A report by an internal watchdog of the Environmental Protection Agency contends two high-ranking Trump political appointments engaged in fraudulent payroll activities, including payments to employees after they were fired and to one official when he was absent from work. The report by the EPA’s Office of Inspector General claims it cost the agency …
Category: EPA
Energy news in brief
** U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen signaled she’ll prod multilateral development banks to rein in their lending for fossil fuels, part of a global effort to make the financial system greener. ** Colonial Pipeline Co. could face daily fines of up to $200,000 per violation if it fails to improve the way it detects leaks in …
Energy news in brief
** Oil prices rose on Monday, driven higher after the OPEC+ group of producers again called off talks on output levels, failing in its third attempt to resolve a deadlock on increasing production, and leaving the oil market facing tight summer supplies and rising prices, Reuters, Bloomberg and the Wall Street Journal reported. ** The …
Court delivers strike against ethanol industry
Another significant blow against the ethanol industry was delivered Friday by a Federal appeals court which threw out a Trump-era Environmental Protection Agency rule change that allowed for the sale of a 15% ethanol gasoline blend in the summer months. The Associated Press reported most gasoline sold in the U.S. today is blended with …
Energy news in brief
** Honda announced Monday that it will introduce an electric SUV called the Prologue, marking the automaker’s first attempt to sell an EV in high volume as it pivots away from gasoline-powered cars. The launch is part of Honda’s recently announced plan to switch to all zero-emission vehicles in North America by 2040, including battery-electric cars and hydrogen …
Energy news in brief
** The infrastructure deal struck by a group of bipartisan senators and President Joe Biden on Thursday includes partial funding by a proposed $6 billion sale from the U.S. emergency oil reserve, according to a document circulated by Republican lawmakers. ** About 285,000 Tesla vehicles in China will have their Autopilot software updated remotely because drivers …
Energy news in brief
** The world’s publicly traded independent oil producers will make record profits this year, surpassing the levels reached when crude hit an all-time high near $150 a barrel more than a decade ago, according to Rystad Energy. ** Tesla’s Model 3 tops a list of “most American-made” vehicles for 2021, marking the first time an electric vehicle …
New Mexico Governor petitions EPA to list PFAS as hazardous waste under federal law
New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham petitioned the U.S. Environmental Protection Agencyto include per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances known as “forever” chemicals under the federal Resource Conservation and Recovery Act as a listed hazardous waste, which would set a clear regulatory path for New Mexico and dozens of other states grappling with PFAS contamination. “In …
Energy news in brief
** Even a more than 400% jump in the number of fracking crews working the U.S. shale patch isn’t enough to send oil output soaring. In fact, it’s just enough to keep production relatively flat this year, according to Primary Vision Inc., which has tracked data on frack crews since 2013. ** The chief executive officers of …
Tulsa makes top ENERGY STAR buildings list of EPA
At least three cities in Texas and one in Colorado are among the EPA’s annual Top Cities list of metro areas that are home to the most ENERGY STAR certified buildings in the U.S. One Oklahoma city was ranked in the mid-size cities. Tulsa tied for 10th with Madison, Wisconsin with 28 ENERGY STAR …
