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ACC PM 04/05/18
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(ACC Mentioned) The Energy 202: Three Senior Scott Pruitt Aides Resigned From the EPA This Week
May 4, 2018 | The Washington Post
By Dino Grandoni
Another day, another Scott Pruitt aide gone. -
Ewire: Pruitt's Troubles Continue on Lobbyists, Travel and Infighting
May 4, 2018 | Inside EPA
EPA chief Scott Pruitt's string of bad headlines is continuing, amid new reports about a controversial house sale he made with a lobbyist as a state lawmaker, yet another foreign trip that was arranged by a high-powered donor and intra-administration infighting between EPA and the Interior Department. -
EPA Clamps Down on Records Requests Linked to Pruitt
May 4, 2018 | PoliticoPro
By Alex Guillen
Political appointees at the EPA have tightened the vetting of requests for public records connected to Administrator Scott Pruitt, slowing the flow of information released under the Freedom of Information Act, according to open government experts and internal EPA documents. -
Media Aide is Fourth Resignation From EPA This Week
May 4, 2018 | The Hill - E2 Wire
By Miranda Green
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) media aide John Konkus is adding his name to the growing list of the agency's political aides leaving this week. -
Pruitt to Testify Before Senate Panel May 16
May 4, 2018 | PoliticoPro - Whiteboard
By Anthony Andragna
Embattled EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt returns for his first Senate hearing since the flood of ethics and spending allegations arose when he testifies before a Senate Appropriations subpanel May 16, according to a Republican aide. -
House Dems Want More Time for Comments on 'Secret Science'
May 4, 2018 | E&E Greenwire
By Sean Reilly
More than 60 House Democrats are urging EPA to allow more time for public feedback on a fiercely disputed proposal to revamp how the agency handles scientific research. -
(ACC Mentioned) If Sun Tans Are Bad for Coral Reefs, Could Hawaii's Ban on Sunscreens Catch On?
May 4, 2018 | Sputnik International
The US state of Hawaii passed a bill this week banning most types of sunscreens. -
Denver Utility, State at Odds Over How to Fix Lead Problem
May 4, 2018 | Denver Post (In E&E Greenwire)
By Bruce Finley
Denver discovered high lead levels in some homes' tap water in 2012. Now Colorado state health officials want to inject a chemical into the water supply to halt corrosion, but utility officials are fighting the plan. -
Growing US Polyethylene Production Will Mean Lower Prices for Packaging Grade: Borealis CEO
May 4, 2018 | Platts
By Emmanuel Latham
Austrian petrochemicals producer Borealis is expecting increasing US polyethylene production to lead to lower prices for packaging grade PE, CEO Mark Garrett said Friday. -
Chevron Settles with City Over Fire That Sickened Thousands
May 4, 2018 | San Francisco Chronicle (In E&E Greenwire)
By Kimberly Veklerov
Chevron Corp. has agreed to pay Richmond, Calif., $5 million to settle a lawsuit over a 2012 refinery fire. -
Pioneer Touts Takeaway Security for Permian Oil, Natural Gas
May 4, 2018 | Natural Gas Intelligence
By Carolyn Davis
Pioneer Natural Resources Co. is working to assuage investor concerns about Permian Basin pipeline constraints, noting that oil contracts to the Gulf Coast have insulated the company from price differentials, while three-quarters of its natural gas production is under firm contract to sell in Southern California. -
Enterprise, Energy Transfer to Restart Old Ocean Natural Gas Pipe to Move Permian Volumes South
May 4, 2018 | Natural Gas Intelligence
By Carolyn Davis
Enterprise Products Partners LP and Energy Transfer Partners LP (ETP) on Friday said they are forming a joint venture to resume service on the Old Ocean natural gas pipeline in North Texas, idle for about six years, to carry more supply to the Gulf Coast from the Permian Basin. -
Lobbyist With Hand in Pruitt Trips Tied to Gas-Rich Nation
May 4, 2018 | E&E Greenwire
By Kevin Bogardus and Hannah Northey
The lobbyist who helped arrange EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt's trip to Morocco has another foreign client with natural gas interests, East Timor. -
Auto Rule Rollback Could Boost U.S. Oil Use — Analysis
May 4, 2018 | E&E Energywire
By Jenny Mandel
Domestic oil consumption could go up somewhat if the Trump administration carries through on a proposal to freeze federal fuel economy standards at 2020 levels, according to a new analysis based on draft White House plans. -
Don't Eat the Fish, Minn. Warns, After 3M Contaminated Lake
May 4, 2018 | St. Paul Pioneer Press (In E&E Greenwire)
By Bob Shaw
Minnesota health officials warned yesterday against eating any fish from Lake Elmo near St. Paul after decades of water pollution by 3M Co. -
Conn. Mulls Cyber Audits in 'Action Plan'
May 4, 2018 | E&E Greenwire
By Blake Sobczak
Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy (D) unveiled a "cybersecurity action plan" yesterday that raises the prospect of mandatory cybersecurity checks for businesses in the state. -
North Korea Cyberthreats Persist Despite Diplomatic Thaw
May 4, 2018 | E&E Energywire
By Blake Sobczak
Thailand authorities last week seized a computer server tied to North Korean hackers. -
The Reason for That Black Smoke in NYC: Dirty Oil Boilers
May 4, 2018 | The New York Times (In E&E Greenwire)
By Jonathan Wolfe
Heating oil is the cause of black plumes of smoke periodically seen leaving New York City apartment buildings.
Industry and Association News
LCSA News - There are no clips to report at this time.
Chemical Management News
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Chemical Security News
Transportation and Infrastructure News - There are no clips to report at this time.
Environment News
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(ACC Mentioned) The Energy 202: Three Senior Scott Pruitt Aides Resigned From the EPA This Week
May 4, 2018 | The Washington Post
By Dino Grandoni
Another day, another Scott Pruitt aide gone.
The Environmental Protection Agency's top communications official, Liz Bowman, is resigning from the agency, The Post reportedThursday.
“I leave extremely thankful for the opportunity to serve the Trump Administration and Administrator Pruitt,” Bowman wrote in a statement.
Her departure, to become communications director for Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), follows the exit of two other top Pruitt aides this week as federal investigators continue to scrutinize the EPA chief's spending and management decisions.
Albert “Kell” Kelly, who was Pruitt’s banker in Oklahoma and was hired to revitalize the agency’s Superfund program cleaning up toxic sites nationwide, resigned Tuesday. So did Pasquale “Nino” Perrotta, the head of Pruitt’s personal security team who has come under congressional scrutiny recently for unusual spending on Pruitt’s protective detail.
In her statement, Bowman also praised EPA career staff. “Being a member of the EPA team has allowed me to further my skills, learn from my mistakes, and make lifelong friendships. It has also provided me the opportunity to develop a new, and deep, respect for the public servants who serve the American people, day in and day out, to ensure that we all have access to clean air, land, and water.”
In her April 30 resignation letter obtained by The Washington Post, Bowman "first, and foremost," thanked EPA chief of staff Ryan Jackson for his "commitment to furthering the Trump administrator's environmental agenda."
Under Bowman, the EPA’s media shop aggressively defended the EPA's work, at times in news releases calling out specific media outlets and reporters.
Yet Bowman sought to remove herself from the push to challenge coverage of allegations of ethical misconduct by Pruitt, said two EPA officials who requested anonymity to speak candidly. That task was left to spokesman Jahan Wilcox, who has vigorously defended Pruitt's actions.
The EPA’s media shop has seen a noted degree of turnover apart from Bowman, with Amy Graham and J.P. Freire leaving their roles as representatives for Pruitt’s EPA after less than a year on the job each.
“What Liz brought to the table at EPA was good judgment, good management, good organization,” Jackson said in a statement. “She has a great opportunity ahead of her at the Senate. She will work for a great member that has a great future in front of her.”
Before working at the EPA, Bowman directed communications at the American Chemistry Council, the lobbying arm of the chemicals industry. Her last day at the EPA will be May 11.You are reading The Energy 202, our must-read tipsheet on energy and the environment.Not a regular subscriber?
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POWER PLAYS
— Another planned trip, another outsider who helped: Influential outsiders -- including lobbyists, Republican donors, and conservative activists -- have played key roles in coordinating Pruitt’s extensive foreign travel plans, The Post’s Juliet Eilperin and Brady Dennis reported late Thursday. One such trip to Israel, which ultimately was canceled, was planned in part by casino magnate and Republican megadonor Sheldon Adelson. “After taking office last year, Pruitt drew up a list of at least a dozen countries he hoped to visit and urged aides to help him find official reasons to travel, according to four people familiar with the matter, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal agency deliberations,” they write. “Pruitt then enlisted well-connected friends and political allies to help make the trips happen.”
— Drip, drip: As an Oklahoma state senator 15 years ago, Pruitt used a shell company to purchase a home from a lobbyist, and it turns out one of the other investors in the home was also... another lobbyist. That lobbyist, Justin Whitefield, was pushing for changes to the state’s workers’ compensation rules, the New York Times reports, changes which Pruitt fought for in the legislature. And Pruitt never disclosed his financial ties to the lobbyist.
The report follows up on another NYT story last month that broke the news of the 2003 home purchase and the details of the shell company used in the transaction. Pruitt, Whitefield and the other investors purchased the home in December 2003. A month later, Pruitt held a news conference to announce a bill to reduce workers’ compensation costs for businesses.
— Meanwhile, the probes continue: Staff of the House Oversight Committee met for hours with Perrotta, the former head of Pruitt’s security detail, Politico reports. And separately, staff of the House Energy and Commerce Committee began to receive paperwork from the EPA.
— As do interagency feuds: In an alleged attempt to distract from the seemingly endless barrage of stories about the EPA administrator, a member of his media team has been looking to highlight stories that would instead reflect poorly on Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke, the Atlantic reports. EPA staffer Michael Abboud shopped negative stories about Zinke to multiple news organizations, including that an Interior Department staffer “conspired with former EPA deputy chief of staff Kevin Chmielewski to leak damaging information about the EPA, as part of a rivalry between Zinke and Pruitt.” The intension was to take “the heat off of Pruitt,” sources told the magazine, and the White House is not pleased. An EPA spokesman called the story "categorically false."
— Yes, Don Blankenship just said that: Convicted former coal executive Blankenship is ramping up his attacks on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.). “Swamp captain Mitch McConnell has created millions of jobs for China people,” Blankenship said in his latest ad.
That is not a typo.
“While doing so, Mitch has gotten rich… In fact, his China family has given him tens of millions of dollars.” Blankenship’s comments are seemingly a reference to McConnell’s wife, Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, who was born in Taiwan and whose parents are Chinese.Robert Maguire✔@RobertMaguire_
The Republican establishment is now pushing back against Blankenship out of fear he could win the GOP nomination in the West Virginia Senate race, giving the Democratic incumbent, Sen. Joe Manchin III, a relatively easy opponent in the general election in the ruby-red coal-mining state.
Trump’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., made a pitch on Twitter against Blankenship, calling him “not worth the risk" after another controversial candidate, Roy Moore, lost a winnable Senate race in Alabama to Democrat Doug Jones last year.Donald Trump Jr.✔@DonaldJTrumpJr
I hate to lose. So I'm gonna go out on a limb here and ask the people of West Virginia to make a wise decision and reject Blankenship!
Josh Holmes, a former aide to McConnell, labeled Blankenship a "clown" and "West Virginia Roy Moore:"Josh Holmes✔@HolmesJosh
For those asking, this is my response to West Virginia Roy Moore: “This clown is a walking, talking case study for the limitation of a prison’s ability to rehabilitate.”2:28 AM - May 4, 2018751203 people are talking about thisTwitter Ads info and privacy
Products marked with the voluntary Non-GMO Project label. (Gordon Chibroski/Portland Press Herald/Getty Images)
— Mandatory GMO labels are coming to your food: "Foodmakers will soon be required to disclose when their products contain genetically modified ingredients," writes The Post's Caitlin Dewey. But those labels will not be as complete as some consumers may expected. "Food products may be exempted from labeling if they are made with some refined GM sugars and oils, or if a product contains GM ingredients in amounts that fall beneath a predetermined threshold, according to a proposed rule released by the Agriculture Department on Thursday," per Dewey.Energy and EnvironmentTrump administration moves to weaken protections for this unique American birdLimitations on oil, gas and mineral exploration under an Obama-era agreement would be removed by a Trump administration amendment.Darryl FearsTHERMOMETER
A recent CO2 measurements at Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii. (Scripps Institution of Oceanography)
— Earth just crossed another troubling threshold: Atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide have surpassed 410 parts per million over an entire month, the first time that has occurred since people have been monitoring the levels. The Post’s Chris Mooney reports. “It’s another milestone in the upward increase in CO2 over time,” said Ralph Keeling, who directs the CO2 program at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography. “It puts us closer to some targets we don’t really want to get to, like getting over 450 or 500 ppm. That’s pretty much dangerous territory.”
— A toxic spread in Texas: Last month, Texas officials announced an agreement to clean up the San Jacinto Waste Pits, but an investigation by the Houston Chronicle and Associated Press found damage from carcinogenic dioxin has already spread. More than 30 hotspots where dioxin has settled have been discovered along the river, the Houston Ship Channel and into Galveston Bay, but details of the spots have not been released by environmental regulators in Texas. “Under the Clean Water Act and state law, Texas authorities were required to address dioxin and PCBs in the river and ship channel, waterways officially designated as ‘impaired,” the news organizations report. “Setting such standards could have forced the responsible companies to clean up and upgrade contaminated stormwater and wastewater treatment.”Zack Labe✔@ZLabe
The Bering Sea is nearly ice-free this year before the end of April...
— Nearly ice-free: February and March ice levels covering the Bering Sea off Alaska’s west coast were the lowest dating back more than 160 years, The Post’s Jason Samenow reports. And the ice was at just 10 percent of normal levels at the end of April. Samenow notes the loss of ice has “real consequences for the people in the region.” Alaska-based climatologist Rick Thoman told him it’s “already impacting the lives and livelihoods of people in Western Alaska coastal communities by restricting hunting and fishing which are the mainstays of the economies of these communities.”
OIL CHECK
— Keystone update: U.S. pipeline safety regulators lifted pressure restrictions on TransCanada Corp’s Keystone oil pipeline, the agency told Reuters on Thursday. “Reduced flows on the pipeline had helped draw down inventories in the Cushing, Oklahoma, storage hub,” per Reuters. Meanwhile, the company plans to start preliminary work on its Keystone XL pipeline project in Montana in the fall and will begin full construction in 2019, according to the news wire.
— Tariff woes: Uncertainty in the solar industry is emerging over President Trump’s recently imposed tariffs on solar imports. SunPower, the No. 2 commercial solar-power company in the nation, is fighting for an exemption to the tariffs, the New York Times reports, and is merging with another company, SolarWorld Americas, which was behind the initial push for tariffs. “With its SolarWorld acquisition, SunPower moved to prevent further loss to its business by locating a bigger share of its production in the United States. Both companies are being hit with tariffs on high-efficiency panels they produce in Malaysia,” per the report.
— Former Volkswagen chief executive Martin Winterkorn has been charged in federal court related to the company’s diesel emissions cheating scandal. Winterkorn’s indictment, which was filed in March, was unsealed in U.S. District Court on Thursday, Reuters reports. In a statement, Attorney General Jeff Sessions said the charges show "Volkswagens scheme to cheat its legal requirements went all the way to the top of the company."
And here are some good longreads for your weekend:
— A last-ditch climate effort: After two floods in Sidney, N.Y., local officials knew residents didn’t want to rebuild just to have homes and business flood again. So they tried something different. The town wanted to "use federal and state money to demolish" a neighborhood "while creating a new one away from the flood plain for displaced residents," Bloomberg News reported. “Sidney has yet to remove more than a few dozen homes from the flood plain or break ground on land away from the river. Its failure so far illustrates how unprepared the U.S. is politically, financially, and emotionally to re-create even a single community away from rising waters in an organized way, preserving some semblance of its character and history.”
— Déjà vu: “Today, West Virginia’s headlong race into the gas rush is taking the state down the same path that it’s been on for generations with coal,” the Charleston Gazette-Mail’s Ken Ward Jr. reported in a partnership with ProPublica. “Elected officials have sided with natural gas companies on tax proposals and property rights legislation. Industry lobbyists have convinced regulators to soften new rules aimed at protecting residents and their communities from drilling damage … But critics fear that West Virginia won’t fully share in the riches the industry creates and will be forced to bear the long-term environmental, health and infrastructure costs, much as it has for the now-dwindling coal industry.”
DAYBOOK
Coming Up
The House Energy and Commerce Environment Subcommittee holds a hearing on “Sharing the Road: Policy Implications of Electric and Conventional Vehicles in the Years Ahead” on May 8.The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee holds a hearing on Puerto Rico’s electric grid on May 8.The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Subcommittee on Public Lands, Forests and Mining holds an oversight hearing on May 9.The House Energy and Commerce Energy Subcommittee holds a hearingon “Examining the State of Electric Transmission Infrastructure” on May 10.The Women’s Council on the Energy and the Environment holds an eventon congressional priorities in 2018 and beyond on May 10.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/powerpost/paloma/the-energy-202/2018/05/04/the-energy-202-three-senior-scott-pruitt-aides-resigned-from-the-epa-this-week/5aeb7a3a30fb042db57972ea/?utm_term=.7b776eb5e69d
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Ewire: Pruitt's Troubles Continue on Lobbyists, Travel and Infighting
May 4, 2018 | Inside EPA
EPA chief Scott Pruitt's string of bad headlines is continuing, amid new reports about a controversial house sale he made with a lobbyist as a state lawmaker, yet another foreign trip that was arranged by a high-powered donor and intra-administration infighting between EPA and the Interior Department.
Let's take these one at a time.
The New York Times reports new details on Pruitt's Oklahoma housing deal – which was controversial enough when the purchase first emerged a few weeks ago. Now, the paper reports that one of six investors in a shell company that bought the house, along with then-state Sen. Pruitt, was a lobbyist who was pushing to soften the state's worker compensation rules. Pruitt championed those changes in the legislature, and cited them as key accomplishments in future political campaigns.
The shell company, if you recall, bought the house for $100,000 less than what its lobbyist owner paid just a few years previously, with the lobbyist's company picking up the difference. Pruitt and his co-owners later sold the house and made a roughly $100,000 profit.
Moving on to Pruitt's tenure at EPA. He was slated to visit Israel in February, though the trip was canceled amid an emerging controversy over his penchant for first-class flights.
Now the Washington Post reports that GOP mega-donor Sheldon Adelson was a “force” behind arranging the trip, which follows a similar pattern of outside interests such as lobbyists and conservative activists helping to plan Pruitt's visits to Morocco, Italy and another canceled trip to Australia.
According to the Post: “After taking office last year, Pruitt drew up a list of at least a dozen countries he hoped to visit and urged aides to help him find official reasons to travel, according to four people familiar with the matter, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal agency deliberations. Pruitt then enlisted well-connected friends and political allies to help make the trips happen.”
Adelson helped to secure a stop at a controversial Jewish settlement in the West Bank, an appearance at Tel Aviv University and even a visit with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He also pushed Pruitt to meet with a water purification company known as Water-Gen, which Adelson is a fan of but has no financial stake in.
The controversies and official investigations into Pruitt have apparently taken their toll on the agency. According to The Atlantic, EPA press office staffer Michael Abboud, tried to plant damaging stories about Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke to “take the heat off” Pruitt. (Another EPA spokesman calls the claims “categorically false.”)
The magazine says the White House personnel office was “enraged” at the conduct and sought to fire him, though the office was informed that Abboud was hired using special Safe Drinking Water Act authority, meaning only Pruitt himself can fire him.
In other news:Washington Examiner: EPA's top spokeswoman resigns, agency downplays turmoilReuters: Clean energy sector swings Republican with campaign donationsE&E News: If climate decides one big race this year, this could be itWashington Post: Earth's atmosphere crossed another troubling climate change threshold
https://insideepa.com/daily-feed/ewire-pruitts-troubles-continue-lobbyists-travel-and-infighting
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EPA Clamps Down on Records Requests Linked to Pruitt
May 4, 2018 | PoliticoPro
By Alex Guillen
Political appointees at the EPA have tightened the vetting of requests for public records connected to Administrator Scott Pruitt, slowing the flow of information released under the Freedom of Information Act, according to open government experts and internal EPA documents.
Internal emails obtained by POLITICO show top Pruitt aides — in addition to career experts — reviewed documents collected for most or all FOIA requests regarding the embattled administrator's activities. And several environmental groups say the agency has told them that political staffers' document reviews have delayed releases past legal deadlines.
“This does look like the most burdensome review process that I’ve seen documented,” said Nate Jones, director of the FOIA Project at George Washington University's National Security Archive.
The new processes described in the emails involve “awareness reviews” or “senior management reviews” conducted by top political staffers before the agency releases essentially any documents involving the administrator. The emails also show Pruitt's political appointees chastising career employees who released documents in accordance with FOIA without letting them screen the records first.
EPA sometimes conducted those types of reviews under the Obama administration when career staff thought documents would generate a lot of interest, agency officials from that era told POLITICO. But under Pruitt, the vetting by EPA chief of staff Ryan Jackson and other key appointees of any documents linked to the administrator appears to be on the rise, according to FOIA experts who reviewed the emails.
The increased scrutiny comes as the agency faces a wave of accusations of excessive secrecy. EPA has declined to provide information about Pruitt’s public appearances in advance — a practice at odds with those of many other Cabinet members and the White House. And the agency releases his detailed calendars only when compelled by lawsuits.
That secrecy has prompted a boom in both Freedom of Information Act requests filed with the agency and lawsuits challenging its resistance to releasing information to the public. As POLITICO reported in February, production of documents under FOIA requests from Pruitt’s office is drastically lower than the rest of EPA.
The newly released emails, which EPA gave to the Natural Resources Defense Council following legal action, show Jackson created a pilot program to “centralize” requests that go through the various sub-offices that make up EPA’s Office of the Administrator. The emails show that the political aides weren’t just concerned about streamlining the FOIA process — they wanted to know about any requests anywhere at EPA that involved Pruitt.
In one exchange from last August, Jackson and Liz Bowman, the head of EPA’s Office of Public Affairs, expressed concern about documents related to commentsPruitt made on CNBC disputing that carbon dioxide from human activities was the primary cause of climate change. Those documents had been released to E&E News without first going through their review.
“Why did Kevin Bogardus from E&E all of a sudden get a response to a FOIA today, without any awareness from our FOIA office?" Bowman wrote Aug. 2. She later added that the response "wasn't due until 8/30."
Officials quickly determined that the request had been filled by a career employee before Bowman had a chance to flag it "for attention." Although the request involved Pruitt, the records sought by E&E were kept at EPA’s Office of Research and Development, and the request was routed there before being released by a FOIA expert from that office.
Anything related to Pruitt “will draw inquiries from press,” Jackson replied, and he requested that he and the public affairs office be notified ahead of any Pruitt-related release from any EPA office.
The message was received loud and clear by EPA’s career staff.
“I have instructed my staff that no [Office of the Administrator] requests are to be issued without the opportunity for an awareness review by you, [the Office of Public Affairs] and the senior leadership of any other affected offices,” Becky Dolph, the head of a special team of FOIA experts in EPA's Office of General Counsel, wrote to Jackson later that day.
Emails sent later that month showed Jackson pressing staff on why documents related to a coal plant water pollution rule were already available online just one day after an awareness review began.
The documents were “inadvertently” posted, replied Kevin Minoli, then EPA's acting general counsel, who added that the process would be changed so that "nothing is uploaded at all until we have the final set of documents and their production has been authorized."
None of the emails given to the NRDC reveal exactly what actions the political staffers conducting these reviews took.
NRDC attorney Aaron Colangelo said he asked EPA for details about the reviews after an EPA attorney told him that “awareness reviews” were delaying the release of documents in other FOIA requests filed by the environmental group. Those requests were related to Pruitt’s participation in ongoing legal cases that he'd previously been involved in during his time as Oklahoma’s attorney general.
Colangelo and other FOIA experts said federal agencies have discretion to set up their own internal FOIA processes, and the political reviews are not illegal — unless the reviews caused EPA to miss deadlines for producing documents set out in the Freedom of Information Act.
“There’s nothing necessarily wrong with political folks getting a heads-up before potentially sensitive documents are released,” Colangelo said in an interview. "Butwe do have a legitimate objection if that political review delays compliance with deadlines in the law."
And that has happened for at least two of the NRDC’s Pruitt-related FOIA requests, he said. “They pushed back the production deadline so they could conduct an awareness review, and that’s where we have an objection.“
Another request from a coalition of environmental groups for documents about Pruitt’s delay of a rule limiting water pollution from coal plants was held up over a “senior management review.”
A judge mediating the lawsuit over that delay, Valerie Caproni of the U.S. District Court for Southern New York, said during November proceedings that while EPA “can do whatever internal policies in particular they want on FOIA,” the agency cannot use political reviews to justify missing legal deadlines.
EPA still has to “comply with the law, and that means they have to produce documents in a timely way,” she said. EPA eventually handed over the documents in that case.
It's not clear exactly how many FOIA requests have been delayed by political reviews, but experts say it is clearly having an impact.
Several Obama-era EPA political officials said they too occasionally received "heads-up" awareness reviews on high-profile requests, but not necessarily to the degree that Pruitt's aides are doing them.
“It doesn’t seem abnormal to me that some political would get a chance to have review for awareness of productions that are going out that involve the administrator,” said one former official. But the close attention from top-ranking officials like Jackson and former policy chief Samantha Dravis seemed “a little bit odd,” the former official added.
Instead, awareness reviews generally went to the head of the agency program office in question and to congressional affairs staffers so they could coordinate with any requests from lawmakers, the former official said.
One Obama-era awareness review that was included in the new documents showed that a large batch of documents related to the Flint, Mich., lead crisis was flagged to political officials in the Office of Water and the congressional affairs office, as well as the general counsel, the regional administrator and a public affairs official.
Bowman, the EPA spokeswoman, did not comment on questions from POLITICO about the political oversight of FOIA requests, but she noted that the Trump administration was not the first to use them.
“Each EPA program and Region does their own FOIAs, so an awareness review allows the press office, Congressional affairs office and senior officials to be informed of documents being released in response to FOIA requests, to facilitate inter-office coordination, and to prepare responses to inquiries,” she said.
Thomas Cmar, an Earthjustice attorney involved in multiple FOIA lawsuits with EPA, said the emails raise as many questions as they answer.
“Political staff appear to be keeping a very close eye on what information is being requested and released to the public,” he said. “It raises concerns and it raises questions that need to be answered about whether EPA is living up to its obligations to make basic information about its activities available to the public that it’s supposed to be serving.“
https://subscriber.politicopro.com/energy/article/2018/05/epa-clamps-down-on-records-requests-linked-to-pruitt-500691
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Media Aide is Fourth Resignation From EPA This Week
May 4, 2018 | The Hill - E2 Wire
By Miranda Green
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) media aide John Konkus is adding his name to the growing list of the agency's political aides leaving this week.
Konkus became the fourth Pruitt aide to resign in five days — and the second in Pruitt's media department. Pruitt's communications head Liz Bowman announced her departure Thursday.
Konkus serves as deputy associate administrator in the EPA’s office of public affairs which is the second in command on the communications staff.
Ryan Jackson, Pruitt's chief of staff confirmed Konkus's departure Friday and said he was leaving to take a communications job at the Small Business Administration.
“From transition, working side by side with John as one of the ‘sherpas’ for Administrator Pruitt’s nomination, through his work on the beachhead early at EPA, and as Deputy Associate Administrator, John has been a valuable member of the EPA communications team," Jackson said in a statement.
"Administrator Pruitt is grateful for John’s service and wishes him well as he continues to serve the Trump Administration leading communications at the Small Business Administration."
Konkus did not respond to a request for comment.
Konkus's resignation comes amid reports that agency aide Michael Abboud had shopped around a story earlier in the week alleging that an Interior staffer was conspiring with a former EPA aide turned whistleblower to spread stories on Pruitt.
Pruitt did not issue his own statement of support for Konkus as he had done earlier in the week for two other political aides who resigned — Albert Kelly and Pasquale Perrotta.
Kelly, who was hired to lead the agency's Superfund program last year, resigned Tuesday and Pruitt's head of security, Perrotta, resigned on Monday.
Kelly has been under fire from the time he was announced to his position for his lack of a scientific background and his own financial history.
Perrotta has also been linked to concerns about some of Pruitt's security contracts, including an April 2017 security sweep in the administrator's office. The sweep was completed by Edwin Steinmetz, a business partner of Perrotta's at Sequoia Security Group.
He said the press was taking a toll on his family.
http://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/386222-fourth-political-aide-resigns-from-epa-this-week
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Pruitt to Testify Before Senate Panel May 16
May 4, 2018 | PoliticoPro - Whiteboard
By Anthony Andragna
Embattled EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt returns for his first Senate hearing since the flood of ethics and spending allegations arose when he testifies before a Senate Appropriations subpanel May 16, according to a Republican aide.
Pruitt will appear for a budget hearing before the Senate Appropriations Interior-Environment Subcommittee. Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke will appear before the same panel on May 10, according to the aide.
Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), who chairs the subcommittee, has previously described the oversight efforts and a push from some Republicans senators to hold hearings with Pruitt "absolutely appropriate."
The session will come several weeks after Pruitt sought at two House committee hearings to blame his staff for allegations of lavish spending, cozy relations with lobbyists and other controversies that have arisen over the last couple months. Four senior political aides have left EPA this week alone.
Pruitt last testified in the Senate during a late January hearing before the Environment and Public Works Committee.
https://subscriber.politicopro.com/energy/whiteboard
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House Dems Want More Time for Comments on 'Secret Science'
May 4, 2018 | E&E Greenwire
By Sean Reilly
More than 60 House Democrats are urging EPA to allow more time for public feedback on a fiercely disputed proposal to revamp how the agency handles scientific research.
"EPA has the critical mission of protecting human health and the environment," Rep. Paul Tonko (D-N.Y.) and 64 other lawmakers wrote yesterday to EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt. "With this mission in mind, any significant change should go through a serious discussion, a series of public hearings and a robust comment period."
In the proposed rule published Monday, EPA set a 30-day comment period that ends May 30.
The Democrats are asking Pruitt to extend the comment period to at least three months.
Tonko is the top Democrat on the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Environment; also signing the letter were Reps. Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-Texas), the ranking member of the House Science, Space and Technology Committee, and Frank Pallone (D-N.J.), the ranking member on the full Energy and Commerce Committee.
EPA press aides didn't respond to a request for comment this morning on the letter, which was released yesterday evening, or for an explanation of the agency's rationale in setting the 30-day comment period.
The Union of Concerned Scientists and the Natural Resources Defenses Council, two advocacy groups critical of the proposed rule, are also seeking a minimum 90-day comment period, accompanied by public hearings, according to written requests included in the regulations.gov docket.
The proposal would effectively restrict EPA's reliance on scientific studies used in crafting significant regulations to those for which the underlying data and models are "publicly available in a manner sufficient for validation and analysis."
In an exchange with Tonko at a hearing last week by the Environment Subcommittee, Pruitt described the proposal as a transparency move to "ensure the data and methodology were also available to those" concerned about EPA rulemakings.
Tonko termed that description "hypocritical." Critics of the proposal view it as a stratagem for excluding research that could justify the need for tighter regulations to protect public health and the environment (Climatewire, April 26).
"Regardless of viewpoint, there is agreement that the proposed rule would be a significant change in how the agency considers science in policymaking," Tonko and the other House Democrats wrote in yesterday's letter. "Organizations, scientists, industries and members of the public deserve additional time to understand how this policy shift may impact them."
The proposal already appears to be on an administration fast track.
Late last month, the Office of Management and Budget wrapped up a required interagency review in four days, according to a revised completion date on the Reginfo.gov website (Greenwire, April 27). That's far less than the average review time of 51 days for EPA rules since Pruitt became agency administrator in February 2017, according to data on the site.
https://www.eenews.net/greenwire/2018/05/04/stories/1060080881
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(ACC Mentioned) If Sun Tans Are Bad for Coral Reefs, Could Hawaii's Ban on Sunscreens Catch On?
May 4, 2018 | Sputnik International
The US state of Hawaii passed a bill this week banning most types of sunscreens. Environmentalists say suntan lotions contain chemicals which damage coral reefs and Hawaii's move could begin a domino effect around the world.
If the law is signed by Hawaii's state governor David Ige the ban will come into place in January 2021.
The bill would ban the majority of sunscreens because they contain two chemicals — oxybenzone and octinoxate — which marine ecologists say "have significant harmful impacts on Hawaii's marine environment and residing ecosystems."
Scientists say the chemicals — which wash off into the sea when sunbathing tourists go swimming — have proved toxic to coral.
'Reef-friendly' Lotions
Supporters of the bill say they hope it will encourage more manufacturers to sell "reef-friendly" sunscreens, which are already available.
It is thought California might be the next US state to try to bring in similar legislation and some politicians in Australia are also thought to be in favor of it as a way of saving the Great Barrier Reef.
The legislation has stimulated a lively debate between environmental scientists and companies who manufacture or sell sunscreen, which is a US$2 billion market in America.
"This is a first step to help our reef and protect it from deterioration," said Hawaii state senator Donna Mercado Kim, one of those behind the bill.
She said she hoped "other jurisdictions" would follow in the Hawaiians' footsteps.
Sea Urchins Also Harmed
"This is the first real chance that local reefs have to recover. Lots of things kill coral reefs, but we know oxybenzone prevents them from coming back," marine scientist Craig Downs told AP. He said it also harmed sea urchins and killed algae, which was a vital food source for turtles.
Mr. Downs said 14,000 tonnes of sunscreen lotion ends up in coral reefs globally every year.
But Tina Yamaki, president of the Retail Merchants of Hawaii, said in practise the law would only ban the sale of sunscreens in the Hawaiian islands themselves and tourists could still bring them with them on holiday or even buy them online.
The American Chemistry Council says the legislation could expose people to too much sun, putting them at risk of skin cancer.
"It's a feel good measure. Yes, we must protect the environment — it is our number one resource — but at the end of the day, studies have pointed to global warming, human contact, coastal development," said Sharon Har, a Democrat state senator who voted against the bill.
https://sputniknews.com/environment/201805041064144728-sunscreen-hawaii-ban-coral/
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Denver Utility, State at Odds Over How to Fix Lead Problem
May 4, 2018 | Denver Post (In E&E Greenwire)
By Bruce Finley
Denver discovered high lead levels in some homes' tap water in 2012. Now Colorado state health officials want to inject a chemical into the water supply to halt corrosion, but utility officials are fighting the plan.
Denver Water says the chemical orthophosphate would hurt humans and the South Platte River Basin and would cause algal blooms, all while increasing wastewater costs.
The utility wants to use a different chemical to lower the city water's acid levels and replace old pipes.
The fight is now in state court, which could delay action to fix the issue.
No amount of lead is considered healthy. The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment found that 13 percent of 2012 water samples in Denver homes broke federal lead limits.
https://www.eenews.net/greenwire/2018/05/04/stories/1060080847
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Growing US Polyethylene Production Will Mean Lower Prices for Packaging Grade: Borealis CEO
May 4, 2018 | Platts
By Emmanuel Latham
https://www.platts.com/latest-news/petrochemicals/london/growing-us-polyethylene-production-will-mean-26955213
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Chevron Settles with City Over Fire That Sickened Thousands
May 4, 2018 | San Francisco Chronicle (In E&E Greenwire)
By Kimberly Veklerov
Chevron Corp. has agreed to pay Richmond, Calif., $5 million to settle a lawsuit over a 2012 refinery fire.
The fire broke out when a corroded pipe ruptured in a crude oil unit at the refinery. More than 20 workers ran for their lives minutes before a vapor cloud hanging over the refinery caught fire.
A thick plume of black smoke hung over the area afterward, and around 15,000 Bay Area residents sought treatment for respiratory problems at local hospitals.
A federal investigation found that Chevron failed to adequately respond to the fire and had lax safety rules. The company settled with the state Division of Occupational Safety and Health last year, pledging to spend an estimated $20 million on replacing corroded pipes.
The incident led state lawmakers to pass new workplace safety laws last year.
Chevron is expected to make the payment later this month, said City Attorney Bruce Goodmiller. The settlement doesn't include an admission of guilt by the company, he said.
Chevron spokeswoman Patty Canessa said that the company thinks the settlement is a fair resolution and that the money will go toward areas including public safety, education and parks.
https://www.eenews.net/greenwire/2018/05/04/stories/1060080837
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Pioneer Touts Takeaway Security for Permian Oil, Natural Gas
May 4, 2018 | Natural Gas Intelligence
By Carolyn Davis
Pioneer Natural Resources Co. is working to assuage investor concerns about Permian Basin pipeline constraints, noting that oil contracts to the Gulf Coast have insulated the company from price differentials, while three-quarters of its natural gas production is under firm contract to sell in Southern California.
The management team hosted a conference call on Thursday to discuss the quarterly performance, and most of the commentary, as expected, centered around the Permian, where the independent is the largest acreage holder in the Midland sub-basin.
Concerns about a lack of takeaway capacity, both for oil and gas, have pressured operators to give some assurances that production can profitably make it to markets.
Pioneer CEO Timothy Dove offered insight into how the firm transportation contracts from West Texas are shielding the company.
“Our oil contracts to the Gulf Coast not only expose us to Brent-related pricing, but also insulate us from the recent widening of the Midland-Cushing oil price differential,” Dove said. “Pioneer’s firm transportation contracts for gas provide flow assurance, with more than 75% of our production being sold in Southern California."
The company has firm pipeline commitments to deliver about 160,000 b/d, or 95% of current Permian net oil production, to Gulf Coast refineries and export markets. Of the 160,000 b/d delivered to the Gulf Coast, 87,000 b/d was exported.
As a result of Brent pricing, Gulf Coast refinery and export sales added $16 million of incremental cash flow in1Q2018.
Pioneer’s oil volumes under firm transportation contracts increase through 2021 commensurate with the forecast Permian oil production growth. Pioneer plans to transport more than 90% of its long-term Permian net oil output to the Gulf Coast for refinery sales and exports.
During the second half of 2018, export volumes are expected to grow as Pioneer’s export capacity is increased to 150,000 b/d from 110,000 b/d.
On the natural gas side of the equation, Dove said Pioneer also is protected, with three-quarters of the Midland sub-basin’s output transported under firm pipeline transportation agreements to the Southern California market where it is sold. The remainder is primarily sold under term contracts at Waha.
Additional firm gas pipeline transportation has been secured on Kinder Morgan Inc.’s 2 Bcf/d Gulf Coast Express Pipeline Project, which is anticipated to be online in the second half of 2019.
“Firm transportation on the Gulf Coast Express pipeline will provide access to liquefied natural gas exports, refineries, petrochemical facilities and Mexican markets,” management noted. The company’s 2018 revenues from gas sales are expected to be less than 5% of forecast 2018 Permian oil, natural gas liquids (NGL) and gas revenues.
Pioneer produced a total of 260,000 boe/d from the Permian in 1Q2018, a 3% sequential increase, even though freezing weather in early January led to production losses of about 6,000 boe/d. In addition, about 2,000 boe/d of output was lost because of a compressor station fire in the West Panhandle field. Production resumed from the field in early April at about 8,000 boe/d.
Oil production from the Permian increased to 170,000 b/d in the quarter, and 63 horizontal wells were placed on production.
The company was running 20 operated horizontal rigs in the Permian at the end of March, and it expects to place 250-275 wells on production this year. Management also is evaluating whether to add more rigs later this year.
Total production is forecast this year to average 312,000-322,000 boe/d. Permian production growth in 2018 would make up the bulk of output and increase year/year by 19-24% to 268,000-276,000 boe/d.
“Our transition to a Permian Basin pure play is progressing according to plan,” Dove said. “The sale of selected Eagle Ford Shale acreage has been completed. The data room for our remaining Eagle Ford Shale and other South Texas assets has been active. We are making progress on the other assets and expect to have all the data rooms open by mid-May.”
Sales volumes in the first quarter averaged 312,000 boe/d. Oil sales averaged 183,000 b/d, while NGLs averaged 66,000 b/d and gas averaged 379 MMcf/d.
Pioneer’s first quarter average realized price for oil was $61.64/bbl, with NGL pricing of $27.74/bbl and gas at $2.59/Mcf.
Pioneer said it plans to fund its 2018 capital spending from forecast cash flow of about $3.2 billion using current strip prices for the remainder of the year, with oil priced at $66/bbl and gas at $2.80/Mcf. The 2018 capital budget of $2.9 billion is expected to be increased because of additional enhanced, or “Version 3.0+” completions in the Permian and potential late-year rig additions.
Net income was $178 million ($1.14/share) in 1Q2018, compared with a year-ago loss of $42 million (minus 25 cents). Without the effect of one-time hedging losses of $106 million (62 cents/share) in 1Q2018, adjusted income was $284 million ($1.66).
http://www.naturalgasintel.com/articles/114265-pioneer-touts-takeaway-security-for-permian-oil-natural-gas
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Enterprise, Energy Transfer to Restart Old Ocean Natural Gas Pipe to Move Permian Volumes South
May 4, 2018 | Natural Gas Intelligence
By Carolyn Davis
Enterprise Products Partners LP and Energy Transfer Partners LP (ETP) on Friday said they are forming a joint venture to resume service on the Old Ocean natural gas pipeline in North Texas, idle for about six years, to carry more supply to the Gulf Coast from the Permian Basin.
The 24-inch diameter system, which originates at Maypearl, TX, in Ellis County south of Fort Worth, extends south about 240 miles to Sweeny, in Brazoria County east of Houston. The system initially was designed to carry Barnett Shale gas volumes.
The restart is designed to facilitate more gas supply to be moved from the Permian’s twin sub-basins, the Delaware and the Midland. The pipeline is expected to resume service by mid-year, with ETP as operator, the partners said.
“Bringing the Old Ocean pipeline back into service will help meet the immediate demand for takeaway capacity from the growing Delaware Basin and Midland Basin,” said Enterprise’s Jim Teague, who is CEO of the general partner. “Old Ocean offers an efficient, timely, cost-effective and integrated solution that provides producers with flow assurance and access to the Gulf Coast.”
Both parties also are in the process of expanding their jointly owned North Texas Pipeline, a 36-inch diameter system, to provide more capacity from West Texas for deliveries into the Old Ocean system. The North Texas system is about 395 miles long, running from the Waha Hub in West Texas to the Carthage Hub in East Texas.
The North Texas Pipeline expansion project is expected to be complete by late this year.
“We are excited about this opportunity to work with Enterprise to provide much needed transportation capacity out of one of the most prolific and active basins in the world,” said ETP’s Mackie McCrea, group COO of the owner of the general partner.
http://www.naturalgasintel.com/articles/114266-enterprise-energy-transfer-to-restart-old-ocean-natural-gas-pipe-to-move-permian-volumes-south
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Lobbyist With Hand in Pruitt Trips Tied to Gas-Rich Nation
May 4, 2018 | E&E Greenwire
By Kevin Bogardus and Hannah Northey
The lobbyist who helped arrange EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt's trip to Morocco has another foreign client with natural gas interests, East Timor.
The global law firm DLA Piper hired Richard Smotkin last November as a subcontractor to work on representing the government of the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, otherwise known as East Timor, according to Justice Department records.
Smotkin's registration form, filed in March, says he'll help "advise and assist" the South Pacific nation's government in the United States "with respect to strengthening U.S.-Timorese bilateral relations." That could include contact with executive branch officials, members of Congress and their staff, as well as people and groups "involved in governmental or public policy matters."
East Timor became a sovereign state in 2002 after Indonesia relinquished control of the territory. The country already draws in revenue from fossil fuels, but it has been locked in negotiations with its southern neighbor, Australia, over an estimated $50 billion offshore oil and gas field.
Smotkin has ties to other foreign governments that have been linked to the EPA administrator as well.
Smotkin, a former Comcast lobbyist, is considered close to Pruitt and played a part in the EPA chief's visit to Morocco last December, which has drawn scrutiny partly because of the agency's promotion of liquefied natural gas imports on the trip. Smotkin later won a contract to represent the North African country (Greenwire, May 2).
A Comcast spokeswoman said Smotkin left the telecommunications giant in July 2017. He was based in Philadelphia as a senior vice president for government affairs. For Comcast, Smotkin worked with state and local intergovernmental associations, which is where he ran into Pruitt as Oklahoma attorney general.
It doesn't appear, however, that Smotkin has lobbied Pruitt or EPA on behalf of East Timor.
From the end of August 2017 to the end of February this year, which covers Smotkin's work with DLA Piper, the firm reported emails, phone calls and meetings with city and state representatives, lawmakers and congressional staff on Capitol Hill, as well as State Department officials. The subject of many of those contacts is described as "U.S. - Timorese bilateral relations." Not listed in the DLA Piper report is any contact with EPA officials by the firm on behalf of East Timor.
Asked if Smotkin contacted top agency officials, including Pruitt, as part of his lobbying work for East Timor, EPA spokesman Jahan Wilcox told E&E News, "No."
A DLA Piper spokesman declined to comment when contacted for this story.
E&E News could not reach Smotkin. The East Timor Embassy in Washington, D.C., didn't answer questions.
Records show that Smotkin was paid $20,000 this past February by the firm for his work on behalf of East Timor. He is still listed as an "active" foreign agent for the country in the Justice Department's database.
East Timor has been a lucrative client for DLA Piper. The country has paid the firm more than $3.2 million in fees and expenses for work from March 2017 to the end of this past February.
The bulk of that work, however, has been for "non-[Foreign Agents Registration Act] registerable activities," according to the firm. DLA Piper's latest report filed with Justice says that included $411,000 the firm spent for supporting East Timor's delegation at the U.N. General Assembly's opening session as well as helping with the country's maritime conciliation proceedings with Australia.Down Under
Like Pruitt's visit to Morocco, the administrator's canceled trip to Australia was to have included a stop at a LNG facility.
According to EPA emails won under Freedom of Information Act litigation by the Sierra Club, Smotkin was involved in planning for Pruitt's trip to Australia this past August, which was canceled as EPA grappled with last year's hurricane season.
According to a draft itinerary included in those documents, Pruitt was preparing to visit a zoo in Sydney before touring the Gladstone LNG facility in Queensland on Sept. 3, 2017, at the invitation of a ConocoPhillips executive. The Gladstone LNG facility taps into natural trapped in coal beds — gas that can be accessed by drilling or hydraulic fracturing — and liquefies it for export.
"Wendy King, Australian President for ConocoPhillips would like to bring Administrator Pruitt and members of his delegation to visit the LNG Plant in Gladstone," the email says.
"Visit would showcase the US-Australia relationship in developing gas as an export to the region/world."
Smotkin, according to the emails, worked with Matthew Freedman, CEO of the firm Global Impact Inc., and Pruitt's top aides to set up meetings in Australia. Freedman is also treasurer of the American Australian Council, a group whose members include ConocoPhillips, Chevron Corp., BHP and Lockheed Martin.
"Rick and I will attend and will be present but will not be listed as members of the delegation," Freedman said in one of the emails.
Wilcox with EPA said, "EPA's Office of International and Tribal Affairs organized and led the effort around Administrator Pruitt's trip to Australia.
"This trip was cancelled due to Hurricane Harvey, and it has not been rescheduled."LNG connections
Australia is currently in talks with East Timor on how to distribute revenues from offshore oil and gas development, discussions that are directly tied to a historic maritime treaty that was signed in March at U.N. headquarters in New York.
While it remains unclear what role, if any, Smotkin played in those negotiations, DLA Piper's legal team advised East Timor leading up to the agreement being forged.
Notably, the contract lays out Australia and East Timor's entitlement and ownership of the untapped Greater Sunrise Basin, an offshore tract in the Timor Sea reportedly holding more than $50 billion in gas.
But while the two countries agreed under the treaty to share upstream revenue from the offshore field, they failed to agree on exactly how to develop the site, and negotiations continue.
Partially driving the debate is that a coalition of companies hoping to tap the gas wants to use a floating liquefaction facility, technology the treaty didn't contemplate, said Nikos Tsafos, who researches energy at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington-based think tank.
While the East Timor government has asked for the gas to be brought ashore so its country can enjoy economic and financial knock-on effects, developers under the Sunrise Joint Venture — including Australia's largest independent oil and gas company, Woodside Energy Ltd., as well as ConocoPhillips, Royal Dutch Shell PLC and Osaka Gas Co. Ltd. — have proposed a floating facility given the site's distance from shore.
Whatever the outcome, Tsafos said it would take time to build the facility and hammer out the details.
"Realistically, it's a gas that even in the best of circumstances wouldn't show up for another five years in the Asian-Pacific market," he said.
https://www.eenews.net/greenwire/2018/05/04/stories/1060080879
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Auto Rule Rollback Could Boost U.S. Oil Use — Analysis
May 4, 2018 | E&E Energywire
By Jenny Mandel
Domestic oil consumption could go up somewhat if the Trump administration carries through on a proposal to freeze federal fuel economy standards at 2020 levels, according to a new analysis based on draft White House plans.
EPA formally launched a process this week to roll back fuel economy standards for cars built between 2022 and 2025, and officials have suggested there could be a reassessment of whether the standards for 2021 are achievable. The result could be an effective hold on an Obama-era increase of vehicle standards at the 2020 level for five years or longer (Climatewire, April 3).
If the corporate average fuel economy, or CAFE, standards are frozen at 2020 levels, domestic oil use would increase by 126,000 to 283,000 barrels per day in 2025 compared with the levels forecast under current policy, according to the Rhodium Group, a New York-based economic consulting firm.
That increase would amount to a jump of between 0.6 and 1.4 percent per day over current daily oil consumption. U.S. Energy Information Administration data show that the United States consumed just under 20 million barrels per day in 2017.
Rhodium's modeling suggests that if tougher post-2025 fuel economy standards are not implemented, domestic oil use would increase by 221,000 to 644,000 barrels per day by 2030, an increase of about 1 to 3 percent over current consumption rates.
The range of projections reflects uncertainty about future oil prices. When oil prices are low, U.S. consumers typically choose lower-efficiency vehicles, while higher prices push up the sales of high-efficiency vehicles and correspondingly reduce fuel use.
An increase in domestic oil consumption causes a corresponding increase in greenhouse gas emissions. Rhodium projects that a fuel efficiency freeze would increase U.S. carbon emissions by 0.3 to 0.7 percent in 2025 compared with base projections.
In its report, Rhodium explains that low oil prices slow fleetwide fuel economy improvements as consumers turn to larger cars, forcing auto companies to take more aggressive steps to comply with federal fuel efficiency standards.
"That is one reason auto companies are pushing now to weaken the standards," the group wrote. "With lower oil prices, the standards are now beginning to bind."
https://www.eenews.net/energywire/2018/05/04/stories/1060080821
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Don't Eat the Fish, Minn. Warns, After 3M Contaminated Lake
May 4, 2018 | St. Paul Pioneer Press (In E&E Greenwire)
By Bob Shaw
Minnesota health officials warned yesterday against eating any fish from Lake Elmo near St. Paul after decades of water pollution by 3M Co.
It's the first time the state Department of Health has issued a total ban on fish from one of the state's more than 1,400 lakes.
The fish, officials said, contain dangerously high levels of perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), which 3M used for years to make nonstick cookware and firefighting foam.
Officials also issued tough fish-eating restrictions for four other lakes and parts of the Mississippi River.
3M settled with Minnesota earlier this year for $850 million over claims of water pollution spanning 50 years (Greenwire, Feb. 21).
Lake Elmo Mayor Mike Pearson wants his town to get its share of that money as soon as possible.
"This is certainly a problem," he said. "It is discomforting to the whole city, and fishermen in particular."
https://www.eenews.net/greenwire/2018/05/04/stories/1060080861
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Conn. Mulls Cyber Audits in 'Action Plan'
May 4, 2018 | E&E Greenwire
By Blake Sobczak
Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy (D) unveiled a "cybersecurity action plan" yesterday that raises the prospect of mandatory cybersecurity checks for businesses in the state.
"Skepticism that voluntary solutions will work is warranted," the plan states. "Absent dramatically changed attitudes and organized efforts to create effective defense, the next step should be a system of required audits similar to financial audits."
Malloy described the plan as a "collaborative" effort aimed at giving companies in the state a competitive edge. "Cyber intrusion threatens state and municipal government, every person, every business, and every organization in Connecticut," he said in a statement.
The action plan doesn't call for audits outright but urges businesses and agencies in the state to shore up cyberdefenses voluntarily through greater awareness, "cyber literacy," response plans and better communication. The report also includes recommendations for building out Connecticut's cybersecurity workforce.
The plan leaves the door open for binding regulations if businesses fail to prove their cyber readiness. The document paints the risk of online attacks in unusually stark terms, warning towns to gird for "a prolonged absence of public utility services."
"Connecticut municipalities need to prepare for the consequences of long outages" following a cyberattack, the plan says. "Challenges could include heating or cooling shelters, requirement for extended first-responder duty, food, water and medicine shortages and public order disruptions."
Arthur House, Connecticut's chief cybersecurity risk officer and one of the plan's authors, said the goal was not to harp on potential gaps at the state's power utilities.
He said a voluntary threat information-sharing program with electric, gas and water utilities — one of the first of its kind in the U.S. — has yielded promising results (Energywire, Oct. 13, 2017).
"We are convinced, at least at present, that the utilities are taking [cybersecurity] seriously," he said in an interview. He added that the audit idea, if it gained traction among state legislators, would be aimed at private businesses that have not developed a cybersecurity plan and don't now take steps to do so.
"Are you going to cooperate like the utilities are — or if not, how do we as a community know that you're taking this seriously?" asked House, who formerly served as Connecticut's top utility regulator.
State governors and utility regulators across the country have grappled with emerging cyberthreats to critical infrastructure such as the power grid and gas pipeline infrastructure. At the federal level, the Department of Homeland Security offers tips and assistance to private companies and recently warned about an ongoing, Kremlin-backed hacking campaign aimed at nuclear power plants, critical manufacturers and aviation firms, among others (Energywire, March 16).
Squaring off against such sophisticated threats can be a tall order for small utilities or local governments.
"People say cybersecurity is a national security issue — 'we're not fighting the Russians right here in Bolton, Connecticut. ... We're not in charge of that,'" said House. "Well, in effect, you are. Emergency response in the U.S. is still very much a state and local government responsibility."
https://www.eenews.net/energywire/2018/05/04/stories/1060080811
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North Korea Cyberthreats Persist Despite Diplomatic Thaw
May 4, 2018 | E&E Energywire
By Blake Sobczak
Thailand authorities last week seized a computer server tied to North Korean hackers. The same digital thruway, based in Thammasat University in Bangkok, cropped up when investigators looked into the massive cyberattack on Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc. that the U.S. government traced to Pyongyang, North Korea.
The fact that the "command and control" server reappeared in a new set of online intrusions this year points to an unusually persistent threat — one that experts say is unlikely to go away despite diplomatic progress on the Korean Peninsula.
Still, analysis of the server could unlock secrets of one of the most prolific and brazen hacking groups active worldwide, posing a major setback to a threat homeland security officials have named "Hidden Cobra."
"I'm delighted that it happened. We may well get more intelligence from that particular forensic investigation," said Raj Samani, chief scientist at cybersecurity firm McAfee Inc., who has tracked a new bout of suspected Hidden Cobra activity dubbed "Operation GhostSecret." The server, he said, acts as a sort of "puppet master" controlling other systems the hackers have managed to compromise, including victims in critical infrastructure industries.
The GhostSecret campaign does not appear to be aimed at disrupting infrastructure, Samani said, instead snooping on Turkish banks and global telecommunications firms, among other targets. But the hackers behind the series of cyber intrusions are unusually bold, he said.
"We sounded the alarm on March 8," Samani said, referring to a blog post outing some of the hackers' activity. "It's like they carried on with impunity, shrugged their shoulders and actually broadened the campaign."
McAfee has stopped short of tying Operation GhostSecret to North Korea, citing uncertainties in attributing cyberattacks back to specific nations.
The U.S. government has been less shy, explicitly linking Hidden Cobra to the North Korean government in a series of alerts dating back to last June.
The group draws on a range of hacking tools, from "keyloggers" that record every stroke of a victim's keyboard to "distributed denial of service" attacks that flood target networks with web traffic, according to the Department of Homeland Security and the FBI. Hidden Cobra has occasionally dusted off the "wiper" tools that made part of the Sony Pictures attack so devastating by deleting critical files, turning infected computers into expensive bricks.
"They're capable of messing stuff up if they want to," said Ben Read, senior manager for cyber espionage analysis at the cybersecurity firm FireEye Inc., who has tracked various North Korean hacking groups under names like Lazarus and APT37.
The latter group — distinct from Hidden Cobra — has trained its focus on various industries in South Korea, Japan, Vietnam and the Middle East, according to FireEye.
Last fall, FireEye warned that hackers likely affiliated with North Korea had sent "spear phishing" emails to U.S. electric utilities on Sept. 22, trying to dupe users into opening a door into their organizations.
Read said FireEye had not seen similar grid-focused activity from the group since then, noting that suspected North Korean groups have preferred to target banks, or look to steal or mine cryptocurrency.
But he cautioned he could not rule out the risk.
"They have a history of pushing norms, because of some of the destructive attacks they've done," he said.Cooling tensions
Late last year, the Trump administration pinned the devastating "WannaCry" ransomware attack on North Korea, lambasting the Kim Jong Un regime's history of "egregious" behavior in cyberspace (Energywire, Dec. 19, 2017). The WannaCry worm quickly spread into vital computer systems at U.K. hospitals, locking them up and demanding an online ransom payment to release the files. The May 2017 attack caused billions of dollars in damages, according to U.S. officials.
North Korean hackers are also thought to have broken into the corporate networks of nuclear power plants in South Korea, and multiple cybersecurity companies have tracked malicious activity aimed at other utilities in South Korea.
Could there be a threat to U.S. critical infrastructure? The answer may lie deep within the isolated and inscrutable ranks of North Korea's ruling elite.
"The decision for nation-states to use cyber activity in a disruptive or destructive manner is still almost a political decision, not a technical one," Read noted.
Recent political breakthroughs on the Korean Peninsula may cause North Korea to hold off from launching any devastating cyberattacks, experts say, though there are no guarantees.
Late last month, Kim met South Korean President Moon Jae-in at the border between the two nations, setting foot in South Korea for the first time to kick off negotiations to stop North Korea's nuclear program and formally bring an end to the decades-old Korean War.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who held secret meetings with Kim earlier this year while serving as director of the CIA, said this week that "we have an unprecedented opportunity to change the course of history on the Korean Peninsula."
"We're in the beginning stages of the work, and the outcome is certainly yet unknown," Pompeo said, adding that "our eyes are wide open."
So far, North Korea has stayed away from nuclear tests in recent months as negotiations have unfolded. But Pyongyang may still be tempted to amp up cyber espionage amid the meetings.
"There is still potential for offensive cyber activity," said Adam Meyers, vice president of intelligence at the cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike. North Korean cyber espionage "is currently focusing on targets in South Korea," he added in an email, particularly aimed at "intelligence pertaining to the ongoing and future negotiations."
North Korea has also heavily invested to become a significant power in the cybersecurity arena and may not want to tap the brakes on those capabilities even if it achieves peace with the South.
"It's unlikely that you'll see anything lead to a cessation of traditional espionage in the cyber realm," Read said.
https://www.eenews.net/energywire/2018/05/04/stories/1060080817
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The Reason for That Black Smoke in NYC: Dirty Oil Boilers
May 4, 2018 | The New York Times (In E&E Greenwire)
By Jonathan Wolfe
Heating oil is the cause of black plumes of smoke periodically seen leaving New York City apartment buildings.
Many Big Apple buildings depend on large boilers for heat. Pollution from these boilers is one of the main contributors to bad air quality in the city, along with car emissions, according to the New York state health department.
About 2,000 New York City residents die every year from air pollution. The city has forced 5,300 buildings to upgrade to slightly less harmful heating oils since 2011.
Those smoke plumes probably come from boilers that need repairs or that had been switched off for a while, said city Department of Environmental Protection spokesman Edward Timbers.
New York state air scientist John Kent said a cold spring and current record-breaking heat mean especially bad air quality this spring. The city has already declared two air quality advisory days.
https://www.eenews.net/greenwire/2018/05/04/stories/1060080843
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