Monthly Archives: December 2011

Making Do Under TSCA: EPA To Require Reporting Of Health Data By Makers Of Chemicals Used In Hydraulic Fracturing

This commentary was originally posted by Richard Denison, Ph.D., Senior Scientist, on the EDF Chemicals & Nanomaterials Blog.

Last August, Earthjustice, Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) and over one hundred other groups recently filed a petition under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)  calling on the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to require manufacturers and processors of chemicals used in oil and gas exploration and production (E&P chemicals) – including those used in hydraulic fracturing fluids – both to conduct testing and submit to EPA health and environmental data they already have on hand.  The aim of the petition was to ensure EPA obtains better information on the identity, production, use and health/environmental effects of these chemicals in order to evaluate their health and environmental risks.  Late last month, EPA announced its decision. 

EPA Decision on the Petition

In November, EPA partially granted the petition.  It granted the petitioners’ request that EPA develop rules requiring makers of chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing fluids to submit existing information to EPA identifying the chemicals, their intended uses, quantities produced and health or environmental exposure to or effects of the chemicals.

While this is a positive step forward, EPA denied two other aspects of our petition. EPA rejected the request to issue a rule requiring testing of these chemicals to fill data gaps because the agency lacks sufficient information to make the potential risk or high-exposure findings it is required to make under TSCA to justify a test rule.  (The high evidentiary burden EPA must meet to require testing is of course a serious limitation of TSCA and a major reason why TSCA reform is so badly needed.)  It also limited the scope of the reporting rules only to chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing, and did not include other E&P chemicals, such as those used in drilling muds, or fluids.

An Important Clarification

It is important to note that the actions called for under the TSCA petition are different from the disclosure efforts EDF and others have been pushing for on a state-by-state basis, in three respects.  First, the reporting rules will apply to manufacturers and processors of the chemicals themselves, whereas the disclosure initiatives focus on oil and gas drillers to publically disclose chemicals they add to hydraulic fracturing fluid.  Second, the EPA rules are intended to provide EPA with information sufficient to understand the potential risks of the subject chemicals at an aggregate, national level, whereas the disclosure initiatives are aimed at a local, even well-by-well scale.  Third, the EPA rules encompass information beyond just the identity of the subject chemicals to include other information about their production, use and potential health/environmental effects.  While much of the information reported to EPA under the rules can and should be made public, increasing disclosure per se is not the primary focus of our petition nor of the rules.

Next Steps

EPA’s decision is in sum welcome as an advancement of efforts to identify and reduce environmental and public health impacts from oil and gas exploration and production.  EPA plans to solicit input on the design and scope of reporting requirements as well as the process by which information is “aggregated and disclosed to maximize transparency and public understanding.”  Through these processes, EDF, Earthjustice and other petitioners can argue for EPA to make enhancements “to ensure that the health and environmental risks posed by E&P chemicals are fully understood,” as we stated in the TSCA petition.

Posted in Natural Gas, Washington, DC / Comments are closed

EPA’s Pavillion, WY Groundwater Contamination Study A Wake-Up Call

Today’s release of a draft US Environmental Protection Agency study on groundwater contamination around natural gas wells in Pavillion, Wyoming, should be a wake-up call to anyone who thinks public anxiety about shale gas development is overblown and unjustified. 

Based on the draft report, it seems pretty clear that hydraulic fracturing fluids, and other contaminants associated with natural gas production, found their way into Pavilion’s groundwater.  And it is not hard to see why.  The report reads like a primer on what NOT to do when developing unconventional gas.  It’s all here: poor cement quality, cement not injected to the proper depth to isolate the well from the groundwater, fracturing activity taking place in close proximity to the water table (in itself a questionable practice, but in this case, particularly egregious given the lack of cap rock between the zone of fracture and the groundwater), soil contamination around waste water pits indicating spills at the surface that migrated to groundwater and lack of clarity about what went down the well because of incomplete disclosure of the chemicals used in the fracturing process.

This draft report is Exhibit A on why stronger regulation and enforcement is necessary if the general public is EVER going to believe that shale gas development is a safe source of natural gas.  Indeed, the draft report says it best:

“Finally, this investigation supports recommendations made by the U.S. Department of Energy Panel (DOE 2011a, b) on the need for collection of baseline data, greater transparency on chemical composition of hydraulic fracturing fluids, and greater emphasis on well construction and integrity requirements and testing. As stated by the panel, implementation of these recommendations would decrease the likelihood of impact to ground water and increase public confidence in the technology.”

Having played a leading role in developing the DOE recommendations, we couldn’t agree more.   As this draft report makes clear, the time for action to improve regulation and enforcement is now.

Posted in Natural Gas / Read 1 Response

California PUC Previews Statewide On-Bill Repayment Program

This commentary was originally posted on the EDF California Dream 2.0 Blog

Low-Cost Financing for Energy Efficiency Upgrades

At a hearing yesterday chaired by California State Senator Kevin de Leon that explored ways to expand energy efficient retrofit activity, Jeanne Clinton, Special Advisor for Energy Efficiency at the California Public Utility Commission (CPUC), announced that her agency is working with Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) to establish the first statewide on-bill repayment (OBR) program for energy efficiency and renewable energy upgrades to be financed entirely by third parties. The CPUC/EDF proposal is expected to be released later this month.

EDF applauds the CPUC for its vision in taking this first step forward. A well-designed OBR program present the opportunity to take energy efficiency to scale—in the billions of dollars—on all types of buildings without using taxpayer or ratepayer funds.

OBR is an innovative, cost-effective approach that will lead to a robust marketplace for energy efficiency lending, save energy users money, put people to work and avoid greenhouse gas pollution.

Here’s how it would work: banks and other investors would be allowed to provide loans to building owners and renters to fund energy efficiency upgrades and renewable electricity generation projects. The program can work for single-family, multi-family and commercial buildings and include a wide variety of financing techniques including loans, Energy Service Agreements, leases and Power Purchase Agreements. If all goes as planned, California’s OBR program is set to commence in early 2013.

Here are some of the key program features:

  • Residential projects will have to promise savings in excess of the loan repayments so participating customers see a net decline in utility bills.
  • Investments will be funded by third-parties such as banks and other financial institutions. Given that loans are repaid through utility bills, low interest rates and attractive terms are expected to be available from a variety of lending institutions, from local credit unions for residential upgrades to million-dollar bank loans for commercial building overhauls.
  • Utilities will benefit from fees paid by lenders for billing services and improved results from existing energy efficiency programs.

EDF has been building a coalition of environmental groups, financial institutions, contractors and project developers to support and/or participate in on-bill repayment programs. The feedback so far has been encouraging for many reasons. EDF believes this program could spur investments in the range of $3 billion per year, creating more than 20,000 jobs.  Having the program in place for only five years would decrease annual CO2 emissions by about 7 million metric tons, the equivalent of taking more than 4 million cars off the road.

Stay tuned for the CPUC announcement later this month.

Posted in California, Energy Efficiency, On-bill repayment / Comments are closed

New York City Housing Authority Works With Environmental Defense Fund, Finds $56 Million In Cost Savings With New Technology

 This commentary was originally posted on the EDF Business Blog by Rory Christian, Director, Energy Department, New York City Housing Authority.

Though the first official day of winter isn’t until December 22, New York City is already well into heating season. And with over 178,000 apartments to keep warm, the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) knows all too well that cranking up the heat means drastic spikes in energy bills. However, that is not the case for one of our Bronx developments.

This year NYCHA installed a new technology known as Wireless Energy Modules in the 14 buildings that make up Castle Hill Houses. This technology allows NYCHA to provide consistent, comfortable temperatures to our residents in the 2,023 Castle Hill apartments throughout the year, while actually saving money and energy. NYCHA worked with Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) on this effort. EDF is a national organization widely recognized for innovative solutions to tough problems, such as increasing energy efficiency and reducing carbon emissions.

With the help of EDF Climate Corps, NYCHA analyzed the potential of installing Wireless Energy Modules across our entire portfolio. We found that NYCHA could save $31 million in annual heating costs and up to $25 million in annual electric costs and avoid 177,000 metric tons of CO2 emissions each year. Check out this two-minute video about the project and its savings potential.

What is even more exciting than the impressive savings opportunities is the power of scale the technology offers. The benefits of Wireless Energy Modules aren’t unique to NYCHA and can be realized by public housing authorities and private landlords across the nation. The ability to measure temperature at the apartment level and to heat buildings more consistently provides immense savings potential, as well as greater comfort for residents. 

At NYCHA we are eager to share what we’ve learned with our contacts across the country. This includes national and regional public housing authority associations, as well as our network of private landlords in our Section 8 program.  And you can help spread the word too. Please share the video  with public and private landlords who are interested in cutting their energy costs, avoiding CO2 emissions and keeping their residents comfortable during heating season.

If NYCHA can save $56 million and avoid tons of emissions each year  in New York City alone,  just think of the savings that would result from a national commitment from housing authorities and private landlords to improve energy efficiency.  Now that’s a New Year’s resolution worth making, and keeping!

Posted in EDF Climate Corps / Tagged | Read 3 Responses

$4 Billion Of Private Investment In Energy Efficiency Projects Announced Today

Source: Shutterstock

In an era of fiscal austerity, government’s options to create change are frequently limited.  The Obama administration did not let this roadblock slow them down today when they announced $4 billion of private sector investment in energy efficiency projects as part of their Better Buildings Challenge.  This builds on a $500 million financing commitment made in June by Abundant Power, Citi, Green Campus Partners, Metrus Energy, Renewable Funding and Transcend Equity.  The Clinton Global Initiative also played a key role in corralling these commitments.

Half of the $4 billion of investment will be in federal buildings using performance contracts.  Under the standard terms of a performance contract, an energy services company (“ESCO”) designs and executes an energy efficiency upgrade for a building.  The ESCO then provides a guarantee that this upgrade will reduce energy consumption by a certain amount per year and the building owner signs a long-term lease for the project where the annual lease payments are less than or equal to the guaranteed savings.  At the end of the lease, the building owner gets all of the future savings.  This is a win-win-win solution for taxpayers, our economy and the environment.

The remaining $2 billion commitment is divided between the six financial firms from the June announcement as well as several new participants.  These firms are using a wide variety of innovative financial techniques to infuse capital into attractive projects (I highly recommend reading the full White House press release). EDF is working closely with many of these firms to develop new innovations and we’ve been very impressed with the talent, energy and financial commitment currently focused on this issue.

Posted in Energy Efficiency, Washington, DC / Read 1 Response

EDF Supports The SAVE Act

The SAVE (Sensible Accounting to Value Energy) Act is a reasonable, cost-effective approach to improving mortgage lending and promoting energy efficiency. The act would instruct federal loan agencies to assess a borrower’s expected energy costs when financing a house, which will enable better, more transparent mortgage underwriting, reduce homeowners’ utility bills and hopefully prompt the creation of new jobs in the housing industry.

The Bill Explained

For too long, lack of information about a household’s energy use has resulted in many homeowners miscalculating the true cost of living. The cost of living in a house should be viewed not just as the mortgage or rent payment, but that specific payment plus the utility costs. When homeowners are given a true sense of what utility costs amount to for a particular home, and are armed with the knowledge of what energy actually costs, they will be better able to take control to reduce costs. Not only will homeowners be able to save money, but their actions will also result in environmental benefits such as reducing stress on the electric grid, and therefore harmful greenhouse gas emissions, and improving energy security.

EDF In Full Support

EDF is in full support of this legislation because the information available due to the passage of this bill would make mortgage lending more transparent and actually more accurate since it would depict the true cost of living. On top of these benefits, this bill would reduce America’s energy dependence and thus promote economic growth in the construction and manufacturing sectors.

For more information, please see the SAVE Act fact sheet.

Posted in Energy Efficiency, Washington, DC / Comments are closed