DOMINION "NEW MARKET PROJECT" SCOPING MEETING
Newly added FERC Scoping Hearing and Comment Deadline for Dominion's "New Market Project" as follow-up to Oct. 8th FERC hearing in Georgetown, NY. DeRuyter and West Eaton are now being considered as prospective sites for a compressor station.
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 2014, 6:00 PM
Morrisville-Eaton Middle/ High School Auditorium
5601 Fearon Road, Morrisville, NY 13408
File online at: http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/ecomment.asp (Docket # CP14-497)
SHOULD UNIVERSITIES AND PENSION FUNDS DIVEST FROM FOSSIL FUEL STOCKS?
SPEAKERS: Bennett Freeman, Calvert Investments; Stephen Heintz, Rockefeller Brothers Fund; John Willis, Sustainable Insight Capital Management; Christianna Wood, Gore Creek Capital, Ltd. and MODERATOR: Michael B. Gerrard, Sabin Center for Climate Change Law, Columbia Law School
The speakers include both proponents and opponents of divestment, and experts on the effect of divestment on portfolio value and its place in the corporate social responsibility movement.
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 2014 7:00 - 9:00 PM
Columbia Law School, 435 W. 116th St. (corner of Amsterdam Ave.), New York, NY, Room 101
New York, NY
Register at: Columbia Uinversity (registration)
SAVE THE DATE - NOT ONE WELL RALLY AGAINST FRACKING & FOR RENEWABLE ENERGY AT CUOMO'S STATE OF THE STATE ADDRESS
January 7 is NY Governor Cuomo's State of the State address. Join us in Albany to tell Cuomo "NOT ONE WELL" in NYS.
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015, 11:30 AM - 2:30 PM
Concourse Hallways, outside the entrance to the Convention Center
(note: rally is indoors)
Empire State Plaza,
Albany, NY
See more at:NOT ONE WELL RALLY AGAINST FRACKING & FOR RENEWABLE ENERGY
NYS REVISES LNG RULES
Photo credit: Staten Island/Landov A LNG storage tank explosion on Staten Island in 1973 killed forty workers and led to a ban
on new LNG facilities in NYS that is still in force today.
This important change is a direct result of our actions. In announcing the new capacity limit, the DEC acknowledged that the rule was rewritten in response to tens of thousands of critical public comments. Tell the DEC you support the new capacity limit but want to see further improvements to protect the public and cut methane emissions.
WHO PAYS FOR FRACKING?
(Click Photo to Enlarge)
Governor Cuomo may announce by year's end whether or not he will permit high-volume fracking. If he permits it, even on a limited basis, you can be sure he'll justify his action by citing the economic benefits of drilling. You can also be sure he'll try to avoid any discussion of the very real economic burden that gas extraction will place on New York State taxpayers and host communities.
These hard truths are detailed in "Who Pays for Fracking?" —a trifold brochure Catskill Citizens is mailing to 78,000 households in Putnam and Rockland Counties. Earlier in the year, we sent this brochure to over 400,000 households in Westchester County.
COMPRESSOR STATIONS = FORMALDEHYDE
A new peer-reviewed study shows that compressor stations emit dangerous levels of formaldehyde, a suspected carcinogen that can cause everything from allergies and asthma to neurological damage and reproductive problems. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) should be asked to respond to this report every time it considers licensing a compressor station.
PIPELINE REVERSALS RESPONSIBLE FOR OIL SPILLS
As the fossil fuel industry scrambles to move a glut of fracked oil and gas around the country, it has increasingly resorted to reversing the directional flow of pipelines. Now the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Administration has warned operators that this practice can jeopardize safety—it's already resulted in crude oil spills in North Dakota and Arkansas.
Now you don't have to install solar panels or a wind turbine to go green. All you have to do is switch your electric bill to Pear Energy. Remember to enter the promo code: catskillcitizen, and Pear will donate $50 to Catskill Citizens.
The Bianca Jagger Human Rights Foundation
Environmental, Human Health and Climate Impacts Associated with Hydraulic Fracturing Operations October 30, 2014
Annual Report of the Government Chief Scientific Adviser 2014. ject team was David Bennett, Graeme Collinson, Mike Edbury, Elizabeth Surkovic and Jack Wardle.
Clean Air Task Force Report Summary. The full report will be available in Dec, 2014. Earthjustice, Earthworks, and Environmental Defense Fund have reviewed this report. The full text of the report will be available online at http://catf.us/resources/publications/view/205
Authors: Avner Vengosh and Robert Jackson, Duke University. Scientists have developed new geochemical tracers that can identify hydraulic fracturing flowback fluids that have been spilled or released into the environment. Oct, 20, 2014
Authors: Gregg P Macey, Ruth Breech, Mark Chernaik, Caroline Cox, Denny Larson, Deb Thomas and David O Carpenter for Environmental Health. October 30, 2014
Crispin Pierce, Kristin Walters, Jeron Jacobson and Zachary Kroening University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire; Accepted for publication in the Journal of Environmental Health (Nov. 2015, in press). Abstract: The rapid growth of hydraulic fracturing for oil and gas extraction in the U.S. has led to more than 140 permitted “frac” sand mines and processing plants in Wisconsin.
This paper was conceived, written and researched collectively by Tom Sanzillo, Lorne Stockman, Deborah Rogers, Hannah McKinnon, Elizabeth Bast, and Steve Kretzmann. With assistance and/or additional contributions from Adam Wolfensohn, and Amin Asadollahi for the Institute for Energy Economics & Financial Analysis, Oct.2014.
Environmental Integrity Project, Oct 22, 2014. This report was researched and written by Eric Schaeffer and Courtney Bernhardt. The Environmental Integrity Project (EIP) is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization established in March of 2002 by former EPA enforcement attorneys to advocate for effective enforcement of environmental laws.
RT Documentary--53 minutes. Published on Oct 10, 2014
All across the USA people are rising up against fracking. They don’t believe the process is safe and think it causes wide-scale land contamination. Ever more extraction sites are being approved and developed with new plant being built in once idyllic landscapes.
Nature, Oct, 2014. Authors: Haewon McJeon, Jae Edmonds, Nico Bauer, Leon Clarke, Brian Fisher, Brian P. Flannery, Jérôme Hilaire, Volker Krey, Giacomo Marangoni, Raymond Mi, Keywan Riahi, Holger Rogner & Massimo Tavoni
"Our results show that although market penetration of globally abundant gas may substantially change the future energy system, it is not necessarily an effective substitute for climate change mitigation policy9, 10.:
As natural gas extraction expands across the Central Appalachian region, that industrial-scale energy development is encroaching on public lands that are critically important for fishing and hunting. In this report, Trout Unlimited takes a deeper look into those public places, outlining the potential risks posed by gas drilling operations and providing recommendations from sportsmen and women that promote responsible energy development.
Authors: Justin L. Rubinstein, William L. Ellsworth, Arthur McGarr, and Harley M. Benz,
Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America, October 2014,
Standord Steyer-Taylor Center for Energy Policy and Finance and Hoover Institutiion's Shultz-Stephenson Task Force on Energy Policy, posted September, 2014.
by Samuel J. Maguire-Boyle and Andrew R. Barron, Environmental Science: Processes & Impacts (Formerly the Journal of Environmental Monitoring), August13, 2014; abstract.
"To enhance our nations' energy security and reliability and to protect our environment, methane emissions must be reduced. Letter signed by 49 members of Congress. May 14, 2014
The Environmental Integrity Project (EIP) is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization established in March of 2002 by former EPA enforcement attorneys to advocate for effective enforcement of environmental laws. Report Aug 13, 2014
This report provides an After Action Review (AAR) of the Chevron Appalachia LLC Lanco 7H well fire incident. This well fire incident occurred from February 11, 2014 through March 3, 2014.
Report Executive Summary by Earthworks, August, 2014. Earthworks conducted a year-long investigation into how DEP permits and oversees gas and oil operations, what has occurred at certain loca- tions, and the circumstances facing numerous households and communities. - See more at: http://www.earthworksaction.org/library/detail/blackout_summary#.U-O8a1ZD5g0
Authors: Sara Souther, Morgan W Tingley, Viorel D Popescu, David TS Hayman, Maureen E Ryan, Tabitha A Graves, Brett Hartl, and Kimberly Terrell. The Ecological Society of America, 2014.
* Exploitation of oil and gas reserves trapped in shale rock, including the extraction process known as “fracking”, poses substantial and unexplored risks to living creatures
• Understanding the biotic impacts of operations that fracture shale to access reserves is hindered by the unavailability of high-quality data about fracturing fluids, wastewater, and spills or violations
• The risks of chemical contamination from spills, deep well failures, storage leaks, and underground fluid migration are top research priorities
• Cumulative effects of shale development may represent the most severe threats to plants and animals, but are particularly challenging to study
Q20. Switching gears, the State Department of Environmental Conservation - or DEC - is expected to soon issue a decision on whether or not to allow hydrofracking - that is, the proposed method to recover natural gas from parts of upstate New York - to move forward. How much have you heard or read about it - a great deal, some, not very much, or nothing at all?
Q21. Do you support or oppose the Department of Environmental Conservation allowing hydrofracking to move forward in parts of upstate New York?
Q22A. Hydrofracking is too dangerous as it leads to unsafe levels of methane gas being released
Q22B. Hydrofracking is important in order to harvest the abundant supply of natural gas that is otherwise currently inaccessible
This article attempts to summarise the health concerns and discuss
them within the South African context. Published in the South African Medical Journal, May, 2014.
Authors:
Sam Gallaher, Doctoral Candidate Jonathan Pierce, Post-Doctoral Scholar Chris Weible, Associate Professor Jennifer Kagan, Graduate Assistant Tanya Heikkila, Associate Professor Benjamin Blair, Research Associate
School of Public Affairs, University of Colorado, Denver, July, 2014
An all-volunteer grassroots organization with members throughout New York and around the country.
Newly empowered Republicans wasted no time pushing the Keystone XL pipeline through the House. On November 14, they voted to expedite construction of the pipeline's northern leg by taking the approval process out of the hands of the president and the State Department and by short-circuiting consideration of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the Endangered Species Act. Thirty-one Democrats, including New York's Sean Patrick Maloney, joined a solid Republican majority in voting for the bill.
On the same day, on a strict party-line vote, House Republicans defeated a motion that would have required Keystone XL to contribute eight cents a barrel to the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund. New York Republican Chris Gibson (R), who ran for reelection as an environmental moderate willing to work across the aisle, voted with the rest of his party to give the owners of Keystone a free ride.
In the Senate, fourteen Democrats joined a solid Republican bloc in support of Keystone but still came up one vote short. This may be just a temporary reprieve. The bill is likely to be reintroduced in January when the Republicans take over the Senate.
President Obama has been uncharacteristically blunt in his response to the congressional action. He insisted that all legal challenges to the pipeline be allowed to run their course—and he debunked the key arguments that have been used to sell Keystone to the American people. "I have to constantly push back against this idea that somehow the Keystone pipeline is either this massive jobs bill for the United States or is somehow lowering gas prices," he told reporters. The president went on to point out that Keystone simply gives Canada the ability "to pump their oil, send it through our land, down to the Gulf, where it will be sold everywhere else." This is the strongest sign to date that the president may veto Keystone XL when it reaches his desk.
Ask the president to kill this disastrous project that will play havoc with the climate and do little for the American people.
MARAD MOVES TO BAR IMPORT/EXPORT FLIPPING
The Maritime Administration (MARAD) has proposed a new policy that would prevent offshore liquefied natural gas (LNG) ports holding import licenses from exporting gas unless they first go through a new licensing process—including public hearings, a fresh environmental review, and the possibility of being vetoed by governors of adjacent states.
The issue of "flipping" import facilities first concerned us when we examined the application to construct an offshore LNG port nineteen nautical miles off Long Island. The proposed facility, Port Ambrose, would ostensibly be used to import LNG, but that made no sense, because expensive, imported LNG simply can't compete in a market flooded with cheap shale gas. We suspected that once Port Ambrose was built, it would be quickly repurposed to export Marcellus Shale gas overseas. We raised this concern in a letter to MARAD and were told, "The authority to export natural gas through the ... facility would constitute such a significant change from the proposal now under review that it would require a new license application in its entirety."
We are encouraged that MARAD has now proposed a written policy that would apply to all deepwater LNG ports. Ask MARAD to adopt this policy to prevent an import/export "bait and switch" somewhere down the road.
OBAMA'S POWER PLANT RULE SUBSTITUTES FRACKED GAS FOR COAL
As we reported last June, the Obama administration has proposed a rule that will reduce carbon dioxide emissions from power plants by increasing the consumption of fracked gas—that is, methane, a greenhouse gas that is pound for pound far worse as a driver of climate change than CO2. By ignoring the science on methane, underestimating the chronic problems of gas leakage across the country, and suggesting pitifully weak goals for renewables, the president has missed the mark with a rule that does little to tackle climate change. Unless this rule is substantially improved, it could actually heat the globe faster.
Read more:
A top Obama aide faults the EPA proposed power plant rule.
It's not too late to submit your own comments on the proposed rule; the deadline has been extended to December 1.
TELL GOVERNOR CUOMO:
NOT ONE WELL!
Rally Against Fracking and for Renewable Energy at Governor Andrew Cuomo's State of the State Address Wednesday, January 7, 11:30 AM - 2:30 PM
Empire State Plaza
Albany, NY
For more information: Not One Well Rally
IT'S THAT TIME OF YEAR ...
#GivingTuesday is a movement that supports over 10,000 organizations around the world, including ours. When you plan your year-end donations, please remember Catskill Citizens for Safe Energy. We're an all-volunteer organization powered by thousands of hours of unpaid volunteer work —and the generous support of people like you.
In fall 2013 Brent O'Neil*, a veteran global oil and gas driller, went in search of a lawyer to help his mother, realtor Ann Craft.
For the last two years she's been embroiled with a fight with the province's regulators over two separate incidents as exclusively reported by The Tyee yesterday.
... [Full Story]
A lobbying group for oil producers including Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) and Anadarko Petroleum Corp. (APC) said it would accept proposed rules on pollution from oil wells in order to head-off a broad federal standard for methane leaks.
The American Petroleum Institute, which has fought U.S. mandates... [Full Story]
New York’s Town of Reading courtroom was full Wednesday night when 19 people were arraigned after being arrested for blockading the gates of Crestwood Midstream in an ongoing “We Are Seneca Lake” campaign protesting the storage of fracked gas along the shores of Seneca Lake. [Full Story]
This year, the precipitating factor has been the waning of threats of disruption from Russia and the Middle East, slowing economies in Europe and Asia and, above all, a surge in production from the United States and Canada. “This time, the innovation is fracking,” said Philip Verleger, president of ... [Full Story]
April Lane's work often brings her to Fayetteville, Arkansas, where she monitors pollution from natural gas production sites around the area's rich shale reserves. Exposure to toxins, she says, have left her with chronic headaches, nausea and a hesitancy to have more children.
"I've decided hav... [Full Story]
Even Susan G. Komen’s own website shares the chemicals from fracking that are linked to breast cancer, but it didn’t stop them from partnering with oil and gas giant Baker Hughes, which donated $100,000 to Komen in October for the “Doing Our Bit for the Cure” campaign where 1,000 fracking drill bits... [Full Story]
HOUSTON -- Federal officials are trying to sound the alarm about the dangers of airborne petrochemicals that blow out of tank hatches at oil well sites.
They say they have found startlingly high levels of the chemicals, which can quickly disorient workers, causing them to pass out or even die.
"Ev... [Full Story]
Ann Craft is a self-described strong willed and caring Irish woman who has been selling real estate in Central Alberta for 19 years.
But now she is getting rather upset.
"I'm more than pissed off. I'm appalled."
[Full Story]
The Denton Drilling Advisory Group and Earthworks filed motions in court today to join the city of Denton in defending its ban on hydraulic fracturing.
Attorneys for the local activists and the national nonprofit advocacy group that helped them pass the ban prepared petitions in intervention for ... [Full Story]
• The clash between wine and gas in New York's Finger Lakes has reached a boiling point. Protesters of a proposed expansion to a gas-storage facility on Seneca Lake are being arrested in droves (92 bookings and counting), and now prominent vintners are among them. On Dec. 1, Phil Davis, co-owner of ... [Full Story]
COMPRESSOR STATIONS = FORMALDEHYDE
