Some Projects Seem More Lively Than Others As This Year Ends
Fairbanks News Miner by Matt Buxton. The Alaska Gasline Development Corp. on Thursday unveiled a reworked version of its in-state natural gas pipeline that provides lower prices for Fairbanks and communities along the proposed route from Prudhoe Bay to Southcentral. An earlier version of the project faltered during the 2012 legislative session. The revised proposal drops costly processing facilities for natural gas liquids. The liquids are no longer as profitable because the market is awash, thanks to the Lower 48 oil boom. *** Alaska Dispatch by Alex DeMarban (NGP Photo). …pipeline giant TransCanada Corp. is shutting down its project office in Whitehorse, the capital of Canada’s Yukon territory, another sign that current plans for a highway route delivering North Slope natural gas to the Lower 48 are dead.
.jpg)
Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commissioner John Norman (NGP Photo) issued a notice yesterday of the AOGCC’s intent to adopt regulation changes dealing with hydraulic fracturing.
(See related national stories below. -dh)
Energy and Capital by Brianna Panzica. One by one, states across the U.S. have said “yay” or “nay” to fracking. In Texas and North Dakota, it was a resounding yes… and … North Dakota has the lowest unemployment rate in the nation, experiencing a bona fide black gold rush. Vermont firmly said no, banning the practice for good. Of course, there isn’t any significant shale located under Vermont, so few tears were shed. Other states have been on the fence. (More on fracking, below, right)
| On the one hand we have, from IHS, a new, positive report on the economic effect of shale energy: The economic benefits of unconventional oil and natural gas development exist in the states where the resources are produced as well as the states benefiting from the oil and gas supply chain reaching across the country. The IHS State-level Report on the economic impact of unconventional oil and gas indicates that unconventional activity contributes over 1.7 million jobs…growing to 3 million jobs by the end of the decade while generating $63 billion and $113 billion in annual government revenues (this year and in 2020) respectively. For states involved in unconventional oil and gas production, the largest economic contributions come from Texas and Pennsylvania. The top non-producing states – New York and Illinois – with little or no unconventional oil and gas production, are nonetheless seeing large economic contributions by producing the critical goods and services vital to the oil and gas supply chain.
On the other hand, we have the EPA hurriedly releasing an unfinished study. Even though there is no credible evidence of hydraulic fracturing affecting the potable aquifer, and even though the states have effectively regulated hydraulic fracturing for decades, the EPA wants to "ensure…safely and responsibly". -dh
|
|
Q. Why do we cover some mining issues? A. Because the environmentalists, EPA and other regulatory agencies use similar anti-development techniques to stop or delay mining projects as they do energy projects. For example, we fear that should the EPA get away with overstepping its authority and stopping Alaska’s proposed Pebble Mine project before filing for permits, it would be setting a precedent for violating due process. It would undermine America’s rule of law. The EPA action in this case is especially egregious in that the proposed project would occur on State lands of Alaska, in an area designated for mining leases. Below is a communication we received today relating to the environmental preparations Pebble managers are undertaking before even filing for the first permit. Merry Christmas, Dear Readers! -dh
Greetings,
We’re pleased to inform you that the KTOO video coverage of the Keystone Center’s Independent Science Panels is now available on our website. The science panels were convened in October to review the Pebble Partnership’s environmental and socioeconomic baseline studies.
Our website also includes the PowerPoint presentations given by Pebble consultants and panel members, and the results of a follow up survey of people who registered for the panels. We are compiling an independent report on the recommendations from the science panels and hope to release the report in early 2013.
Finally, the Keystone Center is planning an additional independent science panel that will review Pebble’s baseline studies on wetlands, vegetation, wildlife and endangered species. We hope to hold the 2-day panel in April at a location in the Bristol Bay watershed. Details will follow.
Thank you for your continued interest in the Keystone Center’s science panels and please feel free to contact us.
Best Wishes and Happy Holidays,
TB
Todd Bryan, Ph.D.
Senior Associate
The Keystone Center 4580 Broadway, #230 Boulder, CO 80304 Tel: 303-468-8864 www.keystone.org Cell: 303-440-8190 Anchorage: 907-868-3476
|
Leave A Comment