Category Archives: Oil&Gas

Russia-China gas deal: The elephant in the room at BC LNG conference

May 25, 2014Economics, Energy and Resources, LNG, Oil&GasfeaturedAlexandria Mitchell

Russia-China gas deal: The elephant in the room at LNG conference — BC Minister of Natural Gas Rich Coleman opens his government’s LNG conference (BC govt flickr photo)

Last week, the BC Government held its second annual LNG In BC Conference, with over 1,400 delegates representing some of the world’s top players in the natural gas industry. The province’s Minister of Natural Gas Development Rich Coleman noted that this year’s conference saw an increase of almost 1,000 delegates.

Most panels centred on the potential opportunity for a BC LNG industry, but the elephant in the room at the Vancouver Convention Centre was a natural gas pipeline deal signed between Russia and China on the eve of the conference. Though barely addressed from the stage, it provided a powerful reminder to delegates of the competitive international market the province will have to navigate to make its LNG vision a reality.

Bad timing for BC LNG players

Russia’s completion of a $400-billion deal to satisfy approximately one third of China’s gas needs is bad timing for BC LNG, as companies such as Chevron and Petronas look towards final investment decisions over the next year.

Natural gas will be supplied to China for the low cost of $10-$11 a unit, providing China a bargaining advantage to reduce energy prices from other potential trading partners in North America. Canadian exporters has their hopes set on $16/unit, based on the higher prices Japan is paying following the Fukushima-driven shutdown of its nuclear sector.

Russian leader Vladimir Putin said that this is the biggest contract in the history of the country’s gas sector, a reality which was absent from virtually all conversation on the global natural gas market discussed at the conference.

Clark downplays contract’s significance

BC Premier Christy Clark and Shell Oil Company CEO Marvin Odum discuss LNG (BC govt flickr photo) — Premier Clark and Shell Oil Company CEO Marvin Odum (BC govt flickr)

Premier Clark brushed off questions as to whether this agreement would have a negative impact on BC’s race to export LNG, saying that her government had anticipated the deal. Much of this hinges on whether the province can secure final investment decisions and nail down competitive tax rates quickly enough to be a credible player in the LNG market. Given that many of these details are far from being confirmed, questions arise as to whether LNG is the ‘generational opportunity’ it is being presented as for BC.

With 14 LNG projects proposed alongside intense global competition, Premier Clark acknowledged that so far, only two of these projects are nearing final investment before the next election. The smaller Woodfibre LNG near Squamish looks like the best bet for the first project, but it is meeting with growing opposition from local groups.

Pressure to speed up BC LNG

These delays don’t bode well for BC, a fact which Andy Calitz, CEO of the Shell-led partnership LNG Canada, responded to by saying, “That is why we need to move quickly.”

For her part, Premier Clark suggested Canada is potentially a more reliable supplier than politically volatile Russia:

[quote]I don’t think there is a country in the world that today wants to depend on Russia as their sole supplier of natural gas.[/quote]

Whether BC can be a reliable supplier, however, depends on whether these LNG projects actually come to fruition. Clark is depending on LNG to fulfil the election promise of a ‘debt free BC’, a multi-billion dollar prosperity fund, jobs and economic development. The fact that news of this Russia-China deal dropped right before the conference with minimal discussion of its effect on BC LNG may be symptomatic of the government’s desire to sell LNG instead of fostering a frank conversation about its opportunities and challenges.

Honest discussion in short supply

China has long been considered an important market for BC, and the impact of billions of tonnes of natural gas that will flow from Russia to China must be analyzed. One of the only comments made by Natural Gas Development Minister Rich Coleman on the deal came at the end of the conference:

[quote]We beat the Russians at hockey and we’ll beat them at liquefied natural gas.[/quote]

Determining the potential for a BC LNG industry requires frank discussion and tough questions, not more hot air about this cold gas.

Spill liability changes could be paving way for Enbridge approval

May 15, 2014Energy and Resources, Oil&Gas, Pipelines and SupertankersfeaturedCanadian Press

Pipeline safety changes could be paving way for Enbridge approval — An oil pipeline crossing the Tanana River in Alaska

By Dene Moore, The Canadian Press

VANCOUVER – The federal government announced new measures Wednesday to ensure pipeline companies pick up the tab for any spills, as cabinet prepares to announce its decision on the contentious Northern Gateway pipeline project.

Natural Resources Minister Greg Rickford said the new rules are not tied to any particular project but put in place an unmatched regime for pipeline safety.

“Even in the most extreme, rare or unlikely circumstances, the government will ensure that the environment, landowners and taxpayers are protected and the polluter pays,” he said in Vancouver.

“There is no country in the world that transports oil and gas as safely as Canada.”

“Absolute” liability

Under the new rules, pipeline companies will have absolute liability in the event of a spill. It means they will have to pay all costs and damages related to oil spills, without needing to be proven negligent or at fault.

Pipeline operators will also be required to have a minimum amount of cash available for cleanup costs. The National Energy Board will have the power to order reimbursement of spill costs and to take over spill response should the pipeline company be unable or unwilling to do so.

The federal government will cover any spill-related costs a company cannot pay, and the national energy regulator would recoup the money from industry.

Changes come amid pipeline debates

B.C. is in the midst of a divisive debate about two major pipeline proposals — Enbridge’s Northern Gateway and Kinder Morgan’s expansion of its Trans Mountain line — both of which would traverse the province with diluted bitumen from Alberta.

The changes, which have yet to be tabled in Parliament, are the latest in a slew of amendments aimed at appeasing public concerns over the two proposals.

Rickford said the federal government will also develop a strategy to increase First Nations’ participation in pipeline safety planning, monitoring and spill response.

“Working in full partnership with aboriginal communities, with our provincial and territorial counterparts and industry, Canada will become a supplier of energy to the world,” Rickford said.

A day earlier, the federal government announced changes to marine safety regulations affecting oil tankers.

Rickford was joined Wednesday by B.C. Transport Minister Todd Stone.

Provincial governments support changes

The B.C. government has set out five conditions for supporting any oil pipeline project, including an undefined “world-leading” oil-spill response and prevention on land and at sea.

Stone wouldn’t say whether the measures meet that criteria but called them “a step in the right direction.”

“Are we all the way there? I think there’s always more that can be done, but what I think is demonstrated by the federal government here today is a very strong commitment towards ensuring that the standards here in Canada will be world-leading,” he said.

Alberta Premier Dave Hancock said the new rules “strengthen the responsible development of energy resources.”

“Every Canadian, no matter what province or territory they call home, expects that energy development is done with a high degree of environmental safeguards,” he said in a statement.

Government claims companies “responsive” to spills

Natural Resources officials said there are 825,000 kilometres of pipelines throughout Canada — 73,000 of them are cross-border pipelines regulated by the National Energy Board.

There has never been an incident in Canada where a pipeline company was not responsive to a spill, they said.

And there has only ever been one pipeline spill that exceeded $1 billion to cleanup. That was a 2010 spill from an Enbridge pipeline into the Kalamazoo River in Michigan, which is still being cleaned up.

Ziad Saad, vice-president of safety for the Canadian Energy Pipeline Association, welcomed the changes. There are measures in place now for extreme circumstances, he said.

“We are clarifying and strengthening those provisions to ensure the public that they won’t be on the hook in case of a pipeline incident,” he said.

The federal government is expected to announce its final decision on the contentious Northern Gateway pipeline next month.

READ: Oil transport engineers say Enbridge tanker plan unsafe

Tougher Canadian oil tanker rules leave liability cap in place

May 13, 2014Energy and Resources, Oil&Gas, Pipelines and SupertankersfeaturedCanadian Press

SAINT JOHN, N.B. – The federal government says it is aiming to make polluters pay as it makes changes to legislation and regulations on oil tanker safety.

But under proposed changes announced today by Transport Minister Lisa Raitt in Saint John, N.B., Ottawa stops short of following a recommendation from an expert panel to remove the current $161-million liability limit for a spill in favour of unlimited liability for polluters.

The report on tanker safety done last year by a three-member panel of experts made 45 recommendations for improving Canada’s preparedness for oil spills from tankers and barges.

Raitt says the government is removing the existing liability limit of $161 million under Ship-Source Oil Pollution Fund.

Instead, the full amount for a single accident will be made available from the fund, which the government says currently stands at about $400 million.

Raitt says if all domestic and international pollution funds are exhausted, the government will ensure compensation is provided and recover those costs from the industry through a levy.

She says with ship owners’ insurance, and international and domestic pollution funds, about $1.6 billion will be available to cover damages from oil spills.

READ: Oil transport engineers say Enbridge tanker plan unsafe

BC gas regulator ignoring public’s LNG concerns

May 10, 2014Energy and Resources, LNG, Oil&GasfeaturedAmara McLaughlin

BC-gas-regulator-ignoring-public's-LNG-concerns — BC Oil and Gas Commission Chief Operating Officer Ken Paulson (Damien Gillis)

The BC Oil and Gas Commission (OGC) is not obligated to address stakeholder concerns with LNG facilities, despite its responsibility to oversee oil and gas operations in the province.

According to its 2014 Service Plan, the OGC is only committed to addressing 75 percent of stakeholder concerns regarding proposed LNG operations. The complaints and questions it does field are only dealt with superficially, before the commission redirects citizens and groups to the Environmental Assessment Office (EAO).

“Since LNG development is in its early stages and the commission hasn’t started permitting projects yet, the OGC does not deal directly with public concerns,” says Hardy Friedrich, BC Oil and Gas Commission communications manager in Fort St. John.

According to Friedrich, the OGC refers concerns to the EAO to address, although the commission considers this to be a performance measure in its annual service plan.

Regulator hands off LNG questions to EAO

The BC Environmental Assessment Office was created from the Environmental Assessment Act and is responsible for assessing the potential environmental, economic, social, heritage and health effects of oil and gas projects in BC.

The office offers the public opportunities to engage with proposed LNG projects through tools like submitting comments during public comment periods for specific applications, or attending public meetings, open houses and other public forums arranged by the office.

“The first public comment period is held during the pre-application phase,” says David Karn, Ministry of Environment communications officer. “The first public comment period ensures that relevant public concerns are identified early, so that they may be considered in the environmental assessment process.”

Conservation groups help public through confusing process

However, organizations like SkeenaWild Conservation Trust, Douglas Channel Watch and the Northwest Fish and Wildlife Association recognize the public needs a hand navigating a sometimes complicated process. They help gather and formally submit public comments to the EAO on behalf of concerned residents with LNG development in their areas.

The Northwest Fish and Wildlife Association participated in the public comment process of the proposed Coastal GasLink Pipeline Project from Dawson Creek to Kitimat, BC, representing its membership’s concerns.

In its submission, the group called for the “creation of a Fish, Wildlife, and Habitat Legary Fund.”

“Too often we see companies come into communities, extract resources and shut down when the resource is depleted or economic conditions are not favorable,” it noted. “In its place, left behind are the negative implications to fish, wildlife, and the land and water with no compensation or funding to correct the damage done.”

Karn says the EAO will take any information submitted during a public comment period, including submissions from concerned organizations and project proponents, as it begins to evaluate additional historic or baseline information and studies before a project is able to receive its environmental assessment certificate.

EAO unsuited to address public’s LNG concerns

In order for stakeholder concerns to get passed along the environmental assessment chain of command, individuals must feel empowered to voice their opinions and know where they can be heard, say local environmental groups.

“People have good reason to be concerned and speak out, and I think government has an obligation both to listen to people’s concerns and deal with them – and [the OGC] is essentially deferring all of that to the environmental assessment process, but I don’t think that’s efficient,” says Greg Knox, executive director of SkeenaWild Conservation Trust.

[quote]It’s so complicated and the timelines are so short, that I don’t think the environmental assessment processes can properly take in people’s concerns and deal with them. A lot of people don’t even know how to participate in those processes in a meaningful way.[/quote]

Public fears salmon impacts from Lelu Island plant

SkeenaWild Conservation Trust is entering the environmental assessment process over the proposed Pacific Northwest LNG project on Lelu Island, at the port of Prince Rupert, because of the volume of calls they have received over the last few months from concerned residents who don’t know where to take their worries about the environmental and health implications of this LNG project. Knox dovetails fears about future LNG issues with pre-existing concerns about other heavy industrial operations in the Skeena Estuary – critical habitat for Canada’s second biggest wild salmon run.

Yet another LNG plant proposed for BC: Petronas' $9 Billion Prince Rupert plan — Petronas’ proposed Prince Rupert LNG plant on Lelu Island

“I had a fellow from Prince Rupert call and ask me if I was aware that a coal facility there was dumping some coal into the ocean right at the facility. I said that I wasn’t aware and that we would need information and proof of that – and that was just his most recent concern,” says Knox.

“He was also stressed about the dredging from the LNG facilities because not only would they be impacting salmon habitat, but they would be dredging up dioxins, purines and toxins from the old pulp mill site which release toxins into the estuary and it’s sitting in the sediments, so all those toxins would now likely be released from the dredging activity into the environment again.”

Environmental leaders like Knox say the BC government has an obligation to deal with stakeholder concerns, and stakeholders should have every opportunity to share their issues with government.

Closing the door on public participation

By the BC Oil and Gas Commission deferring these concerns to the EAO, many worry the regulator is closing its doors to residents having a voice in the province’s LNG development.

Only answering 75% of stakeholder concerns seems like a low target when the province is striving to create a dialogue between industry operators, residents and First Nations. If the OGC was committed to addressing 100% of concerns, while also working alongside the EAO in a meaningful way, it would likely instill a higher degree of public confidence in the government’s LNG process.

$Halliburton refuses to disclose fracking chemicals$

Halliburton refuses to disclose fracking chemicals

April 27, 2014Energy and Resources, Fracking, Oil&GasfeaturedCanadian Press

$Halliburton refuses to disclose fracking chemicals$

By Kevin Begos And Matthew Daly, The Associated Press

PITTSBURGH – The U.S. Department of Energy said Friday that it welcomes the decision by oil and gas industry supplier Baker Hughes to disclose all chemicals in hydraulic fracturing fluid. But Halliburton, a major competitor in the field, isn’t committing to such disclosure.

Deputy Assistant Energy Secretary Paula Gant said that Baker Hughes’ move “is an important step in building public confidence” and the department “hopes others will follow their lead.”

Disclosure loophole allows for secrecy

The oil and gas industry has said the fracking chemicals are disclosed at tens of thousands of wells, but environmental and health groups and government regulators decry a loophole that allows companies to hide chemical “trade secrets.”

Houston-based Halliburton said Friday that it’s studying the move by Baker Hughes, which is also based in that city. Halliburton said it had an interest in protecting “our intellectual property and the substantial investment it represents” and will examine the new Baker Hughes format for its ability to protect such investments.

Baker Hughes ready for 100% disclosure

Baker Hughes said it now believes it’s possible to disclose 100 per cent “of the chemical ingredients we use in hydraulic fracturing fluids without compromising our formulations,” to increase public trust.

Baker Hughes spokeswoman Melanie Kania wrote in an email that it will take “several months” for the new policy to take effect. She said the end result will be a “single list” that provides “all the chemical constituents” for frack fluids, with no trade secrets.

Frack fluids can contaminate groundwater

A boom in drilling has led to tens of thousands of new wells being drilled in recent years using the fracking process. A mix of water, sand and chemicals is forced into deep underground formations to break rock apart and free oil and gas. That’s led to major economic benefits but also fears that the chemicals could spread to water supplies.

The mix of chemicals varies by company and region — and some of the chemicals are toxic and could cause health problems in significant doses — so the lack of full transparency has worried landowners and public health experts.

Many companies voluntarily disclose the contents of their fracking fluids through FracFocus.org, a website partially funded by the oil and gas industry that tracks fracking operations nationwide. But critics say the website has loose reporting standards and allows companies to avoid disclosure by declaring certain chemicals as trade secrets.

Kitimat rejects Enbridge in pipeline plebiscite

April 13, 2014Energy and Resources, Oil&Gas, Pipelines and SupertankersfeaturedCanadian Press

Kitimat votes 'No' on Enbridge pipeline — Former Haisla councilor Gerald Amos celebrates the ‘No’ vote (photo: Douglas Channel Watch)

By The Canadian Press

KITIMAT, B.C. – The residents of Kitimat, B.C. have voted against the proposed Northern Gateway pipeline project in a non-binding plebiscite.

The ballot count from Saturday’s vote was 1,793 opposed versus 1,278 who supported the multi-billion dollar project — a margin of 58.4 per cent to 41.6 per cent.

“The people have spoken”

The results from two polling stations and an advance vote all showed a clear majority for the “No” side. Said Kitimat Mayor Joanne Monaghan in a statement issued after the vote Saturday night:

[quote]The people have spoken. That’s what we wanted — it’s a democratic process. We’ll be talking about this Monday night at Council, and then we’ll go from there with whatever Council decides.[/quote]

The $6.5-billion project would see two pipelines, one carrying oilsands’ bitumen from Alberta to Kitimat’s port, and a second carrying condensate — a form of natural gas used to dilute the bitumen — from Kitimat back to Alberta.

Kitimat would also be the site of a proposed two-berth marine terminal and tank farm to store the thick Alberta crude before it’s loaded onto tankers for shipment to Asia.

Until this vote, Kitimat had remained neutral in its opinion on the controversial project. It didn’t take part in the joint-review process, which heard from hundreds of people before a federal panel approved the project with 209 conditions.

The federal cabinet is expected to release its decision on Northern Gateway by June.

“Jobs” argument failed to persuade public

Northern Gateway’s campaign has concentrated on the promise of 180 permanent, direct, local jobs worth $17 million, and more spinoff jobs for contractors and suppliers.

Calgary-based Enbridge, the company behind Northern Gateway, has emphasized its commitment to safety and the environment, saying the National Energy Board Joint Review Panel, which held two years of hearings on the project, had made many of the company’s voluntary commitments a mandatory part of the conditions for approval.

“As a long time-resident of northwestern B.C., I passionately believe that Northern Gateway is the right choice for Kitimat and for the future of our community,” Donny van Dyk, Northern Gateway’s Kitimat-based Manager of Coastal Aboriginal and Community Relations, said in a statement issued after Saturday’s vote.

“Over the coming weeks and months we will continue to reach out and listen to our neighbours and friends so that Northern Gateway can build a lasting legacy for the people of our community.”

The project’s main opponent, the local environmental group Douglas Channel Watch, maintains the risk from either a tanker accident or a pipeline breach is too high for the small number of jobs the pipeline would bring to the community.

Vote pitted Kitimat Council vs. Haisla First Nation

The plebiscite had also raised tensions between the District of Kitimat and the nearby Haisla First Nation, which is adamantly opposed to Northern Gateway.

Many Haisla were not allowed to vote because Kitamaat Village, a federal Indian reserve, is outside the municipal boundaries.

In a letter to local media, Haisla Chief Coun. Ellis Ross had called the decision to hold a vote at this late date a “slap in the face” for all the work done by the Haisla on the project.

A demonstration by members of the Haisla Nation at Kitimat’s City Centre Mall quickly turned into a celebration after the vote results were announced. The Haisla Spirit of Kitlope Dancers led the celebration with drumming, singing and dancing.

MP Cullen joins party

Some Kitimat residents also joined the party, as did Nathan Cullen, the NDP Member of Parliament for Skeena Bulkley Valley.

Cullen, who has been a harsh critic of the project, said Saturday’s vote sends a clear message that Stephen Harper’s government must listen to.

[quote]This is a resounding no to the Conservative policies. This is one of the most powerful grass roots things I have ever been associated with. This is good politics.[/quote]

Gerald Amos, an environmentalist and former member of the Haisla Nation Council, said, “The town of Kitimat has rejected a project that is not good for our economy. It endangers everything we worked for as a people here in Kitimat for the last ten thousand years.”

Vote non-binding

A key reason for holding the vote was to fulfil a 2011 promise made by all municipal election candidates in Kitimat to poll citizens on the pipeline project.

But other than gauging public reaction to the proposed pipeline, it remains unclear — even to Kitimat council — what the non-binding vote will mean.

Even the plebiscite question, as chosen by the District of Kitimat council, was controversial, because it focused on the 209 conditions placed on the project by the Joint Review Panel: “Do you support the final report recommendations of the Joint Review Panel (JRP) of the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency and National Energy Board, that the Enbridge Northern Gateway project be approved, subject to 209 conditions set out in Volume 2 of the JRP’s final report?”

4 years after BP oil spill, health impacts linger

April 12, 2014Energy and Resources, Health and Environment, Oil&GasfeaturedCanadian Press

4 years after BP oil spill, health impacts linger — Health concerns continue to do many who worked to clean up the BP oil spill (photo: Wikimedia Commons)

By Stacey Plaisance And Kevin McGill, The Associated Press

CHALMETTE, La. – When a BP oil well began gushing crude into the Gulf of Mexico four years ago, fisherman George Barisich used his boat to help clean up the millions of gallons of spew that would become the worst offshore spill in U.S. history.

Like so many Gulf Coast residents who pitched in after the April 20, 2010, explosion of the Deepwater Horizon rig, Barisich was motivated by a desire to help and a need to make money — the oil had eviscerated his livelihood.

Today he regrets that decision, and worries his life has been permanently altered. Barisich, 58, says respiratory problems he developed during the cleanup turned into pneumonia and that his health has never been the same:

[quote]After that, I found out that I couldn’t run. I couldn’t exert past a walk.[/quote]

His doctor declined comment.

Medical settlement reached with BP

Barisich is among thousands considering claims under a medical settlement BP reached with cleanup workers and coastal residents. The settlement, which could benefit an estimated 200,000 people, received final approval in February from a federal court. It establishes set amounts of money — up to $60,700 in some cases — to cover costs of various ailments for those who can document that they worked the spill and developed related illnesses, such as respiratory problems and skin conditions.

It also provides for regular physical examinations every three years for up to 21 years, and it reserves a worker’s right to sue BP over conditions that develop down the road, if the worker believes he or she can prove a connection to the spill.

Clean-up workers participate in massive, long-term health study

Some 33,000 people, including Barisich, are participating in a massive federal study that aims to determine any short or possible long-term health effects related to the spill.

“We know from … research that’s been done on other oil spills, that people one to two years after … had respiratory symptoms and changes in their lung function, and then after a couple of years people start to return to normal,” said Dr. Dale Sandler, who heads the study overseen by the National Institutes of Environmental Health Sciences, an arm of the National Institutes of Health.

[quote]What nobody’s ever done is ask the question: Well, after five years or 10 years are people more likely to develop heart disease, or are they more likely to get cancer? And I’m sure that’s what people who experienced this oil spill are worried about.[/quote]

Sandler planned to discuss some early findings Friday during a midday news conference.

The study is funded by NIH, which received a $10 million award from London-based BP, part of $500 million the oil giant has committed to spend over 10 years for environmental and health research.

Researchers compiled a list of 100,000 candidates, drawn from sources including rosters of mandatory safety classes that cleanup crews attended and from records of people who were issued badges permitting access to oiled areas.

They reached about 33,000 for interviews; and 11,000 of them agreed to physical examinations that include blood and blood pressure tests and measurements of lung function. Water and air samples taken during the spill also will be used to attempt to pinpoint how much exposure workers may have had to toxic substances.

Proving correlation is a challenge

Sandler emphasized that making any direct correlation between health concerns and the spill could prove challenging because many of the workers held other jobs that put them in contact with oil. Some worked with boat engines, did regular hazard mediation work or worked at chemical plants. Many also are smokers.

The researchers will try to account for smoking or other factors that could ruin health, and narrow in on problems tied to spill exposure. They plan to monitor the health of study participants for at least 10 to 15 years.

Aside from physical health, Sandler also is interested in knowing whether chemical exposure, in addition to the stress of working the spill, might have contributed to any mental health problems.

“We’re not in a position to say that yet,” she said.

Money will never replace quality of life

Fisherman and former cleanup worker Bert Ducote says he knows the physical and emotional pain. Ducote said dozens of boils have turned up on his neck, back and stomach since the spill — and he theorizes, though shared no medical records that could prove, that his problems stem from the cleanup.

Ducote said he spent months handling the boom used to corral oil. Even with protective gear and rubber boots, he said his shirt often got wet with the combination of crude oil, sea water and chemical dispersant. Ducote, like Barisich, said he is filing a claim under the medical settlement.

“That has been a disaster in our lives,” said Ducote, from the town of Meraux, in coastal St. Bernard Parish.

[quote]The little amount of money they’re trying to give us, it’s never going to replace our quality of life, our health.[/quote]

BP claims settlement was fair

In response, BP points to language in U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier’s order approving the medical settlement. Barbier noted that both sides said the settlement was a fair and reasonable alternative to litigation, and that fewer than 100 of 200,000 potential class members objected.

BP also lists numerous steps it took after the disaster to protect workers’ health, including protective clothing and safety classes.

Cleanup workers who faced possible contact with oil and dispersants were “provided safety training and appropriate personal protective equipment, and were monitored by federal agencies and BP to measure potential exposure levels and help ensure compliance with established safety procedures,” BP said in an email to The Associated Press.

Many clean-up workers lacked protective gear

Not all used that equipment, however. Dr. Edward Trapido, a cancer specialist and the lead researcher on a study of cleanup crews and their families that is underway at the Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center, said many worked without the protective clothing because of sweltering heat.

Trapido said results of the long-term health studies could help improve response to future oil spills and other disasters.

“Oil is not going away, and whatever kind of energy it is — whether it’s nuclear, whether it’s coal or oil — all of these have had problems in recent years where people get exposed to it,” Trapido said.

Kitimat Enbridge vote: Grassroots campaign poised to win unfair fight

April 11, 2014Energy and Resources, Oil&Gas, Pipelines and SupertankersfeaturedCanadian Press

Tensions-high-in-Kitimat-as-Enbridge-pipeline-plebiscite-looms — Signs of the times in Kitimat, BC (Photo: Kathy Ouwehand)

By the Canadian Press

KITIMAT, B.C. – Residents of Kitimat will cast votes in a local plebiscite Saturday for or against the multibillion-dollar Northern Gateway pipeline.

The District of Kitimat has remained neutral on the $6-billion project, but the vote will decide council’s position.

“We’ll see what the people of Kitimat want,” said Mayor Joanne Monaghan.

The city on the North Coast would be the end of the pipeline and home of the marine terminal for loading oil onto tankers. Kitimat council’s neutral stance went so far as to keep the city from participating in a federal review panel on the project.

That panel recommended in December that the pipeline be approved, subject to 209 conditions.

The question at hand

Kitimat residents are being asked:

[quote]Do you support the final report recommendations of the Joint Review Panel (JRP) of the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency and National Energy Board, that the Enbridge Northern Gateway project be approved, subject to 209 conditions set out in Volume 2 of the JRP’s final report?[/quote]

It’s a question about “as hard to nail to the wall as a bit of Jell-O,” said Murray Minchin, a volunteer with the grassroots Douglas Channel Watch.

He describes a campaign that has been outspent, outmanned and outmanoeuvred from the outset. Enbridge’s campaign started months — if not years — ago, Minchin said.

Enbridge spent big bucks wooing Kitimat vote

They faced no spending limits, as provincial election laws didn’t apply to the municipal vote. Northern Gateway had paid canvassers, full-page ads, glossy brochures, a new website and billboards, Minchin said.

Northern Gateway also runs an annual campaign for youth that saw 50 iPads distributed to essay contest winners along the pipeline route in northern B.C. and Alberta, he said.

But Ivan Giesbrecht, spokesman for Enbridge, said the contest has nothing to do with the plebiscite and that only two of the computer tablets went to students in Kitimat.

And yet, Minchin is hopeful the vote will go his way.

Grassroots anti-Gateway campaign grows support

“Four weeks ago we had $200 in the bank. Then we started making lawn signs and started putting those around town and people started coming up to us in the street and handing us money,” he said.

[quote]Somebody even anonymously dropped off a $2,000 money order into one of our mailboxes. Then we got a website that had a donate button.[/quote]

More than $14,000 and 2,000 doorsteps later, Douglas Channel Watch members believe opponents of the pipeline outnumber supporters 3:1.

“Our goal will be to try to get all of those people who said they were going to vote No to actually get out and vote Saturday,” Minchin said.

Results to be revealed at Monday council meeting

Ballots will be counted this weekend and Kitimat council is scheduled to meet Monday night to discuss the results.

Giesbrecht said the vote has been an opportunity to talk to residents.

He declined to say how much the company has spent on the campaign but said there was a temporary website, newspaper and radio ads, and door-to-door canvassers.

The pipeline is worth $5 million in property taxes and 180 jobs for Kitimat, he said.

“It’s a significant proposal for Kitimat, so it’s important that we provide the information that people need to make informed decisions,” Giesbrecht said.

“Regardless of the outcome, our commitment to Kitimat remains unchanged.”

Campaign highlights election law loopholes

Northern Gateway has been a divisive issue across the province and the imbalance in spending power has its critics.

During a provincial election or initiative vote, provincial law limits third-party advertising spending to $3,000 in a single electoral district, and $150,000 overall.

Dermod Travis, of Integrity BC, said those rules don’t apply here but they should.

“It’s really turned into a free-for-all in terms of having any type of democratic order to the vote,” said Travis, whose group was funded by a private businessman to push for democratic reform.

[quote]Having that type of an exercise in a democracy is healthy but it’s not healthy when the scale is so heavily tipped in one direction.[/quote]

But Monaghan said both sides have been out knocking on doors and she expects a true read of what Kitimat residents want.

“Neither of them have gone over that line,” she said of the campaigning.

The federal government is expected to announce a final decision on the pipeline in June.

BP spills oil into Lake Michigan

March 25, 2014Energy and Resources, Oil&Gas, Pipelines and SupertankersfeaturedCanadian Press

BP spills oil into Lake Michigan — BP’s Whiting Refinery on Lake Michigan

by The Associated Press

WHITING, Ind. – BP says it is assessing how much crude oil entered Lake Michigan following a malfunction at its northwestern Indiana refinery.

BP spokesman Scott Dean says crews have placed booms across a cove at the company’s Whiting refinery where workers discovered the oil spill Monday afternoon.

Dean says BP believes the oil released during an oil refining malfunction has been confined to that cove.

He says the oil entered the refinery’s cooling water system, which discharges into the lake about 20 miles southeast of downtown Chicago.

Indiana Department of Environmental Management spokesman Dan Goldblatt says an agency staffer reported seeing a large sheen on the lake about 2 a.m. Tuesday. Dean says that sheen was in the cove and was no longer visible several hours later.

Crews work to clean up Texas oil spill

March 24, 2014Energy and Resources, Oil&Gas, Pipelines and SupertankersfeaturedCanadian Press

by Michael Graczyk, The Associated Press

TEXAS CITY, Texas – The cleanup of an unknown amount of thick, sticky oil that spilled into the Galveston Bay blocked traffic Sunday between the Gulf of Mexico and one of the world’s busiest petrochemical transportation waterways, affecting all vessels, even cruise ships.

A barge carrying nearly a million gallons of marine fuel oil collided with a ship Saturday afternoon, springing a leak. Officials believe only one of the barge’s tanks — which holds 168,000 gallons, was breached, though Coast Guard Petty Officer Andy Kendrick said Sunday it wasn’t clear how much oil spilled.

Crews were skimming oil out of the water and containment booms were brought in to protect environmentally sensitive areas of the Houston ship channel, Kendrick said. The ship channel is closed from the mouth of the Houston ship channel, between Galveston Island and Bolivar Peninsula, Coast Guard Lt. Sam Danus said.

“Unified command is aware of the situation and is communicating with the cruise ship companies,” Danus said.

Area home to fish and wildlife

The area is home to popular bird habitats, especially during the approaching migratory shorebird season, but Kendrick said there have been no reports of wildlife being impacted.

The Texas City dike, a popular fishing spot that goes out into the Gulf for a few miles, is also closed. Lee Rilat, 58, owns Lee’s Bait and Tackle, the last store before the access road to the dike, which was blocked by a police car on a breezy, overcast Sunday. If it weren’t for the spill, Rilat’s business would be hopping.

[quote]This would be the first spring deal, the first real weekend for fishing.[/quote]

Rilat said. He says ships and barges have collided before, but this is the first time — at least this year — that someone has sprung a leak. His wife, Brenda Rilat, said sea fog was hanging over the bay Saturday.

Rilat, who’s lived in the area most of his life, doesn’t think the spill is too big of a deal.

“It’ll be fine. Everything’s going to be lovely. Mother Nature takes care of its own,” he said.

The collision was still being investigated, the Coast Guard said.

The captain of the 585-foot ship, Summer Wind, reported the spill just after noon Saturday. Six crew members from the tow vessel, which was going from Texas City to Bolivar, were injured, the Coast Guard said.

Kirby Inland Marine, which owns the tow vessel and barge, is working with the Texas General Land Office and many other federal, state and non-profit agencies to respond to the spill, The Coast Guard said. Tara Kilgore, an operations co-ordinator with Kirby Inland Marine, declined to comment Saturday.

“Sticky, gooey, thick, tarry stuff”

Jim Suydam, spokesman for the Texas’ General Land Office, described the type of oil the barge was carrying as “sticky, gooey, thick, tarry stuff.”

“That stuff is terrible to have to clean up,” he said.

Richard Gibbons, the conservation director of the Houston Audubon Society, said there is important shorebird habitat on both sides of the ship channel. One is the Bolivar Flats Shorebird Sanctuary just to the east, which Gibbons said attracts 50,000 to 70,000 shorebirds to shallow mud flats that are perfect foraging habitat.

“The timing really couldn’t be much worse since we’re approaching the peak shorebird migration season,” Gibbons said. He added that tens of thousands of wintering birds remain in the area.

Monday marks the 25th anniversary of the Exxon Valdez spill off the coast of Alaska. Suydam said that spill spurred the creation of the General Land Office’s Oil Spill and Prevention Division, which is funded by a tax on imported oil that the state legislature passed after the Valdez spill.