Benefits

The Supreme Court on Monday ruled against the Obama administration's plans to limit mercury and other toxic emissions from coal-fired power plants on the grounds that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) failed to adequately consider the costs to industry.

The Supreme Court on Monday ruled against the Obama administration’s plans to limit mercury and other toxic emissions from coal-fired power plants on the grounds that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) failed to adequately consider the costs to industry.

Continued shale gas development can be a win for consumers and the economy if industry and policymakers more aggressively address the negative externalities of the production boom, according to a University of Wyoming (UW) economic research paper to be published later this year.

Combined heat and power (CHP), or cogeneration, is only about 8% of U.S. generating capacity and more widespread use, particularly of gas-fired CHP, would increase efficiency and reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). But understanding barriers to adoption is tricky, according to a new whitepaper.

The New York State Public Service Commission (PSC) late last week gave regulatory approval to repower the coal-fired Dunkirk power plant with natural gas, a move that saves the plant from its scheduled mothballing while improving the reliability of the electric system and providing economic benefits to Western New York.

New England’s natural gas infrastructure will be increasingly under pressure from demand growth from the power sector in coming years, with 11 of 14 sub-regions expected to exceed constraint capacity levels on more than 30 days/year under the current infrastructure, according to Benjamin D’Antonio, counsel and analyst for the New England States Committee on Electricity (NESCE).

Aided by a new state law, NW Natural is accelerating its initiative to expand the use and fueling infrastructure for natural gas vehicles (NGV), and CEO Gregg Kantor, speaking on a 2Q2013 earnings conference call Wednesday, said that there is a statewide interest in developing natural gas as a transportation fuel.

Reminding the public of the benefits of clean-burning natural gas derived from Pennsylvania shale development, Pennsylvania oil and gas industry organizations have rolled out a one-minute commercial video titled “Natural gas does that.”

Decades of oil and gas drilling, and the jobs and benefits it provides, are engrained in Texas culture, and it’s a way of life that Pennsylvanians now are attempting to assimilate, but residents of both states continue to reconcile the advent of shale gas drilling, according to a survey of 1,600 adults.