Preview Newsletter
AM ACC Clips Report - December 6, 2018
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(ACC Mentioned) US Chemical Growth Continues Despite Global Slowdown - ACC
Dec 5, 2018 | ICIS
US manufacturing and export growth will continue to drive demand for basic and specialty chemicals, even as major economies slow and the “synchronised global upswing” unravels, the US American Chemistry Council (ACC) said on Wednesday. -
(ACC Mentioned) Chemical Makers See Aerospace Rebound Offsetting Auto Slowdown
Dec 5, 2018 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Jack Kaskey
U.S. chemical makers are counting on surging growth in aerospace to boost demand for their products next year as other big customers slump under trade disputes and a slowdown in autos. -
(ACC Mentioned) Stakeholders Divided Over 'Binning' TSCA Inventory
Dec 6, 2018 | Chemical Watch
By Kelly Franklin
Industry groups and the consumer advocacy community are at odds over whether the US EPA’s proposed ‘binning’ of substances on the TSCA inventory for prioritisation is the correct approach. -
(ACC Mentioned) US EPA Withdraws Rulemaking For 26 Snurs
Dec 6, 2018 | Chemical Watch
The US EPA has withdrawn a direct final rule covering 26 TSCA significant new use rules (Snurs) due to adverse comments. -
EPA Issues TSCA ‘Not Likely’ Findings For Seven Substances
Dec 6, 2018 | Chemical Watch
The US EPA has determined that seven substances are not likely to pose an unreasonable risk to human or environmental health, following evaluation under the TSCA new chemicals programme. -
(ACC Mentioned) North American Trade Deal Backs Risk-Based Approach To Chemicals Regulation
Dec 6, 2018 | Chemical Watch
By Lisa Martine Jenkins
The US, Mexico and Canada have signed a final trade agreement that backs a risk-based approach to regulating chemicals and calls for regulatory alignment among the North American nations. -
(ACC Mentioned) On The Level Of Contamination Of The Pool The Smell Of Chlorine Indicates
Dec 5, 2018 | The Koz Week
There is a widespread view that a clean swimming pool smell of chlorine. However, the tabloid denies it, saying that the isolation of man, whether in silence or sweat, provoking a chemical reaction smell “chlorine”. -
Air Force Chemicals Polluting Water Near Dairies, New Mexico Says (1)
Dec 6, 2018 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Brenna Goth
New Mexico environment officials will try to force the U.S. Air Force to quickly come up with a plan to address chemicals left in the groundwater from firefighting foam used at a base near dairy farms. -
Echa Updates Brexit REACH Q&A Webpage
Dec 6, 2018 | Chemical Watch
Echa has updated its webpage providing advice for companies once the UK withdraws from the EU on 29 March next year. -
Australia Should Ban Firefighting Foams With Certain PFAS, Report Says
Dec 5, 2018 | Chemical & Engineering News
By Cheryl Hogue
Australia’s government should ban the use of firefighting foams that contain certain per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and collect and destroy remaining stocks of such foams, a report from Parliament recommends. -
Analysts Warn Industry To Prepare For Volatility
Dec 6, 2018 | E&E Energywire
By Nathanial Gronewold
Analysts expect the global market for liquefied natural gas to enter a transition period beginning next fall, as abundance is expected to turn into a shortfall. -
Slump Deepens As Schlumberger Walks Oil 'Tightrope'
Dec 6, 2018 | Bloomberg (In E&E Energywire)
By David Wethe
The North American fracking market — already expected to be a downer for the holidays — is turning out to be even worse than expected, according to the world's biggest oil-service provider. -
Chemical Safety Board Asks for Combustible Dust Input
Dec 5, 2018 | EHS Today
By Stefanie Valentic
A comprehensive combustible dust standard still does not exists, and the Chemical Safety Board (CSB) is seeking further input to put one in place. -
Bill Would Set Aside $10M For Cyber Safety Training
Dec 6, 2018 | E&E Energywire
By Blake Sobczak
Two House lawmakers are pushing to fund cybersecurity education for students seeking jobs in critical infrastructure sectors like energy and water. -
New York Pushes EPA on Unhealthy Air from Upwind States
Dec 5, 2018 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Erik Larson
New York and New Jersey asked a judge to let them join a lawsuit that seeks to force the Trump administration to cut pollution blowing into the region from upwind states that they say is largely responsible for unhealthy levels of ground-level ozone, or smog. -
EPA Poised To Issue Final CSAPR 'Close-Out' Rule
Dec 5, 2018 | Inside EPA
EPA is poised to issue its final rule to “close-out” the Cross State Air Pollution Rule (CSAPR) nitrogen oxides and sulfur dioxide emissions trading program, after the White House Office of Management & Budget (OMB) on Dec. 4 completed its review of the rule -- the last major step before the agency can publish it in the Federal Register. -
Pollution Linked to Climate Change Kills 7 Million a Year: Report
Dec 5, 2018 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Bobby Magill
About 7 million people are dying annually because of air pollution that contributes to climate change, according to a World Health Organization report published Dec. 5. -
Investors Press Oil Industry to Oppose Trump Methane Rollbacks
Dec 6, 2018 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By David Wethe
Exxon Mobil Corp., Chevron Corp., and BP Plc are being pressed by investors with $1.9 trillion in assets under management to resist the Trump administration’s efforts to roll back Obama-era methane rules. -
Advanced Economies Increased CO2 Emissions in 2018 After Five-Year Decline, Says IEA
Dec 6, 2018 | Natural Gas Intelligence
By Jeremiah Shelor
As world leaders gather in Poland this week to address climate change, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said the world’s advanced economies are on track to increase carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions this year, breaking a five-year run of declines, driven in part by higher oil and gas consumption. -
Senate Braces For 'Green New Deal' Fervor
Dec 6, 2018 | E&E Daily
By Geof Koss and Nick Sobczyk,
The 116th Congress doesn't start for another month, but senators from both parties are already calculating the legislative impact from a renewed focus on climate change that will accompany the incoming House Democratic majority.
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(ACC Mentioned) US Chemical Growth Continues Despite Global Slowdown - ACC
Dec 5, 2018 | ICIS
HOUSTON (ICIS)--US manufacturing and export growth will continue to drive demand for basic and specialty chemicals, even as major economies slow and the “synchronised global upswing” unravels, the US American Chemistry Council (ACC) said on Wednesday.
“Expansion across a broad band of industrial sectors is supporting American economic growth this year,” said Kevin Swift, chief economist at the ACC and co-author of the trade group’s “Year-End 2018 Chemical Industry Situation and Outlook.”
“In 2019, industrial activity will expand, but the slowdown overseas is likely to affect the US, and rising trade tensions present a risk of economic disruption,” he added.
The following table shows ACC’s estimates for US chemical production growth:201820192020Total excluding pharmaceuticals3.1%3.6%3.1%Basic chemicals2.1%4.8%4.3%Specialty chemicals3.7%2.2%1.6%
The US continues to have a cost advantage from abundant energy and feedstock supplies, leading to 333 announced projects valued at $202bn since 2010.
Stronger export markets and higher business investment spending have boosted demand for chemical end-markets. Light vehicle sales remain elevated, while housing activity is improving.
Specialty chemical demand has expanded, with improvements in oilfield chemicals, electronic chemicals, coatings, adhesives, cosmetic chemicals, and flavours and fragrances.
According to the ACC, US chemical industry will have a $39bn trade surplus in 2018, with exports rising by 10% to $143bn and imports rising by 7.8% to $105bn.
With no major trade disruptions, there will be a $69bn trade surplus in chemicals by 2023.
“American chemistry is set for significant growth in output as new production capacity comes online and demand strengthens in key end-use markets,” said Martha Moore, senior director of policy analysis and economics at ACC and co-author of the Outlook.
“Provided that access to export markets remains open to our producers, expanding global demand will be met by shale-advantaged chemistry sourced from the US,” she added.
The US chemical industry is a $526bn business, accounting for more than 10% of all US exports and 12% of the world’s chemicals, the ACC said.
https://www.icis.com/explore/resources/news/2018/12/05/10291260/us-chemical-growth-continues-despite-global-slowdown-acc/
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(ACC Mentioned) Chemical Makers See Aerospace Rebound Offsetting Auto Slowdown
Dec 5, 2018 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Jack Kaskey
U.S. chemical output to accelerate in 2019, industry group saysPlastics to rebound even as trade disputes diminish outlook
U.S. chemical makers are counting on surging growth in aerospace to boost demand for their products next year as other big customers slump under trade disputes and a slowdown in autos.
More travelers are taking to the skies, prompting jetmakers such as Boeing Co. and Airbus SE to crank up production of their single-aisle jetliners, which means a growing need for plastics, coatings, and other materials. Meanwhile, automakers will see sales of light vehicles drop by 1.8 percent next year on slowing demand from China, according to the American Chemistry Council, an industry group.
With aerospace offsetting the weakness from autos and the effects of tariffs, chemical production will accelerate next year by 3.6 percent after a 3.1 percent gain this year, the council reported. Plastics and rubber output will rise 2.9 percent after a flat year in 2018.
The chemical industry is finishing a streak of new domestic factories that will take advantage of cheap U.S. natural gas, with much of the new capacity aimed at export markets. A $39 billion U.S. trade surplus for the industry this year will climb to $69 billion by 2023, barring major trade disruptions, according to the report. But slowing overseas markets and trade tensions with China and other countries could disrupt that outlook, Kevin Swift, the council’s chief economist, said on a call with reporters.
Clouded Outlook“Trade introduces a lot of uncertainty,” Martha Moore, ACC senior director of policy analysis and economics, said on the call. “Expectations have diminished some.”
A rise in interest rates for U.S. car buyers is contributing to a slowdown in sales. Every vehicle requires more than $3,250 worth of chemical products to manufacture, according to the ACC. But those lost sales will be more than made up for by a surge in jet manufacturing, which is slated to expand 4.3 percent in 2019 and 6 percent in 2020, the ACC said.
https://news.bloombergenvironment.com/environment-and-energy/chemicalmakers-see-aerospace-rebound-offsetting-auto-slowdown
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(ACC Mentioned) Stakeholders Divided Over 'Binning' TSCA Inventory
Dec 6, 2018 | Chemical Watch
By Kelly Franklin
Industry groups and the consumer advocacy community are at odds over whether the US EPA’s proposed ‘binning’ of substances on the TSCA inventory for prioritisation is the correct approach.
The comments have come in response to the EPA’s ‘working approach’ for prioritising substances for risk evaluation, which lays out both a short- and long-term plan. As laid out in the agency’s white paper, the latter calls for 'binning' the active substances on the TSCA inventory based on such criteria as their hazards, exposures and information availability. And then setting aside those groups that are unlikely to contain candidates for high-priority designation.
But while several stakeholders objected to the potentially resource-intensive process, a range of industry groups and animal rights advocates welcomed it.
"Batching of candidates for prioritisation would allow EPA to plan its TSCA regulatory agenda year to year," said the American Chemistry Council.
"It would give stakeholders the opportunity for meaningful comment on potential candidates as well as time to gather reasonably available information on the potential hazards and potential exposures of the batched candidate chemicals," it added.
The US Chamber of Commerce said there is likely to be 40,000 chemicals on the TSCA active inventory to address, and "adjusting EPA’s long-term approach to more proactively address high-priority chemicals is a step in the right direction".
Speciality chemicals group Socma added that while it is not exactly in line with Canada’s Chemicals Management Plan, the EPA’s "shares the principal virtue of the CMP’s approach, which was to evaluate and express at least an initial view regarding the risks posed by all chemicals in commerce".
The Humane Society said the process "seems overall reasonable".
"Narrowing down the list of tens of thousands of chemicals covered by TSCA to a more manageable number makes sense in terms of agency workload and resources, as only those chemicals with higher hazard relative to exposure or those needing more information for decision making would move forward to further evaluation," the society said.NGOs, academics question approach
Other stakeholders, however, objected to the approach and called for its abandonment.
The Environmental Working Group, Natural Resources Defense Council and Earthjustice said in joint comments that the binning process is "poorly conceived, unnecessary to implement TSCA and unlikely to produce meaningful, science-based categorisations of chemicals based on potential risk".
The groups joined other commenters in flagging up that the approach is "extremely resource-intensive" and may siphon focus away from other TSCA programmes.
The Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) added that there is no statutory basis or need for the EPA to create a new mechanism to "‘set aside chemicals as ‘not containing candidates for high-priority designation’".
Congress addressed the issue by creating a process for designating chemicals as low priority, the EDF said. The EPA cannot put together an alternative process that "lacks all of the statutory criteria and protections designed to govern" it.
Meanwhile, a group of scientists and academics, including several from the University of California’s programme on reproductive health and the environment, said that relying on exposure from current usage patterns is problematic for prioritisation purposes, because "production volumes and uses of chemicals can and do rapidly change".
Several of these commenters encouraged the EPA to rely on its TSCA workplan methodology to identify and focus on the substances with the greatest potential risk to the health and the environment.Other issues
Those who commented touched on issues including data generation, the designation of low-priority substances and the grouping of similar substances.
There was broad support for the EPA to open public dockets to allow for data submissions on the 73 remaining workplan chemicals, as well as for information on other substances.
But joint comments from the EWG, NRDC and Earthjustice accused the EPA of "paying lip service" to the need for sufficient data before beginning risk evaluations, even while the agency has "consistently been unwilling to use its streamlined TSCA information collection and development authorities under the new law".
"If EPA is serious about data-rich risk evaluations, it must establish a credible process for identifying and filling data gaps on workplan (and other) chemicals moving forward."
Meanwhile, the Downstream Users Coalition – representing trade groups covering paper, plastic, toys, tyres, and automotive equipment – requested that the EPA provide dates for when it plans to conduct reviews. Such a practice is in keeping with programmes in the EU and Canada, said the group, and will "build confidence throughout the broader stakeholder community … in relying on EPA’s process to produce timely chemical reviews".
Concerns were also raised around grouping chemicals for evaluation. The Fragrance Creators Association said that past attempts to group similar substances – such as in the TSCA section 6 ruleto address paint strippers containing methylene chloride and NMP – have "proven problematic for the agency".
The ACC’s High Phthalates Panel protested about the evaluation of workplan chemicals DINP and DIDP as part of a group-based review of phthalates.
Several groups also made suggestions around the designation of low-priority substances and where the EPA should source candidates for these.
https://chemicalwatch.com/72587/stakeholders-divided-over-binning-tsca-inventory
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(ACC Mentioned) US EPA Withdraws Rulemaking For 26 Snurs
Dec 6, 2018 | Chemical Watch
The US EPA has withdrawn a direct final rule covering 26 TSCA significant new use rules (Snurs) due to adverse comments.
The rules were initially issued on 3 October under both a proposed and a direct final rule. The latter was set to take effect from 3 December, but the agency will now address the substances through the normal rulemaking process.
The Snurs, which address a range of substance including several polymers and a carbon nanomaterial, received several critical comments.
In line with concerns raised on other recent Snurs, the Environmental Defense Fund said, among other issues, that the agency has deviated from its persistent, bioaccumulative and toxic (PBT) new chemical testing policy, and accused them of instituting an ad hoc testing policy change "without acknowledging it has done so".
The Physicians Committee for Responsible for Medicine (PCRM) also reiterated concerns raised on previous Snurs regarding proposed manufacturing prohibitions beyond specified time or volume limits for seven substances, unless vertebrate animal testing is conducted.
The American Chemistry Council's (ACC) diisocyanates and aliphatic diisocyanates panels also weighed in on two Snurs addressing isocyanate-based polymers or prepolymers.
The trade group flagged up that the EPA appeared to be basing its proposals on potential risk stemming from the substances’ use in mixtures with excess or residual isocyanate monomers. And it questioned whether the agency was attempting to use its Snur authority to address ongoing uses of those existing chemicals.Rulemaking process
Direct final rules can be used to move forward non-controversial regulations on an expedited timeline. But if they are met with significant adverse comment, the EPA must withdraw them and start the proposed rulemaking process.
In this case, the EPA issued the 26 Snurs both under a simultaneous direct final and proposed rule. As a result, both comment periods concluded on 2 November.
The agency took a similar approach on several recent batches of Snurs: 145 on 1 August, 27 on 17 August, 29 on 27 August, and 28 on 17 September. But it has subsequently withdrawn each of those direct final rules in response to adverse comments.
A final batch of substances issued through both a proposal and a direct final rule – 28 on 10 October – has also met adverse comment and is likely to see a similar withdrawal notice in the coming weeks.
The agency’s issued its two most recent Snur batches, including for 13 proposed in the absence of a consent order, through a proposed rule only.
https://chemicalwatch.com/72589/us-epa-withdraws-rulemaking-for-26-snurs
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EPA Issues TSCA ‘Not Likely’ Findings For Seven Substances
Dec 6, 2018 | Chemical Watch
The US EPA has determined that seven substances are not likely to pose an unreasonable risk to human or environmental health, following evaluation under the TSCA new chemicals programme.
These TSCA 5(a)(C)(3) determinations were made between 20 November and 29 November. They will allow each of the substances to come to market without restriction.P-18-0279, P-18-0147 and P-18-0136
In all three reviews, the EPA determined that the substances could be very persistent, but have a low potential for bioaccumulation, so repeated exposures are not expected to be cumulative. It therefore made a ‘not likely’ determination for:a polymer intended to be used as a UV curable coating resin applied via roll coating. According to the EPA’s evaluation, it has low environmental hazard. It was evaluated for the potential health hazards of irritation and sensitisation, but the agency determined that worker exposure can be controlled through the use of personal protective equipment (PPE). There are no expected consumer exposures;a polymer intended for use in photolithography. The substance has low environmental hazard, and was evaluated for its potential to cause irritation.The EPA found it to have potential risks for workers through dermal exposure, but said that risk can be controlled through PPE. There are no expected consumer exposures; anda substance used primarily as a coloring agent. It has a moderate environmental hazard, and the potential for systemic toxicity from repeated exposures. It was not, however, assessed for its exposure to workers or consumers because the form in which the new chemical substance is imported and handled prevents exposure, according to the EPA’s review.P-17-0382
The substance – amides, tallow, N,N-bis(2-hydroxypropyl) – is used as a friction modifier for automotive lubricant, mainly for passenger vehicles; its pre-manufacture notice (PMN) says that it is used at less than 3% in formulations. The EPA determined that the substance could be persistent, but has a low potential for bioaccumulation.
The risk assessment identified a high environmental hazard, and the potential for human health hazards including sensitisation, liver and spleen effects. Based on its surfactant properties, there are concerns for lung effects if the substance is inhaled. The risks to workers are from dermal exposure, but the EPA determined these could be controlled through PPE such as impervious gloves. No consumer exposures are expected.P-18-0054 and P-18-0078
Both substances are manufactured for use in paint, consistent with the polymer exemption criteria under TSCA. Evaluated considering this exemption, both were found to be very persistent but still unlikely to present unreasonable risk, given their low potential for bioaccumulation.
The EPA found no potential human health concerns, and no unreasonable risk to either workers or consumers.P-18-0261
The EPA determined that the confidential substance – used as a polymer composite additive – was moderately persistent, but has a low potential for bioaccumulation, so repeated exposure is not expected to be cumulative.
The risk assessment identified moderate environmental hazard. Considering its estimated physical and chemical properties, the evaluation looked at pulmonary effects, but found that it is unlikely to present unreasonable risk under the proposed conditions of use.
Worker exposure to the substance, mostly through inhalation, could be controlled through the use of PPE with a respirator, and there were no expected consumer exposures, according to the EPA’s finding.
https://chemicalwatch.com/72590/epa-issues-tsca-not-likely-findings-for-seven-substances
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(ACC Mentioned) North American Trade Deal Backs Risk-Based Approach To Chemicals Regulation
Dec 6, 2018 | Chemical Watch
By Lisa Martine Jenkins
The US, Mexico and Canada have signed a final trade agreement that backs a risk-based approach to regulating chemicals and calls for regulatory alignment among the North American nations.
If approved by each of the nations’ respective legislatures, this United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement (USMCA) will replace the North American Free Trade Agreement (Nafta) that has linked North American regulation and trade since 1993.
This final USMCA – like an initial agreement on 30 September – retains a sectoral annex for chemical substances that balances protecting human and environmental health with avoiding unnecessary impediments to economic growth or technological innovation.
It highlights a risk-based approach to regulating chemical substances and mixtures, and encourages the US, Mexico and Canada to align their respective risk assessment and management methodologies where possible.
The American Chemistry Council said it supports the goals of the sectoral annex. It "embraces the principles the North American chemical industry jointly recommended to enhance regulatory cooperation," the trade group said.
The USMCA – which US President Donald Trump calls "the most modern, up-to-date, and balanced trade agreement in the history of our country" – was officially signed 30 November, just one day before Mexico’s new president Andrés Manuel López Obrador took office. Mr Obrador reportedly worked closely on the agreement, though his predecessor Enrique Peña Nieto was the one to sign it.Next steps
The trade agreement, however, will not enter into force until ratified by each of the nations.
In the US, the Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) has outlined the next steps for the USMCA, which includes waiting for a report from the US International Trade Commission (ITC) and a congressional review of the president’s draft statement of administration action and of the agreement itself.
The House Ways and Means Committee and the Senate Finance Committee may provide feedback to the administration in the drafting of the final bill. The president is not expected to send the final bill to Congress until the end of the first quarter of 2019.
Its passage, too, faces potential headwinds. House Democrats will have more power in the new Congress, and they have expressed concern that the labour and environmental provisions in USMCA could be stronger.
Meanwhile, there are some concerns that Mr Trump will disband NAFTA in the months before USMCA is ratified, as he reportedly indicated just one day after signing the latter. Doing so would pressure Congress to approve the new trade deal, giving them the choice between USMCA or a return to pre-NAFTA conditions.
Rick Helfenbein, president and CEO of the American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAFA), cautioned the Trump administration that terminating NAFTA prior to the ratification of USMCA would cause industry uncertainty.
"It is essential for the new agreement to be implemented seamlessly, so that our businesses can learn the new rules and have time to adjust our supply chains to take advantage of the deal," he said.Trilateral environmental cooperation agreement
Also on 30 November, the US, Mexico and Canada finalised negotiations on a new Agreement on Environmental Cooperation (ECA), which will take effect upon entry into force of the USMCA.
Its section on reducing pollution and creating resilient economies addresses "the sound management of chemicals and waste"
The agreement formalises trilateral cooperation on environmental protection and conservation broadly. If adopted, it will supersede the North American Agreement on Environmental Cooperation.
https://chemicalwatch.com/72526/north-american-trade-deal-backs-risk-based-approach-to-chemicals-regulation
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(ACC Mentioned) On The Level Of Contamination Of The Pool The Smell Of Chlorine Indicates
Dec 5, 2018 | The Koz Week
There is a widespread view that a clean swimming pool smell of chlorine. However, the tabloid denies it, saying that the isolation of man, whether in silence or sweat, provoking a chemical reaction smell “chlorine”.
Chlorine, purifying the water from microbes, produces two substances – hypochlorite ion and hypochlorous acid. Experts note that the characteristic smell of swimming pools is not chlorine, but chloramine, which also performs the function of disinfection.
As representatives of the American chemistry Council, the concentration of chloramines increases if the water is not subjected to deep cleaning.
In this regard, the experts recommend not to neglect the sign notifying people of the need to take a shower before swimming. Observing this simple rule, persons by their participation minimizes the production of chlorine bleach.
Earlier it became known that hand dryers that people use in public places, transmit the bacteria. This is due to the fact that the hands are not cleaned properly and after they are put under a warm stream of air.
https://kozweek.com/on-the-level-of-contamination-of-the-pool-the-smell-of-chlorine-indicates/22814/
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Air Force Chemicals Polluting Water Near Dairies, New Mexico Says (1)
Dec 6, 2018 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Brenna Goth
Canon Air Force Base previously used firefighting foam with PFAS
Local dairies affected by water contamination, state says
New Mexico environment officials will try to force the U.S. Air Force to quickly come up with a plan to address chemicals left in the groundwater from firefighting foam used at a base near dairy farms.
The New Mexico Environment Department, which announced notice of violation Dec. 4, said Cannon Air Force Base in Curry County is violating state water protections by failing to address its previous use of per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS. Concentrations of the group of chemicals in groundwater at and around the base are high after the Air Force used them for decades during firefighting and training events.
Researchers are still determining the impact of PFAS exposure on human health, but the New Mexico notice of violation requires action now. The Air Force must identify short-term mitigation measures for dairies in the area affected by the water contamination and consider installing water treatment systems for contaminated wells.
The notice of violation is a way to hold the Air Force accountable after months of back-and-forth about the situation, Bruce Yurdin, deputy secretary of the New Mexico Environment Department, told Bloomberg Environment. The department is concerned a plume is heading off the base and could impact residents and dairies in the area, he said.
Air Force representatives didn’t immediately respond to Bloomberg Environment’s requests for comment.
Local DairiesThe environment department could fine the Air Force $15,000 a day per violation if the agency doesn’t comply with the mitigation measures. The violation notice comes after the Air Force Civil Engineer Center sampled drinking water sources for contamination earlier this year and found places where concentrations exceeded EPA advisory levels of 70 parts per trillion.
According to the violation notice, the Air Force hasn’t fully identified the extent of the groundwater contamination near the base. The risk is PFAS in irrigation water can end up in crops, livestock, and eventually humans who consume meat or dairy, it said.
The notice of violation is the department’s latest attempt at compelling the Air Force to test to see where the plume is headed and implement interim measures, Yurdin said. The picture that emerged from the Air Force’s original testing “has changed a bit,” he said.
State agencies recommended earlier this year that residents and businesses with wells near the base use bottled water.
Some of the affected wells supply local dairies with drinking water, state agencies said. The New Mexico Department of Agriculture asked the Food and Drug Administration to determine the possibility of health impacts and set a limit for PFAS in dairy products.
The Dairy Producers of New Mexico and the Clovis & Curry County Chamber of Commerce didn’t immediately respond to Bloomberg Environment’s request for comment.
https://news.bloombergenvironment.com/environment-and-energy/air-force-chemicals-polluting-water-near-dairies-new-mexico-says-1
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Echa Updates Brexit REACH Q&A Webpage
Dec 6, 2018 | Chemical Watch
Echa has updated its webpage providing advice for companies once the UK withdraws from the EU on 29 March next year.
The change comes ahead of the agency’s plan in January to provide technical guidance for UK-based companies on how to notify Echa through REACH-IT of changes related to appointing an only representative (OR) based in one of the remaining EU27 member states.
The updated answers are for the following questions concerning REACH:Can my UK-based company set up a company on paper only in an EU27 member state and transfer its registrations there?Can my company, which is a UK-based manufacturer or formulator, transfer its REACH registration to an OR within the EU27/EEA? How can my company do this prior to the UK withdrawal to avoid our registration being voided as non-existent when the withdrawal occurs? And;can my company, which is a UK-based manufacturer or formulator, transfer its REACH authorisation (or its application for authorisation) to an OR within the EU27/EEA? How can my company do this prior to the UK withdrawal to avoid this being voided as non-existent when the UK withdrawal takes effect?
The UK government recently published additional guidance on UK REACH in the event Britain leaves the EU on 29 March without a deal.
It follows the agreement in principle between the two sides of terms set out in the withdrawal agreement, as well as the draft political declaration of 22 November.
https://chemicalwatch.com/72616/echa-updates-brexit-reach-qa-webpage
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Australia Should Ban Firefighting Foams With Certain PFAS, Report Says
Dec 5, 2018 | Chemical & Engineering News
By Cheryl Hogue
Parliament panel suggests government buy contaminated properties near military bases
Australia’s government should ban the use of firefighting foams that contain certain per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and collect and destroy remaining stocks of such foams, a report from Parliament recommends.
The report targets for this treatment older formulas of foams containing three PFAS: perfluorooctane sulfonate, perfluorooctanoic acid, and perfluorohexane sulfonate. All are environmentally persistent, bioaccumulative, and toxic.
The report also suggests the Australian government restrict use of PFAS foams containing shorter-chain fluorocarbons called fluorotelomers to essential applications only, such as high-risk firefighting situations. Fluorotelomers with six-carbon chains, used in these foams since early this century, have low toxicity and bioaccumulation potential but can biodegrade to persistent chemicals.
A joint committee of Parliament assembled the report because Australia faces extensive PFAS pollution in water supplies near military installations where firefighting foams are used. In areas near some bases, residents are advised to avoid eating leafy green vegetables from their gardens, eating eggs from backyard poultry, or eating the meat of, or drinking milk from, home-grown cattle or sheep, because of PFAS contamination.
The report recommends Australia’s government consider purchasing private property contaminated with PFAS migrating from military bases. Accepting such compensation, the report adds, should not preclude anyone from future claims of health problems due to exposure to PFAS.
The report recommends the federal government work with states and territories to determine whether irrigation of crops with well water contaminated with PFAS should continue or whether restrictions are needed.
https://cen.acs.org/environment/persistent-pollutants/Australia-should-ban-firefighting-foams/96/web/2018/12
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Analysts Warn Industry To Prepare For Volatility
Dec 6, 2018 | E&E Energywire
By Nathanial Gronewold
TOKYO — Analysts expect the global market for liquefied natural gas to enter a transition period beginning next fall, as abundance is expected to turn into a shortfall.
New liquefaction capacity coming online in Australia and the United States, coupled with unseasonably warm winter weather in East Asian demand centers, is tempering LNG prices for now. Softer crude oil prices will also keep a ceiling on LNG prices, though market observers are eager to see if OPEC moves to push crude pricing higher at its meeting in Vienna today.
But LNG demand is poised to grow strongly as governments increasingly push the use of natural gas in national power grids.
At a briefing in Tokyo, analysts with the industry monitoring firm Rystad Energy told media and investors that, beyond 2020, the market for LNG is bullish, despite the recent pricing doldrums.
"Governments overall are very much pushing and promoting gas utilization, and that's really happening all around the world, especially in the Asia-Pacific and the Middle East," said Vijay Krishnan, managing director for the Asia-Pacific at Rystad.
He and other LNG market watchers see a wave of new LNG export project announcements in store for 2019, beyond the recent investment decisions already announced in the United States and Canada. Given the lag between announcement and project commencement, LNG supply will become tight until the new liquefaction capacity can come online to meet rising demand, as multiple nations are added to the list of LNG import markets out to 2030.
"Some of this liquefaction capacity needs to get to market; it needs to get sanctioned quickly, the sooner, the better," said Krishnan. "The first to the market will be the ones to benefit from that."
He said 2019 to 2020 will prove to be "a key transition period" that's marked by high market volatility as buyers, sellers and traders try to get a grip on all the fundamentals that move LNG and crude oil prices.
Uncertainty about Iran's oil exports is one wild card, as the United States imposes new sanctions while simultaneously issuing waivers to Iran's largest crude oil customers. Trade tensions are another unknown that could prove to tamp down energy demand growth in the Asia-Pacific region. The world's economy is also seen as nearing a peak in the current growth cycle, with a protracted slowdown anticipated to follow.
All of this will affect the LNG market, but Rystad is advising would-be LNG export platform investors to stay the course.
A little over two dozen countries now host regasification capabilities, allowing them to import large quantities of LNG and feed this gas into their electricity generation infrastructure. By 2030, Krishnan predicts that count will be closer to four dozen countries. New import markets by then could include South Africa, Sri Lanka, Ireland, Ghana and Morocco, among others.
But China will be the main driver of new LNG demand for some time.
Data compiled by Australian consultancy EnergyQuest show that China's LNG imports reached a new record volume during the third quarter of this year, with that nation purchasing some 13.2 million tons of LNG from abroad.
"About one-third of the increase in Chinese LNG imports came from Australia," analysts there noted. Currently, it's estimated that China sources almost half of its LNG imports from Australia.
A deal on trade between the United States and China could see Chinese energy companies ordered to purchase more U.S. LNG, but EnergyQuest sees little immediate threat to Australia's LNG exporters, given their long-term supply contracts with Chinese customers and rising Chinese LNG demand.
Companies are busy working to expand LNG demand beyond China.
Japanese shipbuilder Kawasaki Heavy Industries is pushing its own concept of a floating power plant that runs on LNG, according to the Nikkei Asian Review. A South Korean competitor, Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering, is also marketing a floating LNG power plant concept.
The idea behind floating LNG power plants is to quickly connect new gas-fired power generation to emerging market demand in the developing world, especially in markets in Southeast Asia where infrastructure limitations and geography pose challenges for setting up more traditional gas-fired power systems.
Such develops show promise for new LNG export projects, or for expanding existing export platforms, said Krishnan.
"Right now, liquefaction capacity is nowhere near in terms of being able to supply this."
https://www.eenews.net/energywire/2018/12/06/stories/1060108847
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Slump Deepens As Schlumberger Walks Oil 'Tightrope'
Dec 6, 2018 | Bloomberg (In E&E Energywire)
By David Wethe
The North American fracking market — already expected to be a downer for the holidays — is turning out to be even worse than expected, according to the world's biggest oil-service provider.
Schlumberger Ltd. expects sales in the U.S. and Canada to drop 15 percent in the final three months of the year compared with the third quarter, the company said Tuesday. A trio of factors including a plunge in crude prices, exhausted exploration budgets and maxed-out pipelines in America's busiest field is prompting oil companies to let go of frack crews.
"We are seeing a significantly larger drop in activity than we expected, which is leading to a larger drop in pricing than we anticipated," Patrick Schorn, executive vice president at the Houston- and Paris-based company, said in prepared remarks for an investor presentation. "We continue to see the weakening of the hydraulic fracturing market as temporary, with the expectation of a gradual recovery taking place over the first half of 2019."
The number of fracking crews at work in the Permian Basin of West Texas and New Mexico is down 13 percent from a 2018 high in June, according to Primary Vision Inc. Fracking, which involves blasting water, sand and chemicals underground to release trapped hydrocarbons, is the most expensive part of drilling wells.
The 15 percent drop in overall North American sales implies at least a 25 percent cut to fracking revenue in the region, Brad Handler, an analyst at Jefferies, wrote yesterday in a note to investors. Jefferies slashed its price target for Schlumberger shares 28 percent to $54.
The projected decline in North American sales is just the latest in a series of downward revisions by Schlumberger. In September, the company said a dearth of new pipeline capacity in the Permian was cooling off the red-hot region, leading to lower-than-expected third-quarter fracking results. Then a month later, the company said the fourth quarter would be even worse.
James West, an analyst at Evercore ISI, lowered his estimate for Schlumberger's fourth-quarter earnings by 5 percent to 35 cents a share, according to a note to investors Tuesday.
While the announcement was a "short-term negative," the weakness in fracking demand "is already widely known," Tommy Moll, an analyst at Stephens Inc., wrote in a note to clients.
Shares fell 4.7 percent in New York to $44.12 Tuesday, the lowest closing price in 9 ½ years.
West Texas Intermediate, the U.S. crude benchmark, has fallen about 30 percent since early October as unprecedented American oil output from shale fields and U.S.-China trade tensions incited fears of a developing worldwide glut.
"The price of oil is dominating the headlines in our industry, with a level of volatility that has brought increased uncertainty and decreased visibility," Schorn said. "Presenting any reliable outlook for our business is like walking a tightrope."
https://www.eenews.net/energywire/2018/12/06/stories/1060108835
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Chemical Safety Board Asks for Combustible Dust Input
Dec 5, 2018 | EHS Today
By Stefanie Valentic
The Chemical Safety Board continues to investigate five combustible dust incidents.
A comprehensive combustible dust standard still does not exists, and the Chemical Safety Board (CSB) is seeking further input to put one in place.
The federal agency has extended its deadline for comment to December 31 from companies, regulators, inspectors, safety training providers, researchers, unions, and the workers of dust-producing operations.
Information received from responses will be used to "to explore the conditions that influence the control and management of combustible dust in order to seek out a deeper understanding of the real-world challenges to preventing dust explosions and, more importantly, new opportunities for safety improvements," the CSB stated.
Four recommendations to date have been issued to OSHA stressing the need for an issuance of a comprehensive general industry standard for combustible dust, and combustible dust safety is on the agency’s Drivers of Critical Chemical Safety Change list.
The CSB examined statements from workers and management and identified the factors influencing dust hazard risk perception, most notably:Hazard awareness: the degree to which workers and management have practical real-world understanding of combustible dust hazards will impact how they react to their environment when they observe dust;Previous incidents and fires: observing fires or hot work activities in a combustible dust environment that did not result in an explosion could create a false sense of security;Regulatory oversight: regulatory requirements do not reinforce one another. For example, sanitation requirements under the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) may meet food quality concerns, but not be sufficient to prevent a dust explosion;Sanitation: management and workers focus on cleaning all the time, providing a sense of vigilance; however, hazardous dust accumulation rates may exceed cleaning efforts;Ability to recycle material: in facilities where material can be recycled or reprocessed, there may be a greater tolerance for spills or leaks; andPerceived difficulty in housekeeping efforts: as dust accumulates on hard-to-reach and overhead surfaces workers perceive that those surfaces are too hard, or too dangerous, to reach for cleaning.
With previous findings and additional input, the CSB aims to further explore these factors in order to prevent future accidents. Read more about the agency's efforts to keep workers safe from combustible dust and how to provide input on the CSB website.
https://www.ehstoday.com/industrial-hygiene/chemical-safety-board-asks-combustible-dust-input
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Bill Would Set Aside $10M For Cyber Safety Training
Dec 6, 2018 | E&E Energywire
By Blake Sobczak
Two House lawmakers are pushing to fund cybersecurity education for students seeking jobs in critical infrastructure sectors like energy and water.
H.R. 7214, introduced by Rep. Jim Langevin (D-R.I.) and co-sponsored by Rep. Glenn Thompson (R-Pa.), would direct the secretary of Education to award $10 million in grants to career and technical institutions for adding cybersecurity to their curricula.
Langevin, who co-founded the Congressional Cybersecurity Caucus, suggested the legislation would boost knowledge of cybersecurity fundamentals among employees at hospitals and power utilities.
"We need to offer better training for the workers who deal with these systems on a day-to-day basis, particularly in safety-critical industries where lives can be put in jeopardy by malicious cyber actors," he said in a statement. "These operators have a strong culture of safety, and we need to make sure emerging cyber threats are included in that culture."
Last year, hackers took aim at an industrial safety system at a petrochemical facility in Saudi Arabia in a first-of-its-kind cyberattack (Energywire, Dec. 15, 2017). The "Triton" malware stoked fears of similar intrusions in the U.S. and future hacks that could injure or kill people by disabling crucial computer systems.
"We must ensure we're protecting sensitive data and critical infrastructure from bad actors, and this bill is one step in the right direction," said Thompson, who sits on the House Education and the Workforce Committee.
Grantees would include educational institutions and local employers, who could receive up to $500,000 per award, according to the bill. The legislation would also direct the secretary of Education to work with the Department of Homeland Security and the National Institute of Standards and Technology "to determine the greatest cybersecurity workforce needs in critical infrastructure sectors."
DHS is the lead U.S. civilian cybersecurity agency and runs separate cybersecurity workforce development programs through its National Initiative for Cybersecurity Careers and Studies, among other efforts.
https://www.eenews.net/energywire/2018/12/06/stories/1060108889
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New York Pushes EPA on Unhealthy Air from Upwind States
Dec 5, 2018 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Erik Larson
New York and New Jersey asked a judge to let them join a lawsuit that seeks to force the Trump administration to cut pollution blowing into the region from upwind states that they say is largely responsible for unhealthy levels of ground-level ozone, or smog.
The states, which strictly control air quality, are seeking to intervene in a suit filed earlier by Maryland and Delaware accusing the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency of wrongfully refusing to rein in pollution from upwind states, according to a filing in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.
About 9.4 million people in New York, or about half the state’s population, are breathing unhealthy air due to smog, the state said, citing the American Lung Association’s 2018 “State of the Air” report. The EPA is required under the Clean Air Act to help New York and other states address pollution blowing in from upwind states, it said.
The Clean Air Act requires states to control emissions that cross state lines and prevent neighboring areas from meeting national air quality standards for ozone and other pollutants. Among upwind states are Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio.
“The Trump administration has flouted even their most basic legal obligations to protect public health and our environment,” New York Attorney General Barbara Underwood said in a statement.
EPA spokeswoman Tayler Covington didn’t immediately return a call seeking comment on the two states’ effort to intervene in the suit.
https://news.bloombergenvironment.com/environment-and-energy/new-york-pushes-epa-on-unhealthy-air-from-upwind-states
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EPA Poised To Issue Final CSAPR 'Close-Out' Rule
Dec 5, 2018 | Inside EPA
EPA is poised to issue its final rule to “close-out” the Cross State Air Pollution Rule (CSAPR) nitrogen oxides and sulfur dioxide emissions trading program, after the White House Office of Management & Budget (OMB) on Dec. 4 completed its review of the rule -- the last major step before the agency can publish it in the Federal Register.
The rule will find that no further regulatory action beyond compliance with existing requirements is required by 21 Eastern states in order to fulfill their Clean Air Act “good neighbor” mandates. CSAPR, as updated in 2016, established an emissions trading program for power plants in the 21 states and also Kentucky.
EPA in the proposed version of the close-out rule said states need not take further steps beyond compliance with the existing trading program to meet the 2008 ozone national ambient air quality standard (NAAQS) of 75 parts per billion (ppb). Because all areas in the CSAPR area would meet the limit by 2023, EPA and states need not take tougher action to curb interstate air pollution that compromises attainment of the 2008 NAAQS, EPA found.
However, several Eastern states dispute EPA's finding, arguing that the agency has been too optimistic in its projections of future ozone levels. Also, attainment of the NAAQS by 2023 is not adequate, because several states face air-law mandated attainment deadlines before then, states argue, pressing EPA to do more to ensure attainment of the 2008 limit and also the tougher 2015 ozone NAAQS, set at 70 ppb.
As part of that push, some Eastern states are petitioning EPA to directly regulate individual pollution sources in upwind states as allowed under Clean Air Act Section 126. The Trump administration has rejected several such petitions, prompting litigation from states that filed the petition.
For example, New York State, New Jersey and New York City sought to intervene Dec. 4 in a consolidated lawsuit filed by Maryland, Delaware and environmental groups against EPA's denial of section 126 petitions by Maryland and Delaware, in State of Maryland, et al. v. EPA, before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Power sector groups including the Utility Air Regulatory Group and Duke Energy affiliates in Indiana and Kentucky are seeking to intervene on EPA's behalf to defend rejection of the petitions.
New York Attorney General Barbara Underwood (D) in a Dec. 5 statement said, “the Trump EPA continues to ignore the Clean Air Act and refuses to require reductions in the pollution largely responsible for this serious health risk -- pollution that blows into New York from upwind states.”
New York has a similar section 126 petition outstanding at EPA asking it to curb emissions from multiple emissions sources in Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia. The Trump EPA granted itself a six-month extension to respond, until Nov. 9, but has yet to propose granting or denying the petition.
“EPA has yet to take action on New York’s petition, which EPA is likely to judge by the same unlawful standards and interpretations of section 126(b) that EPA has applied” to the petitions from Delaware and Maryland, New York says in its motion to intervene in State of Maryland.
https://insideepa.com/daily-feed/epa-poised-issue-final-csapr-close-out-rule
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Pollution Linked to Climate Change Kills 7 Million a Year: Report
Dec 5, 2018 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Bobby Magill
Emissions contributing to climate change cause respiratory, heart, and infectious diseases
Diseases from short-lived climate pollutants cost the top greenhouse gas emitters 4 percent of their GDP
About 7 million people are dying annually because of air pollution that contributes to climate change, according to a World Health Organization report published Dec. 5.
Pollution-related disease, including respiratory illnesses, heart disease, and infectious diseases, cost the world’s top 15 greenhouse gas polluters more than 4 percent of their GDP, said the report, released at the United Nations Climate Conference in Poland. Meeting the emissions-cutting goals of the 2015 Paris climate agreement will save roughly 1 million lives annually worldwide by 2050.
“The Paris Agreement is potentially the strongest health agreement of this century,” Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO’s director-general, said in a statement. “The evidence is clear that climate change is already having a serious impact on human lives and health. It threatens the basic elements we all need for good health—clean air, safe drinking water, nutritious food supply and safe shelter.”
Katowice, Poland, part of an industrial region that often chokes in wintertime air pollution billowing from residential coal stoves and factories, served as a backdrop for the report’s release at the climate conference, called COP24.
Small towns in the region bathe in a pall of smoke that forms halos around street lights and casts a cloud of smog on the horizon.
Black carbon, methane, ozone precursors, and other “short-lived” pollutants are emitted from some of the same sources, such as coal-fired power plants, that contribute to both climate change and poor air quality.
Global TransitionA global transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources will help slow the changing climate while also reducing air pollution and reducing pollution-related deaths, report lead author Diarmid Campbell-Lendrum, WHO climate change team leader, said, speaking at an organization event at COP24.
Local governments have a lot of power to cut air pollution through promotion of energy efficiency, public transportation, food waste reductions, efficient building design, and other measures, according to the health organization.
“Many of the most important actions that could be taken are now at the city level and with other kinds of sub-national governments,” Campbell-Lendrum said, adding that it’s crucial to public health to “mobilize the power of the city mayor.”
As ways to improve both public health and slow climate change simultaneously, the WHO report recommends that countries include short-lived climate pollution cuts in their commitments to the Paris climate agreement and that they encourage public health officials to become advocates for climate action.
https://news.bloombergenvironment.com/environment-and-energy/pollution-linked-to-climate-change-kills-7-million-a-year-report
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Investors Press Oil Industry to Oppose Trump Methane Rollbacks
Dec 6, 2018 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By David Wethe
Exxon, Chevron, BP among companies targeted by letter
Proposed EPA rule would ease requirements to repair leaks
Exxon Mobil Corp., Chevron Corp., and BP Plc are being pressed by investors with $1.9 trillion in assets under management to resist the Trump administration’s efforts to roll back Obama-era methane rules.
The Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility sent a letter to 30 oil and natural gas explorers on behalf of 61 investors urging the companies to publicly declare their support for regulating methane emissions and oppose the Environmental Protection Agency’s proposal to weaken existing rules.
The letter was signed by investors including the New York City Comptroller’s Office, Trillium Asset Management LLC, and the California State Teachers’ Retirement System.
“Rolling back federal regulation will lead to excessive methane emissions that needlessly tarnish the reputation of natural gas as a clean fuel and call into question the role natural gas can play in a low-carbon future,” according to the letter. “Absent any expressed position on the importance of good regulation, industry silence will likely be interpreted as implicit support for no regulation at all.“
The Trump administration has moved to repeal or revise an array of environmental mandates, including many imposed under former President Barack Obama. The EPA has proposed easing requirements for oil companies to detect and repair leaks of methane, a potent greenhouse gas that warms the atmosphere 84 times more than carbon dioxide.
The EPA proposal, made in September, would lessen the frequency of required inspections to hunt for methane leaks, remove a requirement that professional engineers certify some equipment designs and make it easier for energy companies to deploy emerging technologies to monitor emissions.
The EPA said its changes would save an estimated $484 million in regulatory costs from 2019 to 2025, or $75 million annually.
—With assistance from Jennifer A. Dlouhy.
https://news.bloombergenvironment.com/environment-and-energy/investors-press-oil-industry-to-oppose-trump-methane-rollbacks
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Advanced Economies Increased CO2 Emissions in 2018 After Five-Year Decline, Says IEA
Dec 6, 2018 | Natural Gas Intelligence
By Jeremiah Shelor
As world leaders gather in Poland this week to address climate change, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said the world’s advanced economies are on track to increase carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions this year, breaking a five-year run of declines, driven in part by higher oil and gas consumption.
Based on an increase in energy-related CO2 emissions from North America, the European Union and advanced economies in Asia Pacific, IEA said it expects CO2 emissions from these economies to increase by around 0.5% in 2018. The higher emissions come despite declining coal consumption, which has been offset by the increased use of oil and gas, according to the agency.
IEA timed its announcement to coincide with the 24th Session of the of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP24) being held this week in Katowice, Poland. At COP24, world leaders are expected to tackle issues related to compliance with the 2015 Paris Agreement reached at COP21.
Though the expected increase in CO2 emissions from advanced economies in 2018 is less than the 2.4% rise in economic growth, the higher emissions are “particularly worrisome for global efforts to meet the Paris Agreement,” according to IEA.
What’s more, emerging economies are also expected to grow their CO2 emissions this year, according to IEA, who plans to release its full global energy and CO2 data for 2018 in March. Though the data have not been finalized, “all indications” are that global emissions will grow year/year in 2018, driven by rising energy use and a 3.7% expansion of the global economy.
“Our data shows that despite the strong growth in solar PV and wind, emissions have started to rise again in advanced economies, highlighting the need for deploying all technologies and energy efficiency,” said IEA Executive Director Dr. Fatih Birol.
“This turnaround should be another warning to governments as they meet in Katowice this week. Increasing efforts are needed to encourage even more renewables, greater energy efficiency, more nuclear, and more innovation for technologies such as carbon capture, utilization and storage and hydrogen, for instance.”
Over the previous five years, energy-related CO2 emissions from advanced economies fell by around 3%, or close to 400 million tons, driven by a decline in coal consumption, an increase in renewables, greater energy efficiency and coal-to-gas switching, IEA said.
Global oil demand is poised to “grow robustly” this year, with global gas use also “increasing strongly” amid Chinese policies to curb air pollution in cities. Meanwhile, “large numbers of new coal power plants continue to be built and come online. The IEA expects this will lead to growth in global CO2 emissions in 2018. This growth will follow last year’s 1.6% increase, which ended a three-year period of flat emissions between 2014 and 2016.”
The IEA’s “Sustainable Development Scenario” that aligns with the goals of the Paris Agreement would see global emissions fall by more than 1% every year to 2025.
The IEA is not the only major energy organization to make a climate-related announcement coinciding with this week’s COP24 climate talks.
Royal Dutch Shell plc said Monday that it plans to link executive compensation to its long-term goal of reducing the net carbon footprint of its energy products.
The supermajor made the announcement in a joint statement developed with institutional investors on behalf of Climate Action 100+, an initiative led by investors with more than $32 trillion in assets under management.
At an industry conference in Washington, DC, in October, Shell Executive Vice President De la Rey Venter said the supermajor wants to “deliver on the aims of the Paris agreement,” referring to the United Nations accord reached in late 2015. “This is a must-win battle for our planet, not a nice-to-have. We believe it must happen, and we believe it is actually possible. That is what we want, and we are by and large united on this long-term goal.”
https://www.naturalgasintel.com/articles/116684-advanced-economies-increased-co2-emissions-in-2018-after-five-year-decline-says-iea
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Senate Braces For 'Green New Deal' Fervor
Dec 6, 2018 | E&E Daily
By Geof Koss and Nick Sobczyk,
The 116th Congress doesn't start for another month, but senators from both parties are already calculating the legislative impact from a renewed focus on climate change that will accompany the incoming House Democratic majority.
For Republicans, climate change will factor into negotiations with their House counterparts on a host of issues, including upcoming debates on infrastructure, taxes, spending and defense, not to mention energy and environmental policies.
Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.), the Senate's self-proclaimed leading climate skeptic, said he will be vigilant in his role as Armed Services Committee chairman to prevent costly environmental policies from creeping into the Pentagon's mission.
"I would say we've never said anything but the climate changes — it's always changing, it always will change," he told E&E News this week. "We're not going to alter the things that we're doing that are necessary to defend America and America's interests as a result of individuals who are trying to turn this into a policy change for America."
Inhofe decried efforts by the Obama administration to "green" the military as an expensive detour from ensuring national security.
"We ended up using the military to carry out an environmental agenda, which they did, they did successfully, in terms of distractions," he said. "And so we ended up with billions of dollars in things like the green military and all these things, and we can't allow that to take place because we have enough problems right now. Right now we're in the budget fight for the military."
Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), who is expected to take the gavel of the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, said the Democratic enthusiasm on climate change would be felt primarily on the Environment and Public Works Committee, on which he also serves.
But Wicker, whose role on Commerce will give him some jurisdiction over federal fuel economy standards, cast doubt yesterday on established climate science, adding that French protests over the country's new motor fuel taxes should be "instructive" to anyone pushing for comprehensive legislation to address climate change.
"I'm just saying I think a lot of Americans may give lip service to doing something because it's been hammered into their heads that there is, in fact, something that can be done to reverse temperature rises," Wicker said. "But when it's translated into reality and you can't drive your car because gas is $7 a gallon, I think the general public in most of the western democracies is going to rise up and revolt."
Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), who has invested a considerable amount of effort in recent years honing his own free-market, pro-manufacturing climate message focused on increased use of cleaner natural gas, said yesterday he intends to take full advantage of the opportunity to engage Democrats (E&E Daily, May 8).
When asked about climate change by E&E News as he headed to vote last night, Cassidy coincidentally was carrying a series of printouts of U.S. Energy Information Administration data showing a decrease in CO2 "intensity" per gross domestic product since 2005.
"This is going down —- that story needs to be told," he said pointing to the papers. "So absolutely we're going to be looking for that opportunity because really the other side's policies kill jobs. They kill jobs and they drive up energy costs for the average American, directly and indirectly. And we're about preserving those jobs, protecting that family's pocketbooks and continuing policies that have given you this sort of 29 percent decrease in CO2 per GDP since 2005."
Cassidy has also been studying the writings of Oren Cass, a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute who has criticized the conservative push to enact a carbon tax.
"Let's just stick it to the American family — drive up costs, drive jobs overseas, hit 'em this way and that way and, by the way, be counterproductive for global greenhouse gas emissions," he said of Democrats' carbon pricing plans. "That's craziness. We're absolutely going to push back on that."
Senate Energy and Natural Resources Chairwoman Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), who has long expressed concern about the climate change impacts she sees firsthand in her state, said she welcomes the debate.
"It's something that I expect to deal with — in fairness, I actually want to," Murkowski told E&E News. "I think that we can be a committee that hopefully can lead a rational conversation on it rather than seeing the extremes on both sides or just kind of the rhetoric."
Murkowski, who once backed a bipartisan cap-and-trade bill floated by Senate moderates attempting to steer the climate debate toward middle ground, said she hasn't fleshed out a committee agenda for next year yet. She now opposes regulations for limiting carbon emissions, favoring instead innovation and technology as a solution.
"I'd like to try and lead on some of those issues as a committee, but right now we haven't filled out that policy goals list yet," she said.
Inhofe also indicated that he would not dismiss climate-friendly policies for the military out of hand, saying he's receptive to measures that boost military readiness even if he disagrees with the underlying science on man-made contribution to climate change.
"We say the climate is always changing, and if we have something that's going to happen within that change that is going to be damaging and cause us to try to use that to try to defend America, we would be doing it," he said.The Manchin factor
Another factor influencing the stage in the Senate is the possible controversial ascension of coal-loving Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) to the ranking member slot on the Energy and Natural Resources Committee.
Senate Democrats are already facing climate pressure over the possibility.
Under fire from environmentalists, Manchin yesterday surprised the Senate by voting against ending debate on the nomination of Bernard McNamee to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (E&E News PM, Dec. 5).
Although he supported McNamee's nomination in committee, Manchin said in a statement last night that he changed his mind after viewing a video of controversial comments the former Energy Department official made questioning climate change.
Manchin's about-face marked the clearest sign yet that he may end up as the ranking member on Energy and Natural Resources, a position expected to be open in the next Congress.
Although the current top Democrat on the ENR Committee, Maria Cantwell of Washington, has not announced her intentions, she is widely expected to assume the ranking member position on the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee next year, given that the panel has jurisdiction over key economic sectors in her state.
The three next most senior members of the minority on the panel — Oregon's Ron Wyden, Vermont independent Bernie Sanders and Michigan's Debbie Stabenow — have all indicated they plan to remain as ranking members on other committees. If they stay put, Manchin would be eligible to claim the ranking member slot on Energy.
Environmentalists have pressed Sanders and Stabenow to deny Manchin the committee position by claiming it for themselves. Both senators have indicated they won't do so, but they also signaled they plan to press for more climate action in the next Congress.
Sanders this week held a high-profile town hall meeting that highlighted the "Green New Deal" that has become a rallying cry for progressives (E&E Daily, Dec. 4).
Stabenow told E&E News this week that she intends to stay as the top Democrat on the Agriculture Committee even if the farm bill is completed during the lame-duck session.
"There's a lot more to do, including climate change," she said, citing additional work on forestry and conservation she plans to push. "It's about holding carbon in the ground, holding in the trees."
Wyden, who will remain as the top Democrat on the Finance Committee, said this week that the recent volume of the National Climate Assessment is a "wake-up call" that will force a discussion on the tax-writing panel on revising the tax code on energy in favor of cleaner sources (E&E Daily, Dec. 5).
"I think the last few weeks, this issue has moved to a very different place, and I intend to be heavily involved," Wyden told E&E News.The House influence
Although major climate legislation won't pass the Republican Senate, a Democratic House could mean more work gets done on climate through appropriations carve-outs and a handful of bipartisan programs, such as carbon capture research at the Department of Energy.
Senate Environment and Public Works Committee ranking member Tom Carper (D-Del.) suggested the energy on the House side might push the whole Congress to take smaller steps to address climate change.
His priority right now, for instance, is working out a compromise on the Trump administration's proposed freeze of fuel economy standards (see related story).
"The one that's staring us right in the face is mobile sources. It's the biggest source of emissions," said Carper, who serves alongside EPW Chairman John Barrasso (R-Wyo.).
Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), a longtime climate hawk who has endorsed New York Democratic Rep.-elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's proposed select climate change committee, said House progressives could help press the climate issue across Capitol Hill.
Even simply having hearings and putting climate science in the spotlight can help build support for legislation, said Markey, who led the Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming when he was in the House.
"There will be momentum coming out of the House on legislation across the board," Markey said. "I think that it will make it more likely that ultimately we can legislate."
https://www.eenews.net/eedaily/2018/12/06/stories/1060108897
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