Pipelines Reborn: They're Back Thanks to Trump

The day after Donald J Trump fired the first salvos in his war against the EPA and others, he delivered on his promise to double down on fossil fuels with the approval of two pipelines. On Tuesday, January 24th, Trump signed Executive Orders that overturn the Obama administration's decision on the Keystone XL (KXL) and the Dakota Access pipeline (DAPL). This authorizes TransCanada Pipelines to move forward with the 1,179-mile KXL and Energy Transfer Partners can also proceed with the 1,172-mile DAPL.

This is a blow for environmentalists and indigenous people who had fought hard to shut down the KXL and DAPL. Keystone was killed by President Barack Obama after years of protests and DAPL was stalled by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in the face of massive protests by indigenous people led by the Standing Rock Sioux.

Trump also signed an EO that will eliminate environmental regulations associated with the permitting process.

There are massive environmental costs associated with pipelines. They inevitably spill (click here to see a partial summary of oil spills in 2016). Even more importantly, they contribute climate change causing greenhouse gasses (GHGs) to the atmosphere at a time when we cannot afford further increases (we are currently 1.5 degrees Celsius above preindustrial norms and scientists conservatively estimate that we cannot afford to go beyond 2 degrees Celsius).

DAPL will ferry 570,000 barrels of dirty shale oil from North Dakota to the Gulf Coast. The pipeline imperils the drinking water of 17 million people. The emissions from this pipeline are equivalent to 30 coal plants. According to Oil Change International DAPL will create "101.4 million metric tons of CO2e per year. These emissions are equivalent to 29.5 typical U.S. coal plants or the average emissions of 21.4 million U.S. passenger vehicles."

Each day the KXL can transport 830,000 barrels of some of the dirtiest oil on Earth. The Friends of the Earth reports that the GHGs associated with this pipeline is equivalent to putting 5.6 million new cars on the roads.

The promised reopening of NAFTA will complicate the KXL which will ferry oil from Alberta's tar sands to Texas. Because it crosses a state boundary the permitting process is largely under state department control. However, there are questions as to the viability of the pipeline with oil prices seemingly stuck below $60 a barrel.

More protests and lawsuits can be expected to try to stop this administration from moving forward with pipelines that are harmful to this and future generations.

As explained Bill McKibben,

"This is not a done deal. The last time around, TransCanada was so confident they literally mowed the strip where they planned to build the pipeline before people power stopped them. People will mobilize again."

The DAPL protest has been called off with Sioux leaders looking to fight the decisions in the courts. It will also take time for the Army Corps of Engineers to conduct a full environmental assessment as required by law. But this could be overcome if the Army issues and easement.

Former Democratic presidential candidate Senator Bernie Sanders summed up the situation as follows:

"Millions of people came together all over this country to stop the Keystone XL and Dakota Access pipelines and say we must transform our energy system away from fossil fuels to renewable energy. Today, President Trump ignored the voices of millions and put the short-term profits of the fossil fuel industry ahead of the future of our planet."

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Keystone XL will Emit 4 Times More Pollution than Originally Thought
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Partial Summary of Oil Spills in 2016

Fossil fuels are the primary cause of climate change, they are also prone to spills. Such spills are toxic and they have been a consistent part of the fossil fuel industry since its inception. As long as we extract and transport oil and gas spills are a statistical certainty.

In December, Wired reported that there are about 30,000 oil spills in US waters every year. In October, Hurricane Ivan caused dozens of leaks in undersea oil wells and pipelines in the Gulf of Mexico. Some of these spills will leak for decades. The Taylor Energy site will continue to leak between 84 and 1,470 gallons per day for the next hundred years. The oil slick from this spill stretches over eight square miles on an average day. Taylor Energy has gone bankrupt and they just walked away from the mess they created.

Many spills are covered up by oil companies or under-reported (SkyTruth estimates that spills are at least 13 times bigger than the numbers on record). Those that are reported are often ignored. Spills up to 100,000 gallons are classified by the Coast Guard as "minor or moderate". It is important to understand that even small spills are deadly to marine life. They also represent a health risk for humans. Except in the most extreme and egregious cases, there are no penalties and therefore no incentives for the oil industry to clean up its act.

There are thousands of wells and 2.4 million miles of aging oil pipe infrastructure in the United States alone. In 2015 there were countless oil spills (click here to see a partial list of spills in North America) and in 2016 the sad legacy of fossil fuel industry spills continued. Here is a review of some of those spills in 2016.

On December 5, the Belle Fourche Pipeline pipeline spilled 176,000 gallons of crude oil into the into the Ash Coulee Creek in Billings County, North Dakota. This is about 150 miles from Cannon Ball, where protesters are camped out in opposition to the Dakota Access pipeline (President-Elect Trump has said he supports the pipeline). To make matters worse the creek has frozen over making cleanup operations almost impossible. Water supplies from the creek have been turned off. The Belle Fourche Pipeline Co. is part of the family-owned True companies, which also operates Bridger Pipeline LLC. Like almost every other pipeline company they have a long rap-sheet of spills.

On October 21, there was a pipeline leak in Lycoming County, Pennsylvania, involving Sunoco, the company that is behind the Dakota Access Pipeline. An 8 inch pipeline managed by the company leaked 55,000 gallons of gasoline into a major waterway, thereby contaminating the drinking water of some 6 million people in Lancaster County. The gasoline streamed into Wallis Run, a tributary of the Loyalsock Creek that eventually drains into the Susquehanna River, considered to be the third most endangered river in the United States by American Rivers, a non-governmental organization (NGO) dedicated to protecting and preserving rivers around the country. While all pipelines leak, Sunoco Logistics spills crude more often than any of its competitors, having experienced more than 200 leaks since 2010.

On October 9, a 1.2-billion-gallon cooling pond dam at Duke Energy's H.F. Lee plant breached killing millions of chickens at factory farms and contaminating local waterways. The leak in the 120-acre coal ash pond in Goldsboro, North Carolina occurred just minutes after Duke Energy issued a statement claiming that the "Ash basin and cooling pond dams across the state continue to operate safely."

On October 2, 95 metric tons of oil leaked into the North Sea from BP's Clair platform. The leak was 46 miles west of the Shetland Islands. There was no cleanup and a large oil slick was visible from the spill. From 2000 to 2011, there were 4,123 separate oil spills in the North Sea. Oil companies were fined for just seven of them. No single fine was greater than about $25,000.

On September 24, a fuel tanker in the Gulf of Mexico caught fire and burned for days. The tanker Burgos caught fire about seven nautical miles off the coast of the port city of Boca del Rio, Mexico. The tanker was carrying about 168,000 barrels of gasoline and diesel fuel. At the time of the incident, the Burgos was sailing from Coatzacoalcos in eastern Veracruz state to the Pemex terminal, Port Authority Director Juan Ignacio Fernandez said late Saturday.

On September 16, two states were forced to declare an emergency after a Colonial pipeline spilled more than 6,000 barrels or a quarter million gallons of gasoline in Shelby County, Alabama. Ironically the states of emergency declared in Alabama and Georgia were not associated with the environmental damage from the spill but due to concerns about fuel shortages. There was no cleanup because it was deemed unsafe for workers to be in the vicinity of the spill.

On September 7, an oil pipeline belonging to Summit leaked a million gallons of fluid containing crude oil into a creek that feeds the Missouri River on a native American reservation. The spill was the largest in Minnesota’s history was on Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara Nation land approximately 15 miles north of Williston, North Dakota. The leak came from a saltwater collection line owned by Summit Midstream Partners LP. The spill flowed into Bear Den Bay, which leads into Lake Sakakawea, a source of drinking water on the reservation. The fluid flowed into the Missouri River and contaminated fresh water for residents in the surrounding areas.

In July, a pipeline leak near Maidstone, Saskatchewan, spilled about 66,043 gallons or 1,572 barrels of diluted oil sands bitumen into the North Saskatchewan River, killing wildlife and compromising drinking water for nearby communities, including Prince Albert.

On June 21, an oil pipeline belonging to Crimson Pipeline LLC ruptured in Ventura County, California spilling an estimated 29,400 gallons of crude oil into an arroyo that flows through the city of Ventura to the ocean. Ironically the spill occurred just after President Obama signed the PIPES safety bill into law.

On June 2, An oil train derailment and explosion along the Columbia river in Oregon contaminated drinking water. At least 12 rail cars carrying Bakken oil operated by Union Pacific derailed and caught fire. The wreck occurred in the Columbia River Gorge near the community of Mosier in Oregon which is about 70 miles east of Portland. The derailment and subsequent fire forced the evacuation of local schools and nearby homes. The I-84 highway was also closed. The rail line runs adjacent to the Columbia river which is widely used for both recreation and commerce. Residents of the town of Mosier had to boil their water.

On May 20, 21,000 gallons or 500 barrels of oil spilled from the underground San Pablo Bay Pipeline near Tracy in San Joaquin County, California. Owned by San Pablo Bay Pipeline a subsidiary of Shell Oil.

On May 12, Shell's offshore Brutus platform spilled almost 88,000 gallons or 2,100 barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico. The spill endangered corals, dolphins, whales, tuna and whale sharks. The spill in Shell's Glider field created a 13 mile long by 2 mile wide oil slick in an area 97 miles south of Port Fourchon, Louisiana.

On February 3 and January 25 in the regions of Amazonas and Loreto, Peru at least 84,000 gallons or 2,000 barrels of oil were spilled into local waterways after two pipeline ruptures. The Marañon River, a principal tributary of the Amazon River was among the waterways that were contaminated. For indigenous people these spills polluted the waterways that are their lifeline, they provide food and water for crops and consumption. The spills are known to have killed fish, crocodiles, and plants.

There is no safe way of extracting and transporting fossil fuels. Repeated oil spills show the soulless self-interest of oil companies. Rather than repair or replace existing pipelines they invest in expansion.

As Greenpeace stated, "The long history of oil spills around the world has made one thing clear: the only way to prevent an oil spill is to keep oil in the ground."

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Liberal Dualism: Canadian Climate Leadership is at Odds with Ramping Up Fossil Fuels

The ruling federal Liberals have canceled one pipeline and approved two others. It is but the most recent example of Canada's one step forward two steps back approach to climate action.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has the laudable goal of wanting to be a climate champion and an economic leader. However, this balancing act is completely undermined when you add increased fossil fuel production to the equation. Canada was criticized at COP22 for expanding its fossil fuel production and now they have compounded the problem by adding a couple of pipelines to the mix.

Contradictory climate and energy policies

Canadian government energy and environmental policy is a checkerboard of seemingly opposing policy positions. The government announced a carbon tax then followed that up with a massive liquefied natural gas (LNG) project. To further illustrate the two faces of this government, they banned tanker traffic off the coast of northern BC while increasing traffic to the south. Most recently they rejected some pipelines while approving others.

Catherine McKenna, minister of environment and climate change has indicated that she is working towards a nation-wide coal phase-out by 2030 and the National Energy Board is being overhauled. The announcement most welcomed by environmentalists was the news that the government has rejected Enbridge's 1,177-kilometre Northern Gateway pipeline that would have carried oil from Bruderheim, Alta., to an export terminal in Kitimat, B.C..

However as with other recent federal announcements the victory was blunted by the approval of the $6.8-billion, 1,150-kilometre Kinder Morgan Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project that will ferry 890,000 barrels of oil from Alberta to Burnaby, B.C.

This pipeline along with the approval of Line 3 will ferry a million barrels of oil a day to global markets. According to the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency the new capacity will generate up 26 megatonnes of emissions annually when fully operational.

Tankers

The duality of this government is further revealed in its contradictory ocean tanker policies. The Canadian government is investing in a $1.5-billion ocean protection plan to improve responses to tanker and fuel spills in the Pacific, Arctic and Atlantic oceans. But they are also increasing the need for such planning by expanding tanker traffic.

The government announced that it will ban crude oil tankers along B.C.'s North Coast, but further south the Kinder Morgan will increase tanker traffic from approximately five to 34 a month. A spill in this ecologically sensitive area will be devastating.

As reported by the Suzuki Foundation this pipeline will result in a seven fold Increase in tanker traffic and push the already fragile population of 80 resident orcas off of B.C.'s south coast to the brink of extinction. It will also Increase greenhouse gas emissions by more than 100 million tonnes each year and threaten the health of communities along B.C.'s coast. There have been some disastrous tanker oil spills and there is no reason to believe that this new tanker traffic will be any different.


Spills

The government announced that it has also approved Enbridge's 1,659-kilometre, $7.5-billion, Line 3 pipeline, that will ferry oil from a terminal near Hardisty, Alberta, through northern Minnesota to Superior, Wisconsin. This is the largest pipeline project that Enbridge has ever built. The NEB signed off on a new Line 3 in April, but with 89 conditions The pipeline will double the amount of oil transported by the pipeline to 760,000 barrels a day. This will mean that Enbridge's mainline system will collectively carry three million barrels a day into the US. The existing line has leaked many times and rather than focus on maintenance Enbridge is focusing on expanding the pipeline's capacity.

As stated by the Suzuki Foundation, "Oil spills will happen and research proves there is no technology to effectively clean them up." We know that these pipelines will leak, such spills are a statistical certainty for all fossil fuel pipelines.

All you need to do is look at the litany of oil spill in Alberta to see just how common spills are. We have seen 25 massive oil spills (over 1000 tons) in the last decade.  In 2015 alone there were dozens of spills.  Transporting fossil fuels poses a very real danger to the public. The repeated spills reveal the fossil fuel industry's soulless disregard for public safety.

New regulations

To address the serious environmental risks associated with an inevitable spill the government has announced a long list of federal requirements that are designed to act as safeguards. While these efforts may minimize the risk of an incident and maximize preparedness when such a spill occurs, it will not prevent a spill nor can it completely clean them up.

The NEB has a list of 157 conditions that must be met and BC has its list of five preconditions. The premiere of BC recently said that the federal government is "very close" to fulfilling their preconditions. Alberta says it plans to cap greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) from the oil patch at 100 megatonnes a year.

Government's logic

Prime Minister Trudeau argued that pipelines have lower emissions profiles, are less dangerous and less expansive than rail transport in tanker cars. As reported by the CBC, Trudeau said

"The decision we took today is the one that is in the best interests of Canada...It is a major win for Canadian workers, for Canadian families and the Canadian economy, now and into the future."

The logic for supporting the pipelines comes down to jobs and revenue. According to Kinder Morgan 15,000 jobs will be created during construction, and a further 37,000 direct and indirect jobs will be added when the project is operational. The pipelines will generate $46.7 billion for all levels of government over the next 2 decades.

However many have criticized this logic in Patrick DeRochie, the director of Environmental Defence:

"The approvals raise grave doubts how these and additional pipelines, including Keystone XL and Energy East, can fit with Canada's commitment to the Paris climate agreement," And Media Placeholder added, "much bigger cuts in other emission sources must be made to compensate for more oil-based emissions."

The fight continues

Protests will continue and so will legal challenges. The Kinder Morgan project threatens a BC First Nation near the project's route, other First Nations, including 39 in BC and Alberta, have signed "mutual benefit agreements" with Kinder Morgan who also claims it has reached agreements with First Nations communities where the pipeline crosses a reserve. Nonetheless, with only one third of First Nations approving the pipeline other First Nations say they are ready for a long battle to stop the pipeline.

Mike Hudema, a campaigner for Greenpeace, said in a recent statement:

"Apparently Justin Trudeau's sunny ways mean dark days ahead for climate action and Indigenous reconciliation in Canada. With this announcement, Prime Minister Trudeau has broken his climate commitments, broken his commitments to Indigenous rights, and has declared war on B.C.,". Media placeholder added "If Prime Minister Trudeau wanted to bring Standing Rock-like protests to Canada, he succeeded."

Green Party Leader Elizabeth May said she would be "willing to go to jail" to stop the Kinder Morgan. More court challenges are also expected. As reported by the CBC, "There have already been 11 judicial reviews launched over the NEB review, and more court challenges are expected in the coming days."

Take away

The damage to our climate, our water, our land and our air far outweigh the jobs and revenues associated with pipeline projects.

The election of the Liberal party offered hope and signaled the dawn of a new day for climate action in Canada. The Liberals were a major improvement over the Conservatives on energy and environmental matters. The party's commitment to climate action was reiterated in a throne speech and in a mandate letter to the Minister of Environment and Climate Change. Shortly after coming to power the Liberals reversed the policies of their Conservative predecessors and showed climate leadership at COP21. They also unmuzzled scientists. They have improved the nation's climate and energy policy and along with provincial leaders Canada is making significant progress on crafting a nationwide renewable energy policy.

The decision to move forward with the pipelines has disappointed may Liberal supporters as it breaks Trudeau's campaign promises. The Liberals appear to be oblivious to the fact that you cannot simultaneously claim to be a climate leader while increasing your production of fossil fuels.

Trudeau campaigned on a climate action platform and while he and his government have made some bold moves to combat climate change he has also significantly increased fossil fuel infrastructure.

Just as pipelines consistently spill, politicians consistently make promises they can't keep.

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Another Day Another Oil Spill This Time in Alabama (Video)

Although nobody seems to have noticed, between a quarter and a third of a million gallons of gasoline has leaked from a pipeline in the middle of September. The Colonial Pipeline Company reported the spill prompting the governors of Alabama and Georgia to declare states of emergency. The sad fact is that oil and gas spills have become so common that it is no longer construed as newsworthy.

The ecological impact of the spill appears to be secondary to concerns about the interruption of the supply. In Alabama the Pipeline spill triggered a supplier 'Red Alert' and Georgia Gov. Robert Bentley issued an executive order Thursday declaring a state of emergency in Alabama.
The gasoline spill occurred south of Birmingham in Shelby county and shut down a major pipeline connecting refineries in Houston with to New York Harbor. Fuel shortages are expected as a result of having to shut down the pipeline.

Colonial Pipeline, released the following information Thursday afternoon:

"Based on current projections and consultations with industry partners, parts of Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee, North Carolina and South Carolina will be the first markets to be impacted by any potential disruption in supply...Colonial has briefed officials in these states and will continue to provide timely information to the public so that employees and contractors began digging out the leaking pipeline."

The pipeline shut down is expected to cause a spike in gas prices. The failure to report the spill in the mainstream media is a disturbing trend that will make it easier for fossil fuel companies to get away with ecocide.




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New Pipeline Safety Law Followed by Another Oil Spill

Mere hours after President Obama signed the PIPES safety bill into law, a pipeline spilled thousands of gallons of oil. Protecting our Infrastructure of Pipelines and Enhancing Safety Act of 2016 became law on June 22nd. Within hours of the signing an oil pipeline erupted in Ventura County, California. It was first noticed by a local rancher early Thursday morning.
The spill emanated from a ten inch underground pipeline owned by Colorado-based Crimson Pipeline LLC. It sent an estimated 29,400 gallons of crude oil down into an arroyo that flows through the city of Ventura and reaches the ocean near the Ventura Pier. The spill marks Crimson’s 11th such incident in the last ten years.

The law was drafted in response to a plethora of fossil fuel spills, especially California's Porter Ranch leak which spewed a staggering 97,000 tons of methane. The PIPES act increases safety provisions in the construction and operation of fossil fuels facilities. It also and gives the government expanded authority to act quickly in the event of a spill. This includes new emergency powers for the Secretary of Transportation.

Oil spills are common throughout North America, but they are especially prevalent in California. On May 19, 2015, a corroded Plains All American pipeline spewed 143,000 gallons of crude oil onto Refugio State Beach in Santa Barbara and at least 25,000 gallons poured into the ocean. The spill created a nine mile oil slick. Governor Jerry Brown called it an "environmental disaster" and declared a state of emergency.

Planes All American Pipeline have been been found guilt of a total of 175 safety and maintenance infractions. The Houston company has been indicted on 46 criminal counts and faces fines of around $3 million due to the Santa Barbara spill. 

In December, more than 8,800 gallons of oil leaked in Somis. In May of this year 21,000 Gallons of oil spilled from the underground San Pablo Bay Pipeline near Tracy in San Joaquin County. These spills and the many others in California take place against the backdrop of the epic Santa Barbara oil spill of 1969.

It is a statistical certainty that pipelines will spill. Just as birds fly, and fish swim, oil leaks. The only way to keep the oil from spilling is to stop it from flowing. 

Oil spills have become commonplace, but we cannot afford to be blase. The preponderance of leaks adds to concerns about the existential threat posed by the climate destroying properties of the commodities they transport.

In the past oil pipelines were the lifeblood of our industrial might, however we now know that they are harbingers of an apocalyptic future. These arteries of death, like the hydrocarbons they transport, must be phased out of our energy mix.

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Oil Train Derails and Explodes in Oregon Adjacent to the Columbia River (Video)

An oil train derailment and explosion along the Columbia river in Oregon has once again highlighted the dangers of transporting oil by rail. Around noon on Friday June 2nd, 2016, at least 12 rail cars carrying Bakken oil operated by Union Pacific derailed and caught fire. The wreck occurred in the Columbia River Gorge near the community of Mosier in Oregon which is about about 70 miles east of Portland. The derailment and subsequent fire has forced the evacuation of local schools and nearby homes. The I-84 highway has also been closed to traffic. The fire burned overnight and plumes of black smoke were seen billowing from the scene.

The rail line runs adjacent to the Columbia river which is widely used for both recreation and commerce. Residents of the town of Mosier are being asked to boil their water.


"Moving oil by rail constantly puts our communities and environment at risk," said Jared Margolis, an attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity in Eugene, Oregon.

There have been a total of 26 oil trains that have derailed or caught fire in North America over the last ten years. Almost half of these accidents have involved Bakken crude.

In 2013 a derailment and explosion killed 47 people in Lac-Megantic, Quebec and cost at least $1.2 billion. With growing frequency oil trains are moving through highly populated areas and near ecologically sensitive terrain like waterways.

Throughout North America there have been a number of serious oil train derailments and fires in 2015.

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Second Shell Oil Spill in Less than Two Weeks

For the second time in less than two weeks pipelines belonging to Shell have leaked oil. The most recent spill has leaked 21,000 Gallons (500 barrels) of oil near Tracy in San Joaquin County, California. This time the culprit was the company's underground San Pablo Bay Pipeline which transports crude oil from California’s Central Valley to the San Francisco Bay Area. The spill took place on May 20th but Shell did not report the leak until the evening of Monday May 23.

Ironically, this spill took place against the backdrop of the Altamont Pass Wind Farm, one of California's largest wind energy developments. The juxtaposition of an oil spill against a clean energy producing wind farm speaks volumes.

This is the second time that oil has spilled from this pipeline in 8 months and the second time Shell has reported a spill in less than two weeks.

On May 12, Shell spilled almost 90,000 gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico. In an interview with WMNF News, Scott Eustis, a coastal wetlands specialist with Gulf Restoration Network discussed the impacts of the May 12 oil spill on the corals, dolphins, whales, tuna and whale sharks.

“All this is happening while the government is considering new leasing in the Gulf. Although we know from this and many other events that there’s not enough clean-up, there’s not appropriate technologies to take care of the Gulf as a natural resource that belongs to all of us, here, and all of us in the United States. So, we’re calling for no new leasing until the government and industry can show that they can take care of our natural resources.”

Cleanup efforts at the spill site near Tracy are focused on the oil that has reached the surface. Oil is visible on a patch of land that is roughly 10,000 square feet in size. However, the majority of the leaked oil remains underground. California's fire marshal has launched an investigation into the spill.

The company claims that, “no release [of oil] is acceptable“. However, Shell's history of spills mirrors the experience of all oil operations. The extraction and transportation of oil is subject to spills. This is an unavoidable fact of life.

In addition to being the leading cause of climate change, oil spills contaminate soil and water with predictable regularity. In recent days there has been an oil spill at Three Oaks High School in Summerside, Prince County, Prince Edward Island.

Every year there are thousands of spills around the world. A summary of some of the fossil fuel spills in North America last year reveals just how common they are. These spills illustrate the dangers of transporting fossil fuels.

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Shell Downplays Crude Oil Spill in the Gulf of Mexico (Video)

On May the 12th Shell claims that its offshore Brutus platform spewed 88,200 gallons of crude (2,100 barrels) into the Gulf of Mexico. The spill in Shell's Glider field created a 13 mile long by 2 mile wide oil slick in an area 97 miles south of Port Fourchon, Louisiana. Shell offered the standard commentaries as dictated by their post-spill public relations protocols. The incident has been contained the said and "cleanup operations are underway." Shell spokesperson Kimberly Windon added, "no release is acceptable, and safety remains our priority as we respond to this incident."

Historically post spill press releases from the offending company tend to radically underplay the amount spilled and the dangers that these spills pose. 



BP infamously underplayed the magnitude of the Deepwater Horizon spill in the Gulf of Mexico. A total of eleven men died on that day in 2010. This oil spill went on to become the largest in history leaking a staggering 3 million barrels of oil to into the Gulf. The cost to marine life has been devastating and it is being felt to this day. In 2015 BP reached a settlement with the US government in which it agreed to pay $20 billion in fines and penalties.

The recent Shell leak appears to have originated in a subsea well-head flow line that connects four wells in the Green Canyon area to the Brutus platform. In 2011 another of Shell's flow lines sprung a leak, the time in the North Sea. Shell has also been the subject of derision for its test drilling in the Arctic. Their Arctic drilling exploits have not gone well. First one of their oil rigs ran aground and then they abandoned the Arctic as the price of oil fell below the point where this oil was financially viable. Then on Friday May 13th Shell was forced to give up all of its oil concessions in the Arctic except one.

The May 11th oil spill adds to the large and growing number of spills. This is but the latest of “thousands” of oil industry accidents in the Gulf of Mexico every year. In fact spills have become commonplace, as evidenced by this summary of fossil fuel spills in 2015.

Whether by pipe, rail or tanker, oil cannot be safely transported.  Offshore oil has its own unique set of risks that set it apart and make it an even more dangerous proposition. However, offshore oil is an avoidable tragedy.

For these and other reasons President Obama is being pressed to deny any additional offshore oil drilling leases in the Gulf.

Read More»

Hilary Maintains her Climate Silence as O'Malley Pushes his Green Agenda (Iowa Democratic Presidential Town Hall)

Hilary Clinton, Bernie Sanders and Martin O'Malley are the three remaining candidates seeking the Democratic nomination for president. On January 25th they fielded a barrage of questions from voters in a town hall meeting at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, The moderator was CNN anchor Chris Cuomo.

O'Malley emerged from the Iowa Town Hall as the greenest of the three candidates with Sanders trailing some distance behind. O'Malley bluntly stated that "this planet is worth saving," and Sanders reaffirmed his commitment to tackle climate change. Hilary remained silent on climate and clean energy and let her rivals steal the green thunder.

As in previous debates, Hilary did not mention climate change or the clean energy economy once. Perhaps she is taking her cues from Republican presidential hopefuls or perhaps she knows that this is one area where she cannot hope to compete with her Democratic rivals (see the climate positions of the Democratic presidential candidates: O'Malley, Sanders and Clinton).

Alternatively, Hilary's silence on green issues may be part of a clever strategy. According to a poll conducted towards the end of 2015, Americans do not think climate change is anywhere near as important a concern as the economy. Only 3 percent of Americans said that they thought global warming was the most important issue facing the country today.

Climate is not a priority issue for the vast majority of voters so Hilary has nothing to gain from being a climate champion. Conversely embracing climate action risks alienating voters who are worried about the economic costs.

By allowing O'Malley and Sanders to own the climate spotlight she may be trying to entrench herself as the most "moderate" Democratic candidate. Her campaign may be betting that this will appeal to independent voters or even soft conservatives. Hilary's shrewd politics may win a general election, but she must first secure the Democratic nomination. With her lead shrinking and Sanders ahead in some states, it remains to be seen whether Hilary's strategy will succeed in getting her through the primary process.

Climate Change

Both O'Malley and Sanders made it clear that there is no cause to doubt the scientific veracity of anthropogenic climate change. Early in the evening Sanders got in a good shot at Republicans when he said, "in terms of climate change, which everybody here knows - and apparently everybody in the world knows except Republican candidates for president, is one of the great environmental crises facing this nation." O'Malley followed up by reiterating that he thinks climate change is the single biggest issue we face.

Green Energy Economy

The emerging green energy economy will be worth trillions by the time it replaces fossil fuels. However of the three Democratic hopefuls, only O'Malley appears to understand the scale of the economic opportunity this transition represents. "Climate change is the greatest business opportunity to come to the United States in 100 years" O'Malley said. "And I am the first candidate in either party to put forward a plan to move us to a 100 percent clean electric energy grid by 2050, and create 5 million jobs along the way."

O'Malley, cited the fact that Iowa gets 30 percent of its electricity from wind power. He also pointed to the 5000 jobs the wind industry has created in that state. He indicated that he wants to manufacture cleantech components like wind turbines in America. He wants to train people to retrofit buildings and install distributed energy systems. He also said that he wants to put American cities at the center of the low carbon economy, or as he put it, be at the, "leading edge to this clean green environment."

O'Malley indicated that all three Democratic hopefuls aspire to do right by the planet, but he was quick to distinguish himself as the most focused on clean power. In a shot that appeared to be directed towards Hilary's moderate stance on green energy, O'Malley said:

"And we're not going to get to 100 percent clean electric grid with an "all of the above" strategy, any more than we got to the moon with an "all of the above" strategy. It was an engineering challenge. And we are up to this as Americans. But incrementalism, half steps, splitting the loaf, that's not going to get us. And that's not what your generation wants. You want the straight truth and you want us to face our challenges fearlessly and make this new reality ours."

Sustainable Agriculture

O'Malley was the only candidate who spoke to the importance of sustainable agriculture:

"The ability to consume and to grow, and to do that within the footprint of this place that we call home. So, I would like to work with congress, and I plan to work with congress, to do more in the Farm Bill to reduce the barriers of entry to new farmers as they start up. Huge capital costs that go into buying the land and buying the equipment. But it's also what's best for keeping our rural economies, and it's best for America. So I've seen in my own state a whole movement to the "buy local" movement and the sort of farming that you describe. We need to do more as a nation to encourage young farmers to go into farming to reduce those barriers and those capital costs, even at the same time that we push back against the concentration monopoly power in the agricultural sector. And that's what I intend to do."

Fossil Fuels

Sanders has repeatedly come out against fossil fuel pipelines. He spoke about his opposition to the Keystone Pipeline, the Bakken Pipeline and pipelines in Vermont and New Hampshire. "I think we've got to break our dependence on fossil fuel." Sanders said. He then asked the question, "Why did it take Hillary Clinton such a long time before she came into opposition to the Keystone Pipeline?"

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Climate and Energy Excerpts from the Fourth Democratic Primary Debate
Climate Excerpts from the CBS Democratic Primary Debate
Climate and Clean Energy in the Third Democratic Debate
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Republican Presidential Candidates Say the US Should Not Do Anything to Combat Climate Change
Opposition to Climate Action in the November Republican Primary Debate

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Summary of Fossil Fuel Spills in 2015 (Videos)

Oil spills continued to be a problem in 2015 with a number of major incidents in North America. These spills contaminated both land and waterways and prompted the evacuation of local citizens. Whether by pipe, ship, rail or truck, there are well founded concerns about the safety of transporting fossil fuels. These concerns add weight to the argument that we need to expedite the shift away from fossil fuels. Many consecutive years with substantial numbers of spills illustrate the dangers associated with transporting fossil fuels.

Last year in North America alone there were 34 significant spills starting in January and continuing right through to December.  A New York Times report found that in North Dakota alone there were more than 18.4 million gallons of oils and chemicals spilled, leaked, or misted into the state’s air, land, and waterways between 2006 and 2014. The amount of fossil fuels spilled in the Canadian oil producing province of Alberta is even worse.

Here is a review of 33 fossil fuel leaks that occurred in North America in 2015.

January 6 - Williston, North Dakota: A ruptured pipeline operated by Summit Midstream leaked three million gallons of brine into Blacktail Creek and Little Muddy River, tributaries of the Missouri River.

January 14 - Jackson, Mississippi: A section of the Gulf South natural gas pipeline ruptured and exploded. .

January 17 - Glendive, Montana: The Poplar Pipeline running beneath the Yellowstone River ruptured, spilling some 31,000 gallons of crude oil into the water contaminating water supplies for nearby residents.


January 23 - Tioga, North Dakota: Hess Bakken Investments reported a brine spill of more than 100,000 gallons.

January 26 - Brooke County, West Virginia: The 1,265-mile Appalachia-to-Texas Express ethane pipeline ruptured and exploded.


February 4 - Dubuque, Iowa: An 81-car Canadian Pacific freight train derailed and caught fire in a remote area north of Dubuque on the banks of the Mississippi River.

February 14 - Gogama, Ontario: A 100-car Canadian National Railway train carrying crude from Alberta’s tar-sands region to eastern Canada derailed and caught fire in a remote wooded area.

February 16 - Boomer, West Virginia: A 109-car CSX train carrying millions of pounds of crude oil derailed and exploded shutting down a local water treatment plant.  Three oil train wrecks in February beg the question, how many such disasters will it take before we realize that rail transport of fossil fuels is not safe.


March 1 - Peace River, Alberta: A Murphy Oil Company pipeline leaked up to 17,000 barrels of petroleum product into a type of North American bog habitat called muskeg.

March 5 - Galena, Illinois: A 105-car BNSF Railway train carrying Bakken crude from North Dakota derailed and caught fire near the Mississippi River. Twenty-one cars came off the tracks, and five caught fire.


March 7 - Gogama, Ontario: A 94-car Canadian National Railway train carrying Alberta crude oil derailed and burst into flames two miles northwest of the town of Gogama contaminating part of the Makami River, in the Mattagami River System.

March 9 - Houston, Texas: An unknown quantity of toxic chemicals spilled into the Houston Ship Channel after a bulk carrier collided with a Danish tanker carrying 216,000 barrels of the gasoline additive methyl tertiary-butyl ether, or MTBE.


March 9 - Williston, North Dakota: A truck overflow spilled 1,680 gallons of brine, affecting a nearby creek.

April 11 - Arlington, Texas: Vantage Energy spilled thousands of gallons of fracking fluid that poured out of storm drains and into the streets.

April 13, 2015 - English Bay, Vancouver, B.C.: A ship MV Marathassa leaked 2.3 tonnes or 3,100 liters of fuel.


April 17 - Fresno, California: A Pacific Gas & Electric natural gas pipeline exploded at the Fresno County Sheriff's Office gun range, sending a fireball 100 feet into the air and injuring 14 people, two critically.

May 5 - Drumheller, Alberta: TransCanada’s Sieu Creek natural gas transmission line spilled an undetermined volume of sweet natural gas and hydrocarbon liquid onto agricultural land during planned maintenance.

May 6 - Heimdal, North Dakota: At least six tanker cars caught fire after a BNSF oil train derailed.


May 19 - Goleta, California: An underground pipeline owned by Houston-based Plains All American Pipeline ruptured, leaking up to as much as 330 tonnes. Other estimates suggest that a total of 101,000 gallons of crude oil was spilled with an estimated 21,000 gallons leaking into the Pacific Ocean. Nine miles worth of oil slicks eventually washed up on the shores including Refugio and El Capitan state beaches. This spill is in many respects a repeat of a 1969 spill.


June 3 - Little Rock, Arkansas: A Spectra Energy Corp. natural gas pipeline running beneath the Arkansas River ruptured and exploded, releasing four million cubic feet of gas.

June 9 - Unityville, Pennsylvania: A Williams Gas natural gas pipeline ruptured and leaked, resulting in an explosion and fire.

July 10 - Highland, Illinois: A spill at the Plains All American Pipeline Pocahontas pump station sent 4,200 gallons of crude oil into Silver Creek, which empties into Silver Lake, the water reservoir for the city of Highland.

July 10 - Barwick, Ontario: Fourteen cars of a CN train derailed leaking an estimated 12,000 gallons of petroleum distillates.

July 14 - Culbertson, Montana: A total of 22 BNSF cars came off the tracks spilling 35,000 gallons of crude oil.

July 17 - Fort McMurray, Alberta: A high-pressure pipeline at Nexen Energy's Long Lake oil sands facility spilled five million liters of emulsion (a mixture of bitumen, sand, and water) damaging 16,000 square meters of musket habitat.


August 14 - Chateh, Alberta: A NuVista Energy pipeline leaked an estimated 100,000 liters of bitumen emulsion onto the Hay Lake Indian Reserve.

September 19 - Scotland, South Dakota: A 98-car BNSF tanker train carrying ethanol derailed in a rural area, leaking the volatile liquid into pastureland, where it caught fire.

October 23 - Porter Ranch, California: A natural gas well at a Southern California Gas storage facility continues to leak methane at a rate of more than 66,500 pounds per hour or the equivalent of seven million cars per day.


October 27 - Brownsville, Pennsylvania:A coal train derailed and spilled its load along the Monongahela River near the Alicia Transshipment Facility.

November 7 - Alma, Wisconsin: Twenty-five cars of a BNSF train went off the tracks near the Mississippi River, and leaked 20,000 gallons of ethanol into the water.

November 8 - Watertown, Wisconsin: A 100-car Canadian Pacific train carrying Bakken crude oil derailed in southeastern Wisconsin leaking about 1,000 gallons of product.

November 9 - Des Moines County, Iowa: Two engines and 19 loaded coal cars derailed and overturned when a freight train struck a road grader on the tracks.

December 1 - Watford City, North Dakota: A pump leak at a disposal well owned by Wyoming-based True Oil LLC spilled 17,640 gallons of brine.

Here is a review of the five biggest oil spills of all time:



Related
Video - Train Carrying Oil Derails Illustrating the Dangers of Transporting Fossil Fuels
Video - Truck Carrying Oil Crashes and Explodes Illustrating the Dangers of Transporting Fossil Fuels
Three of the Most Destructive Tanker Oil Spills in History
Unstoppable Oil Leak at a Tar Sands Production Site in Alberta
Top 25 Oil Spills Over 1000 Tonnes in the Last Decade
Pipelines and Oil Spills in Alberta Canada
Shell Oil Rig Runs Aground in Alaska Raising Safety Concerns
The Costs of Oil: BP Liable for up to 90 Billion
Two More Reasons to Move Beyond Fossil Fuels
The Costs of Offshore Drilling

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Climate and Energy Excerpts from the Fourth Democratic Primary Debate

Three candidates met for the fourth Democratic debate hosted by NBC News and YouTube and moderated by anchor Lester Holt. The debate took place in Charleston, South Carolina, on Sunday January 17th. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley were present for the debate. However, except for a passing reference to renewables ("I would work quickly to present to the congress my plans for creating more...clean and renewable energy...") Clinton did not address climate change or energy issues. Hilary's silence on these importance issues in the fourth debate mirrors her strategy in the preceding debate.

Here are the climate and energy remarks made by Sanders and O'Malley during the fourth debate:

Climate Change

Sanders: The debate is over. Climate change is real. It is already causing major problems. And if we do not act boldly and decisively, a bad situation will become worse. It is amazing to me, and I think we’ll have agreement on this up here, that we have a major party called the Republican Party that is so owned by the fossil fuel industry, and their campaign contributions, that they don’t even have the courage, the decency to listen to the scientists. It is beyond my comprehension (APPLAUSE) how we can elect the president of the United States, somebody like Trump, who believes that climate change is a hoax, invented by the Chinese. (LAUGHTER)

Energy

O'Malley: I believe the greatest business opportunity to come to the United States of America in 100 years is climate change. And I put forward a plan to move us to a 100% clean electric energy grid by 2050 and create five million jobs along the way. (CHEERING) Thank you.

Sanders: Bottom line is, we need to be bold and decisive, we can create millions of jobs. We must, for the sake of our kids and grandchildren, transform our energy system away from fossil fuel to energy efficiency and sustainable energy.

O'Malley: ...we need a new agenda for America’s cities. We have not had a new agenda for America’s cities since Jimmy Carter. (APPLAUSE) We need a new agenda for America’s cities that will invest in the talents and the skills of our people, that will invest in CBBG, transportation, infrastructure and transit options and make our cities the leading edge in this move to a redesigned built, clean, green energy future that will employ our people.

O'Malley: Lester, on this stage tonight, this Democratic stage, where we actually believe in science, (LAUGHTER) I would like to challenge and invite my colleagues here on this stage to join me in putting forward a plan to move us to a 100% clean, electric energy grid by 2050. It can be done with solar, with wind, (APPLAUSE) with new technologies, with green buildings.

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Climate Excerpts from the CBS Democratic Primary Debate
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Republican Climate Avoidance and the Sixth GOP Debate

Republican candidates for president seem to think that if you ignore the climate crisis American voters won't notice. During the sixth Republican debate there was no mention of climate change or global warming, the COP21 deal, renewable energy, cleantech, or the low carbon economy, and of course nary a word was uttered on emissions or greenhouse gases.

Climate change was a no show in the first Republican debate, the CNBC presidential debate and in the November debate they made their opposition to climate action clear. Republican presidential candidates have stated that they do not believe we should not do anything to combat climate change.

For their part the Democratic Presidential contenders have made their support for climate action clear in the CBS debate and the third debate. In fact the differences between the two parties on climate change have led some to conclude that it may give the Democrats the edge in the 2016 election.

The current slate of Republicans presidential contenders are vulnerable to criticism. Their anti-science policy positions will not stand up to scrutiny. Republicans have tried to kill the Clean Power Plan and they have worked to sabotage the COP21 deal.

Despite polls which show that American climate deniers are an increasingly rare breed, Republicans keep ignoring or undermining climate action.

Republicans are at odds with Americans on the subject of climate change and the Clean Power Plan. Even Pope Francis has condemned Republican climate denial in his address to Congress. To understand the Republican's seemingly irrational stance you need to follow the money to the fossil fuel industry.

In the sixth Republican debate closest anyone got to a discussion of anything green was when the it was used as a prefix to the word card in a xenophobic exchange on the horrors of immigration. Rubio even suggested that "radical jihadist" are somehow behind the issuance of green cards.

The only one of the candidates who mentioned energy and oil is Kasich. It came up when he was asked the following question:

"while everyone has been focusing on Iran’s provocations, I’m wondering what you make of what Saudi Arabia has been doing and its recent moves in the region, including its execution of a well-known Shi’ite cleric and its move to dramatically increase oil production, some say in an effort to drive down oil prices and force a lot of U.S. oil producers out of business. Sure enough, oil prices have tumbled. One brokerage house is predicting a third or more of American oil producers and those heavily invested in fracking will go bankrupt, and soon Saudi Arabia and OPEC will be back in the driver’s seat."

Kaisich replied saying:

"With Saudi Arabia and oil production, first of all, it’s so critical for us to be energy independent, and we’re getting there because of fracking and we ought to explore because, see, energy independence gives us leverage and flexibility, and secondly, if you want to bring jobs back to the United States of America in industry, low prices make the difference. We’re seeing it in my state and we’ll see it in this country. And that’s why we must make sure we continue to frack."

It is ironic that in Kasich's closing remarks he explained that his grandfather was a coal miner, who went blind and died of black lung.

Climate all but Absent from the Republican CNBC Presidential Debate
Climate Change a No-Show in the First Republican Debate
Republican Presidential Candidates Say the US Should Not Do Anything to Combat Climate Change
Opposition to Climate Action in the November Republican Primary Debate
Climate and Energy Excerpts from the Fourth Democratic Primary Debate
Climate Excerpts from the CBS Democratic Primary Debate
Climate and Clean Energy in the Third Democratic Debate
The Green Elements of the First 2012 Presidential Debate
Climate Change May Give Democrats the Edge in the 2016 Federal Election

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Climate Excerpts from the CBS Democratic Primary Debate

The CBS Democratic Democratic primary debate took place in Des Moines, Iowa on Saturday November 14th. Here are the climate related excerpts from that debate. The moderator for the debate was CBS News political director John Dickerson. Hilary Clinton summarized the field of Democratic candidates for President when she said, "All of us believe climate change is real."

DICKERSON: Senator Sanders, you said you want to rid the planet of ISIS. In the previous debate you said the greatest threat to national security was climate change. Do you still believe that?

SANDERS: Absolutely. In fact, climate change is directly related to the growth of terrorism. And if we do not get our act together and listen to what the scientists say, you're going to see countries all over the world -- this is what the CIA says -- they're going to be struggling over limited amounts of water, limited amounts of land to grow their crops ask you're going to see all kinds of international conflict.

CORDES: Governor O'Malley, you also want to make public college debt-free. You want...

OMALLEY: That's right.

CORDES: ... states to freeze tuition. You've got your own family leave plan. How would you pay for it? In Maryland, you raised the sales tax, you raised the gas tax and you raised taxes on families making over $150,000 a year. Is that the blueprint?

OMALLEY: Nancy, the blueprint in Maryland that we followed was yes, we did in fact raise the sales tax by a penny and we made our public schools the best public schools in America for five years in a row with that investment. And yes, we did ask everyone -- the top 14 percent of earners in our state to pay more in their income tax and we were the only state to go four years in a row without a penny's increase to college tuitions.

So while other candidates will talk about the things they would like to do, I actually got these things done in a state that defended not only a AAA bond rating, but the highest median income in America. I believe that we pay for many of the things that we need to do again as a nation, investing in the skills of our people, our infrastructure, and research and development and also climate change by the elimination of one big entitlement that we can no longer afford as a people, and that is the entitlement that many of our super wealthiest citizens feel they are entitled to pay -- namely, a much lower income tax rate and a lower tax rate on capital gains.

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Climate and Energy Excerpts from the Fourth Democratic Primary Debate
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The Green Elements of the First 2012 Presidential Debate
Republican Climate Avoidance and the 6th Primary Debate
Climate all but Absent from the Republican CNBC Presidential Debate
Climate Change a No-Show in the First Republican Debate
Republican Presidential Candidates Say the US Should Not Do Anything to Combat Climate Change
Opposition to Climate Action in the November Republican Primary Debate
Climate Change May Give Democrats the Edge in the 2016 Federal Election

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Keystone XL is Rejected Energy East to Follow

TransCanada's tar sands pipelines are being thwarted at every turn. US President Barack Obama has officially rejected the Keystone XL and the new Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is expected to cancel the Energy East.

President Obama rejected the Keystone citing the economics associated with low oil prices. He also said that building the KXL would be inconsistent with US leadership on climate change. The $7 billion dollar, 1,179 mile long KXL would have ferried 800,000 barrels a day of heavy crude oil from the tar sand pits in Alberta Canada to refineries on the Gulf of Mexico.

Last week TransCanada announced a new route for the Energy East pipeline that excluded an oil export terminal in Cacouna northeast of Quebec city. The terminal was abandoned 6 months ago due to a public outcry over the impact the project would have on the habitat of beluga whales.

The $12 billion, 4,600-kilometre Energy East pipeline would transport 1.1 million barrels of crude each day. from Alberta to Canada's east coast. It is scheduled to be completed in 2020 the year that a hoped for global climate agreement would come into effect.

The change comes a matter of days after TransCanada requested a pause in the US State Department's consideration of the Keystone XL pipeline. The request was subsequently denied and then on November 6th the KXL pipeline was cancelled outright after many years of wrangling.

In response to the news, TransCanada said that the fight for the Keystone XL is not over. They are also working on ways of keeping the Energy East afloat. They have submitted new plans for the Energy East to Canada's National Energy Board. The revised route for Energy East pipeline excludes a port in Quebec and goes directly to Irving Oil's massive refinery in Saint John, New Brunswick.

While the company is trying to put a brave face on the cancellation of the Keystone XL and the rerouting of the Energy East, they are having an increasingly difficult time moving forward with their pipedreams.

The situation is destined to get worse for TransCanada as the new Liberal government has promised to prevent oil shipping along Canada's west coast and cancel the Energy East outright. TransCanada explained the rerouting indicated that their decision was made after "conducting thorough studies and consulting with many local communities," Energy East president John Soini said.

Quebec Premier Philippe Couillard has questioned the economic, employment and environmental benefits of the Energy East and he said that his province will not just be a passageway for the pipeline. Citing climate and other concerns, environmental groups oppose the building of the pipeline altogether.

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A Brief Review of the Keystone XL Saga
Belugas Slow Energy East Pipeline Project
The Energy East Pipedream
Environmental Action Opposing the Energy East Pipeline
Quebecers Protest Energy East Pipeline and Terminal
Environmental Leaders Comment on the Energy East Pipeline
Cities In Ontario and Quebec Opposing Energy East
Video - Stop the Energy East Pipeline
Ahead of Obama's Rejection TransCanada Fails to Suspend the KXL
Why the Keystone XL Pipedream Must Die
Reasons Why the Keystone XL is a Pipedream
Keystone XL will Emit 4 Times More Pollution than Originally Thought
The Fate of the Keystone XL: The Ball is in Your Court Mr President
Refuting the Rationale for Approving the Keystone XL
Comparison of the Keystone XL and Renewable Energy
How Come the Keystone XL is so Hard to Kill
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