Daily on Energy: End of an era at FERC

FERC has become “more and more” politicized over the last few years as its been dragged into partisan fights over coal, renewables, and climate change, Robert Dillon, former head of communications for the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, told John.

FERC has “usually been pretty bipartisan in the past, but it’s becoming more and more controversial,” Dillon added.

Dillon had been on the energy committee when politics first began to enter nominating new FERC commissioners when President Barack Obama was in the White House. His nominations received huge pushback by the GOP over climate change and a perceived lack of industry friendliness. It got so intense that some nominees began to drop out.

Steadying the ship at the agency for nearly a decade has been Democratic commissioner Cheryl LaFleur, who strangely enough received both Republican and Democratic support for her ability to remain objective and nonpartisan in both her role as FERC member and chairwoman.

But LaFleur’s term is expiring on June 30. And even though she says she is willing to stay on, possibly through the end of the year until the White House nominates a replacement, the commission is losing its longest-serving member.

One federal official called it an “end of an era” at the agency that once quietly did its work away from the political spotlight.

Industry sources tell John that it doesn’t appear hopeful that new members will be nominated by June 30, which won’t give LaFleur much incentive to stay on the commission.

LaFleur’s office says if there is no nominee named, she is willing to remain on the commission through the fall but does not plan to still be here at the end of the year.

A lot of the timing of her departure will depend on her future employment, but she hasn’t set a date yet, her office added.

A rapidly shrinking commission: LaFleur leaving, coupled by a Republican vacancy, will leave FERC desperately short of members, slowing the approval of pipelines and energy infrastructure projects that Trump’s agenda demands.

Sen. Chuck Schumer, the Democratic leader from New York, who has a role in picking new Democratic commissioners, informed LaFleur that he would not be renominating her for the position. Instead, he is floating Allison Clements, a former top lawyer with the Natural Resources Defense Council, an environmental group, to fill the spot.

Schumer has been quiet for over a month on whether Clements will be his choice. Because of her background working for a big environmental group, she is generally viewed as unlikely to break GOP opposition.

The question, according to Dillon, is whether Republicans going to oppose her to the point that it holds up the nomination process. “The problem is the commission needs to work to get a lot of stuff that needs to be done,” he adds.

FERC has become crucial to the Trump administration’s energy dominance agenda, which is dependent on the commission’s environmental reviews and siting decisions to get pipelines and energy export terminals built.

A coalition of oil and natural gas trade groups began prodding Trump earlier this week to do something soon and not let the commission linger short of its optimal five members.

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FERC APPROVES TWO LNG FACILITIES BUT HAGGLES OVER CLIMATE IMPACT: FERC approved two liquified natural gas facilities on Thursday but continued to disagree over how to measure the impact of new energy infrastructure on climate change.

The commission’s approvals of the Driftwood and Port Arthur LNG export facilities were the first since commissioners in February reached a compromise agreement on how to evaluate such projects during its approval of the Calcasieu Pass project. Calcasieu Pass was the commission’s first approval of an LNG facility in two years.

In February, LaFleur was able to convince FERC’s Republicans to disclose the amount of direct greenhouse gas emissions produced from an LNG facility by building and operating it. FERC continued with that process Thursday, finding the Driftwood facility would create 10.6 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions annually, while Port Arthur would lead to 4.8 million tons of emissions per year.

Democratic Commissioner Richard Glick, who has opposed all of the pipeline approvals, continued to criticize the FERC process, because the commission does not assess the impact the emissions from LNG facilities would have on climate change and whether the potential harm of that pollution is more damaging than the project’s economic benefits.

“It’s great we have some figures in there [on emissions],” Glick said. “But putting figures in there without context doesn’t do anything. We are saying these projects have no adverse impacts on the environment but we are ignoring the biggest adverse impact we can think of: climate change. What are we doing here?”

Republican Commissioner Bernard McNamee, who voted to approve all three LNG facilities, defended FERC’s approach.

“The commission did look hard at environmental impacts, including greenhouse gasses,” he said. “Disagreeing on how to consider these impacts does not mean that we failed to give them thought and consideration.”

ENERGY DEPARTMENT DENIES REPORT RICK PERRY IS LEAVING ADMINISTRATION: The Energy Department’s press office is denying reports that Secretary Rick Perry is planning to leave his post.

“There is no truth that Secretary Perry is departing the Administration any time soon,” DOE spokeswoman Shaylyn Hynes told Josh in a statement Wednesday night. “He is happy where he is serving President Trump and leading the Department of Energy.”

Early Wednesday, Bloomberg reported Perry is “finalizing the terms and timing of his departure.” The report said Perry’s departure is not “imminent,” and he hasn’t “fully made up his mind.” Reuters is also reporting Perry plans to leave the administration.

Perry, the former Texas governor, has enthusiastically promoted Trump’s “energy dominance agenda” — focused primarily on fossil fuels and nuclear — while using his political skills to maintain popularity among both parties in Congress. He is the last remaining original secretary among the energy-related agencies, with former Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke and Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt having already left the administration because of ethical issues.

OIL-RICH SAUDIS SAY CLIMATE HIGH ON THE AGENDA IN HOSTING NEXT YEAR’S G-20: Saudi Arabia is looking to make climate change top the agenda in hosting, for the first time ever, the Group of 20 industrialized nations summit in Riyadh next year.

“Through its presidency, the Kingdom aims to further strengthen its ties with other G-20 countries and to reach an international consensus on the Summit‘s agenda items,” an official dispatch from state-run media read. “Saudi Arabia is fully committed to the G20‘s objectives and to the stability and prosperity of the international economic system.”

So far, the top items on the agenda include: finance, energy, environment, climate, digital economy, trade, agriculture, healthcare, education and labor, according to the Saudi Press Agency.

The “Riyadh Summit,” as it is being called, will be the first to be hosted in the Arab world, SPA underscores.

An unexpected twist in global opinion: Still, the designation of Riyadh as next year’s spot for the summit comes as a surprise. Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s alleged involvement in the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi drew international scorn and protest at last year’s G-20 Summit held in Buenos Aires.

Even Trump administration officials pulled out of speaking engagements involving the Saudis, while declining, along with several business leaders, to attend a major investment conference held in Riyadh by the crown prince last year due to the murder.

The summit next year will come right after the November elections in the U.S.

EPA RULE AIMS TO ‘CLOSE THE DOOR’ ON NEW USES OF ASBESTOS: The EPA issued a final rule Wednesday that officials say will “close the door” on potential new uses of the dangerous chemical asbestos. The rule, first proposed last August, requires companies to get EPA approval to domestically manufacture or import products using asbestos.

It’s intended to make it difficult, if not impossible, for manufacturers to resume using asbestos in products where it is no longer used, such as in roofing, plastics, and pipelines.

Alexandra Dunn, who leads EPA’s Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention Office, told Josh the agency is not aware of any current proposal by companies to bring back old uses of asbestos, or to propose new ways to use it. But she said EPA’s action is meant to be “proactive” and “protective” just in case.

Exposure to asbestos increases the risk of developing lung cancer, according to the EPA.

Environmental groups and Democrats criticized EPA for not banning all uses of asbestos immediately. EPA instead promised to start a risk evaluation of ongoing uses.

FLORIDA GOP REPS. ROONEY AND GAETZ REQUEST MEETING WITH TRUMP ON OFFSHORE DRILLING: Reps. Francis Rooney and Matt Gaetz, Republicans of Florida, requested a meeting with Trump Wednesday to discuss their push for the Interior Department to not allow oil and gas drilling off their state’s coast in the eastern Gulf of Mexico.

Congress has imposed a moratorium on drilling in the eastern Gulf, but it expires in 2022.

Rooney and Gaetz, among the leading Republican advocates for combating climate change, want Trump to permanently ban drilling East of the Military Mission Line in the Gulf of Mexico.

“Our state is known for its pristine beaches and a welcoming, non-industrial environment,” the lawmakers wrote to Trump. “Not extending the moratorium on offshore drilling will place Florida at risk as a premier tourist destination. A fact which voters are keenly aware of.”

CLEAN ENERGY WORKERS EARN MORE MONEY, BUT THE FIELD LACKS DIVERSITY: Workers in the clean energy industry earn higher and more equitable wages compared to other employment fields nationally, but the workforce is older and lacks racial diversity, according to a report released Thursday.

Average hourly wages in clean energy exceed national averages by 8 to 19%, the report by the Brookings Institute found, and even with the higher pay, the jobs require less education. But the report said fewer than 20% of workers in the clean energy production and energy efficiency sectors are women, while black workers occupy less than 10% of the sector’s jobs.

“These results confirm the transition to a clean energy economy could help address economic inclusion challenges from the national to the local level,” the report said. “However, the current roster of workers in related occupations is far from inclusive — suggesting the existence of distinct barriers to access that require additional attention and action.”

The report notes the concept of growing clean energy jobs, and providing equitable access to them, is a core principle of the progressive Green New Deal.

The Rundown

Bloomberg Keeney win puts maligned Trudeau pipeline law under new pressure

Washington Post A crisis in Kentucky’s coal country shows the high cost of clean drinking water

New York Times New York City buildings to face greenhouse gas limits

Reuters Cheap solar panels power consumer appliance boom in North Korea

Calendar

FRIDAY | April 19

Good Friday and the beginning of Passover

MONDAY | April 22

Earth Day