Petrochemicals - US

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Tue, 2013-10-08 20:10 — mdmcdonald

This working group focuses on issues surrounding the extraction, processing, and use of petrochemicals.

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petrochemicals-us@m.resiliencesystem.org

House Panel Advances Plan to Pare Border-Crossing Pipeline Reviews

Fri, 2013-11-22 17:08 — Kathy Gilbeaux

submitted by Margery Schab

fuelfix.com - by Jennifer A. Dlouhy - November 20, 2013

WASHINGTON — A House subcommittee on Wednesday advanced legislation that aims to speed up the government’s review of pipelines and power lines that cross U.S. borders into Mexico and Canada, over the objections of environmentalists and the Obama administration.

Bill supporters, including Democrat Gene Green of Houston and Michigan Republican Fred Upton, said the measure is necessary to put Congress’ stamp on a presidential permit process for border-crossing energy infrastructure projects that has developed from executive orders issued over decades.

The measure effectively would require federal agencies to approve proposed border-crossing energy projects within 120 days unless they are deemed to be against the national security interest of the United States — a lower bar than the public interest threshold generally in place today.

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House Votes to Block Federal Fracking Rules

Fri, 2013-11-22 16:55 — Kathy Gilbeaux

submitted by Margery Schab

thehill.com - by Pete Kasperowicz - November 20, 2013

The House passed legislation Wednesday evening that would block the Department of the Interior from regulating hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, in states that already have their own regulations in place.

Members passed the bill 235-187 with the help of 12 Democrats; two Republicans voted against it.

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govtrack.us - H.R. 2728

rules.house.gov - H.R. 2728

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How the Voters of One Small County May Have Stopped 48 Million Tons of Coal

Sat, 2013-11-09 00:23 — Gina Angiola

By Rachael Stoeve, Nov. 6,2013, YES!

Opponents of a plan to ship millions of tons of coal through the Pacific Northwest appear headed for victory in the Whatcom County Council election, after a race that saw more than $1 million in campaign funds pour into the small, rural county race from both environmental and industry groups as well as the candidates' own fundraising efforts.

"The fact that our community couldn't be bought is spectacular."

Coal companies and terminal developers are hoping to ship 48 million tons of coal per year through Washington state via the proposed Gateway Pacific Terminal at Cherry Point. The Whatcom County Council race emerged as a focal point for opposition to the terminal because the council is in charge of permits for the project, which is currently under environmental review....

FULL ARTICLE HERE

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North Dakota Oil Spill: Tesoro Corp. Pipeline Breaks Near Tioga; Dumps More Than 20,000 Barrels Of Crude

Fri, 2013-10-25 21:53 — admin

www.huffingtonpost.com - October 10, 2013 - AP by James MacPherson

North Dakota Oil Spill

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — More than 20,000 barrels of crude oil have spewed out of a Tesoro Corp. oil pipeline in a wheat field in northwestern North Dakota, the state Health Department said Thursday.

State environmental geologist Kris Roberts said the 20,600-barrel spill, among the largest recorded in the state, was discovered on Sept. 29 by a farmer harvesting wheat about nine miles north of Tioga.

Steve Jensen, the farmer, said he'd smelled crude several days before the tires on his combines were coated with it. At the apparent break in the underground pipeline, the oil was "spewing and bubbling six inches high," Jensen said.

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Fossil Fuel Divestment Campaign Spreading Like Wildfire

Tue, 2013-10-22 00:00 — Gina Angiola

Inside Climate News, News Report, Katherine Bagley, Posted: Dec 09, 2012

Image: The kick-off of the Do The Math tour in Seattle on November 7, 2012, coordinated by 350.org, whose founder is author and activist Bill McKibben (pictured here in the front, center). Divestment from fossil fuel companies is a key component of the campaign.

A divestment campaign aimed at fossil fuel companies has swept college campuses across the country since it began just four weeks ago, catching university presidents by surprise.

The effort is the result of a student-led campaign coordinated by 350.org, a climate advocacy organization founded by author and activist Bill McKibben. The goal is to turn global warming action into the moral issue of this generation.

"Bottom line, for a college or university, you do not want your institution to be on the wrong side of this issue," said Stephen Mulkey, president of Unity College in Maine...

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Supreme Court Preserves Victory Over Oil/Gas Development in Utah

Sun, 2013-10-20 23:58 — admin

earthjustice.org - October 18, 2013 - Doug Pflugh

It is rewarding to successfully wrap-up a case. This can be especially true when our work protects special places, preserving them for future generations. It is a pleasure to be able to point at a map and say, “Those are the places that were saved.”

The U.S. Supreme Court took action last week that did just that—endorsing an earlier conservation victory and ending the long fight over proposed oil and gas development on the doorstep of beloved public lands in the west ...

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Food and Water Watch is challenging fracking

Sun, 2013-10-20 21:38 — admin

You can join Food and Water Watch and other concerned citizens challenging fracking.

www.foodandwaterwatch.org

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Increased Mercury Levels Near Tar Sands

Thu, 2013-10-17 21:10 — Kathy Gilbeaux

priceofoil.org - by Andy Rowell - October 15, 2013

CLICK HERE - STUDY - Mercury Trends in Colonial Waterbird Eggs Downstream of the Oil Sands Region of Alberta, Canada

Scientists have released yet another academic study that indicates the growing ecological impact of the tar sands.

They measured the amount of mercury in birds eggs downstream from the tar sands and compared them to eggs some distance away from the polluting region.

What they found was that the eggs of certain species of predatory birds living downstream from the tar sands were found to have “statistically significant increases” of the dangerous heavy metal, mercury.

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ND Waits 11 Days to Tell Public About Oil Spill

Sun, 2013-10-13 22:43 — Gina Angiola

BISMARCK, N.D. October 11, 2013 (AP)

By JAMES MacPHERSON Associated Press

When a pipeline rupture sent more than 20,000 barrels of crude spewing across a North Dakota wheat field, it took nearly two weeks for officials to tell the public about it.

The break in a Tesoro Corp. pipeline happened in a remote area, and officials say no water was contaminated or wildlife hurt. But environmentalists are skeptical and say it's an example of a boom industry operating too cozily with state regulators.

"It shows an attitude of our current state government and what they think of the public," said Don Morrison, executive director of the Dakota Resource Council, an environmental-minded landowner group with more than 700 members in North Dakota. "It's definitely worrisome. There is a pattern in current state government to not involve the public."...

FULL STORY HERE

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