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TRUMP BLAMES CALIFORNIA WILDFIRES ON ‘BAD ENVIRONMENTAL LAWS’: President Trump on Sunday blamed California’s environmental laws for exacerbating 17 wildfires raging across the state, saying lawmakers had “magnified” the situation and hindered responses.

“California wildfires are being magnified & made so much worse by the bad environmental laws which aren’t allowing massive amount of readily available water to be properly utilized. It is being diverted into the Pacific Ocean,” Trump wrote on Twitter. “Must also tree clear to stop fire spreading!”

Counting the toll: The largest fires have destroyed more than 470,000 acres across California, affecting 40,000 residents, according to the Los Angeles Times. More than 14,000 firefighters are working to control the blazes.

The Carr Fire, which started scorching parts of northern California near Redding two weeks ago, is the deadliest blaze. It has claimed seven lives as of Sunday with the death of Jairus Ayeta, a 21-year-old Pacific Gas and Electric apprentice lineman, per the Sacramento Bee. The fire is 41 percent contained.

Trump approved a “major disaster” declaration in California on Sunday, ordering federal funding be made available to help recovery efforts in areas affected by wildfires.

The interpreter: Trump is attempting to link the California wildfires to federal and state forest management policies rather than a warming climate.

Democratic California Gov. Jerry Brown has frequently cited climate change as the culprit in his state’s woes — as he said at a recent news conference, the fires were “the new normal that we have to face” because of climate change.

Preventative measures: But some firefighting experts and the logging industry say that forest overcrowding has also made the fires more intense.

They are calling for more frequent use of prescribed burns, in which officials intentionally set fires to take away ignitable material like brush off the forest floor and give trees more space to breathe.

Another preventative method, called forest thinning, involves crews removing small trees to reduce the amount of fuel in dry forests.

The problem: California state officials maintain that they’re taking prevention seriously.

The California Legislature provided more than $200 million this fiscal year for forest management, Scott McLean, the information officer for Cal Fire, recently told Josh.

But these activities are expensive. And the U.S. currently faces a backlog of needed forest management projects, as federal and state agencies have used more of their budgets responding to wildfires, rather than preventing them.

Water policy: The second half of Trump’s tweet appears to refer to the long-running controversy over diversion of water away from people in Northern California in order to preserve the endangered (and probably soon extinct) delta smelt.

Some Republicans in Congress have called for a larger water allocation for farmers, in California’s central valley, which has suffered from drought. Trump opened another can of worms by suggesting that this would make the water more available for firefighting efforts.

Welcome to Daily on Energy, compiled by Washington Examiner Energy and Environment Writers John Siciliano (@JohnDSiciliano) and Josh Siegel (@SiegelScribe). Email [email protected] for tips, suggestions, calendar items and anything else. If a friend sent this to you and you’d like to sign up, click here. If signing up doesn’t work, shoot us an email and we’ll add you to our list.

TRUMP SPARKS ANOTHER FIGHT WITH CALIFORNIA ON RIGHT TO MAKE CARS CLEANER: The Trump administration’s threat to strip California’s unique authority to set its own vehicle emissions standards has struck a nerve with leaders of the progressive state, which views itself as the nationwide trend-setter in making cars cleaner.

But the Trump administration is equally determined to force California and other blue states to get with its preferred national program, with less stringent standards that it says would save money for drivers everywhere and prevent car accidents.

Deal or no deal?: “You have to remember this is only a proposal, and the Trump administration and California have both made it quite clear they are continuing to talk to see if they can find common ground,” Jeff Holmstead, a former deputy administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency in the George W. Bush administration, told Josh. “California has an incentive to be flexible and come up with something that maintains a 50-state approach without litigation over the waiver.”

Other experts say a deal is unlikely as both sides aggressively defend their position, a tension that could foreshadow a lengthy legal battle all the way up to the Supreme Court.

“What has been clear is the Trump administration seems to want to pick this fight,” Dave Cooke, a senior vehicle analyst at the Union of Concerned Scientists, told Josh. “Threatening to revoke the waiver puts the brakes on negotiations. I don’t know how this leads to anything productive in terms of a negotiating a solution.”

Power move: In its proposal last week to freeze the Obama administration’s tough fuel-efficiency rules, the Trump administration makes a legal argument for revoking California’s waiver that allows it to set its own tougher fuel standards that other states can follow.

It also wants to nullify California’s zero-emission vehicle program that requires automakers to sell more electric and hybrid cars.

A dozen states, plus the District of Columbia, that follow California’s rules together account for more than a third of the nation’s auto market.

California rules: Since 1967, Congress has allowed California to set its own fuel efficiency regulations, tougher than the national standards, because of severe local problems with smog. It was the first state to regulate emissions from cars.

California officials say the state’s early action, which proceeded any national effort to combat car pollution, helped inspire automakers to make vehicles cleaner.

Trump’s legal case: But the Trump administration argues previous administrations have been wrong to consistently grant subsequent waivers to California under the 1970 Clean Air Act allowing the state to set tailpipe standards to limit carbon dioxide emissions. Although it views California as right in exercising a special power to regulate its smog problem, climate change is different. Carbon emissions don’t affect California more than any other state.

The Trump administration also argues the EPA is not able to use the Clean Air Act to give California special authority because it contradicts a 1975 law that gave the Department of Transportation the sole power to set fuel economy standards.

Precedent so far: Two federal court cases, both from 2007, have rejected the concept that the Department of Transportation’s fuel economy standards preempt California’s ability to regulate greenhouse gas emissions.

But proponents of the Trump argument say the legal question is not settled, because the federal government and California negotiated a compromise before the cases could be appealed.

TRUMP ADMINISTRATION PLANNING WAYS TO PUNISH HACKERS OF POWER GRID: The Trump administration is planning new policies to punish hackers of the power grid, according to a report Sunday.

Policies being considered would aim to not harm civilians, meaning they would not target adversaries’ power grids, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Measured response: Potential measures include more frequent use of indictments against hackers, making requests that other nations locate and arrest suspects, seizing assets of culprits, and imposing other sanctions.

The departments of State, Treasury, and Defense are leading the effort, the Journal reported.

The Russia threat: The potential action comes after the Department of Homeland Security said in March that Russian hackers gained access to the U.S. electrical grid last year.

‘Stronger action’: Since then, Congress has called for tougher actions from the Trump administration.

Last month, Sen. Maria Cantwell of Washington, the top Democrat on the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, joined with South Carolina Republican Lindsey Graham in sending a letter to the White House over concerns “about Russia’s capabilities with respect to cyberattacks on our energy infrastructure.”

“We believe the federal government needs to take stronger action prioritizing cybersecurity of energy networks and fighting cyber aggression to match your Department of Energy’s outward facing commitment,” the letter said.

OIL BUYERS REACT AS TRUMP IMPOSES FIRST ROUND OF SANCTIONS AGAINST IRAN: The Trump administration on Monday plans to reimpose the first round of sanctions against Iran since the U.S. withdrew from its nuclear agreement with the country earlier this year.

Monday’s deadline marks the end of a 90-day “wind down” period the administration provided to companies and individuals doing business with Iran after exiting the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action in May. These sanctions are focused on sectors such as automotive and aircraft.

Oil sanctions looming: A second 180-day wind-down period is slated to end Nov. 4, when another round of snap-back sanctions will be reimposed on oil sales and Iran’s energy sector.

By that time, the Trump administration aims to force other countries to cut Iran’s oil exports to zero, or close to it, or risk sanctions cutting their access to U.S. markets and financial institutions.

Early impact: The prospect of the return of U.S. sanctions on Iran has already hit the country’s oil exports.

Iran’s crude and condensate exports in July fell by about 430,000 barrels a day, or 15 percent, from their April peak, according to Bloomberg.

European refiners have cut purchases ahead of the new sanctions. South Korea didn’t purchase oil from Iran last month for the first time in three years, the Wall Street Journal said.  

Asian buyers still buying: But Indian imports rose by 118,000 barrels a day. And the Trump administration cannot convince China to stop importing Iranian oil.

China, the largest importer of Iranian oil, could be the hardest to convince. In fact, China may look to buy Tehran’s crude at a discount after U.S. sanctions scare away other purchasers.

OIL AND GAS INDUSTRY WARNS OF HARMS TO LNG FROM TRUMP’S TRADE WAR: The oil and gas industry is warning Trump to de-escalate his trade war with China before it imperils U.S. liquified natural gas exports to Beijing.

China said Friday it could impose a 25 percent tariff on U.S. liquified natural gas, or LNG — the chilled, liquid form to which gas must be converted for shipment in giant tanker vessels across the sea.

The move would be in retaliation for Trump directing his trade policy team to hike tariffs on China to 25 percent.

American pain: The American Petroleum Institute, the main U.S. oil and gas lobbying group, warns that Trump’s trade war with China is threatening to discourage the world’s fastest-growing LNG market from signing long-term contracts with American developers.

China has previously said it may also impose tariffs on imports of U.S. crude oil, certain refined products, and coal.

“China’s retaliation will hit America’s energy industry particularly hard,” said Kyle Isakower, API’s vice president for regulatory and economic policy, in a statement Friday. “China is the third largest importer of U.S. LNG, but U.S. LNG makes up only a modest but growing portion of China’s supply portfolio, which suggests that this particular trade dispute will hurt America more than it hurts China. We urge the administration to end these trade policies that work against our own energy interests and threaten our shared goal of maximizing U.S. energy production and U.S. energy exports.”

Hunger for gas: China’s demand for LNG is soaring, especially as it seeks to combat a severe, crippling smog and pollution problem in many of its major cities, especially in the north, that comes as a direct result of coal-generated electricity. China is relying more on the U.S., and in the ideal scenario stands to become the third largest destination for American gas behind Mexico and South Korea.

Chinese imports of U.S. LNG increased from zero in 2015 to 17 billion cubic feet in 2016, to 103 billion cubic feet last year.

Fight for it: But the trade fight with China hangs over potential long-term progress for U.S. LNG exports.

Other countries, including Russia, Australia, Qatar, Canada, and Mozambique are also offering LNG at competitive rates.

FERC ORDERS STOPPAGE OF CONSTRUCTION ON MOUNTAIN VALLEY PIPELINE: The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on Friday ordered a stop to construction of the Mountain Valley Pipeline.

The 303-mile, $3.5 billion Mountain Valley, developed by Pittsburgh-based EQT Corp. and partners, would carry shale natural gas from West Virginia to southern Virginia.

Court rejection: FERC’s ruling came after a federal appeals court last month rejected prior approvals from the Bureau of Land Management and Forest Service for sections of the pipeline that crossed federal land. The land in question covers less than four miles of the pipeline.

The commission said it expects BLM and the Forest Service to satisfy the court’s concerns, and to eventually receive new permits.

Uncertainty risk: But until then, FERC said, “allowing continued construction poses the risk of expending substantial resources and substantially disturbing the environment by constructing facilities that ultimately might have to be relocated or abandoned.”

SEC ENDS ITS CLIMATE CHANGE PROBE OF EXXON MOBIL: The Securities and Exchange Commission has dropped its investigation of Exxon Mobil over whether the oil and gas giant misled investors by not accounting for the impact that climate change has on its business.

Exxon confirmed on Friday that the SEC told the company it is ending the two-year investigation.

Law says: Under U.S. law, public companies must tell shareholders about risks or uncertainties related to their business. In Exxon’s case, its oil and gas operations lead to greenhouse gas emissions when consumers use their products. The companies have been accused of concealing the fact that warming could significantly disrupt their ocean energy exploration activities in Arctic regions.

More probes: Despite the SEC’s decision, Exxon still faces probes from the attorneys general of New York and Massachusetts about whether Exxon’s public statements about climate change misled investors.

Exxon and other oil and gas companies are also being sued by various cities for their handling of climate change, but judges have thrown most of these cases out of court, reasoning that climate change is a political question to be disposed of by the elected branches of government.

HAWAII FACES THREAT OF HURRICANE ON TOP OF ERUPTING VOLCANO: Hawaii may soon be dealing with the effects of a hurricane along with a three-months active volcano on the Big Island.

On Sunday the National Hurricane Center upgraded Hurricane Hector to a Category 4 storm, with sustained winds of 130 miles-per-hour and higher gusts.

The forecast: Over the course of the week, Hector, currently located more than 1,000 miles southeast of the Big Island, is forecast to swing west. By Wednesday forecasters predict it will slowly weaken and sweep south of the island chain. While a direct hit isn’t expected at the moment, the storm could be close enough to impact Hawaiians with rain, rough surf, and strong gusts of wind.

Targeting paradise: Hector would be the first hurricane to hit Hawaii this year. But the Aloha State hasn’t been without its fair share of natural disasters.

Southeast areas of the Big Island have been impacted by eruptions from the Kilauea volcano since May. Flowing lava and toxic gases have destroyed homes and forced thousands of residents to evacuate residential areas.

RUNDOWN

Reuters Friendship no more: How Russian gas is a problem for Germany

Bloomberg Power worth less than zero spreads as green energy floods the grid

Financial Times Car emissions scandal: loopholes in the lab tests

Washington Post As wildfires rage, California frets over a future of greater perils and higher costs

Houston Chronicle As Congress debates Russia sanctions, oil companies fret