News Articles
Southwestern states struggling with drought debate the recycling of fracking wastewater
Often contaminated with carcinogens like benzene and arsenic, the water that flows back up from oil and gas extraction wells is expensive to store, hard to reuse, extremely brackish, and has caused countless headaches for both industry and nearby residents. Colorado, New Mexico, and Texas are pursuing ways to make industry recycle more of its wastewater in oilfields to avoid depleting freshwater sources, as well as attempting to expand the use of this wastewater for other purpose
Louisiana officials want to displace a majority Black community to make room for industrial 'MegaPark'
State and local officials envision Modeste, a small community in Ascension Parish, not as a tight-knit residential community but as the “RiverPlex Megapark,” a 17,000-acre industrial site home to multiple industries. If all goes according to plan, dozens of residents would leave to make room for a steel plant by Korean automaker Hyundai. State officials are offering Hyundai $2.4 billion in incentives, including a $1.2 billion in local property and sales tax breaks.
During a dark time for clean energy, carbon capture for the oil industry gets a boost
The past several years have seen a flurry of carbon capture projects, with at least 270 proposed across the U.S. -- many buoyed by billions in subsidies from the Biden Administration meant to fight climate change. But so far, only a tiny fraction of these carbon capture projects are actually operating, and only four are “permanently” burying carbon without directly subsidizing the oil and gas industry. Trump's "Big Beautiful Bill" recently increased incentives for using captured carbon to produce more oil and gas.
Trump Administration tries to slash funding for chemical disaster oversight
The White House has proposed eliminating funding by 2026 for the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board, an independent agency that investigates chemical disasters, issues plain-language reports on their causes, and recommends reforms to prevent similar disasters. In addition to targeting the agency, Trump’s EPA has also signaled that it would roll back a rule finalized in 2024 meant to require better planning for chemical disasters.
Dubious claims of chemical plastics ‘recycling’ industry run into reality
At least 38 projects involving the use of heat or chemicals to break down plastic waste have been proposed across the country, and three plants are currently under construction, two in Georgia and one in West Virginia. But the future of these projects is highly uncertain, as companies struggle with high costs, low output, and the loss of government subsidies. Only 9 chemical recycling plants are operating in the U.S. today after four facilities shut down because of technical and financial troubles.
Louisiana LNG terminal plans massive expansion – and neighbors are fearful
On July 15, the Arlington, Virginia-based Venture Global Capital announced plans to roughly double the size of Plaquemines LNG, asking FERC to approve an expansion to as much as 52 million metric tons per year, making it one of the largest LNG terminals in the world. The more than doubling of the plant’s capacity could more than double its pollution impact. Since the rise of the hydraulic fracturing boom in the U.S., eight LNG export terminals have been built, four more are under construction, and 28 more projects to build or expand export facilities are proposed.
Facing gag order, Louisiana scientist resigned in protest. The support came pouring in.
Facing a gag order imposed on her by university leadership because her study on racial discrimination in petrochemical industry jobs reportedly angered Louisiana’s governor, Dr. Kimberly Terrell of Tulane University’s Environmental Law Clinic could remain silent and sacrifice her scientific integrity. Or she could resign in protest, speaking out publicly about an important issue and shining a light on the pressure campaign to keep her silent. She chose the second option.
With 14 ethane cracker projects looming, analysts wonder whether companies are overbuilding
Market analysts are pointing to overbuilding an uncertainty caused by trade disputes as a reason for a cooling global market for ethylene, derived from oil and gas production. Despite this turbulence, as of June 2025, at least 14 projects to build new or expand U.S. ethylene production have been announced or are moving ahead,
In Trump’s ‘Big Beautiful’ bill, ugly contradictions and giveaways to industry
President Donald Trump campaigned on lowering energy costs, but his "Big Beautiful" spending bill is expected to raise energy costs for households by $280 per year. Rather than cutting carbon capture subsidies, it increases them, as long as that carbon is used to force more oil and gas out of the ground. It also lowered royalty rates paid by oil and gas companies to the federal government, increasing the national debt, along with opening up more public lands for drilling.
Bills that target the public's right to monitor air pollution are popping up in state legislatures
In 2024, the Louisiana legislature passed a bill that effectively bans community groups from using their own air monitoring to warn residents about pollution or publicly advocate for cleanup action. Industry advocates are pushing similar bills to restrict air pollution monitoring around the country, with Kentucky passing a similar law this year. Legislators in Ohio and West Virginia have also considered bills that would restrict the use of data from local groups doing their own independent air monitoring.
Even with Gulf drilling down, Trump Administration weighs expanding drilling to new coasts
The number of oil and gas drilling rigs operating in the Gulf of Mexico today is about half of what it was a year ago, with 10 rigs working on June 27, compared to 19 a year earlier. In the face of this slump, the oil and gas industry is lobbying the Trump Administration to expand drilling rights into new coastal areas where it has been banned for years. These include the Atlantic Coast from the Carolinas to Florida, and the Eastern Gulf of Mexico, off Florida and Alabama.
Texas power demand fuels flood of gas plants and air pollution
Spurred by data centers and population growth, demand for electricity in Texas is expected to nearly double by 2034. That increase in demand is leading to a wave of 130 new gas-fired power plant projects, according to a recent inventory and analysis by the Environmental Integrity Project. If built, they could emit greenhouse gases equivalent to those from 26.8 million cars and trucks driven for one year or 30 coal-fired power plants.
Some U.S. oil refineries are still using WWII-era heaters and boilers, leading to excess pollution
The Environmental Integrity Project examined publicly available data and records for the 20 petroleum refineries in the U.S. that reported emitting the most greenhouse gases in 2023. Of the refineries whose boilers had age information, 87 percent of those units (739 of 845) are outdated, the group found. While experts have concluded that boilers and heaters work most efficiently when they are 15 years old or younger, the average age of the heating systems in the largest refineries is more than 40 years old. The oldest refinery boiler that EIP found dated to 1948, with the oldest heater installed in 1939.
Trump Administration wants to gut protections for endangered animals to boost fossil fuel extraction
The Trump Administration has targeted the Endangered Species Act as an impediment to oil and gas drilling since its first hours in office. On Inauguration Day, Trump's "energy emergency" order paves the way for permit applicants and federal agencies to ignore the possible presence of threatened and endangered species at the sites of proposed constrution projects. The order is not limited to energy projects. It applies to any type of project permitted or funded by a federal agency. Meanwhile, the administration has also found other ways of attacking the Endangered Species Act.
PA bill would penalize local governments that move fracking away from homes
A bill that passed out of a key Pennsylvania Senate committee on May 7 would withhold funds meant to offset the impacts of oil and gas drilling from municipalities that pass ordinances increases setbacks from homes. These “impact fees” are collected from the fracking industry and typically go towards improvements to roads and other infrastructure, emergency preparedness, and environmental protection programs.
