Preview Newsletter
ACC AM 4/26/2017
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(ACC Mentioned) Chemical Activity Barometer (CAB) Shows Strong Q2 Opening, ACC Says
Apr 25, 2017 | Chemical Engineering
By Scott Jenkins
The Chemical Activity Barometer (CAB), a leading economic indicator created by the American Chemistry Council (ACC; Washington, D.C.; www.americanchemistry.com), marked the second quarter by posting a robust 5.6 percent year-over-year gain, suggesting continued growth through year-end 2017. -
(ACC Mentioned) Chemical Activity And Trade Still Strong
Apr 25, 2017 | Seeking Alpha
By Calafia Beach Pundit
The American Chemistry Council's Chemistry Activity Barometer continued to rise in its latest April release. This index has been a good coincident at times, leading indicator of both industrial production and overall economic growth, and it continues to point to rising industrial production and continued growth of the US economy. -
(ACC Mentioned) Infrastructure Bill Provides Golden Opportunity For Ohio Legislature
Apr 25, 2017 | Americans for Tax Reform
By Marc Dupont
Today, the Ohio House’s Committee on State and Local Government will hold a hearing on HB 121, legislation that would yield significant taxpayer savings by opening up competition for water infrastructure. -
EPA Issues TSCA Notices On 28 New Chemicals
Apr 25, 2017 | The National Law Review
By Lynn L. Bergeson
On April 25, 2017, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued two notices in the Federal Register expressing its determination that 28 new chemical notifications are “not likely to present an unreasonable risk of injury to health or the environment.” -
(ACC Mentioned) Editorial: Wash Your Food. EPA Reverses Itself On Dangers Of Common Pesticide
Apr 25, 2017 | St. Louis Post-Dispatch
By Editorial Board
Last month, Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency administrator, Scott Pruitt, freed up the country to continue using a pesticide called chlorpyrifos on everything from strawberries and almonds to Brussels sprouts and broccoli. -
N.Y. Draft Rule Would Require Chemical Disclosures For Cleaners
Apr 26, 2017 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Gerald B. Silverman
Manufacturers of household cleaning products would have to disclose the ingredients in their products on their websites, under proposed regulations announced by New York Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo (D) April 25. -
N.Y. Requires Disclosure Of Cleaning-Product Ingredients
Apr 25, 2017 | E&E News PM
By Cecelia Smith-Schoenwalder
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo today made his state the first in the nation to require manufacturers to disclose chemicals in household cleaning products. -
EPA Memo Shows How Cuts Could Impact Chemical Regulations
Apr 25, 2017 | Chem Info
By Andy Szal
An internal memo from Environmental Protection Agency officials late last month provided additional details into the depth of agency cuts planned by the Trump administration. -
Arctic Monitoring Programme Finds New Chemicals Of Concern
Apr 26, 2017 | Chemical Watch
New chemicals of emerging concern are now found in the Arctic according to long-term monitoring data from the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP). -
Environmentalists Question EU Toxics Agency Claim That Controls Are In Place
Apr 26, 2017 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Stephen Gardner
The European Chemicals Agency said it would focus on the risk assessment of hundreds of substances that might present hazards, having already taken risk management measures under the European Union's REACH regulation for substances that are known to be hazardous. -
Lawyer Warns Of Continued Data-Sharing And Joint Registration Challenges
Apr 25, 2017 | Chemical Watch
The REACH Implementing Regulation on data-sharing has placed significant demands on companies managing existing agreements between registrants, according to a Mayer Brown lawyer speaking at the Chemical Watch/Chemical Risk Manager REACH Expo in Berlin today. -
(ACC Mentioned) Sights Still Set On An Appalachian Storage Hub
Apr 25, 2017 | The State Journal
By Steve Hedrick
Our quad-state region continues to be primed for this opportunity, which would safely house separated natural gas liquids as a built-for-purpose facility to distribute critical raw materials to consumers across Appalachia’s broader region. -
Authorized Non-FTA Exports Near 20 Bcf/d With Golden Pass Approval
Apr 25, 2017 | Natural Gas Intelligence
By Joe Fisher
Golden Pass Products LLC (GPP) has been approved to export up to 2.21 Bcf/d of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to non-free trade agreement (FTA) countries, bringing to 19.2 Bcf/d the total of non-FTA exports authorized by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). -
Golden Pass LNG Cleared To Export
Apr 25, 2017 | Fuel Fix
By James Osborne
The Golden Pass LNG terminal on the Texas Gulf Coast was cleared by the Department of Energy Tuesday to begin exporting up to 2.21 billion cubic feet of gas per day. -
LNG Emerges As A White House Favorite For Promoting Energy Jobs
Apr 26, 2017 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Ryan Collins
U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry said April 25 that approval of the Golden Pass project in Texas, creating about 45,000 jobs during construction, would position the U.S. as the dominant exporter of LNG. -
Trump Is Expected to Sign Orders That Could Expand Access to Fossil Fuels
Apr 25, 2017 | The New York Times
By Coral Davenport
WASHINGTON — After moving last month against Barack Obama’s efforts to limit fossil fuel exploration and combat climate change, President Trump will complete his effort to overturn environmental policy this week, signing two executive orders to expand offshore drilling and roll back conservation on public lands. -
Trump Said To Order Review Of Oil Drilling Off California Coast
Apr 26, 2017 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Jennifer A. Dlouhy
President Donald Trump will open the door to new oil and natural gas drilling in Pacific waters off the coast of California with a directive April 28 that sets up a certain clash with environmentalists. -
(ACC Mentioned) AWO, ACC Renew Chemical Shipping Agreement
Apr 25, 2017 | Marine Link
By Eric Haun
The American Waterways Operators (AWO) and The American Chemistry Council (ACC) have renewed for three years a Memorandum of Agreement to promote environmental, health, safety and security performance through ACC's Responsible Care and AWO's Responsible Carrier Program. -
Utilities Divided Over EPA's Request To Delay MACT Rule Oral Arguments
Apr 26, 2017 | Inside EPA
By EPA
Power companies are divided over EPA's push for a federal appeals court to delay May 18 oral arguments in two suits over the Obama-era utility maximum achievable control technology (MACT) rule, with coal utilities supporting the request while “clean” utilities that primarily use other fuels are urging the court to proceed with arguments -
Malfunction Emissions Case Delayed To Accommodate EPA Review
Apr 26, 2017 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Patrick Ambrosio
The Trump administration won a delay in yet another legal challenge to an Obama-era environmental regulation, this one over state plans to control industrial air pollution during periods when equipment starts up, shuts down or malfunctions. -
Oil And Mining Giants Detail Road Map To Reduce Carbon By Half
Apr 26, 2017 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Mark Chediak
A group of companies and non-profit agencies that includes energy giants Royal Dutch Shell Plc and BHP Billiton said global greenhouse gas emissions could be cut in half by 2040 without impeding economic development, in part by converting grids to use mostly renewable power. -
Perry Says Trump Should Keep Paris Climate Deal And Renegotiate
Apr 26, 2017 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Joe Ryan
Energy Secretary Rick Perry said the U.S. should renegotiate the Paris accord on climate change instead of abandoning it, criticizing Germany for allowing its fossil-fuel emissions to rise. -
Republicans Ramp Up Their Offensive
Apr 26, 2017 | E&E Daily
By Hannah Hess,
Congressional Republicans have sent President Trump the strongest signal yet of what they want him to do with the Paris Agreement.
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(ACC Mentioned) Chemical Activity Barometer (CAB) Shows Strong Q2 Opening, ACC Says
Apr 25, 2017 | Chemical Engineering
By Scott Jenkins
The Chemical Activity Barometer (CAB), a leading economic indicator created by the American Chemistry Council (ACC; Washington, D.C.; www.americanchemistry.com), marked the second quarter by posting a robust 5.6 percent year-over-year gain, suggesting continued growth through year-end 2017.
The barometer posted a 0.4 percent gain in April, following three successive months of upward revisions to the monthly data. All data is measured on a three-month moving average (3MMA). On an unadjusted basis the CAB climbed 0.2 percent in April.
The Chemical Activity Barometer has four primary components, each consisting of a variety of indicators: 1) production; 2) equity prices; 3) product prices; and 4) inventories and other indicators.
In April, production-related indicators were positive, with U.S. exports and housing permits improving. Equity prices retreated as uncertainty over tax reform and other public policy issues gained footing. Inventory and product prices all remained positive. Overall the barometer suggests accelerating gains in U.S. business activity through the end of the year.
The Chemical Activity Barometer is a leading economic indicator derived from a composite index of chemical industry activity. The chemical industry has been found to consistently lead the U.S. economy’s business cycle given its early position in the supply chain, and this barometer can be used to determine turning points and likely trends in the wider economy. Month-to-month movements can be volatile so a three-month moving average of the barometer is provided. This provides a more consistent and illustrative picture of national economic trends.
http://www.chemengonline.com/chemical-activity-barometer-cab-shows-strong-q2-opening-acc-says/?printmode=1
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(ACC Mentioned) Chemical Activity And Trade Still Strong
Apr 25, 2017 | Seeking Alpha
By Calafia Beach Pundit
The American Chemistry Council's Chemistry Activity Barometer continued to rise in its latest April release. This index has been a good coincident at times, leading indicator of both industrial production and overall economic growth, and it continues to point to rising industrial production and continued growth of the US economy. At the same time, there is a growing body of evidence that points to increased global trade, at a time when industrial commodity prices have been rising significantly.
The Chemical Activity Barometer rose 5.2% in the past 12 months, one of its strongest showings in seven years (the strongest being the year ended March, when it rose 5.6%).
This indicator almost always goes flat or declines in advance of recessions. Currently, it points strongly to continued expansion.
This indicator has been a good leading indicator of growth in industrial production and economic activity in general. Currently, it points to a substantial increase in industrial production in coming months.
As the chart above shows, US goods exports have been rising for the past year, and that is corroborated by a sharp increase in outbound container shipments from the ports of Los Angeles. It's notable that US exports to China rose over 20% in the year ending February, after contracting over most of the 2014-16 period. Japan reports double-digit growth in both imports and exports in the year ending March, after declining over most of the 2015-16 period. According to the Netherlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis, the volume of global trade rose at an 8% annualized pace in the six months ended January 2017. Expanding global trade is an excellent indicator of improving economic conditions worldwide. Very encouraging.
Rising prices for industrial commodities over the past year or so - at a time when the dollar has been rising - tell us that global industrial activity has generally exceeded the expectations of commodity producers. Also, very encouraging.
Yet despite the good global news, the US economy seems still too mired in mediocrity (i.e., 2% growth). That's not necessarily inconsistent with global strengthening, since trade is much less important to the US economy than it is to most other economies. But improving global fundamentals nevertheless provide strong underlying support for activity here.
It's premature to worry about a US downturn, and it's not unreasonable to remain optimistic that things will improve. It pained me today to learn that Trump wants to impose a 20% tariff on imports of Canadian softwood, since all that does is make life more expensive for US residents (Update: Read Mark Perry's excellent critique of Trump's tariff here). But I'm encouraged that he seems pointed in a positive direction in the area of tax reform and that there is important progress being made on healthcare reform.
https://seekingalpha.com/article/4065175-chemical-activity-trade-still-strong?page=2
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(ACC Mentioned) Infrastructure Bill Provides Golden Opportunity For Ohio Legislature
Apr 25, 2017 | Americans for Tax Reform
By Marc Dupont
Today, the Ohio House’s Committee on State and Local Government will hold a hearing on HB 121, legislation that would yield significant taxpayer savings by opening up competition for water infrastructure.
HB 121, if enacted, would save the state’s taxpayers millions of dollars per year by lifting local laws that restrict which piping materials can be used for water infrastructure projects. As is the case in other states, a number of cities and counties throughout Ohio dictate what materials can be used, which results in higher costs for taxpayers across the Buckeye state.
According to the American Chemistry Council, the average cost to replace water pipes in a “closed competition” jurisdiction is $51.83 per foot. In a city like Columbus that utilizes such a system, these costs can amount to almost $300,000 per mile. Compare that with nearby Delaware County, which does not impose such restrictions and has a competitive market for pipe materials. Their capital costs are a modest $33.33 per foot, which saves taxpayers a whopping $97,680 per mile when stacked up against cities like Columbus. It is estimated that by ensuring open competition across the country through the lifting of local restrictions, the cost savings could add up to more than $317 billion nationally.
ATR sent the following letter to Ohio lawmakers urging them to support open competition and reduced costs by voting Yes on HB 121:
Dear Representative,
On behalf of Americans for Tax Reform and our supporters across Ohio, I urge you to support House Bill 121, legislation that would enable Ohio to rebuild its aging water infrastructure while reducing costs to taxpayers through open competition.
Arcane laws and procurement codes in many localities across the country, including Ohio, restrict the piping materials that can be used in water infrastructure projects, without consideration for project specifics. These restrictions prohibit the use of other materials that are longer lasting, better performing, and less costly to taxpayers. Such restrictions on piping materials represent classic protectionism, and another example of public policy that picks industry winners and losers.
In this case, the big losers from local closed competition statutes for water infrastructure are taxpayers, who are forced to pay the heightened costs of lower-performing piping materials whose use is mandated. Enactment of HB 121 would fix this problem by opening competition to all piping materials, which would yield significant taxpayer savings.
Take Franklin County, which has a closed competition policy on water infrastructure, compared to Delaware County. Delaware County, unlike Franklin, allows for open competition. As a result, the average per mile cost of water infrastructure piping in open competition Delaware County is $97,680 less than closed competition Franklin County. Those are real taxpayer savings.
HB 121 is a free market, pro-taxpayer reform that deserves your support. ATR will be educating your constituents and all Ohio taxpayers as to how lawmakers in Columbus vote on HB 121, and other important fiscal and economic matters throughout the legislative session. Please look to ATR to as a resource on tax, budget, and other policy matters pending before you.
Sincerely,
Grover G. Norquist
President
Americans for Tax Reform
http://www.atr.org/infrastructure-bill-provides-golden-opportunity-ohio-legislature#ixzz4fLTTNW67 -
EPA Issues TSCA Notices On 28 New Chemicals
Apr 25, 2017 | The National Law Review
By Lynn L. Bergeson
On April 25, 2017, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued two notices in the Federal Register expressing its determination that 28 new chemical notifications are “not likely to present an unreasonable risk of injury to health or the environment.” 82 Fed Reg. 19044 (Statement of Findings for December 2016); 82 Fed. Reg. 19046 (Statements of Findings for February 2017). The statements of findings list premanufacture notices (PMN) and microbial commercial activity notices (MCAN) regarding new polymer and biodegradable chemicals submitted to EPA under Section 5 of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). The notices listed in the December 2016 statement of findings are:
EPA Case Number (MCAN): J-16-0033: Chemical identity: Saccharomyces cerevisiae modified to express glucoamylase activity (generic name);
EPA Case Number (MCAN): J-16-0034: Chemical identity: Saccharomyces cerevisiae modified (generic name);
EPA Case Number (MCAN): J-16-0035: Chemical identity: Saccharomyces cerevisiae modified (generic name);
EPA Case Numbers (MCANs): J-16-0036 to J-16-0041: Chemical identity: Biofuel producing modified microorganism(s), with chromosomally-borne modifications (generic name);
EPA Case Number (PMN): P-17-0009: Chemical identity: Depolymerized waste plastics (generic name);
EPA Case Numbers (PMNs): P-17-0016, P-17-0017, P-17-0019, and P-17-0020: Chemical identity: Hydroxyl alkyl acrylate ester, polymer with acrylates, aromatic vinyl monomer, cycloaliphatic lactone, and alkyl carboxylic acid, peroxide initiated (generic name); and
EPA Case Numbers (PMNs): P-17-0018 and P-17-0021: Chemical identity: Hydroxyl alkyl acrylate ester, polymer with acrylates, aromatic vinyl monomer, cycloaliphatic lactone, and alkyl carboxylic acid, Azobis [aliphatic nitrile] initiated (generic name).
The notices listed in the February 2017 statement of findings are:
EPA Case Numbers (MCANs): J-17-0001 to J-17-0005: Chemical identity: Saccharomyces cerevisiae modified (generic name);
EPA Case Number (MCAN): J-17-0006: Chemical identity: Saccharomyces cerevisiae modified (generic name);
EPA Case Number (PMN): P-17-0144: Chemical identity: Amines, C36- alkylenedi-, polymers with octahydro- 4,7-methano-1H-indenedimethanamine and pyromellitic dianhydride, maleated (CASRN: 2020378-57-6);
EPA Case Number (PMN): P-17-0158: Chemical identity: Perylene bisimide (generic name);
EPA Case Number (PMN): P-17-0160: Chemical identity: 2-Propenoic acid, alkyl-, alkyl ester, polymer with alkyl 2- propenoate, dialkyloxoalkyl-2- propenamide and alkyl 2-propenoate (generic name);
EPA Case Number (PMN): P-17-0161: Chemical identity: 2-Propenoic acid, alkyl-, alkyl ester, polymer with alkyl 2- propenoate, dialkyloxoalkyl-2- propenamide, ethenylbenzene and alkyl 2-propenoate (generic name);
EPA Case Number (PMN): P-17-0182: Chemical identity: Alkyldioic acid, polymer with 2,2-dimethyl-1,3- propanediol, heteropolycyclic carboxy acid anhydride and 1,3-propanediol (generic name); and
EPA Case Number (PMN): P-17-0185: Chemical identity: Fatty acids, C18- unsatd., dimers, hydrogenated, polymers with C18-unsatd. fatty acid trimers, alkylenediamine and hydroxyalkanoic acid (generic name).Commentary
The publication of these two notices fulfills EPA’s obligation under TSCA Section 5(g) to publish its findings; all of these determinations had previously been posted to the EPA website. It is to EPA’s credit that EPA has made its determinations public as soon as practicable by posting those determinations on its website. We recognize that publication in the Federal Register often lags behind EPA’s decisions because of resource constraints and competition with other Federal Register notices. We are pleased to see new chemicals cleared for production
Nevertheless, EPA’s pace of approving new chemicals for the marketplace has slowed tremendously since enactment of TSCA reform. Furthermore, these notices do not provide any line of sight on the reasons contributing to the delays, or EPA’s resolution of these issues. To date, EPA has only published its final determinations for substances with low concerns for heath and ecological hazards. With only 28 new chemicals approved from the time period of December 1, 2016, to February 28, 2017, EPA will need to work much faster to even come close to its annual average number of 700-800 PMN reviews and keep the backlog of cases under review from continuing to grow.
http://www.natlawreview.com/article/epa-issues-tsca-notices-28-new-chemicals
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(ACC Mentioned) Editorial: Wash Your Food. EPA Reverses Itself On Dangers Of Common Pesticide
Apr 25, 2017 | St. Louis Post-Dispatch
By Editorial Board
President Donald Trump told Fox Business News on April 13: “We’ve done an amazing job on regulations. We’ve freed it up. We freed up this country so much.”
Last month, Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency administrator, Scott Pruitt, freed up the country to continue using a pesticide called chlorpyrifos on everything from strawberries and almonds to Brussels sprouts and broccoli.
This despite a warning from the National Institutes of Health that chlorpyrifos can cause “adverse developmental, reproductive, neurological and immune effects” in human beings. This despite scientific studies indicating that chlorpyrifos can interfere with fetal brain development, leading to higher rates of autism and lower intelligence.
The Trump administration fails to acknowledge that the government has a role in protecting Americans from unseen dangers in their food. That’s weighed against economic facts: Chlorpyrifos kills insects that destroy crops, leading to bigger yields and cheaper food.PauseCurrent Time0:00/Duration Time0:00Stream TypeLIVELoaded: 0%Progress: 0%0:00Fullscreen00:00Mute
Protecting industry is likely to be more important than protecting consumers in an EPA run by Pruitt, the former attorney general of Oklahoma with a history of fighting the EPA. Trump recently sent him some help in the person of Nancy Beck, who was named the EPA’s deputy assistant administrator for chemical safety and pollution prevention. This is the office that regulates toxic chemicals.
Beck’s previous job: senior director of regulatory science policy for the American Chemical Council. In this job, she challenged scientific studies unfavorable to the chemical industry. During the George W. Bush administration, she analyzed toxic chemicals for the Office of Management and Budget. In 2009, the House Science Committee criticized her for “rewriting the ‘science’” on some policy issues.
Even under the Obama administration, the EPA dragged its feet on regulating chlorpyrifos. The pesticide was outlawed for household use and for use on tomatoes in 2000, but the effort to restrict all agricultural use bogged down until 2015. A federal appeals case kept it in limbo until March. Just when the EPA-adopted rule was set to take effect, Pruitt undid it.
Chlorpyrifos, marketed under trade names like Lorsban and Dursban, accounts for at least a third of the $6.2 billion in annual worldwide sales of its manufacturer, Dow AgroSciences. It just so happens that Dow also donated $1 million to Trump’s inauguration committee. The company has challenged the scientific conclusions about its effect on children’s brain development found in studies at Mount Sinai School of Medicine, the University of California-Davis and Columbia University. Dow further claims that chlorpyrifos results in $22.9 billion in added income for U.S. farmers.
When science is in dispute, it’s the job of regulators to decide when risks outweigh rewards. The EPA took 15 years to decide that yes, they did. It took the Trump EPA about 15 minutes to decide that no, they didn’t. Wash your kids’ food very carefully.
http://www.stltoday.com/news/opinion/columns/the-platform/editorial-wash-your-food-epa-reverses-itself-on-dangers-of/article_6af70f29-4e7e-5de3-a9e2-6d593588e981.html
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N.Y. Draft Rule Would Require Chemical Disclosures For Cleaners
Apr 26, 2017 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Gerald B. Silverman
Manufacturers of household cleaning products would have to disclose the ingredients in their products on their websites, under proposed regulations announced by New York Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo (D) April 25.
Cleaning-products makers also would be required to identify any ingredients that appear on authoritative lists of chemicals of concern, such as carcinogens.
The regulations also will serve as a kind of pilot for upcoming additional disclosure requirements for personal care and children's products, Cuomo said.
The state also proposed regulations to eventually ban the use of perchloroethylene, the chemical known as “perc” used in dry cleaning.
http://news.bna.com/deln/DELNWB/split_display.adp?fedfid=110163699&vname=dennotallissues&fn=110163699&jd=110163699
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N.Y. Requires Disclosure Of Cleaning-Product Ingredients
Apr 25, 2017 | E&E News PM
By Cecelia Smith-Schoenwalder
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo today made his state the first in the nation to require manufacturers to disclose chemicals in household cleaning products.
The Household Cleaning Product Information Disclosure Program will require manufacturers to identify the quantity of chemicals in their products on their websites.
"These new regulations will help protect New Yorkers and give them the peace of mind of knowing what's in their homes and in their communities," Cuomo (D) said in a statement. "These actions [continue] this state's legacy of environmental stewardship and will help build a cleaner, greener New York for all."
The program will be overseen by the state Department of Environmental Conservation. The state plans to work with the Interstate Chemicals Clearinghouse to create a database of the information.
Cuomo also today announced new regulations on perchloroethylene, which is one of U.S. EPA's top 10 chemicals to examine under the Toxic Substances Control Act reform law enacted last year (E&E News PM, Nov. 29, 2016).
DEC is proposing to update its regulations for dry cleaning facilities that use the chemical or an alternative solvent in dry cleaning machines.
"By requiring the disclosure of chemical ingredients in household cleaning products and restricting the release of perc and other dry cleaning solvents into the environment, these programs will reduce contamination and human exposure to these chemicals of concern, and we strongly urge all companies to comply with these new programs," said DEC Commissioner Basil Seggos.
Environmental groups like Earthjustice and WE ACT for Environmental Justice applauded the move.
"For the first time, companies will also tell consumers about health hazards an ingredient may pose," Kathy Curtis, executive director of Clean and Healthy New York, said in a statement. "This gives New Yorkers — and all consumers — freedom to choose safer, healthier products, and gives manufacturers a strong incentive to make products without harmful chemicals."
New York Democratic Sens. Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand have been pushing for stronger federal chemical regulations. They recently petitioned the Food and Drug Administration to remove a likely carcinogenic chemical from bath products that was found in Rhode Island's water supply (Greenwire, April 14).
https://www.eenews.net/eenewspm/2017/04/25/stories/1060053562
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EPA Memo Shows How Cuts Could Impact Chemical Regulations
Apr 25, 2017 | Chem Info
By Andy Szal
An internal memo from Environmental Protection Agency officials late last month provided additional details into the depth of agency cuts planned by the Trump administration.
The document, dated March 21 and signed by acting chief financial officer David Bloom, was released to numerous media outlets in subsequent weeks.
A preliminary budget proposal from the White House called for sweeping funding and staffing cuts to the EPA and suggested that dozens of programs could be on the chopping block. The memo signed by Bloom, however, identified more than 200 programs set to see reduced funding or outright eliminated.
Bloomberg reported that cuts would impact the EPA programs for oil spill prevention, criminal enforcement and climate change and protection research. Programs facing elimination, meanwhile, include those targeting coastal waterways, indoor radon, radiation protection and underground storage tank leaks.
The plan also axes the Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS), a program used to analyze toxic chemical exposure risks. The agency typically uses IRIS to know how much pollution is safe, which can affect cleanup plans when there’s a spill. While IRIS has drawn criticism across the industry for being slow in its assessments, the proposal to eliminate IRIS has left many wondering if the EPA will be able to fulfill its obligations under the Lautenberg Chemical Safety Act — a comprehensive revision of America’s chemical safety laws, passed last year.
The good news is that the memo suggests a possible increase in funding of $13.8 million to help fulfill other aspects of the new regulations under Lautenberg.
Safety evaluations for pesticides could also get quicker under the proposal outlined in the memo. To help fund that effort, the fees from manufacturers would increase from $27.5 million to $31 million.
Bloom wrote in the memo that the proposed cuts would refocus the agency on its core functions and support state-level enforcement efforts.
"While many in Washington insist on greater spending, EPA is focused on greater value and real results," EPA spokesman John Konkus told the publication.
The White House is scheduled to provide a more detailed budget next month. The proposal, however, remains likely to see significant changes during the congressional budget process.
http://www.chem.info/news/2017/04/epa-memo-shows-how-cuts-could-impact-chemical-regulations
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Arctic Monitoring Programme Finds New Chemicals Of Concern
Apr 26, 2017 | Chemical Watch
New chemicals of emerging concern are now found in the Arctic according to long-term monitoring data from the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP).
In a recent report, the AMAP says it has detected several substances of concern in the region, including:brominated flame retardants (BFRs);hexachlorobutadiene (HCBD);per- and polyfluroalkyl substances (PFAS);personal care products;phthalates;plastics and microplastics; andpolycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs).
The programme says international and national pollution control activities have generally been effective at reducing the occurrence and impacts of the chemicals they regulate.
However, it says there is room for improvement and makes a series of recommendations:information on chemicals of emerging Arctic concern should be delivered to global and national regulatory bodies in an effective and timely manner;parties to the Stockholm Convention are encouraged to nominate those that exhibit POPs properties;monitoring programmes and research should continue, with an increased capacity for new pollutants and a focus on documenting long-range transport;the Arctic Council should engage with relevant global initiatives, such as the UN Environment Programme and Saicm, to improve the management of chemicals of emerging Arctic concern;Arctic states and observer countries could consider the need for additional national and regional actions, to control and communicate the risks of pollutants within Arctic communities; andaccess to information, acquired by industry during both research and development as well as chemical manufacturing lifecycle stages, should be improved.
https://chemicalwatch.com/55415/arctic-monitoring-programme-finds-new-chemicals-of-concern
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Environmentalists Question EU Toxics Agency Claim That Controls Are In Place
Apr 26, 2017 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Stephen Gardner
The European Chemicals Agency said it would focus on the risk assessment of hundreds of substances that might present hazards, having already taken risk management measures under the European Union's REACH regulation for substances that are known to be hazardous.
But environmentalists arguing for toxic phaseouts say it's too soon to make such a claim.
In a report April 25 on progress toward listing all relevant hazardous chemicals as “substances of very high concern” (SVHCs) under REACH, the Helsinki-based agency said that between 2013 and 2016, it had taken steps to manage the risks of all the substances in its databases “for which there was sufficient information on the hazard properties.”
However, from screening exercises, about 900 suspected hazardous substances had been identified for “further work,” and 540 of these substances “are currently having new data generated or are having data assessed,” the report said.
But work on substances with potential hazards is being held up “because of the lack of information on their hazards and on how they are used,” the agency said in a statement. Since 2013, the full process of assessing how best to manage potentially hazardous substances has been completed for only 67 chemicals, the agency said.
Geert Dancet, the chemicals agency's executive director, warned companies that they have “got to improve” in terms of the compliance of chemical safety data they provide with the requirements of REACH.
Substance Evaluations
The agency's main sources of information are substance registrations filed under REACH (Regulation No. 1907/2006 on the registration, evaluation and authorization of chemicals) and notifications provided by companies of the classifications of the substances in their portfolios, as required by the EU CLP Regulation (Regulation (EC) No 1272/2008 on the classification, labeling and packaging of substances).
Suspected hazardous substances can be evaluated by authorities in EU member countries, potentially leading to binding requests to companies to provide further substance data. Ultimately, substances could be given the SVHC designation, which could result in a ban in the EU unless specific continued-use authorizations are given.
Of the 67 potentially hazardous substances for which risk assessment has been completed, about half were designated SVHCs.
Peter Pierrou, communications manager with ChemSec, which campaigns for phaseout of toxic chemicals, told Bloomberg BNA April 25 that the chemicals agency's claim to have tackled all known hazardous substances was an overstatement.
“Many of these so-called tackled substances are stuck” in different regulatory processes, and “looking at reality, many of these chemicals are still widely used on the market,” Pierrou said.
In total, 173 substances have so far been listed as SVHCs under REACH, and formal phaseout decisions have been taken in 31 cases. The European Commission, the EU's executive, published in 2013 a “Roadmap for SVHCs Identification,” which estimated that up to 440 SVHCs could be listed by 2020.
http://news.bna.com/deln/DELNWB/split_display.adp?fedfid=110163706&vname=dennotallissues&fn=110163706&jd=110163706
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Lawyer Warns Of Continued Data-Sharing And Joint Registration Challenges
Apr 25, 2017 | Chemical Watch
The REACH Implementing Regulation on data-sharing has placed significant demands on companies managing existing agreements between registrants, according to a Mayer Brown lawyer speaking at the Chemical Watch/Chemical Risk Manager REACH Expo in Berlin today.
Thomas Delille said there is a clear difference between before January 2016, when the Implementing Regulation on data sharing came into force, and after.
"Companies were handling data sharing before the Regulation in ways that were not totally in line with what is now required. They might have felt they did it well because they had no disputes. But there are clear obligations on existing agreements, and they have to cope with the new obligations.
"Itemisation of costs and past costs is very demanding. And some companies are using weaknesses in existing agreements to question both their transparency or whether they discriminate."
He noted that regarding the new provisions on joint registration, Echa has a clear duty to enforce the one substance one registration (osor) principle, and the completeness of registration dossiers.
But he said a number of issues remain. These include:
data owners fear that the agency will use the Implementing Regulation to be even more demanding on them to prove every effort has been made to resolve data-sharing disputes;
nothing has been said or done about enforcement of the last paragraph of Article 10(a) of the Implementing Regulation, which requires the registration to be in legitimate possession of the registered data. For example, Echa has placed no warning on the substance ‘infocards’ published on its website regarding ownership of information; and
some consultants have taken the lead registrant role in REACH-IT for business reasons, and they may try to avoid distributing the registration token now that osor is reinforced.
Mr Delille said these issues present a real challenge in terms of effective enforcement of the core osor principle of REACH.
https://chemicalwatch.com/55420/lawyer-warns-of-continued-data-sharing-and-joint-registration-challenges
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(ACC Mentioned) Sights Still Set On An Appalachian Storage Hub
Apr 25, 2017 | The State Journal
By Steve Hedrick
A lot has transpired in the last year since the 2016 Marcellus and Manufacturing Development Conference. A lot has changed. We have a new president, a new state governor and a final investment decision made on a cracker plant to be built in Monaca, Pennsylvania. But one thing has not changed: our desire and commitment to build a storage hub in the Appalachian Basin.
Our quad-state region continues to be primed for this opportunity, which would safely house separated natural gas liquids as a built-for-purpose facility to distribute critical raw materials to consumers across Appalachia’s broader region.
It is in the best interest of our nation to assure that geographic diversification of the petrochemical industry is secured and that discrete manufacturing and energy intensive industries grow. Putting a significant portion of our economic drivers at the risk of foreseeable natural disasters in the Gulf Coast alone can have both short- and long-term strategic implications. And we have a duty to do all we can to protect our critical manufacturing base in the United States, as it is of vital importance to our nation. We can reduce our collective risk by taking advantage of the alternatives, versus a singular U.S. Gulf Coast-centric approach. And alternatives do in fact exist. They exist through the Marcellus, Utica and Rogersville shales.
However, we cannot take advantage of this shale opportunity without the necessary infrastructure to support the demands and needs of the heartland of our country. The infrastructure requirements associated with new build-outs, which will allow this diversification, must be delivered by multiple parties. We will need cooperation and support from the federal, state and local governments, private investment and existing business platforms.
The infrastructure associated with a fully functioning and successful build-out would tie the hub to a six-pack of pipe, which would potentially contain methane, ethane, ethylene, propane, propylene and chlorine. We anticipate it utilizing the corridors naturally created in the Ohio and Kanawha rivers, spanning from Monaca to Charleston to Catlettsburg, Kentucky. This would facilitate the safe, environmentally sound and efficient delivery of raw materials and intermediates to the region’s most viable manufacturing locations.
And, for those who think this topic is stale or that it is simply not realistic, think again.
Pennsylvania recently published a report confirming the impacts that ethane crackers and their downstream activities will have on economies in Appalachia. In the coming weeks, this will be again confirmed by additional reports from within the basin and by the American Chemistry Council, which also will discuss the opportunities for creating this storage facility — an Appalachian storage hub.
And there is no doubt that the upcoming Marcellus and Manufacturing Development Conference in Morgantown will create a tremendous platform from which we can, together, further our understanding of how to maximize lasting value based on this opportunity.
https://www.theet.com/statejournal/sights-still-set-on-an-appalachian-storage-hub/article_e6eb45a6-0610-53bc-8adb-f1296627225e.html
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Authorized Non-FTA Exports Near 20 Bcf/d With Golden Pass Approval
Apr 25, 2017 | Natural Gas Intelligence
By Joe Fisher
Golden Pass Products LLC (GPP) has been approved to export up to 2.21 Bcf/d of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to non-free trade agreement (FTA) countries, bringing to 19.2 Bcf/d the total of non-FTA exports authorized by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).
Golden Pass is jointly owned by Qatar Petroleum (70%) and ExxonMobil (30%). The Golden Pass terminal is near Sabine Pass in Jefferson County, TX. The authorization was granted for 20 years [12-156-LNG]. Exports are not to exceed the 15.6 million tons per annum (mtpa) approved by FERC in its December order authorizing the project, DOE said. The project will preserve the terminal’s capability to import LNG.
GPP had requested a 25-year export authorization. “However, consistent with our prior non-FTA authorizations to date, we believe that caution recommends limiting this authorization to no longer than a 20-year term beginning from the date of first export,” DOE said. “...We find that a 20-year term is likely sufficient to achieve [project financing].”
DOE non-FTA export authorizations so far have been issued for other terminals in Texas, Louisiana, Florida, Georgia and Maryland. “These projects, if built, would position the United States to be the dominant LNG exporter in the world,” DOE said Tuesday.
“This announcement is another example of President Trump’s leadership in making the United States an energy dominant force,” said U.S. Secretary of Energy Rick Perry. “This is not only good for our economy and American jobs but also assists other countries with their energy security.”
DOE said domestic natural gas production is expected to continue increasing, with theU.S. Energy Information Administration’s Short Term Energy Outlook projecting an average dry natural gas production rate of 73.1 Bcf/d in 2017, the second-highest on record.
Federal law generally requires approval of natural gas exports to countries that have an FTA with the United States. For countries that do not have an FTA, the Natural Gas Act directs DOE to allow exports unless it finds that the proposed exports “will not be consistent with the public interest.”
DOE considered the economic, energy security, and environmental impacts of Golden Pass exports, including macroeconomic studies that showed positive benefits to the U.S. economy in scenarios with LNG exports up to 28 Bcf/d, the agency said.
Exports to current and future FTA countries from the Golden Pass terminal were previously authorized by DOE’s Department of Fossil Energy (FE). That order [12-88-LNG] authorized export of 740 Bcf/year of natural gas (2.03 Bcf/d) to FTA countries. The previously authorized FTA volumes and the newly authorized non-FTA volumes are not additive, DOE said in its latest order.
“After years of effort to secure the necessary regulatory permits, this milestone is the latest example of how the LNG industry can flourish in the United States when government regulators work with industry to process permits quickly and efficiently,” said Center for Liquefied Natural Gas Executive Director Charlie Riedl.
“As numerous studies have demonstrated, including one by the Department of Energy from 2015, increased LNG exports will result in overall economic benefits to the United States upwards of $20 billion in average annual GDP growth through 2040. The approval granted today is critical for the United States to fully recognize the potential benefits of its vast natural gas resources.”
While much has been made of the length of time it takes for LNG export projects to secure the necessary approvals from DOE and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, projects have lately been held up not in Washington but by economic factors, analysts at Raymond James & Associates Inc. said in a note Monday.
Golden Pass intends to export LNG on its own behalf and operate the terminal as a tolling facility. “According to GPP, customers contracting with GPP for tolling services will be responsible for procuring their own supplies of natural gas and holding title to the natural gas that they will deliver to GPP for liquefaction,” the DOE order said. “Additionally, the customers will be responsible for arranging the delivery of the natural gas to the terminal.”
The terminal is near onshore Gulf Coast and offshore Gulf of Mexico production, as well as supplies coming from the Midcontinent. The associated Golden Pass Pipeline (GPPL) is connected with the interstate systems of Florida Gas Transmission Co. LLC; Golden Triangle Storage Inc.; Natural Gas Pipeline Company of America; Tennessee Gas Pipeline Co. LLC; Texas Eastern Transmission LP; and Transcontinental Gas Pipeline Co. LLC.
“According to GPP, each of these pipelines has interconnections with a larger network of pipelines traversing the Gulf Coast region,” DOE said. “These pipelines will enable GPP to receive natural gas from the onshore Gulf Coast, the offshore Gulf of Mexico and the Midcontinent areas, and possibly other production areas as well.”
At the end of 2016, FERC authorized the addition of liquefaction and export facilities at the existing Golden Pass LNG import terminal. “According to GPP, existing facilities at the Golden Pass LNG terminal that may be utilized for the GPP export project include insulated LNG and natural gas piping, ship berthing facilities, and the five LNG storage tanks and control systems,” DOE said in its order.
New facilities to be constructed to enable liquefaction and export include three liquefaction trains (5.2 mtpa capacity each); related liquefaction facilities, including a truck loading and unloading facility, refrigerant make-up and condensate product storage, safety and control systems, and associated infrastructure; a supply dock and alternate marine delivery facilities; 2.6 miles of 24-inch diameter pipeline loop adjacent to the existing GPPL pipeline; and three compressor stations; as well as five pipeline interconnections and modifications at existing interconnections.
The Golden Pass approval came over the objections of the Sierra Club and the American Public Gas Association. The order included lengthy discussion of their objections and an affirmation of FERC’s reasoning in approving the project last year.
Including Golden Pass, DOE said it has issued 25 authorizations for export to non-FTA countries totaling 7.01 Tcf of natural gas per year.
The authorizations are:
Sabine Pass Liquefaction LLC (2.2 Bcf/d)
Carib Energy (USA) LLC (0.04 Bcf/d)
Cameron LNG, LLC (1.7 Bcf/d)
FLEX I (1.4 Bcf/d)
FLEX II (0.4 Bcf/d)
Dominion Cove Point LNG LP (0.77 Bcf/d)
Cheniere Marketing LLC and Corpus Christi Liquefaction LLC (2.1 Bcf/d)
Sabine Pass Liquefaction LLC Expansion Project (1.38 Bcf/d)
American Marketing LLC (0.008 Bcf/d)
Emera CNG, LLC (0.008 Bcf/d)
Floridian Natural Gas Storage Co. LLC (containerized exports)
Air Flow North American Corp. (0.002 Bcf/d)
Bear Head LNG Corp. and Bear Head LNG (USA) LLC (0.81 Bcf/d)
Pieridae Energy (USA) Ltd. (exports via Canadian terminal)
Sabine Pass Liquefaction LLC Design Increase (0.56 Bcf/d)
Cameron LNG LLC Design Increase (0.42 Bcf/d)
Flint Hills Resources LP (0.01 Bcf/d)
Cameron LNG LLC Expansion Project (1.41 Bcf/d)
Lake Charles Exports LLC (2.0 Bcf/d)
Lake Charles LNG Export (2.0 Bcf/d)
Carib Energy (USA) LLC (0.004)
Magnolia LNG LLC (1.08 Bcf/d)
Southern LNG Co. L.L.C. (0.36 Bcf/d)
FLEX Design Increase (0.34 Bcf/d)
Golden Pass Products LLC (2.21 Bcf/d)
“We note that the volumes authorized for export in the Lake Charles Exports order and Lake Charles LNG Export are both 730 Bcf/yr (2.0 Bcf/d) yet are not additive to one another because the source of LNG approved under both orders is from the Lake Charles Terminal. Likewise, the Carib and Floridian orders are both 14.6 Bcf/yr of natural gas (0.04 Bcf/d) yet are not additive to one another because the source of LNG approved under both orders is from the Floridian Facility,” DOE said.
“Additionally, the volumes authorized for export in the Bear Head and Pieridae U.S. orders are not additive; together, they are limited to a maximum of 0.81 Bcf/d to reflect the current capacity of the Maritimes Northeast Pipeline at the U.S.-Canadian border.”
The total export volume authorized is “within the range of scenarios analyzed” in LNG export studies conducted published in 2014 and 2015, DOE said. “The 2015 Study found that in all such scenarios -- assuming LNG export volumes totaling 12 Bcf/d up to 20 Bcf/d of natural gas -- the United States would experience net economic benefits...
“DOE/FE will continue taking a measured approach in reviewing the other pending applications to export domestically produced LNG,” it said. “Specifically, DOE/FE will continue to assess the cumulative impacts of each succeeding request for export authorization on the public interest with due regard to the effect on domestic natural gas supply and demand fundamentals.”
The American Petroleum Institute (API) said it welcomed the Golden Pass approval. “Numerous LNG export facilities still await approval, and giving the green light to Golden Pass is a positive step toward expanding U.S. energy leadership,” said Marty Durbin, API chief strategy officer.
http://www.naturalgasintel.com/articles/110233-authorized-non-fta-exports-near-20-bcfd-with-golden-pass-approval
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Golden Pass LNG Cleared To Export
Apr 25, 2017 | Fuel Fix
By James Osborne
The Golden Pass LNG terminal on the Texas Gulf Coast was cleared by the Department of Energy Tuesday to begin exporting up to 2.21 billion cubic feet of gas per day.
Located outside Sabine Pass, the Golden Pass terminal was built to import LNG from abroad in 2009. But following the boom in domestic gas production through hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling, Golden Pass, a joint venture between Qatar Petroleum, ExxonMobil and ConocoPhillips, shifted gears.
The approval adds to a growing list of LNG export terminals under development in the United States. Cheniere Energy began exporting last year from its Sabine Pass terminal in Louisiana. As of January, there were seven facilities under construction and another four that had been approved but not yet begun construction, according to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
“This announcement is another example of President Trump’s leadership in making the United States an energy dominant force,” U.S. Secretary of Energy Rick Perry said in a statement Tuesday. “This is not only good for our economy and American jobs but also assists other countries with their energy security.”
There has been no announcement on when the export facility will be completed. But Golden Pass is estimating construction will provide 45,000 direct and indirect jobs over five years, along with another 3,800 direct and indirect jobs over the next 25 years when the facility becomes operational.
http://fuelfix.com/blog/2017/04/25/golden-pass-cleared-to-export-lng/
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LNG Emerges As A White House Favorite For Promoting Energy Jobs
Apr 26, 2017 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Ryan Collins
The White House has a new darling in the energy sector: liquefied natural gas.
U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry said April 25 that approval of the Golden Pass project in Texas, creating about 45,000 jobs during construction, would position the U.S. as the dominant exporter of LNG. Last week, Gary Cohn, director of the National Economic Council, said the administration supported more LNG export terminals.
“We will continue to expand efforts so that there may be additional LNG announcements coming in the future,” Perry said at the Bloomberg New Energy Finance conference in New York. LNG “advances our national security interests. It enhances our allies’ access to diverse sources of energy.”
While President Donald Trump has previously pledged to bring back coal jobs, his administration is waking up to the potential jobs bonanza offered by the two dozen applications to build LNG export terminals currently under review. That's a far cry from a year ago when Trump reportedly didn't know what LNG stood for.
The Department of Energy earlier cleared Qatar Petroleum International Ltd. and Exxon Mobil Corp. to export as much as 2.21 billion cubic feet of gas a day from the Golden Pass terminal. Operations are due to start in 2021.
To contact the reporter on this story: Ryan Collins in Houston at rcollins74@bloomberg.net
http://news.bna.com/deln/DELNWB/split_display.adp?fedfid=110163703&vname=dennotallissues&fn=110163703&jd=110163703
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Lynn Doan at ldoan6@bloomberg.net
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Trump Is Expected to Sign Orders That Could Expand Access to Fossil Fuels
Apr 25, 2017 | The New York Times
By Coral Davenport
WASHINGTON — After moving last month against Barack Obama’s efforts to limit fossil fuel exploration and combat climate change, President Trump will complete his effort to overturn environmental policy this week, signing two executive orders to expand offshore drilling and roll back conservation on public lands.
On Wednesday, Mr. Trump will sign an executive order directing his interior secretary, Ryan Zinke, to review national monuments designated by previous presidents under the Antiquities Act of 1906, aiming to roll back the borders of protected lands and open them to drilling, mining and logging.
The president is then expected to follow up on Friday with another executive order aimed at opening up protected waters in the Atlantic and Arctic Oceans to offshore drilling. The order would direct Mr. Zinke to revisit an Obama administration plan that would have put those waters off limits to drilling through 2022. Friday’s order is also expected to call for the lifting of a permanent ban on drilling in an area including many of those same waters — a measure Mr. Obama issued in December 2016 in a last-ditch effort to protect his environmental legacy from his drilling-enthusiast successor.
The moves — just before Mr. Trump’s 100th day in office — would begin to fulfill a central campaign promise to unleash a wave of new oil and gas drilling and create thousands of jobs in energy.Continue reading the main storyThe Trump White HouseStories about President Trump’s administration.Trump’s Tax Plan: Low Rate for Corporations, and for Companies Like HisAPR 25Trump Takes Forceful Tone at Holocaust Remembrance: ‘Never Again’APR 25Wall ‘Will Get Built,’ Trump Insists, as He Drops Funding DemandAPR 25Flynn May Have Broken Law by Not Disclosing Russia Dealings, Lawmakers SayAPR 25Randolph Alles, Retired General, Is Chosen to Lead Secret ServiceAPR 25
The reality is more complicated, experts in the law, policy and economics of energy said. The orders are not likely to lead either to significant new energy development or to job creation in the near future. With oil prices around $50 a barrel and production already glutting world markets, few oil companies are making plans to expand into costlier, riskier offshore drilling.
And the process of undoing Obama-era regulations will take more than a flick of Mr. Trump’s pen. The legal challenges that the orders will face could take years to resolve. And without additional action from Congress, they could be reversed by Mr. Trump’s successor.
“You don’t create jobs by signing a piece of paper if those jobs rely on a combination of economics and technology that the president doesn’t control,” said Kevin Book, a managing director at ClearView Energy Partners, a Washington analysis firm.
That does not mean that both sides of the energy production debate are shrugging off the president’s moves. Oil and gas companies and Mr. Trump’s political supporters are cheering, even as they concede that this week’s signing ceremonies will not produce new oil rigs in the next few years.
Environmental groups warn that just opening the door to future drilling in pristine federal lands and waters could lead to more disasters like the 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, which sent millions of barrels of oil to the shorelines of coastal states, killing wildlife and destroying fragile ecosystems.
“These might not necessarily result in near-term oil and gas production, but it could expand our opportunities in the future,” said Erik Milito, the director of upstream issues for the American Petroleum Institute, which lobbies for oil companies.
Jacqueline Savitz, a vice president of Oceana, which campaigns aggressively against the drilling, declared, “Offshore drilling in the Atlantic and the Arctic is still dirty and dangerous.”Get the Morning Briefing by Email
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“The Arctic is the most dangerous place you can be drilling offshore: It’s dark, icy and far away from disaster response teams,” she said.
Environmentalists were no more receptive to the review of the Antiquities Act.
“It is clear that this ‘review’ is a thinly veiled attempt to appease special interests and sell off our national parks, public lands, oceans and cultural heritage to the highest bidder,” said Christy Goldfuss, vice president of energy and environment policy at the liberal Center for American Progress and a former environmental policy official in the Obama White House.
She added: “Our monuments — from the Grand Canyon to Zion to Papahanaumokuakea and Stonewall National Monument — are majestic, historic and uniquely American. No president has ever attempted to revoke a national monument, and to mark his 100th day, President Trump is entering a legal, political and moral minefield.”
In the century since Theodore Roosevelt signed the Antiquities Act into law, presidents have used the law to put hundreds of millions of acres of land and waters off limits to development, and no president has undone a predecessor’s designations.
But Mr. Trump’s supporters say that in recent years, presidents have overused and abused that authority. Mr. Obama designated about 553 million acres as national monuments, more than any other president.
Mr. Zinke said the review of those monuments would include only designations made since 1996, stretching over 100,000 acres.
“I can tell you as a kid who grew up in Montana, the West, where much of those monument designations took place, this review is long overdue,” Mr. Zinke, a former Montana congressman, said in a conference call with reporters.
Still, Mr. Zinke, who is a lifelong hunter and fisherman, said his love of the land would play into his review: “I’m a Teddy Roosevelt guy. You can’t love public lands more than I do.”
Legal experts say it will still be a heavy lift for the Trump administration to change the designations. “The Antiquities Act language does not include any authority for presidents to rescind or modify a national monument created by predecessors,” said Mark Squillace, an expert on natural resources law at the University of Colorado Law School. “That authority is limited to Congress.”
Mr. Trump will also run into legal hurdles in some of his efforts to roll back Mr. Obama’s offshore drilling protection. Just before leaving office, Mr. Obama invoked an obscure provision of a 1953 law, the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, which he said gave him authority to act unilaterally to create a permanent drilling ban on portions of the ocean floor from Virginia to Maine, and along much of the Alaska coast.
“We’re in uncharted waters,” said Jason B. Hutt, a lawyer with the firm Bracewell who represents fossil fuel companies. “There is precedent for a president to narrow or modify drilling restrictions, but not to undo a ban, because there’s never been a ban.”
Mr. Trump is within his rights to overturn Mr. Obama’s ban on drilling in portions of the Arctic and southeastern Atlantic Coast through 2022. But even his allies noted that such a move would be unlikely to lead to rigs in the water for several years, and that it could easily be reversed by Mr. Trump’s successor.
“It’s certainly not going to happen tomorrow. No one is saying, all of a sudden, there’s going to be drilling everywhere,” said Thomas J. Pyle, an adviser to the Trump transition and the president of the Institute for Energy Research, an organization partly funded by the billionaire brothers Charles G. and David H. Koch. “It will involve a lot of effort by agencies. It will involve lawsuits. And hopefully it will involve Congress, so they can cement these” changes in place.
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/25/us/politics/national-monuments-energy-drilling.html
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Trump Said To Order Review Of Oil Drilling Off California Coast
Apr 26, 2017 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Jennifer A. Dlouhy
President Donald Trump will open the door to new oil and natural gas drilling in Pacific waters off the coast of California with a directive April 28 that sets up a certain clash with environmentalists.
Trump will order the Interior Department to review locations for offshore oil and gas exploration and consider selling drilling rights in territory that former President Barack Obama put off limits, according to people briefed on the order who spoke on the condition of anonymity before it is issued. That includes U.S. Pacific waters, as well as Arctic and Atlantic acreage left out of the five-year schedule of lease sales issued by Obama in November.
Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke said April 25 nothing is off the table. “We're going to look at everything,” Zinke said when asked about potential oil leases off the Pacific coast. “A new administration should look at the policies and make sure the policies are appropriate.“
White House spokeswoman Kelly Love said Trump will sign a directive to “move our country even further toward our goal of energy independence,” without offering further details.
Federal regulators have tacitly written off the possibility of new oil and gas development along the coast amid opposition ignited by a 1969 well failure in the Santa Barbara Channel that fouled beaches and helped give birth to the modern environmental movement. Offshore platforms visible from the state's southern shoreline are still extracting oil from more than 40 longstanding leases. The last drilling lease sale was in 1984.
Although the Obama administration formally asked the public to weigh in on a potential sale in federal Pacific waters as it began assembling the current five-year auction schedule, it ruled that territory out at the first possible opportunity. Given the opposition from elected officials and residents, Trump may eventually do the same.
Senators representing California, Oregon and Washington have locked arms to fight offshore drilling, arguing that any oil spills in the region could jeopardize fishing and tourism along the coast. They want federal legislation to permanently prohibit offshore drilling by their states. California Governor Jerry Brown has been pushing for a similar moratorium.
“It is very clear that the communities on the Atlantic and Pacific coasts don't want and don't need offshore leasing or drilling,” said Mike LeVine, senior Pacific counsel for the conservation group Oceana. “It is equally clear that President Trump is prioritizing politics and corporate interests ahead of our coastal communities and good stewardship of our ocean resources.“
More Opportunity
The oil industry has been seeking a shot at Atlantic acreage—a battle it lost when Obama's Interior Department decided to forgo sales there. It's not clear how enticing energy companies would find potential Pacific leases, given the risk proposed drilling wouldn't clear a state review.
Still, the more opportunities to drill, the better, said Erik Milito, a policy director at the American Petroleum Institute, the industry's leading trade group. By endorsing “a long-term energy strategy that allows opportunities to lease over years in various areas,” the Trump administration would be preserving flexibility for U.S. oil and gas development needed to help satisfy worldwide energy demand, he said.
“We're not going to sit here and say that companies are going to want to go out and drill tomorrow in the Pacific and the Atlantic,” Milito said. But “it is important to keep options open for the long term, so companies can start planning for and determining where the best prospects are and then make those investments the global economy will require over time.“
“We shouldn't be closing any type of windows to potential discoveries and production that likely would be years away,” he added.
Trump's approach harkens back to a failed bid by former President George W. Bush to put Pacific waters on the auction block after the 2008 oil price spike. Just before he left office, Bush offered up a draft leasing plan that included two potential sales off the U.S. West Coast. It was eventually scrapped under Obama.
While he is moving to expand offshore access, Trump on April 28 also is slated to direct a review of regulations safeguarding offshore oil and gas exploration, including a well-control rule triggered by the 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster. The industry is also lobbying for changes to mandates for Arctic drilling.
http://news.bna.com/deln/DELNWB/split_display.adp?fedfid=110163718&vname=dennotallissues&fn=110163718&jd=110163718
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(ACC Mentioned) AWO, ACC Renew Chemical Shipping Agreement
Apr 25, 2017 | Marine Link
By Eric Haun
The American Waterways Operators (AWO) and The American Chemistry Council (ACC) have renewed for three years a Memorandum of Agreement to promote environmental, health, safety and security performance through ACC's Responsible Care and AWO's Responsible Carrier Program. This agreement was originally executed in 2006, and subsequently renewed in 2010 and 2013.
The MOA extends cooperation and collaboration between chemical shippers and carriers and provides ACC's Responsible Care Partner companies in the marine sector the option of using AWO's Responsible Carrier Program audit system to meet ACC's Responsible Care certification requirements. Chemicals account for roughly 10 percent of total barge traffic, with 70 million tons moved by barge in 2014.
Since 2006, all eligible Responsible Care Partner companies within the marine sector that transport chemicals via barge have utilized the agreement to meet their obligations for both the Responsible Carrier Program and Responsible Care, saving time and resources while promoting best practices that protect waterways and surrounding communities.
"The continued partnership between ACC and AWO reaffirms our commitment to protect the environment and public health, as well as the safety of the men and women who transport our products on America's waterways," said ACC President and CEO Cal Dooley. "The chemical industry is committed to the safe handling of our products throughout the entire value chain, and this MOA exemplifies how ACC works with our partners to achieve this goal and protect the nation's rivers and harbors."
"We are pleased to once again partner with ACC to renew an agreement that strengthens the safety and environmental programs of our respective associations," said AWO President & CEO Tom Allegretti. "This partnership is critical to ensuring the safety and efficiency of maritime transport of chemical industry products in the United States, and we look forward to continued implementation of this agreement to achieve that goal."
Responsible Care is the chemical industry's environmental, health, safety and security performance initiative that extends continuous improvement efforts beyond the facility fence line to include the entire value chain. Participation in Responsible Care is a condition of membership for all ACC Member and Responsible Care Partner companies, all of which had made a CEO-level commitment to uphold the program principles.
The AWO Responsible Carrier Program is accepted by the U.S. Coast Guard as an existing safety management system that complies with the requirements of 46 CFR Subchapter M, Coast Guard regulations promulgated in 2016 establishing a comprehensive inspection regime for towing vessels. Designed for the tugboat, towboat and barge industry, the RCP encompasses all aspects of fleet operations and exceeds regulatory standards while incorporating industry best practices. RCP compliance is a condition of membership for AWO carrier member companies.
https://www.marinelink.com/news/agreement-chemical424621
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Utilities Divided Over EPA's Request To Delay MACT Rule Oral Arguments
Apr 26, 2017 | Inside EPA
By EPA
Power companies are divided over EPA's push for a federal appeals court to delay May 18 oral arguments in two suits over the Obama-era utility maximum achievable control technology (MACT) rule, with coal utilities supporting the request while “clean” utilities that primarily use other fuels are urging the court to proceed with arguments.
Following EPA's recent success in asking the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit to freeze other high-profile cases over greenhouse gases, ozone standards and other issues, EPA is also asking the court to delay oral argument in Murray Energy Corporation, et al. v. EPA, et al. over the agency's revised cost assessment for the rule, and ARIPPA, et al. v. EPA that challenges denials of petitions to reconsider certain parts of the rule.
EPA says both cases are related and that it wants to review and possibly revise the MACT in line with President Donald Trump's executive order on reducing “undue” burdens on the energy sector. It also argues that the Trump administration's eventual position on the rule might be vastly different from the Obama EPA's position.
In the Murray Energy case, several states and the coal waste-burning utility ARIPPA and coal sector Utility Air Regulatory Group (UARG) filed an April 24 brief supporting delay of the argument over the utility MACT cost review.
“Both the interests of justice and judicial economy weigh in favor of granting EPA’s requested relief. Continuing oral argument in this case would conserve the parties’ and the Court’s resources by avoiding the need to prepare for oral argument, the need to hear and present arguments in the case, and the need for the Court to consider the lawfulness of the Supplemental Finding and prepare an opinion while EPA’s review is pending,” they say.
They call EPA's delay motion “unremarkable,” and note the court has recently granted similar requests with respect to litigation over the ozone national ambient air quality standards, for example. The court also on April 24 granted EPA's request to delay litigation over a rule requiring 36 states to revise Clean Air Act compliance plans to remove waivers from facilities having to meet emissions limits during startups, shutdowns, and malfunctions.
However, “clean” utilities that use primarily fuels other than coal in an April 24 brief in opposition to EPA's request say that they stand to lose money from the regulatory uncertainty that will result. EPA has failed to demonstrate the “extraordinary” circumstances necessary for such a last-minute delay, they argue.
“EPA does not even go so far as to commit” that it will review the cost assessment, says the brief, noting that the agency says it plans to potentially reconsider it, “which means that any benefit purportedly conferred by a continuance would be entirely speculative. In contrast, the harm posed by granting EPA’s motion would be real,” these companies say, opposing a delay that would trap the industry in regulatory “limbo.”
Petition Denials
Meanwhile, Pennsylvania coal waste-burning utility ARIPPA and UARG in an April 24 brief support EPA's motion to delay oral argument in the ARIPPA suit, which contests the Obama EPA's denials of petitions from UARG, ARIPPA and environmentalists to reconsider parts of the overall utility MACT.
The two power sector petitioners argue in their new filings that the two cases are so closely linked it would make no sense to proceed with one and not the other -- echoing a claim EPA made in its request.
“Hearing these cases in coordination promotes judicial efficiency because, as EPA recognizes in its motion, there is 'substantial overlap in the background facts of the two cases.'” ARIPPA and UARG say.
“In addition, continuing oral argument in this case is in the best interest of justice and judicial economy because EPA’s review of the Supplemental Finding could also resolve some or all of the issues presented here,” they add, referring to the cost review that EPA added to the utility MACT docket. The supplementary finding responds to a mandate from the Supreme Court, which faulted the agency for not considering costs when it first issued its finding that the rule was “appropriate and necessary” under the Clean Air Act.
For example, “if EPA revisits the Supplemental Finding it will have to address the costs and benefits of regulating non-mercury metals, which are tied to the data contamination issues UARG has raised in this case,” the brief says.
However, environmental groups in an April 25 brief oppose the move, saying their claims are not linked to the Murray Energy suit. “Unlike UARG and ARIPPA, Environmental Petitioners’ challenge in this case exclusively targets EPA’s refusal to reconsider the stringency of the final standards, not EPA’s refusal to reconsider aspects of the threshold 'appropriate and necessary' finding,” they say.
Industry's arguments “cannot justify indefinite postponement” of environmentalists' issues, and if the court does delay argument over industry claims, environmental groups ask that their issues be severed and that argument over those issues “proceed as scheduled.” -- Stuart Parker (sparker@iwpnews.com)
https://insideepa.com/daily-news/utilities-divided-over-epas-request-delay-mact-rule-oral-arguments
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Malfunction Emissions Case Delayed To Accommodate EPA Review
Apr 26, 2017 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Patrick Ambrosio
The Trump administration won a delay in yet another legal challenge to an Obama-era environmental regulation, this one over state plans to control industrial air pollution during periods when equipment starts up, shuts down or malfunctions.
The regulation at issue, known as a SIP Call, required 36 states to revise their state implementation plans to remove language that the Obama administration determined to be in violation of the Clean Air Act. The provisions the Environmental Protection Agency flagged include previously approved language that exempted industrial facilities from complying with emissions standards during startup and shutdown, and affirmative defense provisions that shielded power plants, refineries and other pollution sources from being assessed civil penalties associated with violations that resulted from unavoidable equipment malfunctions.
The Trump administration has sought to delay several cases to allow for a review of the underlying regulations and the legal positions taken by the Obama administration. In addition, President Donald Trump signed an executive order in March directing the EPA to review any regulation that could “potentially burden” domestic energy production.
The 2015 rule drew legal challenges from many of the affected states, as well as utilities including Southern Co. and Luminant Generation Co. The litigation was scheduled for oral arguments May 8, but the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, in an order issued late April 24, granted an EPA request to postpone the arguments (Walter Coke Inc. v. EPA, D.C. Cir., No. 15-1166, 4/24/17).
The D.C. Circuit in recent weeks has frozen several cases over Obama-era environmental rules, including lawsuits over the 2015 ozone standards and carbon dioxide standards for new power plants that were days away from being argued. Still pending are requests to halt progress on litigation related to two of the Obama administration's major regulations on the power sector: the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards and the Clean Power Plan rule on carbon emissions from existing plants.
http://news.bna.com/deln/DELNWB/split_display.adp?fedfid=110163695&vname=dennotallissues&fn=110163695&jd=110163695
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Oil And Mining Giants Detail Road Map To Reduce Carbon By Half
Apr 26, 2017 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Mark Chediak
A group of companies and non-profit agencies that includes energy giants Royal Dutch Shell Plc and BHP Billiton said global greenhouse gas emissions could be cut in half by 2040 without impeding economic development, in part by converting grids to use mostly renewable power.
The declining costs of wind, solar and batteries will make it possible within 15 years to build power networks that get as much as 90 percent of their power from renewable sources while providing electricity at a cost that's competitive with fossil-fuels, according to a report released April 25 by the Energy Transitions Commission, a group of energy companies, investors and non-profit organizations including the Rocky Mountain Institute.
The study presents a road map toward meeting the Paris climate agreement aimed at keeping global warming well below 2 degrees Celsius. It comes as U.S. President Donald Trump is weighing whether to meet a campaign promise of pulling out of the Paris accord.
“The really good news is the potential on renewable electricity,” Adair Turner, chairman of the Energy Transitions Commission, said in an interview. “It is really credible to say we can decarbonize electricity.”
Converting grids to green power and running cars and heating buildings on electricity would account for half of the emission cuts outlined in the report, which details how to slash carbon from 36 gigatonnes a year to 20 gigatonnes by 2040. The group said governments and companies must boost investments in hydrogen, bioenergy, waste heat and carbon-capture technologies, which would reduce emissions in aviation, shipping and heavy industries.
Fossil fuel use will also need to fall by 30 percent by 2040 as energy-efficiency measures accelerate to meet international climate goals, according to the report.
The group said policies including putting a price on carbon, phasing out fossil fuel subsidies, and encouraging more research into low-carbon technologies will be needed to hit the targets, along with more public investment in transport and city infrastructure.
Investments will also need to shift, including a $3.7 trillion reduction in spending on fossil fuels, a $6 trillion increase for low-carbon technologies and a $9 trillion boost for energy-efficient equipment and buildings.
http://news.bna.com/deln/DELNWB/split_display.adp?fedfid=110163685&vname=dennotallissues&fn=110163685&jd=110163685
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Perry Says Trump Should Keep Paris Climate Deal And Renegotiate
Apr 26, 2017 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Joe Ryan
Energy Secretary Rick Perry said the U.S. should renegotiate the Paris accord on climate change instead of abandoning it, criticizing Germany for allowing its fossil-fuel emissions to rise.
“I'm not going to tell the president of the United States to walk away from the Paris accord,” Perry said at the Bloomberg New Energy Finance conference in New York on April 25. “I will say that we need to renegotiate it.”
The remark puts Perry among a group of advisers urging President Donald Trump to stick with the United Nations accord that he vowed to scrap during his campaign last year. The White House has said it will decide by next month what to do with the deal involving more than 190 nations struck in the French capital in 2015.
Trump has opposed Paris as a constraint on the U.S. economy and criticized the science pointing to global warming as a “hoax” invented by China. His key strategist Stephen Bannon also opposes Paris, while Secretary of State Rex Tillerson supported it when he led the oil company Exxon Mobil Corp.
Perry, speaking to investors and executives at the BNEF conference on the future of energy, criticized European nations starting with Germany for contradicting the spirit of the Paris deal, allowing emissions to increase as it closed nuclear plants. The U.S., meanwhile, has aggressively cut pollution by allowing natural gas to replace coal.
“Don't sign an agreement and expect us to stay in if you're not really going to participate and be a part of it,” Perry said. “We need to renegotiate it. They need to get serious.”
Perry, who oversaw a record expansion of wind power during his tenure as Texas governor, called for the U.S. to embrace all forms of energy during his remarks. He also praised the work of scientists at national laboratories. Perry made clear, however, that the Trump administration would not “hijack science for pet causes.”
http://news.bna.com/deln/DELNWB/split_display.adp?fedfid=110163697&vname=dennotallissues&fn=110163697&jd=110163697
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Republicans Ramp Up Their Offensive
Apr 26, 2017 | E&E Daily
By Hannah Hess,
Congressional Republicans have sent President Trump the strongest signal yet of what they want him to do with the Paris Agreement.
The Senate Republican Policy Committee yesterday advised in a memo shared at its weekly lunch that the United States' obligations under the deal will increase over time. The "plain language" of the historic emissions-reduction agreement struck in December 2015, the memo says, states "that we can only pledge to do more — not less — as time goes on."
The memo, also posted to Medium, coincided with Energy Secretary Rick Perry publicly saying the Trump administration should stay in the deal but alter its current commitment to cut its greenhouse gas emissions 26 to 28 percent below 2005 levels by 2025 (E&E News PM, April 25).
"I think the president ought to come out of the agreement," Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), chairman of the policy group, told reporters yesterday afternoon.
Barrasso echoes U.S. EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt — who is expected to join Perry and other top Trump advisers for a meeting on how the United States should proceed on the pact — and a dozen House Republicans who last week called for an exit (Greenwire, April 19).
Today, Rep. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), a close Trump ally and energy adviser during the campaign, will send the president a letter he has been circulating that lays out conditions for staying in the agreement.
Eight other Republicans, mostly members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, have signed on, Cramer said yesterday after hosting a forum to talk about the contentious topic.
While die-hard congressional opponents of President Obama's climate policies maintain the landmark deal negotiated at a December 2015 climate conference held by the United Nations should have been submitted to the Senate for approval, Cramer disagrees.
"It was the use of presidential constitutional authority to come to an agreement that could never have been a treaty," Cramer said, but Obama wanted it to "have all the weight of a treaty" knowing he could never have gotten ratification from GOP-dominated Capitol Hill.
Keith Benes, a former legal adviser at the State Department who worked in the treaty affairs office under President George W. Bush, came to a similar conclusion during the forum. Benes said nothing prevents the United States from communicating a different goal, though he acknowledged there would be political blowback.
"If you don't want diplomatic blowback, you only get it once by withdrawing," said Chris Horner, a senior fellow at the Competitive Enterprise Institute who was part of Trump's agency landing team for EPA. Horner said Article 4 of the agreement prevents the United States from lowering its emissions reduction targets.
Those pushing for Trump to follow through on his campaign pledge to pull out of the deal argue that Obama allies will cite the agreement in court battles over key pieces of his climate legacy, including the Clean Power Plan.
Indeed, more than a dozen state prosecutors, led by New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman (D), sent a letter to Trump yesterday condemning the idea of exiting.
Other panelists, including Bracewell LLP energy lobbyist Scott Segal and Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP's Jeff Merrifield, a former Nuclear Regulatory Commission member, said the Trump administration would not be legally confined by Paris.
"A Trump-appointed negotiating team that decamps to address the problems of the Paris accord would generate a much different-looking document, one that could be encouraging for both baseload and mobile sources of power in the United States, like coal," Segal said.
Merrifield agreed Trump could empower negotiators to "go back and make a better deal."
Tom Pyle, president of the Institute for Energy Research and former leader of Trump's Energy Department transition team, said he's becoming increasingly concerned about Paris because he agrees with Pruitt that the United States should withdraw.
"I don't buy this about them being able to negotiate a better deal. The agreement is set up so that the prices going forward are designed to make sacrifices stronger, the agreement stricter," Pyle said in an interview. The agreement also contains financial obligations Obama made to developing nations that the Trump administration is unlikely to negotiate away, Pyle added.
"I think they're playing a game of chicken right now," he said. "The agreement has systematic review periods, and the idea is to make even more sacrifices and deeper cuts."
When asked about Perry's comments yesterday calling for the administration to keep the United States in the Paris Agreement, Pyle said he didn't think the secretary had thought the issue the whole way through, adding, "He's only one voice."Lobbying and public opinion
Lobbying from both sides has increased ahead of the White House sit-down, which was postponed last week (E&E News PM, April 18).
The Industrial Energy Consumers of America, an industry group representing large manufacturing companies on energy policy issues, sent its analysis of the deal to the White House late Monday. It concluded that failure to withdraw would run counter to Trump's economic goals.
Cramer acknowledged that the forum and his letter seemed more urgent after Politico reported, citing anonymous administration sources, that the meeting has been rescheduled for tomorrow.
A White House spokeswoman declined to confirm the report yesterday.
Public polling, both domestically and abroad, shows strong support for taking action to address global warming. Cramer acknowledged an economic opportunity "as well as moral opportunity" for the United States to play a role in finding climate solutions.
"I've never believed that every country in the 190 or so was going to do exactly what they said they were going to do especially when the United States was the hinge pin of the whole thing," Cramer said. "All of that seemed too loose to me to be of much legal consequence."
The raucous public debate among Trump administration officials over the fate of the deal reflects the fact that the president allows people close to him to express their very strong opinions — even while they're different, said Cramer.
"This is how he processes ... to the swamp and appears chaotic because it's so out of the ordinary," said Cramer. "I think as people watch it that they are going to find it to be quite refreshing."
Cramer suggested that coming to a private decision in a very public way was "kind of noble" on Trump's part.
Paul Bledsoe, a former Clinton White House climate adviser and lecturer at American University's Center for Environmental Policy, suggested that ongoing intrigue over Trump's decision on Paris has overshadowed his negative impact on U.S. climate policy. For instance, leaked budget documents reveal plans to cut the office responsible for global negotiations to the bone (Greenwire, April 25).
Bledsoe said some believe the "Paris fig leaf will cover all Trump sins, and that's simply not the case."
Reporter Hannah Northey contributed.
https://www.eenews.net/eedaily/2017/04/26/stories/1060053583
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