Obama Responsible for Greater Oil & Gas Production?

U.S. Chamber’s Energy Institute Comments on President Obama’s Energy Speech

February 23, 2012

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Karen Harbert, president and CEO of the U.S. Chamber’s Institute for 21st Century Energy, issued the following statement in response to President Obama’s remarks on energy delivered at the University of Miami today:

 

“As the President said, there is no silver bullet that will decrease gas prices and improve our energy security. However, there are a series of significant steps that this President could take that would lead us to a more secure energy and economic future, but this Administration has rejected that path.

 

“Today’s speech contained two fundamental mischaracterizations. The first is the notion that raising taxes on oil companies is going to lower gas prices. It won’t, and we know it won’t because it has been tried before. The result was higher prices and more imports. 

 

“The second is that this Administration is somehow responsible for the uptick we’ve seen recently in domestic production. It’s not. Because of the restrictions this Administration has placed on accessing public land, as well as the ever-increasing amount of red tape, the energy industry has moved to produce oil and gas on private lands. Also, credit is due to policy decisions made years ago in previous Administrations. The fact that the Administration would repeatedly try to take credit for this shows a troubling lack of understanding of energy production in this country. 

 

“The results of the President’s ‘just say no’ energy policy will be felt in the years to come. The facts speak for themselves. President Obama’s administration has issued 50.7 percent fewer annual leases on public lands than President Clinton’s did. Gulf of Mexico energy production is down 16 percent since 2009 and is projected to decrease even further in 2012. President Obama denied the Keystone XL pipeline permit, which would have created thousands of jobs and provided all Americans with a steady supply of oil from a friendly ally. He also has banned new offshore areas from oil and gas exploration, and recently his Administration took one million acres of onshore land rich with oil shale off the table.

 

“The American people can see that the current approach is not working. But we cannot have a constructive conversation about energy policy as long as this Administration fails to put forward any new ideas, relying instead on four year old campaign rhetoric. It isn’t enough just to be for an ‘all of the above’ energy policy in a speech. It’s time to actually propose one.”

 

The mission of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's Institute for 21st Century Energy is to unify policymakers, regulators, business leaders, and the American public behind a common sense energy strategy to help keep America secure, prosperous, and clean. Through policy development, education, and advocacy, the Institute is building support for meaningful action at the local, state, national, and international levels.

 

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is the world’s largest business federation representing the interests of more than 3 million businesses of all sizes, sectors, and regions, as well as state and local chambers and industry associations.

$10 Million Settlement with Mining Company

News release from EPA Region 9:

For Immediate Release: Feb 16, 2012Media Contacts: Mary Simms, 415-947-4270, simms.mary@epa.gov, Rusty Harris-Bishop, 415-972-3140, harris-bishop.rusty@epa.govDept. of Justice: (202) 514-2007                    

    U.S. EPA, Dept. of Justice reach $10 Million settlement with Department of the Interior, Northern California mining company for cleanup costs and transfer of land to Elem Indian Colony

SAN FRANCISCO -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has finalized a multi-party agreement to settle cleanup costs for seven mining sites in three states. The parties to the agreement include the U.S. Department of the Interior, the U.S. Forest Service, the Bradley Mining Company, the Worthen Bradley Family Trust and the Elem Indian Colony of Pomo Indians.

Under the settlement, the Bradley Mining Company and Bradley Trust will transfer nearly all of their land holdings at the Sulphur Bank Mercury Mine to a new trust created to retain the lands pending EPA cleanup. The Elem Indian Colony will receive approximately 380 acres of uncontaminated land - adding to its current holdings of 50 acres - as compensation for natural resource damages from mining operations by the Bradley Mining Company.      


Nearly $7 million in federal funds will be used to reimburse EPA’s costs for cleaning up contamination at the Elem Indian Colony and the access road to the Colony.


“This significant settlement took three years to hammer out. The result is a win for Clear Lake and a win for the Elem Colony,” said Jared Blumenfeld, Regional Administrator for EPA’s Pacific Southwest region. “This settlement will help the Clear Lake ecosystem recover, including reducing the risks due to mercury in fish. It also demonstrates EPA’s strong commitment to supporting the environmental cleanup of tribal lands.”


In addition to the land transfers relating to the Sulphur Bank Mine, the proceeds from insurance policies and any future income from the Bradley Mining Company will be divided among the seven mine sites for future cleanup, with the Bradley Mining retaining a share of the proceeds.


The Sulphur Bank Mercury Mine Superfund Site is located at the southeastern end of the Oaks Arm of Clear Lake. The site includes the Elem Indian Colony which is located directly adjacent to the mine property. The site initially was mined for sulfur from 1865 to 1871. Mercury ore was mined intermittently by underground methods from 1873 to 1905, and open-pit mined from 1915 to 1957. The mine, once one of the largest producers of mercury in California, has been inactive since 1957.


Approximately three million cubic yards of mine wastes and tailings remain on the mine site. Mercury is present in the bottom sediments in Clear Lake, and mercury has bio-concentrated in the food chain of Clear Lake. The levels of mercury in fish from the lake led the State to issue an advisory to limit consumption of fish. Clear Lake is the source of water that the Clear Lake Oaks Water District provides for municipal drinking water for 4,700 people.


This cleanup effort is one of several tribal land cleanups in the Pacific Southwest Region. EPA is currently overseeing the investigation and clean up of contamination on Hopi and Navajo lands throughout the southwest.


The settlement, lodged in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, is subject to a 30-day public comment period and final court approval. A copy of the settlement document will be available on the Department of Justice website at: www.usdoj.gov/enrd/Consent_Decrees.html


For more information please visit: www.epa.gov/region9/sulphurbankmercury

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