The Balance Sheet for November 16, 2011

Our weekly update to unravel the industry and political spin around the energy debate

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

TELLING THE REAL STORY ABOUT OIL SHALE

Last week, a former elected official and representatives of sportsman and conservation groups flew into Washington, DC. Their mission was to educate members of Congress and the administration about the damage that continued oil shale speculation can have on jobs, drinking water and air quality in the West.

FRACKING INDUSTRY USES MILITARY TACTICS ON CITIZENS

Earthworks uncovered the psychological warfare tactics oil and gas companies are using on Pennsylvania residents who have spoken out about concerns over hydraulic fracturing in their backyards. In one meeting, Matt Carmichael (manager of external affairs for Anadarko Petroleum) went as far as to call these concerned citizens an ‘insurgency.’ Read the full story at CNBC.com.

MEET THE FRIENDS OF FRACKING

When the Huffington Post published the Facebook profile for the fracking industry, it showed that there are some tight connections between energy companies and those tasked with regulating the hydraulic fracturing process. The Checks and Balances Project profiled three individuals who have been friendly to fracking and who have helped green light its use across the nation.

DID YOU KNOW?

EXXONMOBIL, SHELL STILL AREN’T PRODUCING COMMERCIAL OIL FROM OIL SHALE

Despite the fact that companies such as ExxonMobil, Shell, and Chevron have leased upwards of 200,000 acres for oil shale development. None of these companies are able to turn this proto-petroleum rock into commercial oil.

A WELL-FUNDED SUPERCOMMITTEE

According to a new report from Oil Change International and Public Campaign Action Fund titled, Payback Time? The Supercommittee & Fossil Fuel Subsidies, the 12 members of the supercommitee received at least $4.2 million in dirty energy campaign contributions over the past 11 years.

Other key findings show:

• Supercommittee members have at least 35 former or current staffers with revolving door ties to dirty energy interests.
• Subsidies to fossil fuels can be conservatively estimated at $10 billion a year or $100 billion over the last decade.

COMING UP

Friday, Rep. Doug Lamborn (R-Colo.) continues to push for more taxpayer-funded subsidies to industry, this time for oil shale. His bill will be heard in the Energy & Minerals Subcommittee, which he chairs, and aims to throw more money at companies like Shell and ExxonMobil for oil shale speculation. Despite the hype, industry has failed to produce oil from oil shale rock for a hundred years. Join us as we play “Oil Shale Bingo” and listen for the same rhetoric to appear that has been told over the last century.

CONTACT

Twitter: @CandBP | Email: tips@checksandbalances.org

Tip Sheet: Industry and House members push for drilling shortcuts despite legacy of pollution

**BREAKING NEWS** While testifying at Rep. Lamborn’s hearing BLM deputy director Mike Poole announces a rulemaking plan to, “set guidelines for use of categorical exclusions from detailed National Environmental Policy Act analysis for drilling certain wells.” Ben Geman at The Hill has the story  **BREAKING NEWS**

Industry groups and Washington politicians including Western Energy Alliance, Rep. Doug Lamborn (R-CO), Chairman of the House Energy & Minerals Subcommittee, and Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY) are trying to use obscure, bureaucratic tools known as “categorical exclusions” to weaken air and water protections in an effort to hand over more public lands to oil and gas company CEOs. Earlier this year, Sen. Barrasso introduced legislation to eliminate May 2010 leasing reforms, and last month Western Energy Alliance was able to put the reform on hold when they won an initial lower federal court ruling. Today, Rep. Lamborn’s subcommittee will hold a politically charged hearing on the subject.

“It’s unfortunate that Rep. Doug Lamborn is using his power as chairman of the Energy & Minerals Subcommittee to create political theater on behalf of the oil and gas industry,” said Checks and Balances Deputy Director Matt Garrington. “We saw what happens under a ‘see no evil, hear no evil’ approach to energy development when these same sort of shortcuts led to the BP Gulf oil spill disaster.”

The use of “categorical exclusions” – which exempt drilling permits from scientific review – has a legacy of pollution that includes the BP Gulf oil spill disaster, air pollution levels in the Rocky Mountains that rival Los Angeles and huge declines in western wildlife populations.

Oil and gas companies already receive more than $15 billion each year in special tax breaks. These efforts to rollback protections are about more taxpayer-owned public land giveaways to oil and gas company CEOs, who use the lands to drive up share prices and get bigger bonuses.

Background

Five years ago, President Bush signed the Energy Policy Act of 2005 into law. This sweeping legislation systematically removed a number of air, water, resource and wildlife protections for oil and gas development on public lands. Specifically, Section 390 of that bill expanded the use of “categorical exclusions” allowing the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to avoid scientific review when granting drilling permits to oil and gas companies.

Here are some findings in a 2009 study by the bipartisan Government Accountability Office (GAO):

• The Bush administration applied these shortcuts with increasing frequency, using them in 28 percent of all onshore drilling permits granted from 2006 to 2008.
• In 85 percent of the cases sampled, these shortcuts were applied illegally, and drilling permits were improperly issued.

This “see no evil, hear no evil” approach to public lands management led to unchecked pollution and development. Here are a few examples:

• Ozone pollution now exceeds public health standards in Pinedale, Wyoming where categorical exclusions were used to justify a large number of drilling permits. The GAO referred to the lack of analysis happening at the BLM’s Farmington Field Office as a “shell game,” and noted that air pollution levels had exceed acceptable levels.
• Wildlife experts have charged that the poor planning and reckless development that occurred in Wyoming’s Pinedale Anticline, thanks in part to categorical exclusions, is responsible for huge declines in the mule deer population.

In May 2010, Interior Department Secretary Ken Salazar began cleaning up the mess by issuing a series of leasing reforms that included curtailing the abuse of “categorical exclusions” in the permitting process. The reforms have been a huge success. Drilling permits that have been subject to proper scientific review are expected to increase 40 percent this year. The Interior Department is on the right track and should stand strong in the face of Lamborn and Barrasso’s purely political attacks.

 

SUPPORT FOR REFORMS

The reforms to “categorical exclusions” and oil and gas leasing reforms that were announced in May 2010 were met with sweeping support from sportsmen, conservation groups, and several editorial boards, including the Los Angeles Times, the Denver Post, the Grand Junction Sentinel and the Salt Lake Tribune. And just last month, former agency officials including U.S. Forest Service Chief and BLM Acting Director Mike Dombeck, U.S. Forest Service Chief Dale Bosworth and BLM Director Jim Baca sent a letter of support to President Obama.

 

INDUSTRY ACCESS TO PUBLIC LANDS FOR DRILLING

The oil and gas industry is already sitting on more than 6,500 unused drilling permits and idle leases covering millions of acres. If Rep. Lamborn and Sen. Barrasso really cared about developing American energy, they would support “Use it or lose it” legislation to encourage development of drilling leases already issued to oil and gas companies.

TIMELINE

August 2005	President George Bush signs the Energy Policy Act of 2005, weakening air, water, and wildlife protections from drilling, and expanding the use of “categorical exclusions.” These would later be illegally used under his administration to allow industry to avoid scientific review of drilling permits.
May 2010	Secretary Ken Salazar issues two critical oil and gas leasing reforms, including: Instruction Memorandum No. 2010-117 Oil and Gas Leasing Reform – Land Use Planning and Lease Parcel Reviews Instruction Memorandum No. 2010-118 Energy Policy Act Section 390 Categorical Exclusion Policy Revision.
October 2010	The Government Accountability Office issues a scathing, 72-page report outlining the Bush administration’s illegal use of “categorical exclusions.”
March 2011	The Interior Department releases a report showing industry has failed to develop or even conduct exploration on 57 percent of existing onshore leases covering 21.6 million acres.
May 2011	Sen. Barrasso introduces S.1027, The American Energy and Western Jobs Act, which is intended to rescind the Salazar leasing reforms.
July 2011	Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) and other Republican legislators launcha partisan attack on the “Master Leasing Plans” oil and gas leasing reform in a letter to Sec. Salazar, despite the fact that the policy will reduce conflicts on public lands and pave the way for future energy development.BLM data is released showing the industry has failed to develop over 6,500 onshore drilling permits, primarily in western states.
August 2011	The oil and gas industry wins a lower court ruling to block implementation of IM 2010-118, the “categorical exclusion” drilling reform.

Just another Natural Resources Committee hearing

The House Natural Resources Committee met yesterday for a hearing titled, “Harnessing American Resources to Create Jobs and Address Rising Gasoline Prices – Part III: Impacts on Seniors, Working Families and Memorial Day Vacations.”

The hearing seems to have generated about as much interest as another trequel, “Police Academy 3: Back in Training.” The majority invited three witnesses who all did their part to support the hearing’s title by stating that high energy prices do, in fact, affect senior, working families and people traveling for vacation. You can read the committee’s press release for a summation of each of the majority’s witnesses’ remarks.

What you won’t read in that release are the remarks of a rising star on the energy stage, Truman National Security Project Fellow Drew Sloan. Mr. Sloan, a two-tour Afghanistan veteran and winner of a bronze star and a purple heart, works at OPower, a northern Virginia, energy-efficiency company. His remarks on the national security and economic needs to move our nation to renewable energy were reasoned and respectful. Unfortunately, they seem to have been omitted from the committee’s press release. The Checks and Balances Project is looking for the hearing transcript and will publish his remarks as soon as we can locate it.

One of Mr. Sloan’s remarks that had us laughing came in response to Rep. John Fleming’s (R-LA-04) assertion that he’s never met anyone with a green job. Mr. Sloan simply raised his hand and said that he has a green job. There was no response from Rep. Fleming, but that could be because Rep. Doug Lamborn, who was chairing the event, ended the speaking portion halfway through Mr. Sloan’s sentence.

Speaking of Rep. Fleming, he also said that the government doesn’t give any subsidies to Big Oil. This seems strange since the Senate just held a vote on whether or not to end $21 million of those subsidies. It is worth noting Rep. Fleming has taken $248,350 from Big Oil over the course of his 2.5 or so years in Congress. That’s about $99,000 per year.

Neslin brings his message back home

The man tasked with overseeing the oil and gas industry in Colorado continues to say that groundwater contamination is not an issue when it comes to hydraulic fracturing in the state.

David Neslin (pictured), Director of the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (COGCC) , told a federal forum this week that the COGCC has investigated hundreds of complaints about water contamination related to hydraulic fracturing, “and to date we’ve not found any instances of groundwater contamination.” Neslin reportedly did not offer any comments about the operations associated with fracking that are vital to the practice.

These operations include mixing, transporting and injecting millions of gallons of toxic fracking fluid into the ground, through aquifers via cement casings. Gas companies must also safely dispose of the wastewater produced by fracking that is laced with toxic chemicals and radioactivity.

Neslin has repeatedly omitted these essential processes from of his discussions of hydraulic fracturing and water contamination. Following his testimony at a congressional hearing in the nation’s capitol earlier this month, Neslin spoke on camera to the Checks and Balances Project and said that cracked pipe casings and leaky wastewater pit liners were not considered part of hydraulic fracturing process that he had just promoted to the senators. During the hearing, like yesterday’s BLM meeting in Golden, Colorado, Neslin repeated that the COGCC had no “verifiable evidence” that fracking has lead to ground water contamination in Colorado.

MORE:

-To see the Checks and Balances report on David Neslin’s definition of hydraulic fracturing click here.

-Read the Greeley Tribune’s report on the federal fracking forum in Colorado this week by clicking here.

-To read about Chesapeake Electric’s suspension of fracking in Pennsylvania after a fracking explosion sent chemicals into nearby waterways click here.

THE BALANCE SHEET: APRIL 26, 2011

Our weekly update to unravel the industry and political spin around the energy debate

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IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

WE’RE IN THE WRONG LINE OF WORK

While Americans are suffering from pain at the pump, Halliburton reported last week that its first quarter revenue set a company record at $5.3 billion, which is up from $3.8 billion in the first quarter of 2010. First quarter profits were up 148 percent from $206 million in 2010 to $511 million in 2011.

Halliburton cited increased U.S. onshore drilling activity as the reason for its success, with Chairman Dave Lesar stating, “North America delivered strong performance as margins progressed due to increased activity while Eastern Hemisphere operating income was significantly impacted by geopolitical events in North Africa, delays in Iraq, and typical seasonality.”

ANOTHER EARTH DAY, ANOTHER SPILL

A Chesapeake Energy Corp. well blowout occurred in Northern Pennsylvania Tuesday, spilling up to tens of thousands of gallons of toxic, chemical-laden fluid onto area residential land and contaminating a tributary of the Susquehanna River. The incident may be the most serious fracking accident in the history of the commonwealth’s Marcellus Shale development. DeSmogBlog has the story.

WORD GAMES

Last week, Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission Director David Neslin testified before a Senate committee looking into hydraulic fracturing’s less than spotless track record on safety. Contrary to his testimony, where he asserted that groundwater contamination from fracking has never occurred, Neslin told The Checks and Balances Project immediately following the hearing that oil and gas production in Colorado had indeed led to contamination. Most drilling is fracking, so to say fracking does not cause groundwater contamination is disingenuous at best. Watch how Neslin and industry representatives use rhetorical tactics to excuse corporate responsibility for toxic fracking fluid casing leaks and pit overflows.

PRICE, NOT POLICY, DETERMINES HEALTH OF WESTERN ENERGY DEVELOPMENT

Headwater Economics on Tuesday released a report analyzing the relative success of states and communities to maximize energy development’s benefits and minimize its costs. The report concludes with a series of policy recommendations for communities trying to achieve that goal. In five Rocky Mountain, energy-producing states – Colorado, Montana, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming – Headwater Economics discovered that common sense standards and protections did not hamper energy production. Price was the ultimate factor in determining whether energy development occurs. Read the full report.

DID WE LEARN OUR LESSON FROM THE GULF OIL SPILL DISASTER?

Checks and Balances Deputy Director Matt Garrington asks that question in his guest-commentary piece for Sunday’s Denver Post. Give it a read and let us know what you think.

DID YOU KNOW?

OIL & GAS NY LOBBY FUNDS UP 400 PERCENT IN TWO YEARS
In New York State last year, the oil and gas industry spent $1.6 million on lobbying to fight common sense protections from oil & gas fracking impacts, up from $400,000 in 2008.

COMING UP THIS WEEK

BLM TO REVIEW COMMERCIAL OIL SHALE LEASING PROGRAM

The Department of the Interior Bureau of Land Management will host public hearings in three Western states – Colorado, Utah and Wyoming – beginning today to gather input from residents and experts as they review the federal oil shale leasing program. Find out more about the hearings.

Now that gas prices are hovering around $4 per gallon, risky schemes like oil shale are back in the national debate. Oil shale is pure science fiction, as companies have failed to produce commercial oil from oil shale despite a hundred years of experimentation.

Chairman Doc Hastings (R-WA), Subcommittee Chairman Lamborn (R-CO), Rep. Scott Tipton (R-CO) and Rep. Rob Bishop (R-UT) have all been throwing about this fantastic tale. Compare what politicians are saying to those in the oil and gas industry, who believe viable oil shale is a decade out or more.

Furthermore, oil shale today is being conflated with shale gas and shale oil, giving the false impression that oil shale is ready for prime time. This has led to inaccurate rhetoric, and it has the potential to mislead investors, policymakers and other Americans interested in real energy solutions.

Compare what politicians are saying to those in the oil and gas industry, who believe viable oil shale is a decade out or more: Oil Shale Quotes – Congress v Industry

CONTACT US

Twitter: @checksandbals | Email: tips@checksandbalances.org

THE BALANCE SHEET: APRIL 12, 2011

Our weekly update to unravel the industry and political spin around the energy debate

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IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

WHAT’S THE DEFINITION OF AN IMPARTIAL WITNESS?

Last week’s Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources Oversight Hearing turned into a good ol’ boys club, when Rep. Doug Lamborn invited his buddy, James Schroeder, to testify. Schroeder gave $2,000 to the Western Energy Alliance PAC, which turned around and gave $10,000 to members of the House Natural Resources Committee, including, $2,000 to Lamborn. http://tinyurl.com/3ojkawm

EVEN THE TEA PARTY CAN’T GET BEHIND THE SUBSIDIES

During a DC rally against government spending, many Tea Partiers went on the record in opposition to the annual squandering of 4 billion taxpayer dollars on Big Oil and Gas tax loopholes. Think Progress released the video last week: http://tinyurl.com/6j9lkbc

KILLER FACT OF THE WEEK

WILD LANDS DEFUNDED, BIG OIL STILL WINNING BIG

While the government shutdown was avoided late Friday night, that doesn’t mean glaring budget issues were resolved. At a time when the oil and gas industry is reporting record profits, and we’re hearing constant talk about the need to cut government spending, Republicans still insist on giving away over $4 billion of American tax every year to Big Oil. Taxpayer subsidies to Big Oil weren’t up for discussion during last week’s negotiations on spending, but Republicans did successfully attack western public lands by defunding Wild Lands implementation.

COMING UP THIS WEEK

HASTINGS & GOP CIRCUS EVENTS FOR BIG OIL

House Natural Resources Chairman, and drilling proponent, Doc Hastings is finally bringing his offshore drilling bills into the light, after keeping them in carefully hidden in the shadows. Two different House committee hearings on Wednesday will mark up the drilling bills that were so secret, Politico reported tha tHastings’s staff refused to discuss them over email or brief Democratic committee members. The only time they would talk about them was with the oil and gas lobbyists who received a private briefing on the bills. Meanwhile, the House Energy and Power Subcommittee will push through a bill that uses the Clean Air Act to expedite the permitting process, leading us to wonder about Republican claims of over-regulating. http://tinyurl.com/4dqbxlh

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Full Committee Markup on H.R. 1229, H.R. 1230 and H.R. 1231
Committee on Natural Resources
1324 Longworth House Office Building
10:00 a.m.

Jobs and Energy Permitting Act of 2011
Subcommittee on Energy and Power
2322 Rayburn House Office Building
10:00 a.m.

THE COST OF FRACKING

Ahead of a Congressional hearing about fracking comes a Cornell study that demonstrates the disastrous effects the process has on the climate. And watch for the Checks and Balances full, fact-checker report after the hearing.

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Natural Gas Drilling: Public Health and Environmental Impacts.
Full Committee and Subcommittee on Water and Wildlife
EPW Hearing Room – 406 Dirksen
10:00 AM EDT