Proposed

The Pacific Northwest on both sides of the U.S.-Canada border, known for salmon spawning and a relatively pristine landscape, is producing something else this year — a backlash against fossil fuel export projects.

North Dakota-based MDU Resources Group’s pipeline unit, WBI Energy Transmission Inc., on Wednesday asked FERC to start the environmental pre-filing review process for its proposed 22-mile, 24-inch diameter natural gas transmission pipeline for taking Bakken natural gas to the Northern Border Pipeline Co.’s interstate system feeding the Midcontinent.

North Dakota-based MDU Resources Group's pipeline unit, WBI Energy Transmission Inc., on Wednesday asked FERC to start the environmental pre-filing review process for its proposed 22-mile, 24-inch diameter natural gas transmission pipeline for taking Bakken natural gas to the Northern Border Pipeline Co.'s interstate system feeding the Midcontinent.

Proposed regulations issued Friday by the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) would add to and revise rules for Arctic Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) oil and natural gas drilling activities that mobile offshore drilling units and related operations use during the open-water drilling season.

President Obama’s nearly $4 trillion budget for fiscal 2016 would eliminate tax credits for the oil and gas industry and force master limited partnerships (MLP) formed by fossil fuel entities to be taxed at a higher rate, while making major investments to combat climate change on several fronts.

Proposed federal greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions rules are either an economic burden or an environmental necessity, according to millions of comments submitted to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Supporters and opponents of shale gas development in Illinois are both unhappy over revised rules governing hydraulic fracturing (fracking) and other elements of oil and gas law that were submitted last week by state regulators.

In what is a mixed bag for the oil and railroad industries, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) on Wednesday unveiled proposed rules to improve the transport of crude oil via rail, proposing enhanced tank car design specifications, fuel classification and operational requirements for handling crude.

Florida-based CSX Corp. senior executives on Wednesday underscored the continuing growth in the amount of crude oil being shipped by rail and voiced concerns about proposed federal regulations that would drop average train speeds in response to a series of tank car accidents in the past 18 months (see Shale Daily, Aug. 22, 2013).