September 11, 2020 -- Draggin' the Line

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has announced the opening of the public scoping process for a new easement for the Dakota Access Pipeline crossing under Lake Oahe. The announcement published this week in the Federal Register begins the process of developing an environmental impact statement (EIS) on the DAPL crossing between Morton and Emmons Counties.

The EIS will determine whether the Corps grants a new easement after the DC District Court invalidated the previous one. The court is considering whether to require DAPL be shut down pending completion of the EIS (see story below). State officials have said that shutting down DAPL "will result in billions of dollars in losses to North Dakota’s oil industry and a drastic reduction in North Dakota’s tax revenue."

The Corps' announcement opens a 45-day comment period, which will include virtual scoping meetings to be held October 15 and 16, from 6:00 to 9:00 p.m. CDT each day. The public meetings will be conducted via a Facebook Live event. Participants won't need a Facebook account to watch the meeting, but will need an account to use the meeting's chat function. Participants can watch on their computer or hand-held device by clicking this link on the date of the meeting. Each public meeting will be recorded and a link will be made available to view it later.

The Corps previously granted permission to Dakota Access, LLC, in July 2016 for the pipeline crossing under Lake Oahe about a half mile upstream of the northern boundary of the Standing Rock Reservation. The Corps decision was supported by a finding of no significant impact based on an Environmental Assessment. The DAPL easement was granted in February 2017, allowing installation, construction, operation and maintenance of the 30-inch diameter horizontal directional drill crude oil pipeline.

The pipeline began operation on June 1, 2017, but earlier this year the DC District Court ordered the Corps to prepare an EIS for the requested easement because the pipeline’s “effects on the quality of the human environment are likely to be highly controversial.” 

Comments are intended to assist in identifying the scope of potentially affected environmental, social, and economic issues relevant to the potential grant of an easement and determining if there are reasonable alternatives to be considered in the EIS. The Corps' review of the easement request suggests four possible alternatives:

Scoping comments can be mailed to:

 

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Omaha District

ATTN: CENWO–PM–A–C (DAPL NOI) 

1616 Capitol Avenue

Omaha, NE 68102

Scoping comments can also be emailed to: NWO-DAPL-EIS@usace.army.mil. The subject line of an email should read ‘‘Scoping Comments, Dakota Access Pipeline Crossing." Comments can be left via voicemail at (402) 995-2036. The deadline for comments on the scope of the EIS is October 26.

Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem has submitted an amicus curiae brief in support of continued operation of the Dakota Access Pipeline while an environmental impact statement on the pipeline's river crossing is completed.

The DC District Court is considering whether to reverse an order issued earlier this year by Judge James Boasberg that DAPL be shut down and drained of crude oil while the environmental review is conducted.

The state's brief filed last week said the pipeline does not pose a threat to Lake Oahe or the Missouri River, and even a temporary shutdown would result in billions of dollars of losses to North Dakota.

"The state’s economy, and its economic recovery from COVID-19, will be stymied so long as the Corps easement is vacated and DAPL sits idle," the brief reads. "These definite and detrimental consequences to North Dakota and its residents vastly outweigh the entirely speculative potential harm of a spill or leak while the remand proceeds."

The brief goes on to point out that although Judge Boasberg recognized the “reverberating” effects a

shutdown would have, he failed to "confront the devastating and irreparable impacts a shutdown will have on the state’s economy and the innocent residents of North Dakota, rather than just DAPL’s owners." The document also notes the significant contribution that oil tax revenue makes to western North Dakota communities that support the industry, pointing out that of the tax revenue collected, "$661 million, or 14%, is allocated to cities and counties in areas where oil and gas are produced."

Click here to read the 32-page brief.

State legislators were told this week North Dakota's transportation system will need an additional $2.18 billion to bring its roads and bridges up to federal standards.

NDDOT Director Bill Panos provided a detailed map to members of the legislature's interim Taxation Committee showing deficiencies throughout the state. Panos said if the highway system is improved, it would minimize the restrictions that are now imposed on the movement of oversize truck traffic.

Click here to listen to Panos' comments.

It is estimated that a one-cent increase in North Dakota's gas tax would generate about $7.4 million per year. Panos said additional state dollars would be leveraged by the standard 80-20 federal match, so while $2.18 billion seems like a huge amount, the state could accomplish the work with only a slight increase in transportation funding.

Click here to listen to Panos' comments.

North Dakota's current fuel tax is 23 cents per gallon, and hasn't been increased since 2005. Over the past several decades the state's highest effective tax rate of 19% occurred in 1998 when the fuel tax was 20 cents per gallon, but gasoline prices were only $1.05 per gallon. The lowest effective rate of 6.4% occurred in 2012 when gasoline prices averaged $3.61 per gallon.

Rep. Craig Headland, who chairs the House Taxation Committee, said the state's residents may be more receptive to an increase in the fuel tax now when prices are relatively low.

Click here to listen to Headland's comments.

North Dakota's current 23¢ per gallon fuel tax ranks 40th in the country. Click here to see a map from the Tax Foundation showing state fuel tax rates throughout the United States. NDDOT's slide presentation to the committee included a history of state transportation funding. Click here to view or download it.

A test well rig was placed just south of the main plant at Milton R. Young Station last week, primed and ready to begin drilling deep into the subsurface for geologic data supporting Project Tundra.

Officials with the plant's owner Minnkota Power Cooperative hosted members of the state's congressional delegation, along with other policymakers, industry partners and media to explain progress on Minnkota’s first-of-its-kind carbon dioxide (CO2) capture and storage initiative.

Minnkota’s Stacey Dahl thanked the delegation for their efforts to secure state and federal funding needed for Project Tundra’s research and development.

“We wanted to show you how these dollars are being used and the very promising future of this project,” Dahl said. "We’re proposing to capture over 90% of the CO2 emissions from that larger unit on the left.”

The senators, congressman and others were shown a table of boxes filled with rock core samples that were collected from the project’s first test well site drilled this summer four miles to the northwest. Wes Peck, assistant director for subsurface strategies at UND’s Energy & Environmental Research Center, described core samples from the Broom Creek Formation, which are the target zone for CO2 storage.

Data gathered from the new well (rock samples, water samples and pressure tests) will be used to complete 3D simulations of how carbon dioxide would move though the potential injection site, a requirement for the next stage of the project's permits.

Sen. John Hoeven described the role of the 45Q tax credit in making CO2 capture projects economically practical for those willing to take on the challenge of early development. Hoeven said strengthening North Dakota’s energy foundation would in turn strengthen the nation’s energy security and keep great-paying, high-quality jobs in the state.

Click here for a story from KFYR-TV about the new test well. Learn more about the science and progress of Project Tundra by visiting ProjectTundraND.com.

Senator Kevin Cramer penned an op-ed published this week in Newsweek magazine blaming California's over-reliance on unreliable sources of energy like wind and solar for recent blackouts experienced in the midst of a heat wave.

Cramer, who previously served as a member of the ND Public Service Commission, said the problems are preventable, and should be "a wake-up call for the American people ahead of this year's election." He said the Democratic presidential ticket of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris "would rather pursue the radical ideals of the Green New Deal than keep the lights on for their constituents."

"While Democrats claim to be the modern-day champions of combating climate change, they also seem to be banking on perpetual sunshine and steady breezes to power their grid," Cramer wrote. "This unrealistic, politically driven approach irresponsibly puts families and communities at risk."

Cramer was interviewed about his opinion piece by Stuart Varney on the Fox Business Report. He said as a former utility regulator, he could see California's problems coming for a couple decades.

Click here to listen to Cramer's comments.

Cramer said reliability problems are only going to get worse as more baseload generation is retired prematurely in favor of intermittent generation.

Click here to listen to Cramer's comments.

Click here to read Cramer's opinion piece in Newsweek. Click here to see Cramer's interview with Stuart Varney on the Fox Business Report.

Members of the ND Legislature's interim Taxation Committee questioned the value of a provision in the gross production tax (GPT) distribution formula that requires all counties and school districts to submit an annual report of their expenditures.

The lengthy list of county and school reports was presented to the committee by Tax Commissioner Ryan Rauschenberger, who noted that many school districts had not submitted the required report. When asked by committee members if any member of the public had ever requested the information, Rauschenberger said he had never received one. Likewise, staff from Legislative Council said the report had never been requested from their office.

Rep. Vicky Steiner, R-Dickinson, said the report was initially required because the legislature made multiple changes to the GPT distribution formula, and some legislators wanted to see how much various jurisdictions were receiving and how the money was spent. But Steiner pointed out that oil tax money is spent throughout the state, and the report does not include details about how that money is used.

Click here to listen to Steiner's comments.

Senator Dwight Cook, R-Mandan, said the report is one of many unnecessary obligations placed on political subdivisions.

Click here to listen to Cook's comments.

Legislators have previously questioned the need for the report, pointing out that details about the allocation of GPT revenue are available from the state treasurer's office. The 2019 Legislature considered a bill (SB 2042) that would have repealed the reporting requirement, but it was defeated primarily because of the passage of Operation Prairie Dog (HB 1066), which was aimed at providing oil tax revenue to non-oil counties for infrastructure needs. Steiner said she would support legislation to repeal the requirement if it is introduced in the 2021 Legislature.

Click here to view or download the 155-page report. Click here to see a video recording of the interim Tax Committee meeting. Rauschenberger's report was the first item on the agenda.

It only takes about 10 minutes to complete the census survey, but several western North Dakota communities are lagging far behind in census survey response rates.

According to an article in the Bismarck Tribune, North Dakota’s overall self-response rate for the census is 64%. In the oil patch communities in western North Dakota, response rates are significantly lower with only 37 percent responding in Watford City and 51 percent in Williston.

With the data collection officially ending September 30, community officials say it is critically important to complete the online survey to ensure every city and county records an accurate population number. Pat Bertagnolli, ‎Rough Rider Center & Community Enhancement Director in Watford City, said those who haven't responded can expect a visit from a census worker.

Click here to listen to Bertagnolli's comments.

Bertagnolli said citizens should still complete the online survey, but even if they do, at this late date it's likely a census worker will be in their neighborhood to verify the information.

Click here to listen to Bertagnolli's comments.

Click here to complete the online survey.

Click here to register for the Thursday, Oct. 8 session. Click here to register for the Oct. 9 discussion.

Click here to see the agenda.

The Western Dakota Energy Association will award five $1,000 scholarships this fall to students in an energy-related field at a North Dakota college, university or technical school.

WDEA President Shannon Holter said the association is offering the scholarships to help the industry and western communities meet the workforce challenges historically experienced with oil industry growth.

“We recognize that North Dakota will see benefits from the oil industry only if it is able to attract the workforce it needs,” said Holter. “We want to do everything we can to encourage young people to explore the many opportunities for a rewarding career in the energy sector.”

Funding for the scholarship program is generated by sponsorships of WDEA’s annual meeting, as well as royalties from advertising in Basin Bits magazine.

Click here to learn more about the selection criteria and how to apply.

Click here to view or download an application form.

The application deadline is September 18, 2020. Scholarship winners will be announced in October.

It cannot be denied; wind power depends mightily on fossil-fuels. Freight trains and cargo ships convey the needed materials for cement, steel and plastics. Large trucks bring steel and other equipment to the wind farm site which is cleared by earth-moving equipment while large cranes erect the structures. All of these machines run on diesel fuel. For decades to come, modern civilization will remain fundamentally dependent on fossil fuels.

Source: IEEE Spectrum – To Get Wind Power You Need Oil

September 16 

Energy Development and Transmission Committee