Hill Heat

E&E News:

A panel of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee wants answers about the safety of the nation’s 2.3 million miles of natural gas and hazardous materials pipelines.

Two agencies are in charge of the pipeline network: the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials and Transportation Security Administration (PHSMA) under the Transportation Department and the Transportation Safety Agency under the Homeland Security Department.

But a DOT Inspector General’s report last month said after signing an “annex” of shared responsibility two years ago, the agencies still did not have a coordinated plan to effectively oversee the pipeline system.

“TSA and PHMSA should clearly delineate their respective roles and responsibilities in overseeing and enforcing security regulations for pipeline operators,” said Railroads, Pipelines and Hazardous Materials Subcommittee Chairwoman Corrine Brown (D-Fla.). “We must ensure that pipelines are as safe as possible, and that the public is informed of the measures taken to secure their safety. Anything less is not an option.”

Brown and other committee members want government officials to tell them how – and if – those responsibilities have been sorted out, a staff member said.

The inspector general said the two agencies needed to finalize the annex provisions and execute the plan, delineate who will enforce regulations for liquid natural gas operators and be more efficient in order to meet congressional mandates.

The agency has also already missed several deadlines set by a 2006 pipeline safety act. Three of the regulations were related to monitoring corrosion and oversight of low-stress pipelines – major causes of the BP North Slope pipeline leak that spilled more than 200,000 gallons of petroleum in Alaska two years ago.

PHMSA finally issued rules to prevent corrosion this month, although it brought some controversy as it was not clear which pipelines it would include. Under the new rule low-stress pipelines with a diameter of 8 5/8 inches or more placed within a half mile of environmentally sensitive areas would require more monitoring and testing, while the agency would determine rules for the other low-stress pipelines in a subsequent rulemaking.

PHMSA Administrator Carl Johnson told a panel of the House Energy and Commerce Committee in March that another overdue rulemaking on regulations for integrity management that affects 85 percent of natural gas pipelines – a majority of which are in highly populous areas – would be out this month.

06/25/2008 at 02:00PM

06/25/2008 at 10:00AM

E&E News:

Markey’s Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming and a House Intelligence Subcommittee will hold a joint hearing Wednesday on the national security threats of climate change.

International experts have sounded alarms recently about the potential for global political instability caused by rifts over resources, extreme weather events and tensions caused by waves of mass-migration.

A series of recent international reports have brought attention to the issue, including an April report from the Royal United Services Institute for Defence and Security Studies.

The report noted that climate change has already spurred some conflicts: Rising sea levels and melting Arctic ice caps have led to territory disputes among major powers; and global warming has exacerbated conflicts in unstable regions – especially Africa – where drought, famine, flood, migration and extreme weather events have overwhelmed fragile political systems.

Nick Mabey, author of the report, also offered a grim outlook of other potential effects: Collapsing fisheries stocks could destroy the livelihoods of millions; the potential for armed conflict could increase as tensions rise over water rights; and global resentment could rise against the industrialized nations that failed to drastically reduce their emissions or adequately help the victims of global warming.

“Despite these threats, current responses to climate change are slow and inadequate,” Mabey wrote. He added that “a failure to acknowledge and prepare for the worst-case scenario is as dangerous in the case of climate change as it is for managing the risks of terrorism or nuclear weapons proliferation.”

06/25/2008 at 09:30AM

The purpose of the hearing is to receive testimony on the challenges to meeting future energy needs and to developing the technologies for meeting increased global energy demand in the context of the need to address global climate change.

Witnesses

Panel 1

• Dr. Neil Hirst, Director for Energy Technology and R&D, International Energy Agency
• Dr. Raymond Orbach, Director, Office of Science, U.S. Department of Energy

Panel 2

• Dr. Thomas Wilson, Senior Program Manager, Electric Power Research Institute
• Dr. Raymond Kopp, Senior Fellow, Resources for the Future
• Karan Bhatia, Vice President & Senior Counsel, General Electric Company

06/25/2008 at 09:30AM

06/24/2008 at 02:00PM

The hearing will examine climate change research, mitigation, and adaptation efforts in the transportation sector, including both surface transportation and aviation. Witnesses will focus on the projected increases in freight and passenger traffic in each mode of transportation, the contributions of the transportation sector to address climate change, and the potential impacts of climate change on the nation’s transportation infrastructure.

In addition, the witnesses are expected to address the status of ongoing research initiatives, challenges to further development of public and private climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies, and the role of technology in such research initiatives and mitigation and adaptation strategies.

Witnesses

Panel 1

• Thomas J. Barrett, Deputy Secretary, Department of Transportation
• Dr. James M. Turner, Acting Director, National Institute of Standards and Technology
• Dr. Thomas C. Peterson, Senior Scientist, National Climatic Data Center, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Panel 2

• John D. Porcari, Chair, American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, Climate Change Technical Assistance Program, Secretary of Transportation of Maryland
• Dr. G. Edward Dickey, Affiliate Professor of Economics, Loyola College in Maryland, on behalf of the National Research Council
• David Friedman, Research Director, Clean Vehicles Program, Union of Concerned Scientists
• Edward Hamberger, President and CEO, Association of American Railroads
• John M. Meenan, Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, Air Transport Association
• Mead Treadwell, Chairman, Arctic Research Commission

06/24/2008 at 10:30AM

• Dr. John L. “Jack” Hayes, Assistant Administrator for Weather Services and Director, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Weather Service
• Dr. Kelvin K. Droegemeier, Former Co-Chair, National Science Board, Task Force on Hurricane Science and Engineering
• Dr. Shuyi Chen, Professor, University of Miami, Rosenstiel School of Marine & Atmospheric Sciences
• Dr. David O. Prevatt, Assistant Professor, University of Florida, Department of Civil and Coastal Engineering
• Dr. Stephen P. Leatherman, Director, Florida International University, International Hurricane Research Center

06/24/2008 at 10:00AM

Witnesses

• Jim Lynch, Montana DOT director
• H.B. Limehouse Jr., South Carolina DOT secretary
• Mark Pangborn, Eugene, Ore., Lane Transit District general manager
• Terry Bobrowski, East Tennessee Development District executive director
• Randy Isaacs, Greyhound Lines director of state government affairs
• William McDonald, Medical Motor Service executive director

06/24/2008 at 10:00AM

The House Natural Resources Committee, Subcommittee on Fisheries, Wildlife and Oceans, led by Del. Madeleine Z. Bordallo (D-GU), will hold an oversight and legislative hearing on the following:

• Planning for a Changing Climate and its Impacts on Wildlife and Oceans: State and Federal Efforts and Needs; and

• H.R. 4455 (Don Young): To authorize the Secretary of the Interior to provide international wildlife management and conservation programs through the Wildlife Without Borders Program in the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, and for other purposes. (Wildlife Without Borders Authorization Act)

06/24/2008 at 10:00AM

The House Natural Resources Committee, Subcommittee on Water and Power, led by Rep. Grace F. Napolitano (D-CA), will hold an oversight hearing on “The Silent Invasion: Finding Solutions to Minimize the Impacts of Invasive Quagga Mussels on Water Rates, Water Infrastructure and the Environment.”

Witnesses

• Karl Wirkus, Deputy Commissioner for Operations, Bureau of Reclamation
• Dr. Charles R. O’Neill, Jr., Sr. Extension Specialist, Director, National Aquatic Nuisance Species Clearinghouse, Cornell University/NY Sea Grant
• Ric De Leon, Ph.D, Water System Operations Manager, Metropolitan Water District of Southern California
• Ronald E. Zegers, Director, Southern Nevada Water Authority, Boulder City, NV Jim Klark, Southern California Marine Association
• Denise Mayer, Research Scientist, New York State Museum

06/24/2008 at 10:00AM