But where will get our plastic and computer parts?
Wave of Fossil Fuel Project Cancellations Follow Keystone XL Rejection
Six months after the Obama administration rejected the Keystone XL pipeline, at least 20 other proposed energy projects—mines, pipelines, plants, related rail projects and export terminals—have been canceled, rejected or delayed, according to research compiled and mapped by InsideClimate News.
Sustained grassroots resistance and public opposition have played a role in at least some of these decisions; other influential factors include unfavorable economic conditions such as low oil prices, as well as governments' environmental concerns and project siting issues.
Proposed in 2008, the Keystone XL was originally slated to transport Canadian oil sands crude to Gulf Coast refineries. Federal regulators rejected the project for its potential climate impact and minimal economic benefits—and activists hailed the decision as a victory for their years of action against the project.
Since then, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission rejected two project applications—for the Oregon-based Jordan Cove LNG project and Pacific Connector Pipeline—and delayed the decisions on two other facilities. For five of the projects, the bids or key permits were rejected by either a federal panel or state or local officials. Companies chose to cancel five other projects, including Arch Coal's abandoning its planned Otter Creek coal mine in Montana and Kinder Morgan's pulling the plug on its Northeast Energy Direct pipeline. The remaining facilities are delayed.
According to Tom Sanzillo, director of finance for the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA), what's driving the coal decisions is straightforward: No one is willing to financially support these projects anymore.
So far this year, the nation's two top coal companies, Peabody Coal and Arch Coal, announced bankruptcy. "The bankruptcies have just rocked the industry," said Sanzillo, who cited a roster of investors who are "walking away" from coal: bankers, equity markets, venture capitalists and hedge funds.
For the oil and gas industries, it's more complicated. According to Sanzillo, "there should be a concern that the utilities are building too many pipelines and the [regulators] should be concerned about how consumers pay for it." Sanzillo co-authored a recent report detailing the risks of overbuilding pipelines in Appalachia.
Energy companies themselves are often blaming the economy when they pause or cancel projects. In a few cases, however, companies will acknowledge local resistance. One recent example was Kinder Morgan's decision last month to suspend construction on the Palmetto Pipeline in the Southeast. In that case, the company cited the Georgia legislature's passage of new restrictions on pipeline permitting and eminent domain; these limits on industry were strongly supported by landowners in the state.
Over the last six months, multiple natural gas pipelines have also been approved, including two such projects in New Jersey, and the Sunbury Pipeline project in Pennsylvania. The federal government also approved the extension of Enbridge's Alberta Clipper oil sands pipeline.
Fossil fuel companies generally blame market forces, not public opposition, on the project setbacks, Bold Nebraska founder Jane Kleeb told InsideClimate News. "Everything they say is about demoralizing what we do at the local level and not giving any credit to the people power of this fight," she said. "In reality, I think it has a lot to do with the people power on the ground."
http://insideclimatenews.org/news/0...oil-coal-natural-gas-climate-change-activists
Wave of Fossil Fuel Project Cancellations Follow Keystone XL Rejection
Six months after the Obama administration rejected the Keystone XL pipeline, at least 20 other proposed energy projects—mines, pipelines, plants, related rail projects and export terminals—have been canceled, rejected or delayed, according to research compiled and mapped by InsideClimate News.
Sustained grassroots resistance and public opposition have played a role in at least some of these decisions; other influential factors include unfavorable economic conditions such as low oil prices, as well as governments' environmental concerns and project siting issues.
Proposed in 2008, the Keystone XL was originally slated to transport Canadian oil sands crude to Gulf Coast refineries. Federal regulators rejected the project for its potential climate impact and minimal economic benefits—and activists hailed the decision as a victory for their years of action against the project.
Since then, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission rejected two project applications—for the Oregon-based Jordan Cove LNG project and Pacific Connector Pipeline—and delayed the decisions on two other facilities. For five of the projects, the bids or key permits were rejected by either a federal panel or state or local officials. Companies chose to cancel five other projects, including Arch Coal's abandoning its planned Otter Creek coal mine in Montana and Kinder Morgan's pulling the plug on its Northeast Energy Direct pipeline. The remaining facilities are delayed.
According to Tom Sanzillo, director of finance for the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA), what's driving the coal decisions is straightforward: No one is willing to financially support these projects anymore.
So far this year, the nation's two top coal companies, Peabody Coal and Arch Coal, announced bankruptcy. "The bankruptcies have just rocked the industry," said Sanzillo, who cited a roster of investors who are "walking away" from coal: bankers, equity markets, venture capitalists and hedge funds.
For the oil and gas industries, it's more complicated. According to Sanzillo, "there should be a concern that the utilities are building too many pipelines and the [regulators] should be concerned about how consumers pay for it." Sanzillo co-authored a recent report detailing the risks of overbuilding pipelines in Appalachia.
Energy companies themselves are often blaming the economy when they pause or cancel projects. In a few cases, however, companies will acknowledge local resistance. One recent example was Kinder Morgan's decision last month to suspend construction on the Palmetto Pipeline in the Southeast. In that case, the company cited the Georgia legislature's passage of new restrictions on pipeline permitting and eminent domain; these limits on industry were strongly supported by landowners in the state.
Over the last six months, multiple natural gas pipelines have also been approved, including two such projects in New Jersey, and the Sunbury Pipeline project in Pennsylvania. The federal government also approved the extension of Enbridge's Alberta Clipper oil sands pipeline.
Fossil fuel companies generally blame market forces, not public opposition, on the project setbacks, Bold Nebraska founder Jane Kleeb told InsideClimate News. "Everything they say is about demoralizing what we do at the local level and not giving any credit to the people power of this fight," she said. "In reality, I think it has a lot to do with the people power on the ground."
http://insideclimatenews.org/news/0...oil-coal-natural-gas-climate-change-activists
