EXTRACTED: Daily News Clips 8/10/26

PIPELINE NEWS

• Michigan Advance: How a Michigan Supreme Court decision on a Line 5 permit might ripple beyond the pipeline

• Yale Climate Connections: ‘The Earth itself was screaming out:’ Bay Mills Indian Community fights pipeline permitting while enveloped in wildfire smoke

• KPLC: DeLa Express pipeline project suspended

• American Press: Moss Lake Partners cancels SW La. pipeline project

• POWHR: Montgomery County to Consider MVP Emergency Access Proposal

• WTVD: Proposed 28-mile natural gas pipeline draws pushback from landowners in Chatham County

• Lakeland Today: Carbon capture meeting in Bonnyville draws interest from area residents

• Canadian Press: First Nations chiefs in B.C. call on Carney, Smith to halt advancing West Coast pipeline

• The Narwhal: Doug Ford pushes a Canadian pipeline as Michigan shuts down Enbridge’s Line 5 update

• LNG Industry: Enbridge signs option to acquire TTC Connector

• Gasworld: Can ExxonMobil’s CO2 superhighway join decarbonisation dots

• ETF: Midstream Companies Expand Natural Gas Pipelines as LNG & AI Demand Grows

WASHINGTON UPDATES

• Los Angeles Times: Trump’s attack on California coastal protection is “chilling”

• Politico: Retail gas stations touted by Trump racked up penalties in New Jersey

• Truthout: Trump Installs Project 2025 Author Dennis Kirk as Interior Department Watchdog

• Carbon Pulse: Carbon capture tax credit claims in US tripled in five years despite compliance burden -report

STATE UPDATES

• CalMatters: An oil field became California’s first carbon vault. Who’s responsible if something goes wrong?

• Carbon Herald: Coastal Bend LNG Starts Permitting For Texas Export Project With Carbon Capture

• E&E News: Hochul steamrolled New York’s climate movement. Now green groups are recalculating.

• Colorado Sun: Colorado voters will decide whether to put “right to natural gas” in state constitution

• Wyoming Tribune Eagle: Wyoming voters overwhelmingly back keeping public lands in public hands, new poll finds

• Utah Public Radio: Hunters also want protections for endangered species, poll says

• Athens Independent: Wayne fracking permits OK’d despite pending legal dispute

• WBEZ: Inside the nearly 5-month labor lockout at BP’s Whiting refinery

EXTRACTION

• Reuters: Canadian Natural says oil sands expansions paused until government agreements finalized

• Sustainable Views: Brexit gives Exxon loophole to attack EU carbon capture

• Heatmap: Amazon Is Building America’s Biggest Fossil Fuel Plant to Power AI

• Associated Press: Leaking grounded oil tanker off Oman sinks further, satellite images show

OPINION

• Windsor Star: Action needed to protect Line 5 in Sarnia: MP

• WyoFile: Proposed changes to federal oil and gas provisions are bad for public land, private property owners and democracy
  

PIPELINE NEWS

Michigan Advance: How a Michigan Supreme Court decision on a Line 5 permit might ripple beyond the pipeline
Vivian La - IPR, 8/8/26

“A decision from the Michigan Supreme Court last week about a Line 5 permit may have lasting impacts on the state’s environmental protection laws, well beyond the pipeline,” the Michigan Advance reports. “When justices vacated a permit issued by the Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) for Enbridge Energy’s Line 5 tunnel project, they also likely expanded what state agencies must consider when evaluating projects for environmental harms. “Any unfinished decision currently being considered, and any decision down the line that implicates the Great Lakes and the land submerged by those Great Lakes, is absolutely going to have to follow this opinion,” Oday Salim, director of the environmental law and sustainability clinic at the University of Michigan, told the Advance. Legal experts told the Advance the ruling strengthens Michigan’s public trust doctrine — a common law that says the state has to protect the public’s ownership of the bottomlands and waters of the Great Lakes for certain uses, like for fishing or navigating. The public trust doctrine is rooted in the ancient Roman idea that some resources are so important they can’t be privately owned, and should be protected for the benefit of the people… “It is literally breathing life into the law,” Liz Kirkwood, executive director of Flow Water Advocates, which argued for public trust considerations in the Line 5 case, told the Advance. “It becomes part of an agency’s action, and it’s telling them that this has to be part of their muscle memory.”

Yale Climate Connections: ‘The Earth itself was screaming out:’ Bay Mills Indian Community fights pipeline permitting while enveloped in wildfire smoke
Samantha Harrington, 8/10/26

“Whitney Gravelle spent July 15, 2026, trying to clear wildfire smoke out of tribal buildings, constructing homemade air purifiers from filters and box fans, and checking on community members with asthma and heart disease. Gravelle is the president of the Bay Mills Indian Community based on the shores of Lake Superior in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula,” Yale Climate Connections reports. “The same day, the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy approved two key permits for Enbridge, a Canadian oil and gas company, to build a tunnel for a pipeline that runs through the Straits of Mackinac, a sacred waterway for the Bay Mills community that connects Lake Michigan and Lake Huron. If fully approved, the project would allow Enbridge to operate the tunnel and pipeline through the Straits for 99 more years. Bay Mills Indian Community has been fighting to shut down Enbridge’s Line 5 pipeline for over 15 years, alongside climate action organizations and all of Michigan’s other recognized tribes. Line 5, they argue, poses extreme risks to fragile, sacred, and economically important ecosystems. And it locks Michigan into almost another century of supporting oil and gas infrastructure, even though burning oil and gas causes climate change and the state set a goal of 100% clean energy by 2040. “Looking back for me, it’s ironic, but the day of, I was really upset,” Gravelle told YCC, recalling her experience on July 15. “We received the permit decision, and we quite literally had a climate crisis on our hands. And knowing that there were other First Nations up in Canada that had lost their homes to wildfire, it sort of felt like the Earth itself was screaming out for somebody to notice what’s happening.” “...Gravelle and others opposed to Line 5 said that by continuing to permit and invest in oil and gas infrastructure, the state of Michigan is not only putting the Great Lakes at risk of contamination, but also failing to meet commitments to address climate change.”

KPLC: DeLa Express pipeline project suspended
Caleb Carter, 8/7/26

“A major pipeline project that would have run through much of Calcasieu Parish has been suspended,” KPLC reports. “MossLake Partners, an independent energy infrastructure company, notified the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission that it is suspending the DeLa Express Project. The project, announced in 2024, had drawn strong opposition from Louisiana residents and would have transferred natural gas 690 miles from West Texas into Moss Bluff. In a letter to the commission, DeLa Express LLC President J.A. Blackman said the company determined the project is better suited as an intrastate pipeline… “Our group decided to focus our Project engineering and commercial development activities on dry natural gas transportation markets,” Blackman said. “Based on these supply-driven shipper interests and the proposed timing and likelihood of certain downstream demand projects, we believe DeLa Express now presents a strategic opportunity for incremental Permian residue natural gas transportation starting in 2030.” “...MossLake Partners and FERC had not responded to requests for comment at the time of publication.”

American Press: Moss Lake Partners cancels SW La. pipeline project
8/9/26

“The interstate DeLa Express project is officially suspended and effectively canceled in its original form,” the American Press reports. “Moss Lake Partners notified the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission that it is abandoning the 690-mile interstate route from West Texas to Moss Bluff, removing the cross-border pipeline through Calcasieu Parish. The company stated the project is better suited as a strictly intrastate pipeline running solely within Texas… “Moss Lake Partners said their plans have shifted to transport dry gas instead of wet gas liquids linked to the plastics industry. “Finally one of the big pipeline projects steamrolling into and across Calcasieu Parish got stopped before any of its land seizures and other adverse impacts happened,” RESTORE founder Michael Tritico wrote in an emailed statement to the American Press. “Interstate teamwork made that happen. I hope that the people who were so sure of themselves about this feel at least some humility. The people are rising up.”

POWHR: Montgomery County to Consider MVP Emergency Access Proposal
8/6/26

“The Montgomery County Board of Supervisors has scheduled a work session during their upcoming August 10 meeting to discuss a proposed “Transportation and Emergency Access Improvements Project” agreement,” according to POWHR. “...In its December 15, 2025 resolution, the Board also notified the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission of its concerns “with the direct, indirect and cumulative impacts, on the natural, physical and human environments that may be caused from adverse hazardous air emissions and from greenhouse gases emanating from the Swann Compressor facility that will impact the air and water quality, wildlife and socioeconomic factors in the County of Montgomery, Virginia.” The Board further requested that “FERC require an impartial Environmental Impact Statement (”the EIS”) to be prepared to address the significant environmental effects the Boost Project will have on the natural, physical and human environments in the County…” MVP’s proposal to the board does not address the health or environmental impact concerns. The Board passed its Resolution of Opposition in response to community objections to the Swann Compressor Station raised at previous board meetings and those public health and safety concerns have not changed. The Board of Supervisors meeting is scheduled for Monday, August 10, at 6:30 PM at the Montgomery County Government Center, 2nd Floor Board Chambers, 755 Roanoke Street Christiansburg, VA. County. MVP cannot be allowed to find new ways to evade their responsibility and ignore the environmental and health problems Boost would create. Residents are encouraged to attend and urge the board to hold the line and reject the Swann site as unsuitable for a massive, polluting compressor station in an environmental justice community.”

WTVD: Proposed 28-mile natural gas pipeline draws pushback from landowners in Chatham County
8/8/26

“Opposition from neighbors and property owners is growing in a North Carolina county over a proposed 28-mile natural gas line,” WTVD reports. “Enbridge Gas, North America’s largest natural gas utility company, wants to build a new natural gas pipeline in Chatham County, and some are voicing their concerns about the proposal…”Property owners, many of whom are generational landowners, worry that the pipeline could lower property values and pose risks to local water supplies if a leak were to occur. Some landowners accuse Enbridge of not being transparent about the restrictions and easements that would accompany the project. They are concerned about how the pipeline could affect their ability to farm, develop or otherwise use their land. Environmental groups have raised additional concerns about potential impacts on wetlands, streams, trees and endangered aquatic species along the proposed route.”

Lakeland Today: Carbon capture meeting in Bonnyville draws interest from area residents
Michelle Pinon, 8/7/26

“NO CO2 Pipelines Alberta and Keepers of the Water co-hosted a town hall meeting at the Bonnyville & District Centennial Centre on July 23. Both groups are actively opposing the Pathways Project, a proposed carbon capture, utilization and storage megaproject that would capture carbon dioxide emissions from oil sands facilities across northern Alberta and store the emissions in areas near Cold Lake, Bonnyville and St. Paul,” Lakeland Today reports. “The meeting was held in a small conference room that was packed with about 75 people. Nigel Robinson, an outreach coordinator with Keepers of the Water, outlined some of the key points and information contained in a community engagement report that was released only a few days prior to the meeting. The report titled ‘Key Facts About the Pathways Project’ outlines what the proposed project is, what the Oil Sands Alliance is, assessment of risks and impacts as well as a case study of the 2020 Satartia CO2 pipeline rupture… “Mark Hunt, a Glendon area resident, spoke up during the meeting, stating he believes there is insufficient safety information available as to how to manage these types of pipelines. Hunt said he has been managing high risk pipelines for the last 20 years during his career in the oil and gas industry. He said one of the things companies are not telling people is that “the northeastern part of Alberta has the worst gas migration problem in the province.” He urged people to get more information about carbon capture technology and its associated risks, especially ground water and what happens in the event of a pipeline rupture… “Carbon capture is a con by the pipeline companies to make money, and they will make billions of dollars off it, and they will put the whole Cold Lake, Bonnyville, St. Paul area at a very, very, very high risk. They’re gambling with our future and it’s got to stop.” Gullackson added “It’s a ticking timebomb. Our grandkids are the ones that are going to pay the price.” “...Another resident, who asked not to be named because he works in the oil and gas sector, was concerned that the technology associated with carbon capture isn’t fully understood, and neither are the potential long-term effects, or how it could affect ground water, geology, and risks to human life… “NO CO2 Pipelines Alberta founders Dr. Amil Shapka and Penny Fox told members of council this was “no ordinary pipeline project” and would be the largest carbon capture storage project in the world… “One concern, noted Dr. Shapka, is that “the project has been fast tracked with no environmental impact assessment.”

Canadian Press: First Nations chiefs in B.C. call on Carney, Smith to halt advancing West Coast pipeline
8/9/26

“A group that represents numerous First Nations across British Columbia is calling on Ottawa and Alberta’s government to halt efforts to advance the West Coast pipeline, saying expanding the oil industry will accelerate climate change and disasters,” the Canadian Press reports. “The destructive and disastrous consequences of expanding fossil fuel production extend far beyond any single territory,” the Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs said in a letter addressed to Prime Minister Mark Carney and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith. “From catastrophic wildfires to destructive floods and rising seas, the impacts of climate change are already being felt across this country. Every new fossil fuel project deepens that crisis.” “...The Indigenous group said it is also publishing the letter on International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples on Sunday to reaffirm that it’s against the pipeline because government has not consulted and co-operated in good faith with the First Nations… “Consultation cannot be meaningful if First Nations are invited only to discuss how a predetermined project will proceed.” Karah Folk, spokesperson for Alberta’s Ministry of Indigenous Relations, said in an email to CBC News that the project provides “long-term benefits” for Indigenous communities, who will be consulted as it progresses.”

The Narwhal: Doug Ford pushes a Canadian pipeline as Michigan shuts down Enbridge’s Line 5 update
Fatima Syed, 8/7/26

“When a Michigan court shot down Enbridge’s plan to bury a section of its aging Line 5 pipeline in a concrete tunnel under two Great Lakes, Ontario Premier Doug Ford responded with a pipeline pitch of his own,” The Narwhal reports. “The fuel that powers Ontario’s economy should never be put at risk because of decisions made in another country,” Ford wrote in a post on X (formerly Twitter) on Aug. 1. “That’s why we’re building the Northern Shield Energy Corridor — a new Canadian pipeline, made with Canadian steel, by Canadian workers, exclusively within Canada’s borders.” Ford’s warnings about relying on energy “decisions made in another country” come as his government continues to push natural gas expansion, and the province increasingly relies on American supply… “Ford took a different route, using the court decision to re-up a pipeline concept he announced with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith in July. The Northern Shield Energy Corridor is a proposed 3,300-kilometre line to carry crude oil from Hardisty, Alta., through Saskatchewan and Manitoba to Sarnia… ”Ford has framed it as an all-Canadian pipeline that would be immune to the kind of cross-border legal fights now delaying updates to Line 5. Northern Shield is undergoing a feasibility study, due by the end of the year, with no confirmed cost, timeline or construction approval… “As all of this plays out, including the Line 5 saga, Enbridge has told investors it expects to return tens of billions of dollars to shareholders over the coming years, in part because of the strength of continued gas demand growth in Ontario.”

LNG Industry: Enbridge signs option to acquire TTC Connector
Jessica Casey, 8/7/26

“Enbridge has signed an exclusive option to acquire the TTC Connector, located within the US Gulf Coast LNG supply chain,” LNG Industry reports. “This option to acquire the TTC Connector potentially expands the company’s existing Gulf Coast natural gas footprint. It is also a key LNG lynchpin, connecting Enbridge’s Tres Palacios gas storage facility to the Coastal Bend Header pipeline for delivery to the Freeport LNG export facility.”

Gasworld: Can ExxonMobil’s CO2 superhighway join decarbonisation dots?
Dominic Ellis, 8/10/26

“ExxonMobil has shed more light on its integrated carbon dioxide ‘superhighway’ along the US Gulf Coast – drawing on automotive language to drive home its concept,” Gasworld reports. “The network aims to connect multiple emitters to storage sites and CO2 customers, allowing greater flexibility as captured CO2 moves to different endpoints – permanent dedicated storage (Class VI wells), permanent storage via enhanced oil recovery (EOR), or industrial uses (utilisation) – all while being checked, measured, and monitored 24/7.”

ETF: Midstream Companies Expand Natural Gas Pipelines as LNG & AI Demand Grows
Elle Caruso Fitzgerald, 8/7/26

“Several midstream energy companies are expanding their natural gas pipelines through new acquisitions and project developments as they look to capture growing demand for natural gas driven by liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports and data centers,” ETF reports. “Williams Companies (WMB) announced a $5.5 billion acquisition of Momentum Midstream alongside its $1.5 billion Delta Access Expansion project. Enbridge and MPLX sanctioned the 2.6 Bcf/d Bay Runner Twin Pipeline to supply Permian gas to the Rio Grande LNG export terminal. TC Energy and DT Midstream (DTM) secured expansion initiatives directly tied to regional gas-fired power generation and AI data center loads. This year has seen midstream operators deploy capital to consolidate high-demand pipeline corridors. Leading the charge, Williams Companies (WMB) is set to acquire Momentum Midstream for $5.5 billion. The acquisition adds 4.05 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) of capacity across three take-or-pay pipelines. The pipelines are positioned to serve growing Gulf Coast LNG, power, and industrial customers… “Hyperscale AI data centers are rapidly emerging as key consumers of natural gas power generation. TC Energy Corporation sanctioned two expansion efforts backed by 20-year take-or-pay contracts.”

WASHINGTON UPDATES

Los Angeles Times: Trump’s attack on California coastal protection is “chilling”
Rosanna Xia, 8/7/26

“For months, the Trump administration has sought to open the California coast to a radically industrialized future: large-scale desalination plants, floating nuclear reactors, more rocket launches and expanded offshore oil drilling along the state’s most iconic beaches,” the Los Angeles Times reports. “Holding the line against all this is a little-known but longstanding federal law, the Coastal Zone Management Act, which grants coastal states like California the right to review and object to any project in federal waters that clashes with state policy. Now, citing California’s “environmental extremism,” Trump officials are attempting to decertify the state’s power under this law. Framed as a performance review of the state’s coastal management practices, this challenge begins in earnest Monday during a public hearing in Santa Monica, where hundreds of emboldened regulators, elected officials, environmentalists, Indigenous leaders, community activists and everyday Californians are expected to speak out. The review will be conducted by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Office for Coastal Management and comes amid federal efforts to dismantle clean air policies, endangered species protections and other landmark environmental regulations that have long drawn the ire of industry and fossil fuel producers.”

Politico: Retail gas stations touted by Trump racked up penalties in New Jersey
Ry Rivard, James Bikales, 8/7/26

“The operator behind at least six of the mysterious Freedom Fuel discount gas stations had faced a stream of nearly 200 penalties in New Jersey before President Donald Trump touted the network last month, according to state records Politico reviewed. The penalties pertaining to safety and environmental violations laid out in New Jersey public records raise questions about how much the administration knew about the network that the White House promoted and Trump praised in social media posts and official press releases… “But the White House told Politico it was not familiar with dealings between the owner of the sites and its affiliates and New Jersey regulators… “In May, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection levied a $429,900 penalty against 17 stations managed by Kazmi and owned by Blue Owl, according to an 88-page administrative order POLITICO obtained via public record requests… “Those penalties are all related to the underground tanks that store fuel, but also include violations like submitting false information in an attempt to register the tanks, as well as air pollution control issues.”

Truthout: Trump Installs Project 2025 Author Dennis Kirk as Interior Department Watchdog
Jake Johnson, 8/6/26

“The Trump administration has reportedly installed an author of the far-right Project 2025 agenda inside the Interior Department’s Office of Inspector General as the watchdog is facing growing calls to investigate alleged corruption by top agency officials,” Truthout reports. “Dennis Kirk worked in the White House budget office during Trump’s first term and co-authored a Project 2025 chapter that recommended sweeping action to “decentralize and privatize” the federal government “as much as possible.” Last year, Kirk was placed inside the office of the inspector general of the US intelligence community, drawing alarm. Rep. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.), the top Democrat on the House Natural Resources Committee, said in a statement on Wednesday that Kirk’s reported appointment to a role inside the Interior Department IG office “is a fraud on the office and a fraud on the American people.” “Dennis Kirk is a fake and fraudulent watchdog,” said Huffman.”

Carbon Pulse: Carbon capture tax credit claims in US tripled in five years despite compliance burden -report
8/7/26

“Federal incentives to expand carbon capture in the US showed that claims for the 45Q tax credit tripled from 2019-23 despite the burden faced by taxpayers seeking to use the credit in their applications, a recent government watchdog report found,” Carbon Pulse reports.

STATE UPDATES

CalMatters: An oil field became California’s first carbon vault. Who’s responsible if something goes wrong?
Alejandro Lazo, 8/10/26

“Nearly four years ago, California lawmakers ordered state regulators to prepare for an industry that promised a new way to fight climate change: permanently burying carbon dioxide underground,” CalMatters reports. “...More than 19 months after that deadline, California has not adopted its carbon storage rules. In May, California’s largest oil producer, California Resources Corp., began burying carbon at Elk Hills, a vast, century-old oil field in rural Kern County. With its injections, the project became an important test run: the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, which approved the injections, could point to no other project like it in the United States. Without its own rules in place, California can’t hold companies like CRC to a tougher standard than the federal government, or make sure for itself that the carbon — a gas that suffocates people in high concentrations and drives climate change — stays in the ground. “If something does go wrong, there are a lot of really important questions about who would actually address those concerns and impacts,” Michelle Ghafar, an Earthjustice attorney representing groups suing to stop the project, told CalMatters. “And we have a history of oil companies not taking responsibility for cleaning up their messes.” “...It’s not clear which agency is in charge if carbon escapes through one of the oil field’s older wells, for instance… “For now, the company is injecting carbon at Elk Hills while an environmental lawsuit over the project remains unresolved.”

Carbon Herald: Coastal Bend LNG Starts Permitting For Texas Export Project With Carbon Capture
Vasil Velev, 8/10/26

“Coastal Bend LNG has begun the federal permitting process for a Texas Gulf Coast export terminal, putting carbon capture at the center of a 19.2 MTPA LNG project,” the Carbon Herald reports. “The company said it submitted a request to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to begin pre-filing review and expects to submit its formal application under Section 3 of the Natural Gas Act in early 2027… “Coastal Bend LNG said the design includes integrated carbon capture facilities that would allow it to arrange transportation and geological sequestration of carbon dioxide… “The Environmental Protection Agency in 2025 approved Texas’ request to take over permitting for Class VI wells, which inject carbon dioxide into deep underground formations for long-term storage. EPA has also issued Class VI permits for carbon-storage projects in the state.”

E&E News: Hochul steamrolled New York’s climate movement. Now green groups are recalculating.
Marie J. French, 8/10/26

“Gov. Kathy Hochul weakened the strongest climate law in the country this year, bulldozing an environmental movement that spent years pushing for its passage,” E&E News reports. “But Hochul (D) — who hammered on cost concerns tied to the 2019 law — isn’t likely to pay a tangible political price. A left-flank primary challenge collapsed after she was endorsed by the state’s most prominent progressive, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, and she’s now facing off against a pro-fracking Republican opponent opposed to renewables. That leaves environmental advocates in New York split over what to do next: keep fighting Hochul over her energy agenda, or work with her and try to shape what she’s still willing to do to slow climate change. Despite their bitter defeat, many institutional green groups are picking the latter as she faces voters in November.”

Colorado Sun: Colorado voters will decide whether to put “right to natural gas” in state constitution
Jesse Paul, 8/6/26

“Colorado voters will decide in November whether to put a “right to natural gas” in the state constitution,” the Colorado Sun reports. “The Colorado Secretary of State’s Office said Thursday that supporters of the measure turned in enough voter signatures to get the initiative on the ballot… “Initiative 177 seeks to prevent state and local bans or limits on natural gas sales and use in Colorado and overturn any existing laws or regulations to that effect. Specifically, the measure would amend the state constitution to say that “consumers have the right to purchase natural gas for cooking or heating in homes or businesses throughout the state” and that “distributors and utilities have the right to sell natural gas for homes or businesses.” “...Advance Colorado, a conservative political nonprofit that doesn’t disclose its donors, crafted the measure and is paying for the campaign to pass it.”

Wyoming Tribune Eagle: Wyoming voters overwhelmingly back keeping public lands in public hands, new poll finds
Alyssa Tolman, 8/6/26

“More than nine in 10 Wyoming voters oppose selling federally managed public lands and say they would be less likely to support elected officials who back such proposals, according to a new statewide poll released by the Keep It Public, Wyoming coalition,” the Wyoming Tribune Eagle reports. “The survey, which was conducted July 27-29 by polling firm Cygnal, found that approximately 91% of likely Wyoming primary and general election voters support keeping federally managed public lands in public hands and managed for multiple uses, while 6% support selling them… “The poll shows that approximately 64% of respondents said they had seen, read or heard “some” or “a great deal” about recent proposals to sell federally managed public lands… “The survey also found that approximately 79% of respondents would be less likely to support an elected official who is in support of selling or transferring public lands, compared with 8% who said they would be more likely to support this candidate.”

Utah Public Radio: Hunters also want protections for endangered species, poll says
Roz Brown, 8/6/26

“A new poll showed there is very little difference between how American hunters and the general public feel about national park wildlife conservation issues,” Utah Public Radio reports. “A large majority in both groups agreed the Endangered Species Act is important for protecting at-risk species calling the national parks home. The Trump administration wants to eliminate habitat protections in favor of economic considerations and is changing rules that allow for public input or notice… “A proposed federal rollback to the Endangered Species Act favors prioritizing oil and gas drilling to achieve energy independence. What’s more, the Department of the Interior has directed agencies to scale back hunting and trapping restrictions across federal recreation areas and national preserves through in-house directives rather than formal public rulemaking. The order lifts dozens of local constraints at more than 55 park sites.”

Athens Independent: Wayne fracking permits OK’d despite pending legal dispute
Dani Kington, 8/6/26

“A group of environmental organizations filed documents in federal court July 21, arguing that federal agencies violated a 2021 court order by approving fracking permits for the Wayne National Forest’s Marietta Unit earlier this year,” the Athens Independent reports. “The Wayne itself is one of the last few places in Ohio that hasn’t really been fracked or subject to fracking, and so the stakes are very high,” Wendy Park, senior attorney with the Center for Biological Diversity, which is among the plaintiffs challenging fracking permits in court, told the Independent. Additional plaintiffs in the case include Heartwood, the Ohio Environmental Council and the Sierra Club… “On May 18, the Bureau of Land Management approved three new applications for permits to drill fracking wells on Wayne National Forest land. The three wells will be drilled on the same parcel in southwestern Monroe County, with horizontal drilling proceeding through a portion of Washington County toward the Ohio River, according to a project map… “On several occasions in southeast Ohio, those toxic byproducts have migrated underground well outside permitted areas, impacting oil and gas production and prompting concerns for drinking water impacts… “The BLM also is proceeding with a new lease sale planned for September. The sale will offer leases on 41 oil and gas parcels, totaling 2,840 acres in Monroe and Washington counties.”

WBEZ: Inside the nearly 5-month labor lockout at BP’s Whiting refinery
Juanpablo Ramirez-Franco, 8/6/26

“Jessica Skalka, 37, rounded the corner of a homemade bar in her dad’s garage, passing a framed collage of cutout newspaper clips marking the end of the 99-day strike at BP’s Whiting, Indiana, refinery in 2015,” WBEZ reports. “Until mid-March, father and daughter worked at BP’s sprawling plant in Whiting, Indiana, the largest inland oil refinery in North America. There, Donald had spent nearly two decades working his way up to a job in the control room, where he monitored the refinery’s operations from behind a bank of screens… “For the last four months, the Skalkas, Pleitner, and about 800 other workers represented by United Steelworkers Local 7-1, or USW, have been locked out of the refinery without pay and with no clear indication of when they’ll return to work. During a lockout, management can prevent workers from returning to their jobs to withhold wages. Lockouts are generally seen as a hard-line tactic during labor disputes and tend to be rare, especially in the refining business, which requires continuous production and a highly skilled workforce. Now, longtime refinery workers worry Big Oil is experimenting with a new playbook to break union power, undermine national collective bargaining and remake its workforce.”

EXTRACTION

Reuters: Canadian Natural says oil sands expansions paused until government agreements finalized
8/7/26

“Canadian Natural Resources will not move ahead with any mid- to long-term oil sands expansion projects until the details of a recently signed memorandum of understanding with the Canadian and Alberta governments are cemented in binding legal agreements, the company’s CEO said on Thursday,” Reuters reports. “This means that the company’s approximately C$650-million, 30 000-barrel-per-day (bpd) Jackfish project and its approximately C$2.5-billion, 70 000-bpd Pike 2 project remain on hold, as do longer-term projects such as the proposed 150 000-bpd Jackpine mine expansion, CEO Scott Stauth told a conference call. Early engineering work for all of these projects had been slated for this year, according to a 2025 investor presentation. Stauth’s comments are the latest indication that Canadian oil producers are not rushing to increase output despite ‌large-scale policy reforms promised by the federal and Alberta governments in an effort to spur growth in Canada’s oil industry… “Major oil sands CEOs — including Stauth — signed a non-binding agreement in July with Alberta and Canada that aimed to lay out conditions for the advancement of a carbon capture and storage project, known as Pathways, which would reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the oil sands… “Many of the ​proposed policy changes contained in the agreement — including agreements around carbon pricing, financial supports, and permitting — have not ​yet been drafted into ⁠final legislation.”

Sustainable Views: Brexit gives Exxon loophole to attack EU carbon capture
Ben Steel, 8/10/26

“ExxonMobil has sent an investor-state dispute settlement notice to the EU, challenging the carbon capture obligations under the Net Zero Industry Act, despite its lobbying in favour of the technology,” Sustainable Views reports. “ExxonMobil has sent an investor-state dispute settlement notice to the European Commission, challenging its obligations to develop carbon storage sites under the EU’s Net Zero Industry Act as too onerous, despite its lobbying for carbon capture schemes… “We are confident that the measures adopted by the EU comply with the Energy Charter Treaty and any other applicable rules of international law,” a spokesperson for the Commission told SV… “This is an extraordinary case because Exxon lobbies heavily for carbon capture schemes, and yet here they are suing the EU for introducing carbon capture requirements,” Nick Dearden, director of non-governmental organisation Global Justice Now, told SV. “The bottom line is Exxon doesn’t think they should pay for it, and so they’re using ISDS to shift the cost to the public.” The reversal suggests that the fossil fuel industry’s public support for carbon capture was intended to supplant more material policy moves, Kyla Tienhaara, associate professor of environmental and global development studies at Queen’s University, told SV. “Clearly it has been a tactic to delay real action.” “...In a LinkedIn post from ExxonMobil Europe on July 14, just weeks before the news of the notice broke, the oil and gas producer wrote that “carbon capture and storage is a critical technology in the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions”. The post notes that Exxon has captured 120mn tonnes of carbon dioxide globally, which it says is more than any other company.”

Heatmap: Amazon Is Building America’s Biggest Fossil Fuel Plant to Power AI
Emily Pontecorvo, 8/7/26

“The data center buildout has hit a new inflection point. It has long been true that artificial intelligence is fueling climate change by driving up power demand; more recently, tech companies have started directly financing new natural gas plants in their quest for AI glory. Now one is backing the biggest fossil fuel-fired power plant ever to exist in the United States — exclusively to power an AI data center complex,” Heatmap reports. “That company is Amazon, according to the market research company Cleanview, which reported on Friday that the tech giant is building an AI data center campus in Texas powered by an up to 7.65-gigawatt off-grid natural gas plant. That’s larger than any other power plant in the country — fossil or otherwise… “Not only will this natural gas plant be larger than the one in Florida, it will also use far less efficient technology… “In a statement to Cleanview, an Amazon spokesperson said the company “believes in paying the full costs of powering our operations,” and that this Texas project “does just that: it’s powered by new on-site generation that won’t raise electricity costs for Texas families and designed to transition to grid-connected service as interconnection timelines allow.” “...In an opinion piece for Utility Dive, Energy Innovation director Jeffrey Rissman and senior fellow Eric Gimon argue that the proliferation of off-grid natural gas generation for data centers will increase costs for regular people more than if the data centers connected to the grid, because they will be competing with utility companies for gas supply.”

Associated Press: Leaking grounded oil tanker off Oman sinks further, satellite images show
Sarah El Deeb, 8/8/26

“A sanctioned tanker carrying nearly 1 million barrels of oil appears to have become further submerged in waters off the coast of Oman where it has been grounded for several weeks, satellite images reviewed by The Associated Press show. Crude oil has been leaking and spreading quickly in recent days from the Caroline Bezengi and has reached the shores of Qibliyah Island, off Oman’s southwest coast. As of Aug. 7, a spill of oil sheen covered nearly 800 square kilometers (309 square miles), according to Wim Zwijnenburg, an environmental expert for PAX, a Dutch organization that tracks environment in conflicts. Greenpeace Germany, which has also been monitoring the situation, told AP the spill is increasing, indicating deterioration of the vessel’s condition. “Satellite imagery analysis suggests that the oil spill covered 45 square kilometers (17 square miles) up until July 26. By Aug. 2, it had expanded to around 150 square kilometers (58 square miles), and imagery from Aug. 4 indicates that it now extends across roughly 600 square kilometers (232 square miles),” Nina Noelle, an environmental disaster expert at Greenpeace Germany, told AP… “The affected area is part of the Arabian Sea reserve, a marine protected area and host to endangered wildlife, including petrels and the rare Arabian Sea humpback whale.”

OPINION

Windsor Star: Action needed to protect Line 5 in Sarnia: MP
Tyler Kula, 8/9/26

“A Team Canada approach is needed to protect Enbridge’s Line 5 and the thousands of local jobs it supports, says Marilyn Gladu,” the Windsor Star reports. “It’s a huge issue,” said the Sarnia-Lambton-Bkejwanong MP, speaking to Golden K Kiwanis club members in Sarnia Tuesday. Michigan’s Supreme Court Friday ordered state regulators to reconsider a permit that would allow Enbridge to upgrade the 1,038-kilometre Line 5 with a tunnel under the Straits of Mackinac… “I have contacted the natural resources minister to put together the same kind of coordinated effort we did before under (former Natural Resources Minister) Seamus O’Regan” in 2021, Gladu said. “To get the provinces and the federal government working together with our partners on the other side” in states such as Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Illinois, to lobby for the pipeline’s protection, she said… “If Line 5 was shut down, that could be catastrophic for us,” she said, noting it being under threat highlights the importance of other energy projects like the recently announced 3,300-kilometre northern shield energy corridor between Alberta and Sarnia. “It’s definitely worth considering that project because I do think the threats to Line 5 will continue,” she said.”

WyoFile: Proposed changes to federal oil and gas provisions are bad for public land, private property owners and democracy
Shelly Fyant represents District 91 in the Montana House of Representatives; Don Schreiber is a rancher and split-estate landowner in New Mexico; Kim Pexton is the Mayor of Douglas, Wyoming, 8/7/26

“...Under newly proposed revisions to the federal onshore oil and gas program, the Bureau of Land Management intends to hollow out this process, defying the centuries-old values that make our government one of, by and for the people,” Shelly Fyant, Don Schreiber and Kim Pexton write for WyoFile. “To start with the most shocking example, BLM would no longer be required to notify landowners of plans to offer natural resources beneath their land for development. The agency manages some 57 million acres of these “split estate” lands, which means a private landowner holds the rights to the surface property while BLM controls the minerals beneath it. The notification process has always been imperfect, but under current rules, landowners can generally see what’s coming and receive notice at the leasing stage, when they can still protest the sale, ask questions and potentially negotiate surface protections. With notification requirements gone, the first a surface owner may hear about a project could be much later in the process, maybe even when a company is already applying for a permit or when a survey crew shows up. In our states — Montana, New Mexico and Wyoming, which have the most split estate acreage in the country — that is unacceptable. The proposal also significantly shortens the overall comment and protest period, despite the fact that agency director Steve Pearce recently said ‘a lot of public input’ is the answer to balancing the many uses of BLM lands.”