Coal and Oil

Oil slicks that have been spotted in the Gulf of Mexico are likely coming from the Deepwater Horizon wreckage, according to a study. [AP]

World Bank has announced that is is following President Obama's lead. The World Bank will no longer finance coal plants unless there is no other option. [Reuters]

Obama announces expansion of marine sanctuaries

Goat Rock is located at the mouth of the Russian River near Jenner, CA

In a move that would permanently ban oil drilling along more than 50 miles of Northern California coast, the Obama administration announced plans to expand two Northern California marine sanctuaries, extending them up the rugged Sonoma and Mendocino coast. [Santa Cruz Sentinel]

Romney promises to end federal oversight of oil and gas drilling

Mitt Romney is proposing to end a century of federal control over oil and gas drilling and coal mining on all government lands including national parks. 

Here are five places that could be at risk under a Romney energy plan:

-  Grand Canyon National Park:  Even though Interior Secretary Ken Salazar protected one million acres around the Grand Canyon from mining last January, the decision applied only to new claims.  About 3,500 existing uranium claims may still be valid, which could result in up to 11 uranium mines on Bureau of Land Management and Forest Service lands near the canyon.  Under a Romney energy plan, the decision to permit these new mines would be made by the state of Arizona and under its rules and regulations.  Arizona Governor Jan Brewer would likely give the go-ahead to new mining, as she called Salazar’s decision in January “excessive and unnecessary regulation.” 

-  Bryce Canyon National Park:  A strip coal mine is currently being proposed on Bureau of Land Management lands ten miles from the park, but the National Park Service warned that it would “likely result in negative impacts to park resources and visitors” and especially to air quality and scenery.  Under the Romney energy plan, the state of Utah would be responsible for permitting and overseeing the new mine.  Chances are it would be permitted, as Utah already gave the go-ahead to a coal mine right next to the proposed one. 

-  Arches National Park:  The final hours of the George W. Bush presidency saw the issuance of 77 oil and gas leases very close to national parks, including Arches. In January 2009, new Interior Secretary Ken Salazar canceled the leases, saying that they had been rushed.  But that decision is not permanent — if and the oil and gas industry proposed drilling there again, these and other leases on the edges of Arches could move forward.  And the state of Utah would probably accept those industry demands, since its governor and legislature this year called for title to all 30 million acres of public lands to “help foster economic development.”

-  Theodore Roosevelt National Park:  North Dakota is ground zero for the Bakken oil boom, which is pressing up against this national park where President Theodore Roosevelt developed much of his conservation ethic.  Already drilling rigs can be seen from within the park.  And even more could be built if aproposed bridge is permitted that could open up even more of the adjacent Little Missouri Grasslands (managed by the Forest Service) to oil and gas drilling.

-  Grand Teton National Park: This park borders the Bridger-Teton National Forest, home to significant natural gas resources.  Currently the Forest Service is determining whether to allow the drilling of up to 136 natural gas wells on its lands, which could have a number of impacts on the park.  Grand Teton National Park’s superintendent expressed concerns about “degradation of visibility” from the project, and other officials have worried about impacts on the park’s wildlife.  If this decision were turned over to the state under the Romney energy plan, the project could potentially go forward. Wyoming Governor Matt Mead has stated that the company has “valid existing rights.” 

http://nyti.ms/Syv1r5
http://bit.ly/RwEuiC

Oil Subsidies - just the facts

Oil Industry tax breaks

• $4 billion: Cost of Big Oil tax breaks in 2011.
• $77 billion: Cost of Big Oil tax breaks from 2011 to 2021.

Oil Industry profits

• $902 billion: Total profits for the five biggest oil companies in the United States, 2001–2010 (in 2011 dollars).
• $32 billion: Total Big Oil earnings, first quarter of 2011. Exxon Mobil alone accounted for $10.7 billion of that figure.
• 38 percent: Big Oil's first-quarter-2011 profit increase over the first quarter of 2010.
• 28 percent: Increase in gasoline prices compared to 2010.

Oil industry votes to close loopholes

• 2: House Republicans who voted to cut tax loopholes for Big Oil during debate on H.R. 1230.
• 147: House Democrats who voted to cut tax loopholes for Big Oil during debate on H.R. 1230.

Public supports ending tax breaks

• 74 percent: The proportion of Americans who favor "eliminating tax credits for the oil and gas industry," according to a NBC News/Wall Street Journal survey.
• 2-to-1: The margin by which "Republican voters support ending subsidies" for oil companies.

Congressional Research Service - Ending oil subsidies won't affect gas prices

US Senator Harry Reid tapped the Congressional Research Service, or CRS, with a request for more information on "the extent to which proposed tax changes on the oil industry are likely to affect domestic gasoline prices." Their answer came back on May 11^th, short and to the point:

"...there is little reason to believe that the price of oil, or gasoline, consumers face will increase."

And concerning the removal of a provision that permits the Big Five to expense their intangible drilling costs? Repealing that tax break

"will have no effect on current U.S. oil production, and hence no effect on current gasoline prices."

Regarding the Section 199 deductions - CRS explains that

"In the short-run it is unlikely that [greater dependence on foreign sourced oil] would occur…With current oil prices at, or near, $100 per barrel in the United States, it is unlikely that firms will slow production, or close wells."

http://climateprogress.org/2011/05/13/congressional-research-service-confirms-closing-tax-loopholes-wont-affect-gasoline-prices/

Oil Subsidies - just the facts

Oil Industry tax breaks

• $4 billion: Cost of Big Oil tax breaks in 2011.
• $77 billion: Cost of Big Oil tax breaks from 2011 to 2021.

Oil Industry profits

• $902 billion: Total profits for the five biggest oil companies in the United States, 2001–2010 (in 2011 dollars).
• $32 billion: Total Big Oil earnings, first quarter of 2011. Exxon Mobil alone accounted for $10.7 billion of that figure.
• 38 percent: Big Oil's first-quarter-2011 profit increase over the first quarter of 2010.
• 28 percent: Increase in gasoline prices compared to 2010.

Oil industry votes to close loopholes

• 2: House Republicans who voted to cut tax loopholes for Big Oil during debate on H.R. 1230.
• 147: House Democrats who voted to cut tax loopholes for Big Oil during debate on H.R. 1230.

Public supports ending tax breaks

• 74 percent: The proportion of Americans who favor "eliminating tax credits for the oil and gas industry," according to a NBC News/Wall Street Journal survey.
• 2-to-1: The margin by which "Republican voters support ending subsidies" for oil companies.

Your Pain - Big Oil's Gain

Exxon earned $11 billion
Shell earned $6.9 billion 
BP earned $5.5 billion
Enough said.

Paul Ryan's Big Oil Budget

By CAPAF's Daniel J. Weiss and Richard W. Caperton

House Budget Committee Chair Paul Ryan's (R-WI) proposed FY 2012 budget resolution is a backward-looking plan that would benefit big oil companies at the expense of middle-class Americans. It retains $40 billion in Big Oil tax loopholes while completely eliminating investments in the clean energy technologies of the future that are essential for long-term economic growth.

This budget would lock Americans into paying high, volatile energy prices. It would ensure that millions of clean energy jobs are created oversees–not here in the United States. It is a path backward to Bush-Cheney Big Oil energy policies that cost jobs and harm American competitiveness. In short, the Ryan plan ensures that we lose the high-stakes competition for the $2 trillion worldwide clean tech market.

In addition to receiving $40 billion of unnecessary tax breaks, Big Oil does not pay its fair share of royalties for oil and gas produced from publicly owned waters. The Government Accountability Office estimates that a loophole in a 1990s oil-and-gas law could deprive the treasury of $53 billion in lost royalties. In February, the House Republicans overwhelminglyvoted against recovering these royalties. 

The Ryan budget undermines our economy in another way. It goes backward by continuing to allow harmful, costly pollution. Its attacks on "environmental regulations" ignore their economic benefit. The Environmental Protection Agency, for instance, determined that the Clean Air Act has generated $20 in benefits for every $1 in cleanup costs—a return on investment that would make Warren Buffet proud.

Paul Ryan's proposed budget resolution would keep Big Oil fat and happy while condemning the rest of us to high energy prices, job losses to other nations, and air pollution. Rather than foster innovation and economic growth like President Obama's proposed budget, it is a path to perdition.

http://climateprogress.org/2011/04/06/paul-ryan-big-oil-budget-energy/

Coal, Oil, & Nuclear

If you ever had any doubts about what a future based on dirty energy would look like, please reflect on the events of the last year. 

Three of our main sources of dirty energy — coal, oil and nuclear power — have experienced major disasters. The Upper Big Branch coal mine explosion in West Virginia, the Deepwater Horizon blowout and environmental disaster in the Gulf of Mexico and the unfolding nuclear crisis in Japan have dramatized the dangers of our continued commitment to dirty conventional power.

Click here for a roadmap showing the way to a 100% renewable future. This report from the WWF shows how we can use renewables to generate 100% of the world's energy for electricity, heating and transportation using renewables by the year 2050. 

Let's get to work!