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Resilience System


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Petrochemicals - TX

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This working group focuses on issues surrounding the extraction, processing, and use of petrochemicals.

This group focuses on issues surrounding the extraction, processing, and use of petrochemicals.

Members

Kathy Gilbeaux mdmcdonald MDMcDonald_me_com

Email address for group

petrochemicals-tx@m.resiliencesystem.org

U.S. Refinery Strike Affects One-Fifth of National Capacity

      

Workers from the United Steelworkers (USW) union walk a picket line outside the Lyondell-Basell refinery in Houston, Texas February 1, 2015. REUTERS/Richard Carson

reuters.com - by Erwin Seba - February 22, 2015

(Reuters) - The largest U.S. refinery strike in 35 years entered its fourth week on Sunday as workers at 12 refineries accounting for one-fifth of national production capacity were walking picket lines.

Sources familiar with the negotiations said talks may resume by mid-week to end the walkout by 6,550 members of the United Steelworkers union (USW) at 15 plants, including the 12 refineries.

Representatives of both sides said no date has been set to restart negotiations, however.

(READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)

 

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White House Moves to Rein In Methane Emissions

       

New EPA standards will aim to significantly cut methane emissions from oil and gas sites in the U.S.

The Obama administration makes its latest move to take on climate change.

usnews.com - by Alan Neuhauser - January 14, 2015

In the Obama administration’s latest use of executive authority to address climate change, the White House announced plans Wednesday to impose new regulations on the oil and gas industry that would nearly halve methane emissions from wells, drill sites and pipelines in 10 years.

The new standards, to be developed by the Environmental Protection Agency under the Clean Air Act, would aim by 2025 to cut methane emissions by up to 45 percent from levels recorded in 2012. They would also slash the spread of volatile organic compounds, or VOCs, key components of ground-level smog that have been linked to cancer, neurological conditions and other illnesses.

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U.S. Oil Producers Cut Rigs as Price Declines

      

Oil pump jacks at work at a drilling site in North Dakota. Producers have been cutting back.
Credit Eric Gay/Associated Press

nytimes.com - by Clifford Krauss - January 7, 2015

HOUSTON — With oil prices plunging at an ever-quickening rate, producers are beginning to slash the number of drilling rigs around the country.

The national rig count had remained surprisingly resilient over recent months even as oil prices dropped by more than 50 percent since June, and it still tops the count of a year ago as domestic production continues to surge.

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Climate Mission Impossible: Scientists Say Fossil Fuels Must Go Untapped

The UCL study used an economic model to determine what percentage of each region's fossil fuel reserves should be left untouched in order to meet climate goals. Reserves are defined as fuels that could be developed given current technology and economic conditions.
EMILY M. ENG, NG STAFF. SOURCE: C. MCGLADE AND P. EKINS. NATURE

New study says vast amounts of coal, oil, and gas must be left untouched to limit global warming.

CLICK HERE - STUDY - NATURE
The geographical distribution of fossil fuels unused when limiting global warming to
2 °C

Nature 517, 187–190 (08 January 2015) doi:10.1038/nature14016

nationalgeographic.com - January 7, 2015
by Christina Nunez

Canada's tar sands need to stay in the ground, the oil beneath the Arctic has to remain under the sea, and most of the world's coal must be left untouched in order to prevent global temperatures from rising more than 2°C, a study released Wednesday says.

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Bridge City Homeowner Sues Pipeline Company

therecordlive.com - July 31, 2014

There is no question the petrochemical industry helped build Southeast Texas. But on the flip side of that, residents sometimes don’t know what kind of substances are in the air we breathe or what lies just under our feet. . . .

. . . Theis discovered an unmarked pipeline running through his lot next to his home at 181 Ridgewood while digging for a swimming pool. . . .

. . . In addition to the possibility of an explosion, Theis said his wife has been “very, very sick” since moving there over a year ago.

(READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)

 

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North Texas City Rejects Partial Fracking Ban

      

A vote projected on a large video screen above the city council shows unanimous approval to send a citizen-led petition to a public ballot scheduled for November, Wednesday, in Denton, Texas. TONY GUTIERREZ — AP

abcnews.go.com - AP - by Emily Schmall - July 16, 2014

The council governing a North Texas city that sits atop a large natural gas reserve rejected a bid early Wednesday that would have made it the first city in the state to ban further permitting of hydraulic fracturing in the community.

Denton City Council members voted down the petition 5-2 after eight hours of public testimony, sending the proposal to a public ballot in November.

(READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)

(ALSO SEE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION IN RELATED ARTICLES WITHIN THE LINKS BELOW)

http://www.star-telegram.com/2014/07/15/5973163/denton-fracking-ban-hearing-draws.html?rh=1

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Dow’s Water Fight Pits Manufacturers Against Agriculture

submitted by Albert Gomez

environmentalleader.com - July 11, 2014

Dow Chemical’s claims to water rights from Texas’ Brazos River are pitting the manufacturing giant against farmers, cities, power plants and local water authorities as the river’s water supply diminishes, the Texas Tribune reports.

Dow is the Brazos’ largest and oldest user, the latter of which gives the company priority against other users. . . But water is increasingly in short supply as the drought worsens and the river’s users demand increasing amounts of water.

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(ALSO SEE RELATED ARTICLE HERE)

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Port Arthur Citizens Oppose Construction of New Plant Near Their Homes

12 News KBMT and K-JAC. News, Weather and Sports for SE Texas

12newsnow.com - by Angel San Juan - July 3, 2014

PORT ARTHUR - ZeoGas is a start-up company that wants to convert natural gas into methanol, which will then be turned into gasoline. It's interested in building a plant in Port Arthur along Highway 73 near the city's water plant, but families living nearby, in the El Vista area, don't want it. . .

. . . They say they've been promised job opportunities before and have just gotten industry that's harmed their health.

(READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)

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Some Orange County Residents Evacuated Due to Gas Leak

12newsnow.com - KBMT - June 25, 2014

. . . Around 8:45 a.m. Wednesday the Sheriff’s Office received a call from an oil well company representative in reference to a natural gas leak at a well site at the end of Gulf Road off FM 408 in the Orangefield area of Orange County.

. . . As the leak continued for several hours, the gas was not dissipating rapidly due to the weather conditions.  The oil well company could not control the leak and it was necessary for a special response team from Houston, Texas to be contacted.  Once the team arrived, it was recommended that homes in the vicinity of the well site be evacuated.

(READ COMPLETE ARTICLE AND VIEW NEWS VIDEO)

CLICK HERE - KBMT-12 - video and audio of gas leak

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Texas Cap and Trade Studies and Reports

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Window on State Government - Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts

The Comptroller’s office conducted an analysis in partnership with the Center for Energy Economics at the University of Texas at Austin’s Bureau of Economic Geology (UT-BEG) to determine the impact of increased energy costs resulting from the proposed cap and trade legislation on the Texas economy.

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