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4th Circus Clown Judges Nix Va. Compressor Permit for AC Pipe

The Lorax Judge strikes again. One year ago the Virginia State Air Quality Board, at the prompting of Gov. Ralph Northam, voted to approve a low-emissions compressor station for Dominion Energy’s Atlantic Coast Pipeline (ACP), to be built about an hour outside of Richmond, Virginia (see Va. State Agency Approves Atlantic Coast Pipe Compressor Stn). Big Green groups with deep pockets litigated that decision, making the disgusting claim that the compressor station is “racist” because it will be built in a community founded by emancipated slaves following the Civil War.
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PA DEP to Finalize 250% Hike in Shale Permit Fee on Jan 21

Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf’s Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP), the agency charged with overseeing oil and gas drilling in the state, “blindsided” the shale industry in February 2018 with a proposal to hike the fee required when submitting an application to drill a new shale well by 2 1/2 times, or 250% (see PA DEP Plans to Raise Marcellus Well Permit Fee by 250%). The industry reacted, negatively. It’s taken nearly two years, but on Jan. 21 the DEP’s Environmental Quality Board will meet to finalize and activate the new insanely high fee schedule.
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PA Landowner Awarded Piddly for Legal Fees in Fighting ME Pipe

Huntington County, PA landowners Stephen and Ellen Gerhart have opposed the Mariner East pipeline project across their land from day one. They (and their daughter) have a long history of activism against the project. The Gerharts sued the builder, Sunoco Logistics Partners, in a bid to first block the pipeline, and later “restore” their property after it was built. In the end the Gerharts won a single, tiny concession–forcing Sunoco to recreate a swamp (i.e. “wetland”) on their property–all of 0.066 acres (meaning less than 1/10th of an acre–about the size of a big mud puddle). The Gerharts legal bills over the past several years have added up to $266,000. The attorneys asked the PA Environmental Hearing Board, a special court that hears appeals of DEP decisions, to make Sunoco and the PA Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) pay the bill. How much did they get?
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Big Green Groups Ask FERC to Deny PennEast Pipe More Time

The companies behind PennEast Pipeline, a $1.2 billion new greenfield pipeline project from Luzerne County, PA to Mercer County, NJ, have not given up on the long-delayed project. As we told you in November, PennEast plans to file an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court (on Feb. 3) to overcome a lower court ruling that prevents PennEast from using eminent domain in New Jersey for some of the route (see PennEast Pipe to Appeal Bungled Fed Court Decision to US Supremes). Since the original Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) certificate authorizing construction of the project expires on Jan. 19, 2020, PennEast asked FERC to extend it another two years (see PennEast Pipe Still Hopeful, Asks FERC for 2-Year Extension). Three Big Green groups have filed an objection, asking FERC to kill the project now.
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PA Highlighted in New National Ad Campaign “Energy for Progress”

Yesterday the American Petroleum Institute (API) launched “Energy for Progress,” a nationwide TV and digital ad campaign highlighting the natural gas and oil industry’s leadership in reducing emissions to record low levels and supporting economic and environmental progress in local communities. One of the seven local communities highlighted was Moon Township, in Allegheny County, PA. Local workers and business owners appear in broadcast videos and digital ads.
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New Study Finds Using Natural Gas Saved 26K Lives Over 11 Years

A new study conducted by the University of California San Diego and published this week in the journal Nature Sustainability says 26,610 U.S. lives were saved from 2005-2016 as a result of increasing reliance on natural gas in electric power generation. That’s right–a liberal university published a study in a liberal journal that says natural gas SAVES LIVES. You may have to pinch yourself to see if it’s a dream!
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Shale Energy Stories of Interest: Wed, Jan 8, 2020

OTHER U.S. REGIONS: ‘Forced march’ to heat pumps is bad policy; Sempra to open Houston office to support LNG business; NATIONAL: Low U.S. natural gas prices lock in more demand; The key distinction between U.S. energy independence and energy security; United States holds competitive advantage in natural gas industry.
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