1 00:00:00,160 --> 00:00:01,480 Speaker 1: Last time on drilled. 2 00:00:02,120 --> 00:00:05,520 Speaker 2: All of a sudden, they are public enemy number one. 3 00:00:06,280 --> 00:00:11,000 Speaker 2: They're now big coal, they are passing preemption legislation throughout 4 00:00:11,119 --> 00:00:15,480 Speaker 2: the United States. They are a climate villain, and this 5 00:00:15,520 --> 00:00:21,000 Speaker 2: is a new experience for many of those lobbyists. 6 00:00:22,320 --> 00:00:26,800 Speaker 1: That was Charlie Spatz, a researcher with the Energy Policy Institute, 7 00:00:27,000 --> 00:00:30,520 Speaker 1: talking about the gas industry grappling with its new role 8 00:00:30,680 --> 00:00:33,120 Speaker 1: as a climate villain. If you're somewhat new to the 9 00:00:33,120 --> 00:00:35,519 Speaker 1: climate issue, or even if you're not, it might be 10 00:00:35,600 --> 00:00:39,760 Speaker 1: surprising to hear that the gas industry has historically thought 11 00:00:39,760 --> 00:00:43,160 Speaker 1: of itself as a climate hero. I myself remember falling 12 00:00:43,200 --> 00:00:45,680 Speaker 1: for it way back when, fifteen years ago or so, 13 00:00:45,760 --> 00:00:48,360 Speaker 1: I was living in San Francisco and would see buses 14 00:00:48,560 --> 00:00:52,519 Speaker 1: touting themselves as clean emissions vehicles running on natural gas. 15 00:00:52,720 --> 00:00:56,680 Speaker 1: And I remember thinking, oh, that's good. The early marketing 16 00:00:56,720 --> 00:01:00,280 Speaker 1: of gas as green really worked for a long time. 17 00:01:00,480 --> 00:01:03,120 Speaker 1: How is that possible when gas is a fossil fuel. 18 00:01:03,920 --> 00:01:06,480 Speaker 1: I know, well, a whole lot of people who were 19 00:01:06,520 --> 00:01:09,720 Speaker 1: concerned about climate change fifteen or twenty years ago, we're 20 00:01:09,840 --> 00:01:12,720 Speaker 1: very much on board with the idea of fossil gas 21 00:01:12,760 --> 00:01:15,160 Speaker 1: as a quote unquote bridge fuel. 22 00:01:15,560 --> 00:01:19,760 Speaker 3: But natural gas should be a bridge to renewables. And 23 00:01:19,800 --> 00:01:23,520 Speaker 3: that's healthy, and that's good. That's clean energy that reduces 24 00:01:23,600 --> 00:01:28,000 Speaker 3: greenhouse gas emissions. But natural gas also can play a 25 00:01:28,080 --> 00:01:29,479 Speaker 3: prominent clean role. 26 00:01:30,040 --> 00:01:33,520 Speaker 4: The fact that we're transitioning from coal to natural gas 27 00:01:33,640 --> 00:01:39,000 Speaker 4: means less greenhouse gases. If you're concerned about pollution, if 28 00:01:39,000 --> 00:01:42,080 Speaker 4: you're concerned about CO two mission, if you're concerned that 29 00:01:42,160 --> 00:01:45,120 Speaker 4: this country imports two thirds of its oil, then at 30 00:01:45,160 --> 00:01:46,840 Speaker 4: the end of the day, you have to say, I 31 00:01:46,920 --> 00:01:50,640 Speaker 4: need an alternative to a worse environment, and I need 32 00:01:50,640 --> 00:01:53,840 Speaker 4: an alternative imported oil, and the only scalable answer that 33 00:01:53,960 --> 00:01:54,840 Speaker 4: is natural gas. 34 00:01:56,240 --> 00:01:59,760 Speaker 1: The prevailing wisdom, even as recently as twenty ten, was 35 00:01:59,800 --> 00:02:03,120 Speaker 1: that cheap, abundant gas would get us off of coal 36 00:02:03,400 --> 00:02:07,320 Speaker 1: quicker than any other alternative energy source that would deliver 37 00:02:07,440 --> 00:02:11,760 Speaker 1: rapid carbon emissions reductions and improve air quality, and bonus, 38 00:02:12,000 --> 00:02:16,280 Speaker 1: fossil gas or natural gas could bolster the stability of 39 00:02:16,320 --> 00:02:19,639 Speaker 1: solar and wind, kicking in when needed to keep energy 40 00:02:19,680 --> 00:02:23,080 Speaker 1: flowing consistently. When fracking started to really boom in the 41 00:02:23,120 --> 00:02:26,600 Speaker 1: mid to late two thousands, the situation got a little trickier. 42 00:02:27,120 --> 00:02:30,680 Speaker 1: Environmental groups like the Sierra Club, which supported the Bridgefield 43 00:02:30,720 --> 00:02:34,600 Speaker 1: idea nationally, had to contend with its own member groups 44 00:02:34,600 --> 00:02:39,400 Speaker 1: in heavily fracked states like Pennsylvania, Colorado, and Texas, who 45 00:02:39,440 --> 00:02:44,440 Speaker 1: were seeing firsthand what this bargain meant. Sierra Club executive 46 00:02:44,440 --> 00:02:47,440 Speaker 1: director at the time, Carl Pope, had to defend his 47 00:02:47,600 --> 00:02:49,519 Speaker 1: policy of supporting fracking. 48 00:02:49,880 --> 00:02:52,400 Speaker 5: Well, it has caused friction, and it's going to cause friction. 49 00:02:52,560 --> 00:02:55,440 Speaker 5: There are people who don't agree with the policy because 50 00:02:55,480 --> 00:02:58,680 Speaker 5: they think the Sierra Club's role should just be to 51 00:02:58,680 --> 00:03:01,440 Speaker 5: oppose anything that has any invat our mental consequences. They 52 00:03:01,639 --> 00:03:03,960 Speaker 5: don't think our role should be to say, Okay, here's 53 00:03:03,960 --> 00:03:05,680 Speaker 5: where we think we should get our energy. 54 00:03:06,080 --> 00:03:09,120 Speaker 1: That's him talking to NPR in twenty ten about his 55 00:03:09,160 --> 00:03:11,200 Speaker 1: group's support for natural gas. 56 00:03:11,560 --> 00:03:13,880 Speaker 5: We see it as the cleanest of the fossil fuels. 57 00:03:14,080 --> 00:03:18,000 Speaker 5: What's happening with the new discovers of natural gas is 58 00:03:18,040 --> 00:03:21,200 Speaker 5: that parts of the country that historically didn't pay any 59 00:03:21,280 --> 00:03:24,760 Speaker 5: environmental bill for energy production because they didn't produce energy, 60 00:03:25,240 --> 00:03:27,600 Speaker 5: are going to start paying a bigger share of the bill, 61 00:03:27,639 --> 00:03:29,320 Speaker 5: and people don't like that. 62 00:03:29,919 --> 00:03:32,960 Speaker 1: Two years after that interview came out, an exclusive report 63 00:03:33,080 --> 00:03:36,280 Speaker 1: in Time magazine rocked environmentalists with the news that the 64 00:03:36,320 --> 00:03:40,640 Speaker 1: Sierra Club had accepted twenty five million dollars in funding 65 00:03:41,200 --> 00:03:45,200 Speaker 1: from Chesapeake Energy, the leading fracking company in the country. 66 00:03:46,000 --> 00:03:49,440 Speaker 1: Although it stopped working with Chesapeake after twenty ten and 67 00:03:49,520 --> 00:03:52,520 Speaker 1: told Time that it had turned down an additional ten 68 00:03:52,560 --> 00:03:55,280 Speaker 1: million from the company. The news did serious damage to 69 00:03:55,320 --> 00:03:58,840 Speaker 1: the credibility of the bridge Field narrative. And then the 70 00:03:58,880 --> 00:04:03,080 Speaker 1: story is about frackings. Environmental impacts started to really pile up. 71 00:04:04,000 --> 00:04:07,080 Speaker 6: Neighbors in that Colorado town are given the heat as 72 00:04:07,200 --> 00:04:12,320 Speaker 6: well the round water there is apparently contaminated by natural gas. 73 00:04:12,640 --> 00:04:15,360 Speaker 7: A Colorado homeowner is living in fear because their tap 74 00:04:15,440 --> 00:04:16,920 Speaker 7: water is flammable. 75 00:04:17,120 --> 00:04:21,120 Speaker 8: Does anybody have any idea what the cumulative effect of 76 00:04:21,200 --> 00:04:24,320 Speaker 8: that much fracking material and radioactive material is. 77 00:04:25,600 --> 00:04:28,640 Speaker 1: More recently, the idea of gas as more climate friendly 78 00:04:28,760 --> 00:04:31,760 Speaker 1: has taken a hit as scientists have learned more about 79 00:04:31,760 --> 00:04:35,960 Speaker 1: the fact that drilling, processing, transporting, and burning gas all 80 00:04:36,000 --> 00:04:40,680 Speaker 1: released methane, a potent greenhouse gas. Because methane is more 81 00:04:40,720 --> 00:04:44,120 Speaker 1: short lived in the atmosphere than co two, gas advocates 82 00:04:44,160 --> 00:04:48,120 Speaker 1: have tended to downplay its impact on climate change, but 83 00:04:48,320 --> 00:04:51,360 Speaker 1: what it lacks in longevity, it makes up for an 84 00:04:51,400 --> 00:04:55,600 Speaker 1: intensity causing around eighty times more warming in the short 85 00:04:55,720 --> 00:04:59,480 Speaker 1: term than CO two, so it's heating things up faster. 86 00:05:00,040 --> 00:05:02,719 Speaker 1: And then on top of that, researchers have discovered in 87 00:05:02,760 --> 00:05:05,279 Speaker 1: the past decade that there's a whole lot more of 88 00:05:05,320 --> 00:05:07,760 Speaker 1: it being ripped into the atmosphere than the oil and 89 00:05:07,839 --> 00:05:11,360 Speaker 1: gas industry has ever admitted to or reported. 90 00:05:14,200 --> 00:05:19,960 Speaker 9: So I'm Sharon Wilson, and I'm senior field advocate for Earthworks. 91 00:05:20,240 --> 00:05:25,000 Speaker 1: Sharon Wilson goes by the Methane Hunter, or sometimes Texas Sharon. 92 00:05:25,440 --> 00:05:28,480 Speaker 1: She spends most of her days going around Texas's pipelines 93 00:05:28,520 --> 00:05:31,919 Speaker 1: and oil fields with an optical imaging camera that uses 94 00:05:32,000 --> 00:05:36,880 Speaker 1: thermal imagery technology to make otherwise invisible methane emissions visible. 95 00:05:37,160 --> 00:05:39,960 Speaker 1: Wilson's relationship with fracking is personal. 96 00:05:41,000 --> 00:05:44,200 Speaker 9: I worked for the oil and gas industry. I was 97 00:05:44,720 --> 00:05:52,080 Speaker 9: uncomfortable with the ethics of the industry as a whole, 98 00:05:53,200 --> 00:05:55,960 Speaker 9: and that was before I knew about any of the 99 00:05:56,240 --> 00:05:57,520 Speaker 9: environmental impacts. 100 00:05:58,160 --> 00:06:01,960 Speaker 1: That discomfort eventually led Willilson to leave the industry and 101 00:06:02,080 --> 00:06:05,760 Speaker 1: move out to Wise County, a rural area north of 102 00:06:05,839 --> 00:06:06,960 Speaker 1: Fort Worth, Texas. 103 00:06:08,480 --> 00:06:14,400 Speaker 9: I bought forty two acres next to the LBJ National Grasslands, 104 00:06:15,040 --> 00:06:18,680 Speaker 9: and I didn't know that that's where George Mitchell, the 105 00:06:18,839 --> 00:06:27,560 Speaker 9: father of fracking, was experimenting with how to economically frack 106 00:06:27,720 --> 00:06:31,480 Speaker 9: oil and gas from shale, and so I had a 107 00:06:31,560 --> 00:06:39,159 Speaker 9: ringside seat to that adventure. And my air turned brown 108 00:06:39,480 --> 00:06:45,200 Speaker 9: and my well water turned black. So yeah, that made 109 00:06:45,240 --> 00:06:45,679 Speaker 9: me mad. 110 00:06:47,880 --> 00:06:50,000 Speaker 1: Wilson had a young son at the time and felt 111 00:06:50,000 --> 00:06:52,760 Speaker 1: she couldn't subject him to all that pollution, so they 112 00:06:52,880 --> 00:06:55,640 Speaker 1: moved from the country to the Dallas Fort Worth area, 113 00:06:55,800 --> 00:06:59,320 Speaker 1: to a town called Denton. There, Wilson started working with 114 00:06:59,360 --> 00:07:02,240 Speaker 1: the local govern on a fracking band. Then she went 115 00:07:02,240 --> 00:07:05,680 Speaker 1: to work for Earthworks to work on fracking across the state. 116 00:07:06,120 --> 00:07:08,119 Speaker 1: In the course of that work, she made an open 117 00:07:08,200 --> 00:07:11,800 Speaker 1: records request to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and 118 00:07:11,840 --> 00:07:15,400 Speaker 1: got back videos of optical gas imaging that had been 119 00:07:15,400 --> 00:07:18,679 Speaker 1: done at well sites and oil and gas facilities. 120 00:07:18,640 --> 00:07:24,000 Speaker 9: That made visible the invisible pollution coming from these facilities. 121 00:07:24,440 --> 00:07:28,280 Speaker 9: So when you look at it without an optical gas 122 00:07:28,560 --> 00:07:34,840 Speaker 9: imaging instrument, you just see tanks and pipes, But when 123 00:07:34,880 --> 00:07:39,240 Speaker 9: you look at it with the optical gas imaging camera 124 00:07:39,320 --> 00:07:43,840 Speaker 9: that I use, you see big clouds of pollution coming 125 00:07:43,880 --> 00:07:45,160 Speaker 9: from these sites. 126 00:07:45,640 --> 00:07:49,200 Speaker 1: Wilson was hooked. She realized these images could expose the 127 00:07:49,280 --> 00:07:52,760 Speaker 1: true cost of fracking that the gas industry was hoping 128 00:07:52,800 --> 00:07:53,320 Speaker 1: to hide. 129 00:07:53,920 --> 00:07:56,600 Speaker 9: I felt like it would be a great tool to 130 00:07:56,720 --> 00:08:00,680 Speaker 9: use to help people prove that they were being impacted, 131 00:08:00,720 --> 00:08:07,000 Speaker 9: because what industry does is they will blame the odors 132 00:08:07,240 --> 00:08:12,720 Speaker 9: that you're smelling and your health impacts on cleaning products 133 00:08:12,720 --> 00:08:16,640 Speaker 9: in your home, or the candles you were burning, or 134 00:08:16,680 --> 00:08:21,840 Speaker 9: the dog. They will blame anything but the elephant of 135 00:08:21,880 --> 00:08:24,960 Speaker 9: the oil and gas facility that is plopped down next 136 00:08:24,960 --> 00:08:27,120 Speaker 9: to your home. So I saw it as a way 137 00:08:27,160 --> 00:08:30,160 Speaker 9: to help advocate for people who were impacted. 138 00:08:31,040 --> 00:08:33,839 Speaker 1: More and more advocates like Wilson started to point out 139 00:08:33,840 --> 00:08:37,160 Speaker 1: the enormous amount of methane being released into the atmosphere 140 00:08:37,200 --> 00:08:41,560 Speaker 1: from pipelines and well sites, and frontline communities began to 141 00:08:41,600 --> 00:08:44,600 Speaker 1: push back on the impacts the industry was having on 142 00:08:44,640 --> 00:08:48,240 Speaker 1: their water and air. Suddenly, gas went from being part 143 00:08:48,240 --> 00:08:51,120 Speaker 1: of the solution to part of the problem, and that's 144 00:08:51,160 --> 00:08:54,280 Speaker 1: something the industry is having a hard time adjusting. 145 00:08:54,360 --> 00:09:00,440 Speaker 10: To Good morning, everybody, If folks are ready, yes, we 146 00:09:00,520 --> 00:09:04,000 Speaker 10: go ahead to start the next panel, which is entitled 147 00:09:04,640 --> 00:09:07,280 Speaker 10: what do the election results mean for One Future. 148 00:09:07,720 --> 00:09:12,040 Speaker 1: This is Pete Sheffield, vice president and chief sustainability officer 149 00:09:12,200 --> 00:09:16,520 Speaker 1: for Enbridge Energy. They're a large Canadian pipeline company that's 150 00:09:16,559 --> 00:09:19,920 Speaker 1: been involved with both the Dakota Access Pipeline at Standing 151 00:09:20,000 --> 00:09:23,640 Speaker 1: Rock and Line three in Minnesota. He's talking here to 152 00:09:23,720 --> 00:09:27,320 Speaker 1: the One Future Coalition, a group of more than fifty 153 00:09:27,360 --> 00:09:30,960 Speaker 1: gas companies that have pledged to work together voluntarily to 154 00:09:31,080 --> 00:09:35,480 Speaker 1: reduce methane emissions. This was the group's post election call 155 00:09:35,640 --> 00:09:38,840 Speaker 1: in twenty twenty one. Audio of this and a few 156 00:09:38,880 --> 00:09:41,880 Speaker 1: other industry meetings was leaked to the Energy and Policy 157 00:09:41,960 --> 00:09:45,800 Speaker 1: Institute and shared with DRILLED. The audio cuts out here 158 00:09:45,840 --> 00:09:49,280 Speaker 1: for a second as Sheffield is introducing this panel about 159 00:09:49,320 --> 00:09:50,640 Speaker 1: the twenty twenty election. 160 00:09:51,280 --> 00:09:54,000 Speaker 10: As we look at what happened last week, do we 161 00:09:54,080 --> 00:09:59,240 Speaker 10: think natural gas is positioned part of the problem or 162 00:09:59,280 --> 00:09:59,640 Speaker 10: a bit of. 163 00:09:59,640 --> 00:10:02,240 Speaker 1: Bot It's hard to hear, but he was posing a 164 00:10:02,320 --> 00:10:06,280 Speaker 1: key question, is natural gas positioned well as a solution 165 00:10:06,920 --> 00:10:14,480 Speaker 1: or as part of the problem. Welcome back to DRILLED. 166 00:10:14,600 --> 00:10:18,000 Speaker 1: I'm Amy Westerveldt. This season, we're digging into how the 167 00:10:18,080 --> 00:10:21,760 Speaker 1: gas industry, from oil and gas companies to pipeline companies 168 00:10:21,800 --> 00:10:25,600 Speaker 1: to utilities is grappling with its new role in the 169 00:10:25,640 --> 00:10:30,360 Speaker 1: climate conversation today, the battle plan, how the industry is 170 00:10:30,400 --> 00:10:32,679 Speaker 1: strategizing to fight the climate movement. 171 00:10:33,440 --> 00:10:46,280 Speaker 7: Stay with us, what exactly would be the stance of 172 00:10:46,320 --> 00:10:50,120 Speaker 7: a Biden Harris administration toward the Green New Deal. You 173 00:10:50,200 --> 00:10:52,439 Speaker 7: have two minutes uninterrupted course. 174 00:10:52,559 --> 00:10:55,920 Speaker 9: So first of all, I will repeat, and the American 175 00:10:55,960 --> 00:10:59,880 Speaker 9: people now that Joe Biden will not banfracking. 176 00:11:00,320 --> 00:11:01,200 Speaker 7: That is a fact. 177 00:11:03,400 --> 00:11:06,320 Speaker 1: You might remember the question of a fracking ban coming 178 00:11:06,400 --> 00:11:09,920 Speaker 1: up a lot during the twenty twenty presidential election. That 179 00:11:10,040 --> 00:11:12,240 Speaker 1: question was driven in part by all the city and 180 00:11:12,320 --> 00:11:16,480 Speaker 1: county gas bands announced that same year. By mid twenty 181 00:11:16,520 --> 00:11:20,720 Speaker 1: twenty one, cities and counties in nineteen states had passed 182 00:11:20,840 --> 00:11:25,040 Speaker 1: local gas bands. In California alone, there are now fifty 183 00:11:25,120 --> 00:11:28,679 Speaker 1: local bands, and New York is considering passing the country's 184 00:11:28,679 --> 00:11:33,720 Speaker 1: first statewide gas ban. The fossil fuel industry doesn't often 185 00:11:33,760 --> 00:11:37,160 Speaker 1: get caught off guard, but gas bands seem to have 186 00:11:37,240 --> 00:11:40,199 Speaker 1: actually managed it. We get a rare glimpse into how 187 00:11:40,200 --> 00:11:43,600 Speaker 1: the American Gas Association reacted to the flurry of local 188 00:11:43,640 --> 00:11:46,959 Speaker 1: gas bands because they discussed it in detail at their 189 00:11:46,960 --> 00:11:50,240 Speaker 1: twenty twenty conference, and the audio of that was leaked 190 00:11:50,280 --> 00:11:53,080 Speaker 1: to the Energy Policy Institute and then shared with drilled. 191 00:11:53,640 --> 00:11:57,480 Speaker 1: Here you can hear the Association's vice president of Advocacy 192 00:11:57,520 --> 00:12:02,040 Speaker 1: and Outreach, Sue Forester, blaming the climate movement's strategy to 193 00:12:02,160 --> 00:12:06,839 Speaker 1: her gas colleagues. The American Gas Association is the trade 194 00:12:06,840 --> 00:12:08,280 Speaker 1: group for gas utilities. 195 00:12:08,480 --> 00:12:13,720 Speaker 11: This isn't about lowering emissions, it's actually about fossil fuels. 196 00:12:14,559 --> 00:12:16,040 Speaker 8: And so Britney is. 197 00:12:16,080 --> 00:12:19,679 Speaker 11: Kind of a coordinated, cohesive plan of attack from the ENGOs. 198 00:12:19,840 --> 00:12:21,959 Speaker 11: They have a lot of big funders, and if they 199 00:12:21,960 --> 00:12:24,320 Speaker 11: get funneled to studies that are ven used by the 200 00:12:24,320 --> 00:12:28,760 Speaker 11: grassroots folks to use in states and at local city 201 00:12:28,760 --> 00:12:31,640 Speaker 11: council meetings, and then they have pre written codes. 202 00:12:32,080 --> 00:12:35,040 Speaker 1: Okay, So this is pretty amusing because what she's talking 203 00:12:35,120 --> 00:12:39,640 Speaker 1: about as though it's really nefarious and geo's coordinating an 204 00:12:39,640 --> 00:12:42,800 Speaker 1: attack on the industry by funding studies that are then 205 00:12:42,960 --> 00:12:45,760 Speaker 1: used by grassroots folks at the state level and in 206 00:12:45,800 --> 00:12:49,160 Speaker 1: local city council meetings, having pre written codes that they 207 00:12:49,200 --> 00:12:53,160 Speaker 1: can just hand off to lawmakers. Everything she's describing there, 208 00:12:54,000 --> 00:12:58,240 Speaker 1: that's the industry's playbook, and particularly the right wing playbook 209 00:12:58,679 --> 00:13:03,200 Speaker 1: funding universities and particular studies, check, getting those studies into 210 00:13:03,240 --> 00:13:07,880 Speaker 1: the hands of local advocates, check writing codes and laws, 211 00:13:07,920 --> 00:13:12,120 Speaker 1: and supplying them directly to lawmakers. That is the entire 212 00:13:12,200 --> 00:13:16,760 Speaker 1: purpose of ALEC, the American Legislative Exchange Council, a pro 213 00:13:16,920 --> 00:13:19,920 Speaker 1: business group set up by the Koch brothers years ago. 214 00:13:20,240 --> 00:13:22,720 Speaker 1: I'm not sure why it took environmentalists so long to 215 00:13:22,800 --> 00:13:25,720 Speaker 1: follow the same blueprint, or why industry would be caught 216 00:13:25,720 --> 00:13:28,320 Speaker 1: off guard when they finally did. But here we are 217 00:13:29,280 --> 00:13:30,280 Speaker 1: back to Forrester. 218 00:13:30,840 --> 00:13:33,080 Speaker 11: What I really want to impress upon everybody here is, 219 00:13:33,120 --> 00:13:34,360 Speaker 11: don't think this is just a. 220 00:13:34,320 --> 00:13:35,839 Speaker 8: Coastal elite issue. 221 00:13:36,080 --> 00:13:41,040 Speaker 11: We're seeing activity in Columbus, Ohio, Lawrence, Kansas, Detroit, and 222 00:13:41,120 --> 00:13:44,600 Speaker 11: even Austin, Texas. Yeah, that's right, Texas, the home of 223 00:13:44,840 --> 00:13:47,079 Speaker 11: oil and gas, which is quite surprising. 224 00:13:47,640 --> 00:13:50,600 Speaker 1: Again, it's highly unusual to see any part of the 225 00:13:50,640 --> 00:13:53,840 Speaker 1: fossil fuel industry caught off guard by the climate movement. 226 00:13:54,040 --> 00:13:57,520 Speaker 1: So it's strange to hear an industry lobbyist scrambling to 227 00:13:57,600 --> 00:14:01,280 Speaker 1: react to an effective climate strategy. But of course it 228 00:14:01,360 --> 00:14:03,760 Speaker 1: has not taken the industry long to figure out a 229 00:14:03,880 --> 00:14:06,600 Speaker 1: counter strategy. Part of that is a push to pass 230 00:14:06,640 --> 00:14:10,080 Speaker 1: preemptive laws that prevents states or any cities or towns 231 00:14:10,120 --> 00:14:14,000 Speaker 1: within them from ever passing a gas ban, so essentially 232 00:14:14,280 --> 00:14:17,800 Speaker 1: bans on bans. But of course the word ban is 233 00:14:17,880 --> 00:14:20,880 Speaker 1: never anywhere near these laws. They're all about so called 234 00:14:21,080 --> 00:14:23,800 Speaker 1: freedom of choice. Here's Forrester again. 235 00:14:24,240 --> 00:14:27,120 Speaker 8: So the idea behind choice is to really get ahead 236 00:14:27,360 --> 00:14:31,200 Speaker 8: of the localities, the big cities and counties, and say 237 00:14:31,880 --> 00:14:34,680 Speaker 8: we are allowing our customers the right to be hooked 238 00:14:34,760 --> 00:14:37,680 Speaker 8: up to any kind of energy they would like. So 239 00:14:37,800 --> 00:14:42,080 Speaker 8: again preserving energy choice, because we're trying to beat counties 240 00:14:42,120 --> 00:14:45,160 Speaker 8: and localities from passing bands that then force the hand 241 00:14:45,240 --> 00:14:49,560 Speaker 8: of governors and state legislators to pass something nationwide. 242 00:14:50,120 --> 00:14:53,240 Speaker 1: It's interesting that they call these choice bills because they're 243 00:14:53,240 --> 00:14:57,280 Speaker 1: effectively removing a choice from voters before they've even thought 244 00:14:57,320 --> 00:14:57,760 Speaker 1: about it. 245 00:14:58,200 --> 00:15:01,640 Speaker 11: We now see the environmental side talking about indoor air quality, 246 00:15:01,760 --> 00:15:04,920 Speaker 11: telling you that your stove is dangerous because it emits 247 00:15:04,920 --> 00:15:08,440 Speaker 11: things and it's causing asthma and kits, and so that's 248 00:15:08,440 --> 00:15:10,800 Speaker 11: one of the big pooses that we're working on right now, 249 00:15:10,880 --> 00:15:14,160 Speaker 11: is trying to tell you that's not through any kind 250 00:15:14,200 --> 00:15:15,880 Speaker 11: of cooking emits things. 251 00:15:16,280 --> 00:15:19,880 Speaker 1: Well, it's technically true that any type of cooking emits things. 252 00:15:19,920 --> 00:15:22,760 Speaker 1: As Forester puts it, cooking with gas emits at least 253 00:15:22,800 --> 00:15:25,600 Speaker 1: twice as much particulate matter. That's the type of air 254 00:15:25,640 --> 00:15:29,120 Speaker 1: pollution that's linked to everything from asthma to shortened lifespan 255 00:15:29,440 --> 00:15:32,960 Speaker 1: as electric. Cooking with gas as opposed to electric also 256 00:15:33,080 --> 00:15:39,280 Speaker 1: produces nitrogen oxide, nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide, and formaldehyde. This 257 00:15:39,400 --> 00:15:41,960 Speaker 1: is just one small example of how the gas industry 258 00:15:42,040 --> 00:15:45,160 Speaker 1: is working overtime to wrestle back control of the narrative 259 00:15:45,280 --> 00:15:48,640 Speaker 1: on gas and in this case, the gas industry, and 260 00:15:48,680 --> 00:15:52,160 Speaker 1: again that includes oil and gas companies like Chevron or 261 00:15:52,200 --> 00:15:56,280 Speaker 1: Exon Mobile, as well as smaller companies like Pineer Fuels, 262 00:15:56,400 --> 00:16:00,160 Speaker 1: but also pipeline companies like Enbridge and Energy Transfer Partner 263 00:16:00,520 --> 00:16:05,840 Speaker 1: and utilities like Sokel Gas in California, Orever Source in Massachusetts. 264 00:16:06,120 --> 00:16:08,640 Speaker 1: They're trying everything they can to make the bridge feel 265 00:16:08,720 --> 00:16:12,400 Speaker 1: narrative stick just one more time. Forrester explains here what 266 00:16:12,520 --> 00:16:16,600 Speaker 1: her organization, the American Gas Association, is doing on that front. 267 00:16:17,000 --> 00:16:21,440 Speaker 8: Folks understand that the climate is changing, but they don't 268 00:16:21,480 --> 00:16:24,920 Speaker 8: necessarily know what to do, and so that void is 269 00:16:24,960 --> 00:16:27,600 Speaker 8: where AGA is really going to step in to really 270 00:16:27,720 --> 00:16:31,400 Speaker 8: change the narrative and say that we are part of 271 00:16:31,480 --> 00:16:34,480 Speaker 8: America's clean energy future, and we are here to make 272 00:16:34,480 --> 00:16:37,640 Speaker 8: sure that we can support our customers having choices and 273 00:16:37,760 --> 00:16:40,920 Speaker 8: options that are cost effective and reliable. 274 00:16:41,320 --> 00:16:43,880 Speaker 1: You can hear similar language in a recent TV ad 275 00:16:43,880 --> 00:16:46,080 Speaker 1: from the American Petroleum Institute. 276 00:16:47,240 --> 00:16:50,280 Speaker 9: Renewables are great, but we need natural gas too. That's 277 00:16:50,280 --> 00:16:52,920 Speaker 9: what we use now, so when the sun is down, 278 00:16:53,200 --> 00:16:54,240 Speaker 9: you have a backup. 279 00:16:55,360 --> 00:16:57,320 Speaker 1: You sound just like your granddad. 280 00:16:57,680 --> 00:17:01,440 Speaker 12: Plus, emissions have gone down because natural gas is the 281 00:17:01,560 --> 00:17:06,480 Speaker 12: number one source of electricity, Grandma, American energy is leading 282 00:17:06,520 --> 00:17:07,080 Speaker 12: the world. 283 00:17:07,320 --> 00:17:09,760 Speaker 9: Natural gas equals a cleaner future. 284 00:17:16,119 --> 00:17:18,600 Speaker 1: It's a fine line for the gas industry because they 285 00:17:18,600 --> 00:17:20,919 Speaker 1: want to be part of the clean energy future, but 286 00:17:21,000 --> 00:17:24,399 Speaker 1: they also don't want when in solar gaining too much 287 00:17:24,480 --> 00:17:28,560 Speaker 1: ground because that means selling less gas. It also means 288 00:17:28,600 --> 00:17:31,720 Speaker 1: being stuck with a bunch of gas infrastructure they can't use. 289 00:17:32,240 --> 00:17:34,680 Speaker 1: So they've come up with a solution, which we talked 290 00:17:34,680 --> 00:17:38,120 Speaker 1: about a bit in our last episode. Renewable natural gas 291 00:17:38,359 --> 00:17:44,399 Speaker 1: or RNG, essentially methane captured from industrial dairy or meat operations, 292 00:17:44,720 --> 00:17:48,800 Speaker 1: sewage treatment facilities, or landfills on the surface. It's an 293 00:17:48,840 --> 00:17:52,320 Speaker 1: okay idea except that it kind of helps greenwash industrial 294 00:17:52,440 --> 00:17:55,160 Speaker 1: ag But the gas industry is using it to keep 295 00:17:55,280 --> 00:17:58,639 Speaker 1: gas in the mix, despite the fact that, according to 296 00:17:58,680 --> 00:18:03,200 Speaker 1: global consulting firm ICF, the most RNG could ever hope 297 00:18:03,240 --> 00:18:07,040 Speaker 1: to provide is around sixteen percent of the gas supply, 298 00:18:07,320 --> 00:18:11,320 Speaker 1: and critics say that's a wildly optimistic number. Here's Forester 299 00:18:11,440 --> 00:18:15,040 Speaker 1: again on the role of RNG in the industry's plans. 300 00:18:15,400 --> 00:18:18,959 Speaker 8: We also have positive legislation in Minnesota and Colorado on 301 00:18:19,240 --> 00:18:22,840 Speaker 8: RNG trying to make it part of the fuel mix 302 00:18:23,000 --> 00:18:26,919 Speaker 8: and to keep electrons moving through our infrastructure, which is 303 00:18:27,040 --> 00:18:28,800 Speaker 8: great news on that front. 304 00:18:29,240 --> 00:18:32,520 Speaker 1: So the industry's positioning now hammers on three key points. 305 00:18:32,840 --> 00:18:36,520 Speaker 1: First freedom of choice, then gas is part of a 306 00:18:36,560 --> 00:18:41,240 Speaker 1: clean energy future, and finally affordability. Again here's Forster. 307 00:18:41,640 --> 00:18:45,120 Speaker 8: Our financially challenge communities. We want to make sure things 308 00:18:45,160 --> 00:18:46,360 Speaker 8: stay affordable for them. 309 00:18:47,080 --> 00:18:49,320 Speaker 1: This is something that's showing up over and over again 310 00:18:49,359 --> 00:18:53,480 Speaker 1: in industry advertising and pr. The green transition is going 311 00:18:53,560 --> 00:18:57,320 Speaker 1: to be expensive. The environmentalists don't care about you, but 312 00:18:57,440 --> 00:19:01,240 Speaker 1: we do. And it's not just the message itself. It's 313 00:19:01,280 --> 00:19:05,440 Speaker 1: important who the messenger is too. That's why Forrester explains 314 00:19:05,480 --> 00:19:09,639 Speaker 1: the importance of recruiting influencers in key sectors to sing 315 00:19:09,680 --> 00:19:10,879 Speaker 1: the praises of gas. 316 00:19:11,240 --> 00:19:14,040 Speaker 8: We have convened the National Group of End Users and 317 00:19:14,119 --> 00:19:17,960 Speaker 8: Consumers to help carry our message. Again, we keep hearing 318 00:19:18,000 --> 00:19:22,000 Speaker 8: from our message. Testing the industry. Talking about industry isn't effective. 319 00:19:22,320 --> 00:19:26,360 Speaker 8: We really need our end users like AARP, the restaurants, 320 00:19:26,400 --> 00:19:31,960 Speaker 8: home builders, labors and agriculture farmers specifically are the more 321 00:19:32,000 --> 00:19:35,800 Speaker 8: effective voices for us out there. So we talk twice 322 00:19:35,800 --> 00:19:39,560 Speaker 8: monthly with our coalition partners. We have used them to 323 00:19:39,720 --> 00:19:43,359 Speaker 8: testify in cases in front of the legislatures as well 324 00:19:43,400 --> 00:19:47,200 Speaker 8: as at city councils. We are also increasing our outreach 325 00:19:47,400 --> 00:19:53,320 Speaker 8: to include local mayors, legislators, African American groups, and all 326 00:19:53,400 --> 00:19:56,520 Speaker 8: kinds of different folks so that we have more friends 327 00:19:56,560 --> 00:19:59,400 Speaker 8: on our side willing to talk about how great natural 328 00:19:59,480 --> 00:20:00,000 Speaker 8: gas is. 329 00:20:01,680 --> 00:20:05,880 Speaker 1: And just like those pesky environmental NGOs Forrester was complaining 330 00:20:05,920 --> 00:20:09,800 Speaker 1: about before, they're meeting with local officials and bringing studies 331 00:20:09,840 --> 00:20:12,920 Speaker 1: in sample legislation to them as well. There are currently 332 00:20:13,000 --> 00:20:17,920 Speaker 1: nineteen states with preemptive laws banning gas bands. They all 333 00:20:17,920 --> 00:20:21,200 Speaker 1: have similar language in them, drafted by the gas industry, 334 00:20:21,680 --> 00:20:24,800 Speaker 1: often by utilities in particular who have really been leading 335 00:20:24,840 --> 00:20:29,639 Speaker 1: the charge against electrification. Here's Charlie Spats from the Energy 336 00:20:29,680 --> 00:20:31,080 Speaker 1: Policy Institute Again. 337 00:20:31,760 --> 00:20:35,080 Speaker 2: I've spent a long time researching the electric utility industry. 338 00:20:36,320 --> 00:20:40,320 Speaker 2: They have a pathway to decarbonize their electric generation. But 339 00:20:40,359 --> 00:20:43,760 Speaker 2: when you're looking at the gas utility industry, they are 340 00:20:43,840 --> 00:20:48,080 Speaker 2: essentially a fossil fuel company. They're selling and distributing a 341 00:20:48,119 --> 00:20:53,840 Speaker 2: product that is not easily decarbonized, and worse for them, 342 00:20:54,119 --> 00:20:57,359 Speaker 2: there's solutions on the table that can more or less 343 00:20:57,600 --> 00:20:59,960 Speaker 2: replace the need for their services. 344 00:21:01,000 --> 00:21:04,280 Speaker 1: That gives gas utilities in particular a real motive to 345 00:21:04,400 --> 00:21:10,320 Speaker 1: fight against energy transition. And it's nothing new for utilities 346 00:21:10,359 --> 00:21:15,199 Speaker 1: to be climate obstructionists. Doctor Lea. Stokes, a political science 347 00:21:15,280 --> 00:21:18,840 Speaker 1: researcher at the University of California at Santa Barbara, wrote 348 00:21:18,840 --> 00:21:22,200 Speaker 1: a whole book about how corrupt many US utilities are 349 00:21:22,520 --> 00:21:25,320 Speaker 1: and about their role in blocking climate policy for the 350 00:21:25,320 --> 00:21:29,920 Speaker 1: past several decades. It's called short circuiting policy. 351 00:21:30,840 --> 00:21:33,240 Speaker 6: Way back in the early twentieth century, there was a 352 00:21:33,280 --> 00:21:36,520 Speaker 6: person named Samuel Insul and he's actually the guy who 353 00:21:36,560 --> 00:21:39,080 Speaker 6: came up with the way our utility system works. He 354 00:21:39,200 --> 00:21:42,320 Speaker 6: invented the idea of a monopoly utility that had a 355 00:21:42,320 --> 00:21:45,480 Speaker 6: public Utility Commission that would oversee it at the state level. 356 00:21:46,160 --> 00:21:49,000 Speaker 6: And you know, there are quotes from that time that say, 357 00:21:49,080 --> 00:21:53,119 Speaker 6: for a decade, he was the most powerful business operator 358 00:21:53,160 --> 00:21:54,240 Speaker 6: in the United States. 359 00:21:54,240 --> 00:21:56,000 Speaker 12: And that really is how it is. 360 00:21:56,080 --> 00:22:00,320 Speaker 6: State by state, these companies are often the most most 361 00:22:00,359 --> 00:22:03,240 Speaker 6: powerful company in a given state. 362 00:22:03,240 --> 00:22:06,320 Speaker 1: And Stokes points out all that power can make them 363 00:22:06,359 --> 00:22:07,280 Speaker 1: pretty dangerous. 364 00:22:07,760 --> 00:22:11,359 Speaker 6: If you take Arizona Public Service for example, you know 365 00:22:11,640 --> 00:22:15,320 Speaker 6: they are extremely corrupt. They have spent over fifty million 366 00:22:15,400 --> 00:22:19,199 Speaker 6: dollars on elections for their own regulator, fighting against a 367 00:22:19,240 --> 00:22:23,480 Speaker 6: clean energy ballot initiative. And you know, it's hard to 368 00:22:23,520 --> 00:22:26,200 Speaker 6: get clear on how terrible they are because they are 369 00:22:26,240 --> 00:22:30,159 Speaker 6: funding the campaigns of a lot of politicians in that state, 370 00:22:30,320 --> 00:22:34,480 Speaker 6: and a lot of community groups, you know, soccer clubs, 371 00:22:34,920 --> 00:22:40,359 Speaker 6: probably United Weight campaigns, you know, social welfare organizations. These 372 00:22:40,520 --> 00:22:44,679 Speaker 6: groups take money from utilities, and so they end up 373 00:22:44,680 --> 00:22:48,000 Speaker 6: being a kind of octopus that has its tentacles in 374 00:22:48,320 --> 00:22:49,760 Speaker 6: all different parts of the state. 375 00:22:50,080 --> 00:22:52,360 Speaker 1: But at the same time, a lot of utilities are 376 00:22:52,400 --> 00:22:54,600 Speaker 1: able to avoid rigorous scrutiny. 377 00:22:54,880 --> 00:22:57,040 Speaker 6: So I think it's hard for people in a given 378 00:22:57,119 --> 00:23:00,480 Speaker 6: state to get clear on how corrupt and problemat these 379 00:23:00,480 --> 00:23:02,240 Speaker 6: monopoly utilities are, and then. 380 00:23:02,119 --> 00:23:03,400 Speaker 12: Across the whole country. 381 00:23:03,960 --> 00:23:07,520 Speaker 6: Because there's so many different utilities in different states, it's 382 00:23:07,560 --> 00:23:10,159 Speaker 6: hard for people to get the same sort of big 383 00:23:10,240 --> 00:23:13,199 Speaker 6: picture as they would for a company like Exxon that 384 00:23:13,280 --> 00:23:15,680 Speaker 6: operates across the whole country and the. 385 00:23:15,640 --> 00:23:17,080 Speaker 12: World, or Chevron. 386 00:23:17,200 --> 00:23:20,240 Speaker 6: You know, these companies like Southern Company are in a 387 00:23:20,280 --> 00:23:24,040 Speaker 6: couple states, or First Energy, right, and they're also changing. 388 00:23:23,760 --> 00:23:25,080 Speaker 12: Their names all the time, right. 389 00:23:25,480 --> 00:23:28,760 Speaker 6: Or they have subsidiaries, so you've got Southern Company as 390 00:23:28,760 --> 00:23:33,000 Speaker 6: the parent corporation, but then they've got Georgia Power, for example, 391 00:23:33,160 --> 00:23:37,920 Speaker 6: or Alabama Power, and so it's a really complicated area 392 00:23:37,960 --> 00:23:40,520 Speaker 6: that makes it hard for people to pay attention. 393 00:23:41,240 --> 00:23:44,560 Speaker 1: That's certainly been the case with utilities fighting gas bands, 394 00:23:44,680 --> 00:23:47,920 Speaker 1: But people are starting to pay a bit more attention 395 00:23:48,240 --> 00:23:51,560 Speaker 1: as some particularly egregious tactics have been coming to light. 396 00:23:52,160 --> 00:23:54,960 Speaker 1: So cal Gas, the utility that fought the gas measure 397 00:23:55,040 --> 00:23:57,359 Speaker 1: in San Luis Obispo, for example, has been at the 398 00:23:57,400 --> 00:24:01,240 Speaker 1: center of a few other scandals for its aggressive tactics 399 00:24:01,320 --> 00:24:06,280 Speaker 1: against gas bands. It's currently facing a potential ten million 400 00:24:06,400 --> 00:24:11,159 Speaker 1: dollar fine from California's Public Utilities Commission for, among other things, 401 00:24:11,640 --> 00:24:16,040 Speaker 1: using its customers utility payments to fund a front group. 402 00:24:16,760 --> 00:24:21,239 Speaker 6: These just spam texts out of nowhere that say, you know, 403 00:24:22,119 --> 00:24:26,240 Speaker 6: urgent alert Santa Barbara City is going to ban gas 404 00:24:26,280 --> 00:24:29,560 Speaker 6: and destroy the grid and drive up energy prices. 405 00:24:29,720 --> 00:24:31,760 Speaker 12: Contact them immediately. 406 00:24:31,480 --> 00:24:41,040 Speaker 1: Come back next week for that story. Drilled is an 407 00:24:41,040 --> 00:24:45,400 Speaker 1: original Critical Frequency production. Our producer is Jules Bradley. Our 408 00:24:45,520 --> 00:24:50,040 Speaker 1: editor of the season is Jude Joffy Block. Sound design, mixing, 409 00:24:50,400 --> 00:24:54,240 Speaker 1: mastering and original music throughout this episode, including our new 410 00:24:54,280 --> 00:24:58,160 Speaker 1: theme song by Peter Duff. Fact checking by wood An 411 00:24:58,240 --> 00:25:01,120 Speaker 1: Yan our First Amendment and hen me is James Wheaton 412 00:25:01,200 --> 00:25:05,120 Speaker 1: at the First Amendment Project. Our artwork is by Matt Fleming, 413 00:25:05,200 --> 00:25:07,280 Speaker 1: and of course the show is reported and written by 414 00:25:07,320 --> 00:25:10,520 Speaker 1: me Amy Westerveldt. 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