “floors” in the rule. UARG claims EPA relied on data derived from contaminated sampling, and therefore the emissions floors are illegitimate.
Pennsylvania coal waste-burning utility ARIPPA, meanwhile, claims that EPA ignored the unique characteristics of the fuel its plants burn to set inappropriately tough emissions limits.
Environmentalists in the suit are seeking to both defend the utility maximum achievable control technology (MACT) air rule from industry attacks, but also to press EPA for tougher emissions limits based on “total,” rather than “filterable” particulate matter (PM). Filterable PM is a subset of total PM that excludes particulate formed by gases that cannot be trapped by a fabric filter.
The case will be heard by the same three-judge panel and on the same day as Murray Energy, et al. v. EPA, et al., a higher-profile suit challenging EPA's revised finding that it was “appropriate and necessary” to issue the MACT rule. The finding, revised to incorporate a consideration of implementation costs required by the Supreme Court, is a legal prerequisite to the MACT.
In ARIPPA, the Department of Justice (DOJ) in its final brief on EPA's behalf sticks to the same legal defense of the agency's denial of reconsideration petitions that it has used since proceedings began under the Obama administration.
“EPA denied UARG’s reconsideration petition both because UARG had ample opportunity to raise the issue during the rulemaking and because the issue is not of central relevance” to the rulemaking, DOJ says. UARG claims new evidence came to light after EPA conducted its original information collection for the MACT, showing that contractors incorrectly used stainless steel components in sampling equipment which contaminated results.
But DOJ says the sampling contamination allegations were raised in earlier litigation over the MACT in White Stallion Energy Center v. EPA, a D.C. Circuit case that upheld the rule in a 2-1 decision. “While the additional test data was provided to EPA after the conclusion of the rulemaking, EPA correctly found that the underlying issue of alleged sample contamination could have been, and was, raised and addressed during the rulemaking,” DOJ says.
The sample contamination issue “was raised in comments and addressed by EPA in the final rule. It was also fully litigated in White Stallion, and UARG’s arguments were rejected,” DOJ says.
With respect to ARIPPA's request for EPA to create a special subcategory of boilers to ease compliance for its coal waste-burning plants, DOJ says, “ARIPPA had ample opportunity to raise the issue during the comment period, and nothing presented in the petition would change EPA’s conclusion that subcategorization was not warranted.”
DOJ also fends off environmentalists' accusations that it wrongly weakened the MACT by basing emissions limits on filterable PM, and by not requiring “beyond-the-floor” limits that are tougher than the MACT floor would require. Although the agency initially proposed using total PM as the yardstick for its rule, after receiving adverse comment it reverted to filterable PM, and this is reasonable because it did not weaken the rule, DOJ says.
Meanwhile, EPA in an April 6 Federal Register notice extends from April 16 until June 30, 2018, the ability of power plants to submit certain reports required under the utility MACT in portable document file format. EPA in a Sept. 29 proposal suggested extending the deadline until Dec. 31, but industry groups pushed for a longer extension. EPA is transitioning to a single electronic emissions reporting system for compliance with the MACT.
https://insideepa.com/daily-feed/epa-defends-science-justifying-utility-mact-air-toxics-rule
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Wyoming Lawsuit Poses Test for Trump EPA's Policy on Interstate Ozone
Apr 7, 2017 | Inside EPA
By Stuart Parker
Wyoming is suing EPA over its disapproval of the state's plan to curb interstate transport of ozone-forming air pollution, setting up a test for the Trump administration's policy on limiting emissions that drift across states lines in order to prevent air pollution from one state hindering another state's ability to meet federal ozone limits.
Wyoming filed suit April 4 in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit, asking the court to vacate portions of an EPA decision to disapprove elements of the state's interstate pollution transport plan. The agency in a Feb. 3 Federal Register notice approved certain elements of Wyoming's “infrastructure” state implementation plan (SIP) for air law compliance, but disapproved other elements pertaining to controlling interstate transport.
While the final rule was issued in the early days of the Trump administration and therefore likely largely crafted by the Obama EPA, it followed through on the plan to reject the interstate ozone provisions. The Trump EPA could either defend the action in the suit, or potentially reconsider the decision or take some other action.
The Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality (WDEQ) in its SIP concluded that the state does not cause air quality issues in any other state -- but EPA disagreed. The SIP rejection started a two-year clock for the agency to either institute a federal implementation plan (FIP), or accept a revised SIP should Wyoming supply one.
Infrastructure plans set out overarching requirements for air law compliance, and commonly also contain provisions needed to meet the law's “good neighbor” clause that requires states to mitigate emissions that compromise air quality in other states downwind.
EPA in its SIP rejection found that Wyoming contributes “significantly” to problems maintaining the 2008 national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) of 75 parts per billion in neighboring Colorado, where the Denver area is struggling with high levels of ozone.
But Wyoming contests this view, and says EPA's approach to determining such significant contribution is flawed. EPA's methodology uses one percent of the NAAQS to determine what is “significant,” based on computer modeling of pollutant flows from one state to another.
However, Wyoming and industry groups in comments on EPA's proposed version of the SIP decision said that the one percent threshold should not be the determinant of “significance,” and that EPA's whole methodology is inapplicable to the state.
Emissions Modeling
EPA relied on modeling done in the context of its Cross-State Air Pollution Rule (CSAPR) power plant emissions trading program to determine that Wyoming emissions are increasing ozone levels in Colorado, hindering the Centennial State's ability to meet federal ozone limits. The agency has taken a similar approach based on CSAPR modeling to fault Utah's emissions transport SIP as well.
“WDEQ asserted that the EPA has made statements indicating that the Agency has not evaluated the applicability of a transport rule in the western states, and that the EPA does not have an understanding of the nature of interstate ozone transport in the West,” EPA said in its Feb. 3 decision.
But the agency argued that Wyoming failed to analyze not only whether the state causes NAAQS violations in Colorado, but also whether it “interferes with maintenance” of those standards.
Wyoming and others say this approach cannot apply to the unique circumstances of the mountain West, such as high elevation, as EPA developed CSAPR to apply to states in the eastern half of the country.
Wyoming “is concerned that EPA has not yet worked with western states or western regional planning organizations on region-appropriate analysis for interstate transport,” WDEQ Air Quality Division Administrator Nancy Vehr wrote in a Nov. 23 letter to the agency.
The Utility Air Regulatory Group (UARG), an industry coalition, in its Dec. 19 comments on the Nov. 18 proposed disapproval of Wyoming's SIP said, “EPA should not use the one-percent level as a contribution threshold,” and certainly should not use it “as a bright-line test that results in subjecting states to interstate-transport emission reduction obligations.”
UARG said it “shares the concern expressed by Wyoming” that EPA has not conducted analysis specific to the region, and urged EPA to allow Wyoming more time to address its contribution to pollutant transport.
Ozone Data
In a related development, EPA is taking public comment through April 6 on its latest computer modeling of interstate emissions using the CSAPR model, including for western states.
EPA released the information in a notice of data availability (NODA) published in the Register Jan. 6 indicating that 21 states would meet the one percent threshold if it were applied to the latest, toughest ozone NAAQS of 70 ppb, adopted by the Obama EPA in 2015. The 21 states include many already part of the CSAPR trading program, but also western states currently excluded such as California, Wyoming and Utah.
The future of CSAPR is however unclear under the Trump EPA's deregulatory agenda, and some states and industry groups are challenging a 2016 “update” to the rule in State of Wisconsin, et al. v. EPA, et al., now pending in the D.C. Circuit.
https://insideepa.com/daily-news/wyoming-lawsuit-poses-test-trump-epas-policy-interstate-ozone
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California's Cap-and-Trade Auctions Are Lawful: Appeals Court
Apr 7, 2017 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Carolyn Whetzel
California's auctions of carbon allowances are not an illegal tax, a state appellate court said April 6.
The 2-1 opinion resolves closely watched litigation that threatened a key feature of the greenhouse gas emissions cap-and-trade program.
Affirming a trial court, the Third Appellate District of the California Court of Appeal upheld the California Air Resources Board's authority under the Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006, or A.B. 32, to establish the auctions to curb carbon emissions.
The court also said that because the purchase of the allowances is voluntary, the auctions are not an illegal tax.
“The system is the voluntary purchase of a valuable commodity and not a tax under any test,” the court said.
“The court's decision affirms the basic purpose and structure of the program—to deliver carbon reductions in a cost-effective and flexible manner,” CARB Chairman Mary D. Nichols said in a statement. “The decision provides additional certainty for California to continue with this keystone program that puts a price on carbon and supports all other approaches California has underway to fight climate change.”
Governor Wants Extension
Gov. Jerry Brown (D) wants lawmakers to extend the cap-and-trade program to 2030, through budget legislation due June 1. A budget measure approved by a two-thirds vote would provide some added certainty to the future of the program.
Concern over the outcome of the years-long litigation has contributed to uncertainty as to the future of the program, and dampened interest in recent cap-and-trade auctions, according to market analysts.
The state's multisector trading program is among a suite of programs implemented to help California meet its climate goals. It covers about 450 entities, the largest emitters of greenhouse gases: electricity generators, industrial facilities and distributors of transportation, and fuels.
Under the program, entities have the option of buying and selling allowances to meet declining annual caps. Some allowances, however, are distributed for free.
State law requires that auction proceeds go to programs that reduce greenhouse gas emissions. About 35 percent of revenue, by law, must be invested in disadvantaged communities.
Suit Filed on Eve of First Auction
The California Chamber of Commerce and other business groups filed the lawsuit on the eve of the state's first auction of carbon allowances in 2014. Plaintiffs alleged CARB lacked legislative authority to create the auctions and that the emissions allowances amount to a tax that required a two-thirds vote of the Legislature.
Morning Star Packing Co. filed a similar claim, eventually consolidated with the chamber's case.
“We are reviewing the decision and evaluating our options,” California Chamber spokeswoman Denise Davis told Bloomberg BNA in an April 6 email.
Attorneys at the Pacific Legal Foundation, representing Morning Star, had contended the ruling evades California's tax rules under Proposition 13, a 1978 law requiring a super-majority vote for taxes.
Morning Star is considering an appeal to the California Supreme Court, its attorneys said.
Not Tax Under Proposition 13
The auction system “does not equate to a tax subject to Proposition 13,” the court said. The purchases of allowances is a business-driven decision, “not a governmentally compelled decision.”
Also, unlike a tax, “the purchase of an emissions allowances conveys a valuable property interest—the privilege to pollute California's air—that may be freely sold or traded on the secondary market,” the court said.
In a statement, the Pacific Legal Foundation said: “Under the majority's reasoning, California's gasoline taxes are not really taxes, because the state does not compel you to buy gasoline and you get something of value for it paying the tax: a gallon of gas.”
Court ‘Got It Right’
“I think the court really got it right,” Cara Horowitz, a law professor at the University of California, Los Angeles, told Bloomberg BNA. “It took a creative analytical approach to recognize that the auction is neither a tax nor a traditional regulatory fee, but something else entirely.”
Horowitz wrote one of the amicus briefs filed supporting the state.
“The world is looking to California to lead on climate,” Natural Resources Defense Council attorney Alex Jackson said in a statement. “Making polluters pay for their harmful emissions and investing the proceeds in clean energy is critical to winning that fight and protecting the most vulnerable Californians.”
The case is California Chamber of Commerce v. California Air Resources Bd., Cal. Ct. App., 3d Dist., No. C075930, 4/6/17
James R. Parrinello, Steven A. Merksamer, Kurt R. Oneto, Christopher E. Skinnell and Eric J. Miethke at Nielsen Merksamer Parrinello Gross & Leoni in Sacramento represented the
California Chamber of Commerce.Pacific Legal Foundation attorneys James S. Burling, Theodore Hadzi-Antich, Harold E. Johnson and Anthony L. François represented Morning Star and its co-plaintiffs.
California Attorney General Kamala D. Harris and Robert W. Byrne, Gavin G. McCabe, Molly K. Mosley, David A. Zonana, Robert E. Asperger, M. Elaine Meckenstock and Bryant B. Cannon represented the state.
—Laura Mahoney contributed to the story
http://news.bna.com/deln/DELNWB/split_display.adp?fedfid=108774025&vname=dennotallissues&fn=108774025&jd=108774025
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World Leaders Watch in Silence as Trump Cuts Climate Efforts
Apr 7, 2017 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Joe Ryan
As President Donald Trump tries to rip U.S. climate change efforts out by the roots, world leaders are watching in silence.
Presidents and prime ministers around the globe have raised few, if any, public objections to Trump's sweeping orders to gut environmental regulations. German Chancellor Angela Merkel said nothing about climate last month during her appearance with the U.S. president. And the issue is unlikely to come up in detail this week when he meets with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
The muted international reaction underscores the cautious line nations are treading with a president threatening to upend worldwide efforts to stop global warming. Rather than publicly confront him, leaders are largely keeping criticism of Trump's climate stance behind closed doors, avoiding a showdown that might prompt him to double down on support for fossil fuels.
“Confrontation will be useless—indeed counter-productive—with Mr. Trump,” said Robert Stavins, director of Harvard University's Environmental Economics Program.
China Summit
This week's two-day summit in Palm Beach, Florida, between Trump and Xi presents the two leaders with their first opportunity to discuss a list of pressing issues. Global warming, which Trump has called a hoax, is unlikely to get much attention.
“I don't think that the Chinese will probably be raising that in detail,” Susan Thornton, acting assistant secretary for East Asian and Pacific Affairs at the U.S. State Department, said in a teleconference April 5. “I don't think that it's going to be a major part of the discussion.”
“The U.S. is completely not interested in the climate issue,” Chai Qimin, a policy adviser to the Chinese government, said in an interview. “Trade and North Korea will be the topics.”
It may be premature to directly confront Trump on climate. The president won't determine until May whether to follow through on his campaign pledge to withdraw from the Paris Agreement, the landmark accord to cut greenhouse gases brokered in the French capital in 2015 by more than 190 nations.
The impact of a U.S. withdrawal from the Paris Agreement would reverberate around the globe. As the richest nation and the second-largest polluter, American efforts are central to keeping climate change from hitting an irreversible tipping point, unleashing catastrophic floods, droughts and storms, scientists say.
‘Crickets’
Diplomacy is by necessity steeped in superficial niceties, and leaders tend to be cautious about picking fights with new administrations. That's particularly true with an unknown quantity such as Trump, as nations develop strategies for dealing with him on a host of issues beyond climate, including trade, NATO and China's sovereignty claims in the South China Sea.
“Like with any new government, the international community is willing to give Trump a little bit of time,” said Alden Meyer, director of policy at the Union of Concerned Scientists, who has been following the UN talks for more than two decades.
That doesn't mean there isn't conflict on the horizon. Merkel and others have indicated they plan to press Trump on climate at Group of Seven and Group of 20 economic summits hosted this year by Italy and Germany. The idea is that collective pressure from multiple nations is more apt to sway Trump than efforts by any single country, said Jake Schmidt, who follows international climate talks for the Natural Resources Defense Council.
“While it may appear there are crickets on the international scene, I think a storm is brewing,” Schmidt said in an interview.
‘A Disaster’
World leaders haven't been entirely silent. Denmark's energy minister called Trump's executive orders “ worrying.” A Chinese government-run newspaper, which tends to reflect the sentiments of Xi and his advisers, condemned the moves as “political selfishness.” And European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said Trump was endangering the entire globe.
“This is a disaster,” Juncker said during a March 29 appearance in Malta.
Most national officials have offered more subdued reactions. Ministers from Australia and India, for instance, reiterated their commitments to the Paris accord in response to Trump's order last week to roll back climate change efforts. Japan withheld judgment altogether.
“We will refrain from commenting on the U.S. stance as we don't know yet the big picture on the Trump administration's policy on climate change issues including the Paris agreement,” Motosada Matano, director for global communications in Japan for the prime minister's office, said in an email.
Red Line
Time will tell whether the lack of public outcry is a prelude to a fight—or an indication that the international community is giving Trump a pass on climate in order to preserve harmony over free-trade or other issues. The clearest indication may come in July, when heads of state gather in Hamburg for the G-20 summit.
Until then, there is at least one red line that may trigger international outcry if crossed by Trump.
“If the U.S. were to withdraw from Paris, I think there would be significant diplomatic repercussions,” said David Waskow, director of climate initiatives for the World Resources Institute.
--With assistance from Brian Parkin, Anindya Upadhyay, Gregory Viscusi, Chisaki Watanabe and Feifei Shen.
http://news.bna.com/deln/DELNWB/split_display.adp?fedfid=108774001&vname=dennotallissues&fn=108774001&jd=108774001
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