Energy Update: Week of June 1

Friends,

Welcome to June. Hurricane season is officially underway and DC is starting to re-open, only to be faced with significant protests like many other cities.  While we still continue to wonder what it will all mean, we are hopeful we can get through this newest turn to the challenge. 

Despite the difficult news reports, it was an exciting weekend for us.  Not only did we get out of town to Nashville, we met up with Hannah and her senior friends for their virtual Wellesley College graduation on Sunday.  They were in Kentucky where about 10 of them have been holed up off Lake Cumberland the past couple weeks. I always loved Lake Cumberland back in my Hal Rogers’ days.  Her graduation was a great, on-line ceremony that featured a commencement address from Zipcar co-founder Robin Chase (Class of 1980) and closing words of wisdom from Hillary Clinton (Class of 1968). 

With Congress returning, it sounds like infrastructure is going to be a priority.  To that end, we saw EPA issue its long-awaited 401 water infrastructure rule today.  Full report with specific project examples below. Tack this onto Friday’s comments from House Majority Leader Hoyer that highlighted reauthorization of expiring surface transportation provisions and the Water Resources Development Act as “must-do” items for Congress this summer.  Finally, the Senate is moving as well with both the Commerce (Wed at 2:30 p.m.) and EPW (Thurs at 10:00 a.m.) Committees holding hearings this week on the topic.

Other items include the Senate hosting OMB nominee Russell Vought tomorrow in the Senate Homeland Security and Wednesday in Senate Budget.  House Resources Democrats held a forum today at 1:00 p.m. on abandoned oil and gas wells and hold another tomorrow on reopening national parks at 2:30 p.m.  Speaking of national parks, tomorrow at Noon, ConservAmerica, PERC and the National Wildlife Federation hold a webinar on the upcoming discussion in the Senate on a bipartisan package of permanent funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) and a maintenance backlog at NPS which will feature Sens. Cory Gardner and Joe Manchin.  And since it is hurricane season, there are two web forums on Wednesday on resilience and disaster mitigation held by the Stimson Center at 10:00 a.m. and Pew Charitable Trusts at 1:00 p.m.

On point, our friend Christopher Flavelle of the New York Times reports today that officials from 13 cities/states are telling lawmakers that the coronavirus pandemic will stop them from meeting the conditions of a $1 billion Obama-era program funding major infrastructure projects defending against climate-related disasters, a topic likely to emerge in infrastructure discussions as they seek an extension of the time limit to finish projects.

One more COVID item as states and cities re-open businesses and restaurants. The Washington Post food writer Emily Heil wrote an interesting article in her Voraciously column about what restaurant owners, staff and diners need to know about air conditioning, air flow and the coronavirus. 

Finally, mark your calendars, the up-ended Triple Crown gets it start on June 20^th with the shortened (only 9 furlongs or 1-1/8 mile compared with its usual mile and a half distance) 152^nd running of the Belmont Stakes on Long Island with no fans in attendance.  I said upended because usually the Belmont is the third jewel of the Triple Crown. The Kentucky Derby was rescheduled to Saturday, September 5^th at Churchill Downs and the Preakness Stakes in Baltimore for October 3^rd. 

That’s all for today, call with questions, stay safe & healthy.  Check out the latest COVID-19 updates here. 

Best,

Frank Maisano

(202) 828-5864

C. (202) 997-5932

FRANKLY SPOKEN

“EPA is returning the Clean Water Act certification process under Section 401 to its original purpose, which is to review potential impacts that discharges from federally permitted projects may have on water resources, not to indefinitely delay or block critically important infrastructure.  Properly implemented, this will curb abuses of the Clean Water Act that have held our nation’s energy infrastructure projects hostage, and to put in place clear guidelines that finally give these projects a path forward.”

EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler announcing the EPA’s 401 rule this afternoon.

ON THE PODCAST

Segal Talks COVID, Utilities on EEI Podcast – EEI’s new podcast The Current featured Bracewell PRG utility expert Scott Segal discussing his insights the policy and politics of the current COVID-19 challenges facing utilities.  Tune in here at EEI Podcasts webpage.  

FUN OPINIONS

LAMOGA Head: President Need to Act to Protect Gulf’s Working Coast – LA Oil and Gas Association head Tyler Gray writes in the Houston Chronicle’s Texas Inc. Section that COVID-19 pandemic has taken an incredible toll on America, and nowhere has the impact hit harder than right here on the Gulf Coast’s oil and gas industry. Grays says the President needs to act to protect Gulf of Mexico energy production as it is critical to national security, our national economy and conservation of wildlife and public lands. Offshore energy production supports approximately 500,000 jobs and generates over $5 billion in annual federal revenue and has funneled more than $4.4 billion to conservation and outdoor recreation activities across our country. Gray suggests temporarily reducing federal royalty rates to lessen impacts of production cut and targeted lease extensions and increasing storage capacity.

FROG BLOG

AXIOS Harder Line: COVID, Climate Comparisons – In her recent blog in Axios, our friend Amy Harder does a nice job providing a guide of objective information comparing climate change and coronavirus.  While reality checking a number of claims about each, she adds “Coronavirus and climate change are both complex, terrible risks the world is facing today. Making them out to be more or less than what they are does a disservice to anyone looking for solutions.”

IN THE NEWS

EPA Releases 401 Guidance – EPA announced its final 401 rule to help accelerate and promote the construction of important energy infrastructure across the United States, while ensuring the nation’s waterways are protected. The agency’s final rule increases the transparency and efficiency of the Clean Water Act Section 401 certification process in order to promote the timely review of infrastructure projects while continuing to ensure that Americans have clean water for drinking and recreation. The final rule provides clarification and recommendations to statutory and regulatory timelines for review and action on a CWA Section 401 certification; the appropriate scope of CWA Section 401 certification conditions; and information within the scope of a state or authorized tribe’s CWA Section 401 review. EPA and outside experts say it should end abuse of Section 401 by several states trying to block natural gas pipelines and other important infrastructure needed to provide safe, affordable and reliable service to millions of Americans.

The Final Rule – EPA has the full rule here.  Some specifics:

• Specifies statutory and regulatory timelines for review and action on a Section 401 certification—requiring final action to be taken within one year of receiving a certification request.
• Clarifies the scope of Section 401, including clarifying that 401 certification is triggered based on the potential for a project to result in a discharge from a point source into a water of the United States. When states look at issues other than the impact on water quality, they go beyond the scope of the Clean Water Act.
• Explains EPA’s roles under Section 401.
• Reaffirms the agency’s statutory responsibility to provide technical assistance to any party involved in a Section 401 water quality certification process.
• Promotes early engagement and coordination among project proponents, certifying authorities and federal licensing and permitting agencies.

Examples of Key Projects – A number of projects have been delayed by states using the 401 Process:

• In July 2016, the Millennium Bulk Terminal, a $680 million coal export facility, requested a certification from the State of Washington. On September 26, 2017, just 3 business days after submitting 240 pages of additional information in response to the state’s requests and questions, the state denied “with prejudice” the certification request.
• The State of Oregon denied water quality certification for the $7.5 billion Jordan Cove LNG export terminal and its feeder pipeline following the company’s responses to multiple requests for additional information.
• New York denied the Section 401 certification for the Northeast Supply Enhancement Project. This project is intended to displace the use of fuel oil in New York City. New Jersey also denied the Section 401 certification.
• The state of New York denied certification for the $500 million Northern Access project without providing sufficient rationale and record citations for the denial more than two years after the initial request for certification was submitted to the state.
• The State of New York denied water quality certification for the $683 million Constitution Pipeline, nearly three years after receiving the project’s initial application, and after Constitution withdrew and resubmitted its request for certification twice at the request of the state agency.  FERC eventually found that New York’s denial was improper.
• Two years after submitting a Section 401 request to the state, New York denied certification for the $40 million Millennium Valley Lateral pipeline project, based on the lack of an analysis by FERC of the downstream greenhouse gas emissions, not water quality concerns.
• The state of New Jersey denied certification for the $1 million PennEast pipeline, deeming the application incomplete until the company provided surveys of the entire pipeline route. Landowners and the state itself, however, denied the company access to their property to conduct the required surveys, which forced the company to begin eminent domain proceedings.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Global Energy Institute did a report in 2018 on delayed oil and gas infrastructure projects. Here is also a good piece from the Energy Bar Association.

Industry Groups Offer Support – A number of groups issued comments:

American Gas Assn – AGA CEO Karen Harbert: “Denying the essential energy provided by natural gas pipelines is hurting businesses and families. As we have seen throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, natural gas is delivering safe, reliable and clean energy to our homes, businesses and frontline workers at affordable prices. The new final rule will end the practice of states misusing Section 401, putting political ideology and the goal of blocking natural gas pipelines over the important task of protecting our nation’s water quality. The new rule will enable Americans, and our nation, to continue to benefit from abundant, affordable natural gas.”

US Chamber’s Global Energy Institute – GEI President Marty Durbin: “We appreciate EPA’s work to finalize a new rule to facilitate construction of needed energy infrastructure and facilitate economic growth.  Congress never intended for Governors to use the Clean Water Act as a political tool to block projects for reasons unrelated to clean water, and this new rule will help curtail that abuse.”

American Petroleum Institute – API’s Robin Rorick, VP for Midstream and Industry Operations: “API believes this rule will provide a rigorous, consistent and transparent process for water quality certifications for energy developers and manufacturers, while ensuring that the public plays an important role in the regulatory process. We support the Clean Water Act, and though certain states have continued to go well beyond its scope for water quality certifications, we hope the addition of a well-defined timeline and review process will provide certainty to operators as they develop infrastructure projects that meet state water quality standards.”

Interstate Natural Gas Association of America – INGAA interim head Alex Oehler: “INGAA supports EPA’s final rule for the implementation of Clean Water Act Section 401. When an infrastructure project requires federal authorization, Section 401 of the Clean Water Act provides states and tribes the opportunity to certify or deny that any discharges from the project to regulated waters will comply with applicable federal water quality standards. While the statute recognizes the distinctive roles of the federal and state governments in the environmental review process, the balance between those roles has been disrupted by some states that have viewed Section 401 as a means to stop certain interstate pipeline and energy infrastructure projects. This final rule clarifies the roles of federal, state and tribal authorities during the Section 401 certification process, realigning those roles with the statute.

HF to Convert WY Refinery to Renewable Diesel – HollyFrontier today announced that will convert the Cheyenne Refinery to renewable diesel production. The conversion will repurpose a portion of the existing assets to produce renewable diesel and is expected to cost between $125 million - $175 million, with the remaining assets de-inventoried and safely idled.  The conversion project will take 12-18 months and result in a headcount reduction of approximately 200 employees over that time as the refinery goes from 50,000 bpd of gasoline to about 6,000 bpd of renewable diesel. Ultimately, the Cheyenne site is expected to produce 90 million gallons per year of renewable diesel and employ approximately 80 people.  One of the major reasons for the conversation was the uncertainty created by of the 10^th Circuit’s small refiner decision and EPA’s decision not to appeal.

IRS Issues 45Q Guidance – The IRS released its long-awaited guidance on to implement the Section 45Q tax credit.  Carbon Capture Coalition Director Brad Crabtree said developers and investors now have the remaining critical information they need to continue moving forward on roughly 30 identified commercial carbon capture projects already under development nationwide in response to the revamped 45Q credit.  Crabtree said the Coalition particularly welcomes the IRS’ proposed requirements for demonstrating secure geologic storage. “Importantly, the IRS explicitly rejected recommendations from some parties that would have relaxed existing robust monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV) requirements for demonstrating geologic storage and risked undermining policymaker and public faith in the 45Q program.”  Crabtree also said the Coalition’s over 75 companies, NGOs and unions worked together for months to develop consensus recommendations calling on the IRS to: 1) affirm the existing MRV pathway to claim the 45Q tax credit under EPA’s Subpart RR rule of the federal Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program; and 2) provide for an additional and equivalent MRV program, based on the recently-approved ISO standard for geologic storage of carbon dioxide (CO2) and supplemented with public transparency and accountability provisions.

Overall Renewable Use Outpaces Coal for First Time – EIA reported this past week in its Monthly Energy Review that annual US energy consumption from renewable sources in 2019 exceeded coal consumption for the first time since before 1885. This outcome mainly reflects the continued decline in the amount of coal used for electricity generation over the past decade as well as growth in renewable energy, mostly from wind and solar. Compared with 2018, coal consumption in the United States decreased nearly 15%, and total renewable energy consumption grew by 1%. Since 2015, the growth in U.S. renewable energy is almost entirely attributable to the use of wind and solar in the electric power sector. Although it is still used less that coal for electricity generation, wind surpassed hydro for the first time and is now the most-used source of renewable energy for electricity generation.  Coal today is mostly used to generate electricity. About 90% of U.S. coal consumption is in the electric power sector, and nearly all the rest is in the industrial sector.  Renewable energy is more broadly consumed by every sector in the United States. About 56% of commercially delivered U.S. renewable energy is used in the electric power sector, mostly from wind and hydroelectric power, but different types are also consumed in the industrial (22%), transportation (12%), residential (7%), and commercial (2%) sectors.

Cities, States Ask Congress for More Time on Climate Resilience Projects – Speaking of hurricanes and resilience, our friend Christopher Flavelle of the New York Times reports that officials from 13 cities and states are telling lawmakers that the coronavirus pandemic will stop them from meeting the conditions of a $1 billion Obama-era program funding major infrastructure projects defending against climate-related disasters. At present, the money must be spent by fall 2022, but officials will ask Congress to extend the construction deadline by three years.  Likely something on the agenda with infrastructure discussions this week. 

Demand Continues to Pick Up – America is getting back on the road, capitalizing on low gas prices as coronavirus lockdown restrictions ease across the country.  The Wall Street Journal reports car traffic is increasing in cities from Miami to San Francisco and demand for ride-share services such as Lyft is also growing. The resurgence is a boost for an energy industry beaten down by the demand-draining pandemic and ensuing price rout—and a hopeful sign for the U.S. economic recovery

BCSE adds new Board Members – The Business Council for Sustainable Energy (BCSE) announced two new board members: Curt Rich, President and CEO of the North American Insulation Manufacturers Association (NAIMA) and Melissa Adams, Chief Corporate Social Responsibility Officer at WGL. BCSE is a diverse business coalition representing energy efficiency, natural gas and renewable energy associations and businesses. NAIMA represents the $8 billion U.S. fiber glass and mineral wool insulation industry and Rich oversees policies and legislation that encourage the use of insulation to increase energy efficiency and sustainability. WGL serves more than 1.2 customers across D.C., Maryland and Virginia.  Melissa Adams’ role includes formulating strategy, policy, and programs that drive sustainable business practices for the benefit of WGL and the communities it serves.

ON THE SCHEDULE THIS WEEK

MOST EVENTS SCHEDULED ARE NOW ONLINE WEBINARS

NWF’s O’Mara to Address Conservation – Tonight at 7:00 p.m., the Explorers Club hosts a public lecture livestream with our friend Collin O'Mara, president of the National Wildlife Federation.  O’Mara will look at how conservation can accelerate our economic recovery and prevent future pandemics.

Natural Resources Dems Host Oil, Gas Wells Web Forum – Continuing its somewhat controversial web forum process, House Resources Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources will host a virtual forum today at 1:00 p.m. on reclaiming orphaned oil and gas wells.  They also will hold a forum on Interior’s plan to reopen National Parks during the Coronavirus pandemic tomorrow at 2:30 p.m.

Third Way Look at Carbon Capture – Tomorrow at 12:00 p.m., Third Way holds a webinar on mapping the growth of carbon capture. The event will look at what's built and what's next. Speakers include Rhodium’s John Larson and Great Plains’ Elizabeth Abramson.

Ceres Forum Look at Energy Transition – Ceres hosts a webinar tomorrow at Noon on electric power and coal use.  The event will address investor partnerships with Governments that are leading to an energy transition.  In this session, Canadian and UK energy ministers will address new financial institution signatories and initiatives, and the role for investors in the run up to COP26, as well as financial officials and practitioners are taking concrete steps to align financial services and investments.

Gardner, Manchin Headline National Parks Webinar – Tomorrow at Noon, ConservAmerica, PERC, and National Wildlife Federation host a webinar on the future of our National Parks and the Great American Outdoors Act.  Speakers will include Sens. Cory Gardner and Joe Manchin. 

EESI Forums to Look at Resiliency, Recovery in Islands – The Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) is holding a series of one-hour online briefings this week all at 3:00 p.m. about resilience initiatives in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands and their ongoing recovery from back-to-back natural disasters over the last several years. Every U.S. coast is facing climate adaptation challenges due to rising sea levels and other coastal hazards, but island economies are especially vulnerable. Tomorrow, a panel will provide an overview of resilience initiatives in the U.S. Caribbean and discuss the status of federal support for disaster recovery and hazard mitigation.  On Wednesday, housing experts share efforts to design housing and community centers that can face the social, economic, and environmental challenges of a changing climate.  Finally on Thursday, a panel will focus on local initiatives for energy democracy and public health, an ongoing effort.

WRI Continues Look at ICAT Countries – On Wednesday at 9:00 a.m., the World Resources Institute continues its look a developing countries and about the ICAT methodology to determine the emissions reduction impact of non-state and subnational actions. Speakers will discuss how the tools were used in Colombia, India, and the United States and give participants a sneak peek into a user-friendly calculation tool to aggregate impacts of such actions.

Web event to Look at Ocean Risk – The Stimson Center holds a discussion on Wednesday at 10:00 a.m. looking at innovative solutions for coastal resilience, including the launch of the Climate and Ocean Risk Vulnerability Index (CORVI). With the onset of hurricane season, citizens in coastal nations face the dual threat of climate change and COVID-19. With financial resources stretched as never before, decision makers need targeted risk information to build resilience where it matters most.  Speakers will include NOAA Ocean Service Acting Assistant Administrator Nicole LeBoeuf. 

Heritage to Look at US/India Nuke Agreement – The Heritage Foundation holds a webinar on Wednesday at 10:00 a.m. on the 15^th anniversary of the US/India historic civil nuclear deal. The agreement, and the ten-year defense partnership that accompanied it, provided a major boost to the emerging strategic partnership with India nurtured by the George W. Bush administration. It also jump-started the long process of welcoming India into the international club of accepted nuclear powers. This event will look back on the consequences and implications of that landmark agreement and review the ongoing challenges and opportunities in India-U.S. nuclear cooperation.

Playbook Visits with DOT head Chao – Politico Playbook hosts a virtual interview on Wednesday at 11:00 a.m. with Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao.  POLITICO Playbook authors Anna Palmer and Jake Sherman kick off the “Inside the Recovery” series with an interview with DOT’s Chao, where they will discuss DOT’s role in the recovery and the likelihood of an infrastructure package before the November 2020 election.

Forum to Look at Enhanced Oil Recovery – On Wednesday at 12:00 p.m., the Institute for Carbon Removal Law and Policy holds a forum on Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR).  Speakers include LSU’s Brian Snyder, Greenpeace’s John Noel and the Clean Air Task Force’s Deepika Nagabhushan.  They will discuss technological, economic and political issues associated with Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR).

Web to Look at Resilience, Disaster Mitigation – The Pew Charitable Trusts holds a webinar on Wednesday at 1:00 p.m. looking at investing in resilient infrastructure and disaster mitigation and why it matters now more than ever.  Panelists will discuss the economic benefits of mitigation projects, the need for additional federal resources to support community and state disaster preparedness and resilient infrastructure efforts, and policies Congress could adopt to better protect Americans from the next storm. Former FEMA Director Craig Fugate, Virginia DNR Secretary Matt Strickler and Baton Rouge Mayor Weston Broome are among the speakers. 

Senate Commerce Digs into Transportation, Recovery – The Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee holds a hearing on the state of transportation and critical infrastructure. The hearing will examine the impact of COVID-19 on surface transportation and the supply chain. Witnesses will discuss how the surface transportation stakeholders have responded to the pandemic and how they have continued to provide critical services during the COVID-19 outbreak. Witnesses include Alliance for Automotive Innovation head John Bozzella, ATA Board Chair Randy Guillot, Association of American Railroads chief Ian Jefferies, INGAA’s Alex Oehler AFL-CIO Transportation Trades lead Larry Willis.

Web event to Look at CCS Technology Cost – The Global CCS Institute is hosting a webinar on Thursday at 9:00 a.m. looking at the technology cost curve.  The event will discuss the 19 large-scale facilities, and many other smaller scale projects and installations utilizing carbon capture technology as well as a series of FEED studies which demonstrate lower costs for established technologies.

Forum to Look at Arctic Management – The Wilson Center's Polar Institute and the Russian International Affairs Council, with the support of WWF, are hosting an on-line discussion with Ambassador David Balton and Dr. Zagorski to consider Arctic management issues. Both recently co-authored a ground-breaking article analyzing the situation, "Implementing Marine Management in the Arctic." These two authors—one from the United States and one from Russia—have drawn on their long diplomatic and academic involvement with the Arctic to provide a candid assessment of the challenges confronting the Arctic Ocean and the limitations of the current international regime. Balton and Zagorski also offer a number of concrete suggestions for strengthening this regime, in both near-term and long-term.

Senate EPW to Look at Infrastructure, Recovery – The Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works holds a hearing on Thursday at 10:00 a.m. on using infrastructure as a road to recovery.  

Experts Look at Solar Radiation Management Emission Risks – On Thursday at Noon, Resources for the Future (RFF) hosts a webinar featuring Joseph Aldy and Richard Zeckhauser, both scholars at Harvard University’s Kennedy School, as they discuss their recent research evaluating a three-pronged strategy for mitigating climate change risks: adding adaptation and amelioration—through solar radiation management (SRM)—to the emissions mitigation approach. This RFF Live event will feature a discussion on SRM’s potential role in offsetting warming at low cost, and will also assess the concern that SRM would diminish traditional emissions mitigation incentives.

Forum to Look at CCUS in PA – The Center for Climate and Energy Solutions (C2ES) will hold a webinar on Thursday at 1:15 p.m. on carbon capture and its pathway for meeting Pennsylvania’s environmental/economic goals. Energy producing states are looking at carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) as a useful option for reducing greenhouse gas emissions while ensuring energy supply and spurring development of new markets for alternative fuels like hydrogen. However, deploying CCUS as a statewide strategy requires comprehensive planning and cooperation among state and federal agencies, along with the private sector. Can CCUS help Pennsylvania meet its dual energy and environmental goals? This webinar will explore how the state might develop a roadmap for deploying carbon capture to reduce emissions while developing and expanding energy markets to support economic growth.

DOE to Host Solar Update – The U.S. Department of Energy’s Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) hosts its quarterly stakeholder webinars at 2:00 p.m. Thursday to provide updates on the office’s work to our stakeholders. Led by SETO Director Dr. Becca Jones-Albertus, this webinar discusses SETO’s priorities, as well as provide information on current and upcoming activities.

Book Event to Look at Green New Deal, Climate – The Institute for Policy Studies will host a book discussion webcast on Thursday at 5:00 p.m. "The Green New Deal and Beyond: Ending the Climate Emergency While We Still Can." Stan Cox, the lead scientist at the Land Institute, is the author of a brand new book about the shortcomings of the GND, and what needs to be done to prevent ecological catastrophe before it’s too late.  In this event, Cox will discuss the prospects for a Green New Deal, the impact of the current coronavirus pandemic, and what it will take to address climate change in a sustainable manner.

Report to Look at Russian State Oil Outlook – On Friday at 10:00 a.m., the Atlantic Council releases a report on Russia’s Gazprom and Rosneft and the risk that low prices and increased international competition are threatening them.  Authors of the report, Eurasia Center’s Dr. Anders Åslund and Steven Fisher present their research. Eurasia’s Dr. Agnia Grigas joins the panel, and CSIS’s Edward Chow moderates.

IN THE FUTURE

Buildings Forum Moves to Virtual – The 2020 Better Buildings, Better Plants Summit has transitioned to a virtual leadership symposium next Monday to Thursday, June 11^th. The event will feature timely webinars and peer exchanges with fellow industry stakeholders and experts. The full agenda is here

For information on plenaries and special events, look here.  For other details on virtual sessions/speakers. 

JHU Hosts Event on Fossil Fuel Phase-Out – The Johns Hopkins University SAIS programs hosts a webinar next Monday at 12:30 p.m. on just energy transitions, renewable energy jobs and a fossil fuel phase-out. This webinar aims to shed light on: 1) the key strategies of just transition that policymakers can focus on to ameliorate opposition from fossil fuel workers and their communities to the much-need low carbon transitions; and 2) the extent to which fossil fuel jobs can be replaced by growing renewable energy jobs.

BPC to Hold Infrastructure Seminar – The Bipartisan Policy Center will hold a web event on Tuesday June 9^th at 10:00 a.m. looking strengthening essential infrastructure. While adhered to stay-at-home orders, essential and critical infrastructure workers continued to work around the clock to make sure Americans had access to water, electricity, and the internet. Others kept our nation’s transit systems running at great personal risk. As communities reopen, it is critically important we understand the current and future needs of these essential workers, whose skills were in high demand and low supply long before the pandemic began. This webinar will feature experts across infrastructure sectors to further explore these issues. 

RFF to Revisit Forest Discussion – Earlier this year, Resources for the Future (RFF) hosted an in-depth conversation on the important role forests can play in climate change mitigation.  On Tuesday, June 9, RFF will continue this conversation by convening a panel of expert practitioners for a webinar on how they are incorporating climate mitigation into their forest management practices—on the ground, in various parts of the country. This RFF Live event will begin with a short background presentation on the role of forests in climate mitigation, followed by a moderated panel discussion with representatives from nonprofit organizations and investment services, as well as private landowners who have practical experience in active forest management as a means to achieve conservation goals.

Web event to Look at EBuses – The Clean Energy Leadership Institute hosts a webinar discussion on Wednesday June 10^th at 1:00 p.m. featuring Jobs to Move America's National Program Director, Dr. Christy Veeder.  Veeder will discuss how electric buses can benefit the environment, the economy, and public transit, and the considerations needed for an equitable mass deployment. 

USEA Continues CCUS Roadshow – On Wednesday, June 10^th at 2:00 p.m., the US Energy Assn continues its Carbon Capture Utilization and Storage (CCUS) technology Roadshow webinar series.  Mike Moore of USEA will moderate a discussion with our guest speakers on the current status of, and prospects for, CCUS commercial deployment in the post-pandemic world. C2ES’s Jeff Bobeck is among the speakers.

DC Oil/Gas Forum Set – The 6^th Washington Oil & Gas Forum 2020 is set for June 10^th and 11^th at The Cosmos Club in Washington, DC.  The US leads global oil and natural gas production. U.S. shale revolution has reshaped the energy landscape in the United States and globally. The American Energy Revolution has delivered massive economic, environmental and geopolitical benefits. Today, the United States is the world’s top oil and gas producer and a leading energy exporter. The Washington Oil & Gas Forum is the foremost innovative and exclusive force for engaging oil and gas leaders in collaborative activities to shape the American and global oil and gas agendas.  Speakers include FERC Chair Neil Chatterjee, Sen Cruz, Reps. Randy Weber, Mike McCaul and Bruce Westerman.

WCEE to Hosts Oil/Gas Pandemic Discussion – The Women’s Council on Energy and the Environment (WCEE) holds a virtual lunch on Thursday June 11^th at Noon featuring a discussion with experts on the oil and gas market and regulatory issues. The event will discuss COVID-19’s impacts on the oil and gas sector, the industry’s response, and possible roads to recovery.  API economist Celeste Marshall is among the speakers.  

AEE Holds Eastern Policy Conference Part II – Advanced Energy Economy will hold the second part of its annual Eastern Regional policy conference in an online seminar on June 18^th at 2:00 p.m. featuring RTO execs.  This panel of wholesale power market leaders and visionaries will look back at how we got here and look ahead to consider how RTO markets can evolve to meet the opportunities and challenges of an advanced energy future.

Renewable Conference Set – The American Solar Energy Society hosts its SOLAR 20/20: Renewable Energy Vision on June 24 and 25 as a virtual conference.