TGIF! Welcome to Overnight Energy, The Hill's roundup of the latest energy and environment news. We'll be working Monday, and writing a newsletter too. Please send tips and comments to Timothy Cama, tcama@thehill.com, and Miranda Green, mgreen@thehill.com. Follow us on Twitter: @Timothy_Cama, @mirandacgreen, @thehill. CLICK HERE to subscribe to our newsletter. GOP SENATORS SAY STATES USING WATER LAW TO BLOCK FOSSIL FUELS: A group of Republican senators are highlighting concerns that a provision under a key Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) water rule makes it too easy to block fossil fuel projects. In a Thursday letter lead by Sen. John Barrasso (Wyo.), the five Republicans asked EPA chief Andrew Wheeler to send new guidance regarding a statute in the Clean Water Act, which they fear has been used in the past to restrict the development of natural gas pipelines. "In the last few years, a troubling trend directed at fossil energy projects has arisen. A select number of states have hijacked Section 401 to delay or block the development of natural gas pipelines and a coal export terminal. While the focus of these abuses today is fossil energy, the approach could be used to target any type of project that is disfavored politically," GOP Sens. Barrasso, Jim Inhofe (Okla.), Shelley Moore Capito (W.Va.), Mike Enzi (Wyo.), and Steve Daines (Mont.) wrote in the letter. Section 401 mandates that any industry that is applying for a federal permit to allow them to put discharges into a water system must also obtain a certification from the state in which the discharge is coming from to ensure they are complying with water quality standards. The rule can affect chemical plants, power plants or other fossil fuel drilling activities that could lead to pollution of a water source. The lawmakers said the current statute is being used to "fight" fossil fuel projects rather than project water quality. They did not offer examples of projects that might have been unfairly struck down under the provision. Read more. SENATORS SPLIT OVER TRUMP'S EXPECTED E15 DECISION: Trump is expected to announce over a trip to Iowa next week that he will allow year-round sales of an ethanol blend previously restricted, and a number of lawmakers are speaking up over the move. Two Democratic House members Friday and a bipartisan group of 20 Senators Thursday each separately sent dueling letters to Trump the policy. Reps. Cheri Bustos (D-Ill.) and Dave Loebsack (D-Iowa.) their letter to Trump encouraged him to change the standards, writing that: "Allowing the year-round sale of E15 represents a significant step towards strengthening America's Heartland." On the other hand, the group of senators, which included Senate Environment and Public Works Chairman John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) and Joe Manchin (D-W.VA.), wrote Trump to ask him to not change the standards. Many of the senators represent fossil fuel heavy states. "We are concerned that doing so would do nothing to address the policies impacting refinery jobs, could hurt millions of consumers whose vehicles and equipment are not compatible with higher ethanol blended gasoline, and risk worsening air quality," their letter reads. Trump is expected to allow the year-round sales of gasoline mixed with 15 percent ethanol, known as E15. The move is championed by corn growers as it would likely expand the market of ethanol but opposed by representatives of the oil and gas industry. Previously, the higher mix of ethanol in fuels was banned under the Obama administration during the summer months as studies showed ethanol when burned during warmer temperatures greatly contributed to smog. The change would essentially waive E15 from national vapor-pressure requirements, which currently block the sale of the fuel between June 1 to Sept. 15 in many areas dealing with smog issues. COAL ASH DIDN'T POLLUTE NC RIVER ABOVE LIMITS, STATE SAYS: North Carolina officials didn't find any evidence that potential coal ash in the Cape Fear River led to unacceptable water pollution levels. The state's Department of Environmental Quality released test results late Thursday from near Duke Energy's shuttered Sutton coal-fired power plant, showing that nearly all metal levels met state standards. Duke had earlier acknowledged that last month's Hurricane Florence caused some coal ash from the plant to get into the river. Coal ash is a waste product from burning coal and contains harmful heavy metals like arsenic and cadmium. The official testing results match Duke's claims that the ash spills didn't compromise water quality. "Test results show all metals below state water quality standards with the exception of dissolved copper," the state agency said. Copper levels frequently rise after flooding, and the state doesn't believe it to be harmful. Read more. ON TAP NEXT WEEK: Trump is reportedly planning a trip to Iowa next week to announce he's ordering the EPA to allow gasoline with 15 percent ethanol to be sold year-round, a longtime priority of the ethanol industry and the corn-heavy state. Bloomberg reports the election-season announcement could come with some other actions meant to appease the oil or refiner industry, such as limits on trading ethanol compliance credits. The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee will hold a hearing on the Endangered Species Act Wednesday. The specific topic will be state wildlife conservation efforts, with a focus on the Yellowstone grizzly bear and the Delmarva fox squirrel. Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), chairman of the panel, is pushing draft legislation to change the ESA, which would in part increase the power that states have in deciding how to recover the species. The hearing is a bid to boost arguments from Barrasso and other Republicans that states need more say in ESA decisions. The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee is planning a Thursday hearing on how the electric utility industry can restore electric service after a blackout. |
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