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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"audio-wrap\">\n\u003ch2>Listen:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>http://www.kqed.org/.stream/anon/radio/science/2014/07/20140721science.mp3\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_19557\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 640px\">\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/07/Miille_Bakken1.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-19557\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/07/Miille_Bakken1.jpg\" alt=\"A BNSF train with tank cars crosses a trestle in the Feather River Canyon in Northern California. (Courtesy of Jake Miille)\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A BNSF train with tank cars crosses a trestle in the Feather River Canyon in Northern California. (\u003ca href=\"http://jakemiillephotography.com/\">Jake Miille/Jake Miille Photography\u003c/a>)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Update, Friday, July 25:\u003c/strong> On Wednesday, the federal Department of Transportation \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/2014/07/23/feds-propose-new-safety-rules-for-oil-trains/\">proposed new regulations\u003c/a> aimed at improving the safety of trains carrying oil. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Original story (Monday, July 21):\u003c/strong>\u003cbr>\nThe number of trains carrying crude oil across California is increasing rapidly, and two official reports say the state is not ready. Regulators are preparing, with funds for disaster response and more track inspectors, but they’re limited in how much they can do to make rail transport safer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“My view is it’s pretty undeniably bringing in extra risks to the state,” said Paul King, deputy director for rail safety at the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“These trains explode,” King said. “If that were to happen in a town, there’s no telling the damage. And of course we know what happened in little Lac-Mégantic.” That’s the town in Quebec where a train carrying crude from North Dakota’s Bakken formation derailed last July. The explosion killed 47 people.\u003c/p>\n\u003caside class=\"pullquote alignleft\">‘These trains explode.’\u003ccite>— Paul King, California Public Utilities Commission\u003c/cite>\u003c/aside>\n\u003cp>Bakken crude is volatile. In the past year, trains transporting crude from the Bakken have also exploded in North Dakota, Virginia and Alabama.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Trains carrying Bakken crude traverse California, too, bringing the oil to refineries here. And while the CPUC regulates rail in California, the state can’t actually do much when it comes telling the railroads how they can operate. Almost all of those rules are up to the federal government.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>‘Our Hands in California Are Tied’\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The state can’t set speed limits on crude oil trains. It can’t tell railroads to choose less hazardous routes. It can’t tell oil companies not to bring trains carrying the volatile crude through cities. It can’t tell oil companies to ship that crude in stronger tank cars. It can’t require upgraded braking systems.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Neither can local governments, though the cities of Davis, Richmond and Berkeley have all passed resolutions expressing their opposition to the transport of crude oil by rail.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I almost feel like our hands in California are tied, yet all these trains are going through our communities,” State Senator Hannah-Beth Jackson, a democrat from Santa Barbara, said at a hearing last month.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Trains carried nearly 6.3 million barrels of oil into California in 2013. That’s more than five times more than in 2012. According to the California Energy Commission, by 2016 that number could balloon to more than 100 million barrels.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That’s because there’s an oil boom in the middle part of the continent, and to get that crude from Alberta and North Dakota to California, oil companies have to use trains.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_19558\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 640px\">\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/07/lacmegantic.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-19558\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/07/lacmegantic.jpg\" alt=\"Firefighters douse blazes after in Lac-Megantic on July 6, 2013. (François Laplante-Delagrave/AFP/Getty Images)\" width=\"640\" height=\"428\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Firefighters douse blazes in Lac-Megantic on July 6, 2013. (François Laplante-Delagrave/AFP/Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Steps Towards Safer Shipping\u003cbr>\n\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There are ways to make the trains safer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Most of the tank cars used to transport crude oil, including the volatile Bakken crude, are old, and can’t protect against explosions. After the disaster in Lac-Mégantic, \u003ca href=\"https://www.tc.gc.ca/eng/railsafety/tsb-2014-962.html\">Canada required\u003c/a> that the most dangerous of the cars — the same tank cars that carry as much as 82 percent of crude oil in the U.S. — be removed from service, and that the rest be retrofitted.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The U.S. is considering stricter tank car standards. Last week, the advocacy group Earthjustice sent a \u003ca href=\"http://earthjustice.org/sites/default/files/files/PetitionforEmergencyOrderReBakkenCrudeRailCars.pdf\">letter to the U.S. Department of Transportation\u003c/a>, urging the agency to move faster by issuing an emergency order immediately banning the use of the unsafe cars.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But California can’t require any of this. The CPUC intends to urge the DOT to “move expeditiously” to update its tank car regulations. That, and other recommendations, are laid out in a \u003ca href=\"http://www.caloes.ca.gov/HazardousMaterials/Pages/Oil-By-Rail.aspx\">recent report on crude-by-rail\u003c/a> safety in the state. The state wants the feds to require that there be newer braking technology on oil trains and a GPS-based system that prevents accidents on oil train routes. According to King, the CPUC will submit those recommendations to the Federal Railroad Administration soon.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The railroads have already adopted some \u003ca href=\"https://www.aar.org/newsandevents/Press-Releases/Pages/Freight-Railroads-Join-U-S-Transportation-Secretary-Foxx-in-Announcing-Industry-Crude-By-Rail-Safety-Initiative.aspx#.U8huG7GU58E\">voluntary safety measures\u003c/a>, including lower speed limits and increased track inspections. And Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway, the company that is currently transporting large amounts of Bakken crude in California, is asking railcar manufacturers to submit bids to build 5,000 safer cars. (The railroads typically don’t own the cars used to ship material; the oil companies themselves either own or lease them.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The CPUC has done one of the main things it can: hire more railroad safety inspectors. The CPUC keeps a list of the most hazardous sections of track, and according to \u003ca href=\"http://www.cpuc.ca.gov/NR/rdonlyres/06621650-B00C-42F5-ABA2-AE617FF39392/0/RailroadLocalSafetyHazardAnnualReportfor2013Final7114.pdf\">a recent report\u003c/a>, the most frequent cause of derailments at those sites are track problems. The new state budget adds seven positions, bringing the CPUC’s inspection staff to 38. CPUC staff checks all the tracks in California once a year and, going forward, will check the tracks on Bakken oil train routes twice a year.[contextly_sidebar id=”sRuVMXrfcyA2EbJyn8ugfGCUznnKPsll”]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>A Past Disaster\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California once tried to introduce stricter railroad regulations.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In July, 1991, a train derailed in Northern California at a bend in the track where it crosses the Upper Sacramento River, near the town of Dunsmuir. It spilled 19,000 gallons of a pesticide called metam sodium into the river.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It killed everything down to the bacteria,” said Mark Stopher, who was hired by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife to assess the damage to the river.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The poison killed more than a million fish, and every insect and plant in the river for 40 miles. “Nobody’s ever seen anything like that before,” he said. In \u003ca href=\"http://youtu.be/k4UucmnSXSo\">video\u003c/a> from the time, you can see fish struggling to escape the river and get into tributaries. Stopher said they all died.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It was kind of a blow to the heart to lose the river,” said Phil Dietrich, executive director of a conservation group called River Exchange.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Upper Sacramento had been a popular fishing destination. So when the fish were gone, the tourists, and their money, disappeared too.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But it was a pulse of poison; metam sodium doesn’t linger. A few years later, the fish were back. The tourists are back, too. It could have been worse, if what spilled had been a substance that lasts in the environment for a longer time. Oil, for instance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After the accident, the CPUC tried to require stronger track at Cantara Loop, to keep it from happening again.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We were trying to adopt regulations where there were none,” said King. But they couldn’t. The railroad sued the CPUC, and eventually the court sided with the railroad, reinforcing the Federal Railroad Administration’s jurisdiction. There is a large rail in place on the bridge now, to help keep trains from derailing into the river. According to the CPUC, there have been four derailments in the area since 2009.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Our role is limited,” King said. “Our role is to ensure that the regulations that the federal government has in place are followed.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Beefing Up Clean-Up \u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Even if the the state can’t do all it wants to keep an accident from happening, it can prepare to respond to one.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In June, dozens of fire fighters, public health experts and Red Cross volunteers gathered near Cantara Loop to run a drill. The scenario was that an oil train had collided with an illegal marijuana grower’s truck at the site of the ’91 spill. The truck wrecked, and the train derailed and spilled oil into the river. \u003cstrong>\u003cbr>\n\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Firefighters pulled the casualties (volunteers marked with paint) away from the scene, a helicopter brought tools to treat people who’d been doused in dangerous chemicals and a team deployed a drone to get a view of the (largely imaginary) disaster scene from above.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We want to make sure California’s prepared to respond,” said Alexia Rettalack of California’s Office of Spill Prevention and Response (OSPR). “Spills happen. When product moves, things happen.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>OSPR got more money in this year’s budget, so that it can prepare for inland oil spills. Until now, the agency focused only on marine accidents. The state Office of Emergency Services is also looking for ways to better prepare emergency responders, many of whom are volunteers, for an oil train explosion. And state lawmakers are considering a couple of crude-by-rail bills that would improve emergency responses.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Dietrich emphasizes that what happened in Dunsmuir in 1991 was a rare event, and yet, the memory lingers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It comes down to we care about our river and about our towns,” he said. “And we hope that the agencies and the railroad are on top of it.”\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"excerpt": "The state can't set speed limits on trains. It can't tell railroads to choose less hazardous routes. It can't tell oil companies not to bring trains carrying volatile crude through cities. ",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/div>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_19557\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 640px\">\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/07/Miille_Bakken1.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-19557\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/07/Miille_Bakken1.jpg\" alt=\"A BNSF train with tank cars crosses a trestle in the Feather River Canyon in Northern California. (Courtesy of Jake Miille)\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A BNSF train with tank cars crosses a trestle in the Feather River Canyon in Northern California. (\u003ca href=\"http://jakemiillephotography.com/\">Jake Miille/Jake Miille Photography\u003c/a>)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Update, Friday, July 25:\u003c/strong> On Wednesday, the federal Department of Transportation \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/2014/07/23/feds-propose-new-safety-rules-for-oil-trains/\">proposed new regulations\u003c/a> aimed at improving the safety of trains carrying oil. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Original story (Monday, July 21):\u003c/strong>\u003cbr>\nThe number of trains carrying crude oil across California is increasing rapidly, and two official reports say the state is not ready. Regulators are preparing, with funds for disaster response and more track inspectors, but they’re limited in how much they can do to make rail transport safer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“My view is it’s pretty undeniably bringing in extra risks to the state,” said Paul King, deputy director for rail safety at the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“These trains explode,” King said. “If that were to happen in a town, there’s no telling the damage. And of course we know what happened in little Lac-Mégantic.” That’s the town in Quebec where a train carrying crude from North Dakota’s Bakken formation derailed last July. The explosion killed 47 people.\u003c/p>\n\u003caside class=\"pullquote alignleft\">‘These trains explode.’\u003ccite>— Paul King, California Public Utilities Commission\u003c/cite>\u003c/aside>\n\u003cp>Bakken crude is volatile. In the past year, trains transporting crude from the Bakken have also exploded in North Dakota, Virginia and Alabama.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Trains carrying Bakken crude traverse California, too, bringing the oil to refineries here. And while the CPUC regulates rail in California, the state can’t actually do much when it comes telling the railroads how they can operate. Almost all of those rules are up to the federal government.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>‘Our Hands in California Are Tied’\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The state can’t set speed limits on crude oil trains. It can’t tell railroads to choose less hazardous routes. It can’t tell oil companies not to bring trains carrying the volatile crude through cities. It can’t tell oil companies to ship that crude in stronger tank cars. It can’t require upgraded braking systems.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Neither can local governments, though the cities of Davis, Richmond and Berkeley have all passed resolutions expressing their opposition to the transport of crude oil by rail.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I almost feel like our hands in California are tied, yet all these trains are going through our communities,” State Senator Hannah-Beth Jackson, a democrat from Santa Barbara, said at a hearing last month.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Trains carried nearly 6.3 million barrels of oil into California in 2013. That’s more than five times more than in 2012. According to the California Energy Commission, by 2016 that number could balloon to more than 100 million barrels.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That’s because there’s an oil boom in the middle part of the continent, and to get that crude from Alberta and North Dakota to California, oil companies have to use trains.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_19558\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 640px\">\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/07/lacmegantic.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-19558\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/07/lacmegantic.jpg\" alt=\"Firefighters douse blazes after in Lac-Megantic on July 6, 2013. (François Laplante-Delagrave/AFP/Getty Images)\" width=\"640\" height=\"428\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Firefighters douse blazes in Lac-Megantic on July 6, 2013. (François Laplante-Delagrave/AFP/Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Steps Towards Safer Shipping\u003cbr>\n\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There are ways to make the trains safer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Most of the tank cars used to transport crude oil, including the volatile Bakken crude, are old, and can’t protect against explosions. After the disaster in Lac-Mégantic, \u003ca href=\"https://www.tc.gc.ca/eng/railsafety/tsb-2014-962.html\">Canada required\u003c/a> that the most dangerous of the cars — the same tank cars that carry as much as 82 percent of crude oil in the U.S. — be removed from service, and that the rest be retrofitted.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The U.S. is considering stricter tank car standards. Last week, the advocacy group Earthjustice sent a \u003ca href=\"http://earthjustice.org/sites/default/files/files/PetitionforEmergencyOrderReBakkenCrudeRailCars.pdf\">letter to the U.S. Department of Transportation\u003c/a>, urging the agency to move faster by issuing an emergency order immediately banning the use of the unsafe cars.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But California can’t require any of this. The CPUC intends to urge the DOT to “move expeditiously” to update its tank car regulations. That, and other recommendations, are laid out in a \u003ca href=\"http://www.caloes.ca.gov/HazardousMaterials/Pages/Oil-By-Rail.aspx\">recent report on crude-by-rail\u003c/a> safety in the state. The state wants the feds to require that there be newer braking technology on oil trains and a GPS-based system that prevents accidents on oil train routes. According to King, the CPUC will submit those recommendations to the Federal Railroad Administration soon.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The railroads have already adopted some \u003ca href=\"https://www.aar.org/newsandevents/Press-Releases/Pages/Freight-Railroads-Join-U-S-Transportation-Secretary-Foxx-in-Announcing-Industry-Crude-By-Rail-Safety-Initiative.aspx#.U8huG7GU58E\">voluntary safety measures\u003c/a>, including lower speed limits and increased track inspections. And Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway, the company that is currently transporting large amounts of Bakken crude in California, is asking railcar manufacturers to submit bids to build 5,000 safer cars. (The railroads typically don’t own the cars used to ship material; the oil companies themselves either own or lease them.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The CPUC has done one of the main things it can: hire more railroad safety inspectors. The CPUC keeps a list of the most hazardous sections of track, and according to \u003ca href=\"http://www.cpuc.ca.gov/NR/rdonlyres/06621650-B00C-42F5-ABA2-AE617FF39392/0/RailroadLocalSafetyHazardAnnualReportfor2013Final7114.pdf\">a recent report\u003c/a>, the most frequent cause of derailments at those sites are track problems. The new state budget adds seven positions, bringing the CPUC’s inspection staff to 38. CPUC staff checks all the tracks in California once a year and, going forward, will check the tracks on Bakken oil train routes twice a year.\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>A Past Disaster\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California once tried to introduce stricter railroad regulations.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In July, 1991, a train derailed in Northern California at a bend in the track where it crosses the Upper Sacramento River, near the town of Dunsmuir. It spilled 19,000 gallons of a pesticide called metam sodium into the river.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It killed everything down to the bacteria,” said Mark Stopher, who was hired by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife to assess the damage to the river.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The poison killed more than a million fish, and every insect and plant in the river for 40 miles. “Nobody’s ever seen anything like that before,” he said. In \u003ca href=\"http://youtu.be/k4UucmnSXSo\">video\u003c/a> from the time, you can see fish struggling to escape the river and get into tributaries. Stopher said they all died.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It was kind of a blow to the heart to lose the river,” said Phil Dietrich, executive director of a conservation group called River Exchange.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Upper Sacramento had been a popular fishing destination. So when the fish were gone, the tourists, and their money, disappeared too.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But it was a pulse of poison; metam sodium doesn’t linger. A few years later, the fish were back. The tourists are back, too. It could have been worse, if what spilled had been a substance that lasts in the environment for a longer time. Oil, for instance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After the accident, the CPUC tried to require stronger track at Cantara Loop, to keep it from happening again.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We were trying to adopt regulations where there were none,” said King. But they couldn’t. The railroad sued the CPUC, and eventually the court sided with the railroad, reinforcing the Federal Railroad Administration’s jurisdiction. There is a large rail in place on the bridge now, to help keep trains from derailing into the river. According to the CPUC, there have been four derailments in the area since 2009.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Our role is limited,” King said. “Our role is to ensure that the regulations that the federal government has in place are followed.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Beefing Up Clean-Up \u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Even if the the state can’t do all it wants to keep an accident from happening, it can prepare to respond to one.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In June, dozens of fire fighters, public health experts and Red Cross volunteers gathered near Cantara Loop to run a drill. The scenario was that an oil train had collided with an illegal marijuana grower’s truck at the site of the ’91 spill. The truck wrecked, and the train derailed and spilled oil into the river. \u003cstrong>\u003cbr>\n\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Firefighters pulled the casualties (volunteers marked with paint) away from the scene, a helicopter brought tools to treat people who’d been doused in dangerous chemicals and a team deployed a drone to get a view of the (largely imaginary) disaster scene from above.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We want to make sure California’s prepared to respond,” said Alexia Rettalack of California’s Office of Spill Prevention and Response (OSPR). “Spills happen. When product moves, things happen.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>OSPR got more money in this year’s budget, so that it can prepare for inland oil spills. Until now, the agency focused only on marine accidents. The state Office of Emergency Services is also looking for ways to better prepare emergency responders, many of whom are volunteers, for an oil train explosion. And state lawmakers are considering a couple of crude-by-rail bills that would improve emergency responses.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Dietrich emphasizes that what happened in Dunsmuir in 1991 was a rare event, and yet, the memory lingers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It comes down to we care about our river and about our towns,” he said. “And we hope that the agencies and the railroad are on top of it.”\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "Benicia Extends Public Comment Period on Bay Area Crude-by-Rail",
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"content": "\u003cp>Benicia city officials are giving people more time to comment on a \u003ca href=\"http://www.ci.benicia.ca.us/index.asp?Type=B_BASIC&SEC=%7BFDE9A332-542E-44C1-BBD0-A94C288675FD%7D\">proposal to bring crude oil by rail\u003c/a> to Valero’s refinery there. The Benicia Planning Commission made the decision on Thursday night after hearing two hours of testimony. All but three speakers were in favor of extending the comment period, citing summer vacations and the complexity of the project’s draft environmental impact report. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Valero is looking to take advantage of the North American oil boom by bringing the crude in by rail, instead of overseas by ship.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_19283\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1024px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/07/RS2397_IMG_1928-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"The Valero refinery in Benicia is one of five refineries in the Bay Area. (Craig Miller/KQED)\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" class=\"size-large wp-image-19283\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Valero refinery in Benicia is one of five refineries in the Bay Area. (Craig Miller/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The project has raised safety concerns in the community. There have been several fiery oil train derailments in other parts of the country in the past year, and last summer a train carrying crude oil exploded in the town of Lac-Mégantic, Quebec, killing 47 people. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“That is not going to happen here,” said Dan Broadwater, business manager for the Napa and Solano County electrical workers union. He pointed out that Valero’s Benicia refinery is one of only two refineries in the state that are recognized by the \u003ca href=\"https://www.dir.ca.gov/dosh/cal_vpp/cal_vpp_index.html\">California Voluntary Protection Program\u003c/a> for its safety record. (The other is Valero’s refinery in Wilmington, a neighborhood near Long Beach.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Other speakers said that it’s not just about safety at the Valero plant. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We believe this is actually a regional issue,” Lynne Nittler, of Davis, told the commission. “Your decision here has a profound impact on those of us who live up-rail.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If the project is given the go-ahead, two 50-car trains a day would travel on Union Pacific tracks through the Roseville rail yard near Sacramento. Combined, they would deliver up to 70,000 barrels of crude oil a day to the Valero refinery, offsetting crude delivered by ship. The refinery also receives crude from the San Joaquin Valley via pipeline. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Valero representatives have said the trains will be scheduled so that they don’t interfere with traffic in Benicia during rush hour. Union Pacific is responsible for dispatching trains on its tracks, including Amtrak’s Capital Corridor trains, which travel the same route. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Valero has also said it will use upgraded tank cars, rather than older cars that have been involved in the explosive derailments. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The public comment period on the project now ends on September 15, a 45-day extension. Comments can be submitted to Amy Million, principal planner: amillion@ci.benicia.ca.us. Fax and snail mail address are available \u003ca href=\"http://www.ci.benicia.ca.us/vertical/Sites/%7B3436CBED-6A58-4FEF-BFDF-5F9331215932%7D/uploads/Notice_of_Availability_-_Large_Format_061314.pdf\">here\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Benicia city officials are giving people more time to comment on a \u003ca href=\"http://www.ci.benicia.ca.us/index.asp?Type=B_BASIC&SEC=%7BFDE9A332-542E-44C1-BBD0-A94C288675FD%7D\">proposal to bring crude oil by rail\u003c/a> to Valero’s refinery there. The Benicia Planning Commission made the decision on Thursday night after hearing two hours of testimony. All but three speakers were in favor of extending the comment period, citing summer vacations and the complexity of the project’s draft environmental impact report. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Valero is looking to take advantage of the North American oil boom by bringing the crude in by rail, instead of overseas by ship.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_19283\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1024px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/07/RS2397_IMG_1928-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"The Valero refinery in Benicia is one of five refineries in the Bay Area. (Craig Miller/KQED)\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" class=\"size-large wp-image-19283\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Valero refinery in Benicia is one of five refineries in the Bay Area. (Craig Miller/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The project has raised safety concerns in the community. There have been several fiery oil train derailments in other parts of the country in the past year, and last summer a train carrying crude oil exploded in the town of Lac-Mégantic, Quebec, killing 47 people. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“That is not going to happen here,” said Dan Broadwater, business manager for the Napa and Solano County electrical workers union. He pointed out that Valero’s Benicia refinery is one of only two refineries in the state that are recognized by the \u003ca href=\"https://www.dir.ca.gov/dosh/cal_vpp/cal_vpp_index.html\">California Voluntary Protection Program\u003c/a> for its safety record. (The other is Valero’s refinery in Wilmington, a neighborhood near Long Beach.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Other speakers said that it’s not just about safety at the Valero plant. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We believe this is actually a regional issue,” Lynne Nittler, of Davis, told the commission. “Your decision here has a profound impact on those of us who live up-rail.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If the project is given the go-ahead, two 50-car trains a day would travel on Union Pacific tracks through the Roseville rail yard near Sacramento. Combined, they would deliver up to 70,000 barrels of crude oil a day to the Valero refinery, offsetting crude delivered by ship. The refinery also receives crude from the San Joaquin Valley via pipeline. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Valero representatives have said the trains will be scheduled so that they don’t interfere with traffic in Benicia during rush hour. Union Pacific is responsible for dispatching trains on its tracks, including Amtrak’s Capital Corridor trains, which travel the same route. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Valero has also said it will use upgraded tank cars, rather than older cars that have been involved in the explosive derailments. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The public comment period on the project now ends on September 15, a 45-day extension. Comments can be submitted to Amy Million, principal planner: amillion@ci.benicia.ca.us. Fax and snail mail address are available \u003ca href=\"http://www.ci.benicia.ca.us/vertical/Sites/%7B3436CBED-6A58-4FEF-BFDF-5F9331215932%7D/uploads/Notice_of_Availability_-_Large_Format_061314.pdf\">here\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "Revealed: Routes for Trains Hauling Volatile Crude Oil in California",
"headTitle": "Revealed: Routes for Trains Hauling Volatile Crude Oil in California | KQED",
"content": "\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_18669\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1024px\">\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/06/Miille_Bakken28-1024x700.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-18669\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/06/Miille_Bakken28-1024x700.jpg\" alt=\"A BNSF train carrying crude oil passes through downtown Sacramento. (Jake Miille/Jake Miille Photography)\" width=\"1024\" height=\"700\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A BNSF train carrying crude oil passes through downtown Sacramento. (\u003ca href=\"http://jakemiillephotography.com/\">Jake Miille/Jake Miille Photography\u003c/a>)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>State officials have released routing information for trains carrying a volatile grade of crude oil through California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The newly released information reveals that tank cars loaded with oil from the Bakken formation, a volatile crude that has a history of exploding, rumble through downtown Sacramento and through Stockton about once a week. Before they get there, they travel along the Feather River, a major tributary of the Sacramento and a key source of drinking water. They pass through rural Northern California counties — Modoc, Lassen, Placer, Plumas, Yuba and Butte — before reaching their destination in Contra Costa County.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This is the first time that information about the trains’ routing in California and their frequency has been made public. About once a week, a \u003ca href=\"http://www.bnsf.com/\">Burlington Northern Santa Fe\u003c/a> (BNSF) train enters the state from Oregon, headed for the Kinder Morgan rail yard in Richmond. Each train is carrying a million gallons or more of Bakken crude.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The purpose of the information is really to give first responders better awareness of what’s coming through their counties,” says Kelly Huston, a deputy director at the \u003ca href=\"http://www.calema.ca.gov/Pages/default.aspx\">Governor’s Office of Emergency Services\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The notifications (shown below) provided by BNSF to the state list the counties through which the trains pass, and the average number of trains per week. They’re retrospective, reporting what’s already happened, rather than looking ahead to what trains could be coming.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Right now the information, because it’s not very specific, is being used as an awareness tool,” said Huston.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>An \u003ca href=\"http://www.dot.gov/briefing-room/emergency-order\">emergency order\u003c/a> issued by the federal Department of Transportation requires railroads to notify emergency responders about large shipments of Bakken crude. BNSF had asked the OES to sign a non-disclosure agreement, which state officials refused to do. After keeping the notifications secret from the public for a few weeks, the state decided to release them on Wednesday, following the lead of \u003ca href=\"http://m.apnews.com/ap/db_268743/contentdetail.htm?contentguid=fh2TcnV0\">other states\u003c/a> that had already done so.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We think it is very important that those responsible for security and emergency planning have such information to ensure that proper planning and training are in place for public safety,” Roxanne Butler, a spokeswoman for BNSF, wrote in an email. “But we also continue to urge discretion in the wider distribution of specific details.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The DOT issued the order after a series of fiery derailments involving Bakken crude in Alabama, North Dakota and Virginia, among other states. Last July, a train carrying oil from the Bakken exploded in a town in Quebec, killing 47 people.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>MAP: State officials have confirmed that crude is traveling by rail in the counties shaded gray on the map, below. Also shown are rail lines owned by California’s two major railroads, BNSF and UP, which share some of the lines. Click on the rail lines or counties to see identifying information. Not all lines shown in the shaded areas carry Bakken crude. (Map produced by Lisa Pickoff-White)\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"http://projects1.kqed.org/crudebyrail/crudebyrail.html\" width=\"640\" height=\"800\" scrolling=\"yes\" class=\"iframe-class\" frameborder=\"0\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp style=\"margin: 12px auto 6px auto;font-family: Helvetica,Arial,Sans-serif;font-style: normal;font-variant: normal;font-weight: normal;font-size: 14px;line-height: normal\">\u003ca style=\"text-decoration: underline\" title=\"View California Crude-by-Rail Shipments on Scribd\" href=\"http://www.scribd.com/doc/231307617/California-Crude-by-Rail-Shipments\">California Crude-by-Rail Shipments\u003c/a> by \u003ca style=\"text-decoration: underline\" title=\"View KQED News's profile on Scribd\" href=\"http://www.scribd.com/KQED_News\">KQED News\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We want the rail companies to do everything they can to ensure public safety,” said Diane Bailey of the Natural Resources Defense Council. She says there are three things that would help assuage her concerns: safer rail cars, slower speed limits, and making sure the trains are always staffed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Butler said the railroads themselves have also pushed to phase out the DOT-111 railcars that have been involved in the accidents. “The rail industry also implemented a number of additional safety operating practices several months ago to reduce the risk of moving crude by rail,” she wrote, “including lower speed limits and had addressed the train securement issue in August of 2013 as part of the Federal Railroad Administration’s emergency order.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California lawmakers have introduced bills that would provide more money for oil spill response, and require more information from railroads about hazardous materials. The recently-passed California budget includes a fee on oil entering California by rail, which would help fund the state’s Office of Oil Spill Prevention and Response. It also provides more money to the California Public Utilities Commission for rail safety inspectors. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Transporting crude oil by rail is a burgeoning business, thanks to an oil boom in North Dakota. In 2013, more than \u003ca href=\"http://energyalmanac.ca.gov/petroleum/statistics/2013_crude_by_rail.html\">6 million barrels of crude oil\u003c/a> came into California by rail. In 2008, there were none.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" id=\"doc_44377\" class=\"scribd_iframe_embed\" src=\"//www.scribd.com/embeds/231307617/content?start_page=1&view_mode=scroll&access_key=key-p9uOwxCWVdsVftFjCJ5m&show_recommendations=true\" width=\"100%\" height=\"600\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp style=\"margin: 12px auto 6px auto;font-family: Helvetica,Arial,Sans-serif;font-style: normal;font-variant: normal;font-weight: normal;font-size: 14px;line-height: normal\">\u003ca style=\"text-decoration: underline\" title=\"View California Crude-by-Rail Weekly Tracking on Scribd\" href=\"http://www.scribd.com/doc/231308092/California-Crude-by-Rail-Weekly-Tracking\">California Crude-by-Rail Weekly Tracking\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" id=\"doc_1951\" class=\"scribd_iframe_embed\" src=\"//www.scribd.com/embeds/231308092/content?start_page=1&view_mode=scroll&show_recommendations=true\" width=\"100%\" height=\"600\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Correction: An earlier version of this article incorrectly included Davis in the list of cities the trains pass through.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_18669\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1024px\">\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/06/Miille_Bakken28-1024x700.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-18669\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/06/Miille_Bakken28-1024x700.jpg\" alt=\"A BNSF train carrying crude oil passes through downtown Sacramento. (Jake Miille/Jake Miille Photography)\" width=\"1024\" height=\"700\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A BNSF train carrying crude oil passes through downtown Sacramento. (\u003ca href=\"http://jakemiillephotography.com/\">Jake Miille/Jake Miille Photography\u003c/a>)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>State officials have released routing information for trains carrying a volatile grade of crude oil through California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The newly released information reveals that tank cars loaded with oil from the Bakken formation, a volatile crude that has a history of exploding, rumble through downtown Sacramento and through Stockton about once a week. Before they get there, they travel along the Feather River, a major tributary of the Sacramento and a key source of drinking water. They pass through rural Northern California counties — Modoc, Lassen, Placer, Plumas, Yuba and Butte — before reaching their destination in Contra Costa County.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This is the first time that information about the trains’ routing in California and their frequency has been made public. About once a week, a \u003ca href=\"http://www.bnsf.com/\">Burlington Northern Santa Fe\u003c/a> (BNSF) train enters the state from Oregon, headed for the Kinder Morgan rail yard in Richmond. Each train is carrying a million gallons or more of Bakken crude.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The purpose of the information is really to give first responders better awareness of what’s coming through their counties,” says Kelly Huston, a deputy director at the \u003ca href=\"http://www.calema.ca.gov/Pages/default.aspx\">Governor’s Office of Emergency Services\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The notifications (shown below) provided by BNSF to the state list the counties through which the trains pass, and the average number of trains per week. They’re retrospective, reporting what’s already happened, rather than looking ahead to what trains could be coming.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Right now the information, because it’s not very specific, is being used as an awareness tool,” said Huston.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>An \u003ca href=\"http://www.dot.gov/briefing-room/emergency-order\">emergency order\u003c/a> issued by the federal Department of Transportation requires railroads to notify emergency responders about large shipments of Bakken crude. BNSF had asked the OES to sign a non-disclosure agreement, which state officials refused to do. After keeping the notifications secret from the public for a few weeks, the state decided to release them on Wednesday, following the lead of \u003ca href=\"http://m.apnews.com/ap/db_268743/contentdetail.htm?contentguid=fh2TcnV0\">other states\u003c/a> that had already done so.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We think it is very important that those responsible for security and emergency planning have such information to ensure that proper planning and training are in place for public safety,” Roxanne Butler, a spokeswoman for BNSF, wrote in an email. “But we also continue to urge discretion in the wider distribution of specific details.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The DOT issued the order after a series of fiery derailments involving Bakken crude in Alabama, North Dakota and Virginia, among other states. Last July, a train carrying oil from the Bakken exploded in a town in Quebec, killing 47 people.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>MAP: State officials have confirmed that crude is traveling by rail in the counties shaded gray on the map, below. Also shown are rail lines owned by California’s two major railroads, BNSF and UP, which share some of the lines. Click on the rail lines or counties to see identifying information. Not all lines shown in the shaded areas carry Bakken crude. (Map produced by Lisa Pickoff-White)\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"http://projects1.kqed.org/crudebyrail/crudebyrail.html\" width=\"640\" height=\"800\" scrolling=\"yes\" class=\"iframe-class\" frameborder=\"0\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp style=\"margin: 12px auto 6px auto;font-family: Helvetica,Arial,Sans-serif;font-style: normal;font-variant: normal;font-weight: normal;font-size: 14px;line-height: normal\">\u003ca style=\"text-decoration: underline\" title=\"View California Crude-by-Rail Shipments on Scribd\" href=\"http://www.scribd.com/doc/231307617/California-Crude-by-Rail-Shipments\">California Crude-by-Rail Shipments\u003c/a> by \u003ca style=\"text-decoration: underline\" title=\"View KQED News's profile on Scribd\" href=\"http://www.scribd.com/KQED_News\">KQED News\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We want the rail companies to do everything they can to ensure public safety,” said Diane Bailey of the Natural Resources Defense Council. She says there are three things that would help assuage her concerns: safer rail cars, slower speed limits, and making sure the trains are always staffed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Butler said the railroads themselves have also pushed to phase out the DOT-111 railcars that have been involved in the accidents. “The rail industry also implemented a number of additional safety operating practices several months ago to reduce the risk of moving crude by rail,” she wrote, “including lower speed limits and had addressed the train securement issue in August of 2013 as part of the Federal Railroad Administration’s emergency order.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California lawmakers have introduced bills that would provide more money for oil spill response, and require more information from railroads about hazardous materials. The recently-passed California budget includes a fee on oil entering California by rail, which would help fund the state’s Office of Oil Spill Prevention and Response. It also provides more money to the California Public Utilities Commission for rail safety inspectors. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Transporting crude oil by rail is a burgeoning business, thanks to an oil boom in North Dakota. In 2013, more than \u003ca href=\"http://energyalmanac.ca.gov/petroleum/statistics/2013_crude_by_rail.html\">6 million barrels of crude oil\u003c/a> came into California by rail. In 2008, there were none.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" id=\"doc_44377\" class=\"scribd_iframe_embed\" src=\"//www.scribd.com/embeds/231307617/content?start_page=1&view_mode=scroll&access_key=key-p9uOwxCWVdsVftFjCJ5m&show_recommendations=true\" width=\"100%\" height=\"600\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp style=\"margin: 12px auto 6px auto;font-family: Helvetica,Arial,Sans-serif;font-style: normal;font-variant: normal;font-weight: normal;font-size: 14px;line-height: normal\">\u003ca style=\"text-decoration: underline\" title=\"View California Crude-by-Rail Weekly Tracking on Scribd\" href=\"http://www.scribd.com/doc/231308092/California-Crude-by-Rail-Weekly-Tracking\">California Crude-by-Rail Weekly Tracking\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" id=\"doc_1951\" class=\"scribd_iframe_embed\" src=\"//www.scribd.com/embeds/231308092/content?start_page=1&view_mode=scroll&show_recommendations=true\" width=\"100%\" height=\"600\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Correction: An earlier version of this article incorrectly included Davis in the list of cities the trains pass through.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "Berkeley Considers CO2 Warning Labels at Gas Pumps",
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"content": "\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_18370\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 640px\">\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/06/gaspump_hosetalker2-e1402694020933.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-18370 size-full\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/06/gaspump_hosetalker2-e1402694020933.jpg\" alt=\"A working concept of a gas pump climate change warning labels that the City of Berkeley is considering. (Courtesy 350 Bay Area)\" width=\"640\" height=\"361\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A working concept of gas pump climate change warning labels that the City of Berkeley is considering. (Courtesy Raymond Pajek)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The City of Berkeley is considering requiring gas stations to display climate change warning labels on gas pumps. Environmental group \u003ca href=\"http://www.350bayarea.org/\">350 Bay Area\u003c/a>, which is leading the “Beyond The Pump” campaign, says the goal is to inform the public about the harmful effects of CO2 emissions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We have to change the social context of burning gasoline,” says Jamie Brooks, with 350 Bay Area. Putting messages at the point of sale of gas will influence human behavior, he says. He compared the proposed stickers to the warning labels on cigarettes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_18384\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 298px\">\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/06/Gas-Label-cropped-image1.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-18384 size-full\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/06/Gas-Label-cropped-image1.jpg\" alt=\"A working concept of Berkeley's gas pump warning label. (Courtesy Raymond Pajek)\" width=\"298\" height=\"450\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A working concept of Berkeley’s gas pump warning label. (Credit: 350 Bay Area)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The Western States Petroleum Association sent \u003ca href=\"http://www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/uploadedFiles/Planning_and_Development/Level_3_-_Commissions/Commission_for_Community_Environmental_Advisory/2014%2006%2012_CEAC_AGN_Item%20XII.b.pdf\">a letter\u003c/a> to the City of Berkeley arguing that the ordinance is unconstitutional. The oil lobby group says it would violate a gas station owner’s right to free speech by compelling them to display statements about “alleged” impacts of global warming.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But 350 members say the labels would simply cite state laws, such as AB 32, which state that emissions are harmful to humans and the environment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We feel that the message is accurate and noncontroversial,” said Jack Fleck, a retired transportation engineer and 350 Bay Area member. “It is simply a fact that the state has found that greenhouse gases pose a serious threat to the public health.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Berkeley’s \u003ca href=\"http://www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/Community_Environmental_Advisory_Commission/\">Community Environmental Advisory Commission\u003c/a> voted Thursday in favor of drafting an ordinance. The city council could vote on the proposal as early as this fall.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_18370\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 640px\">\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/06/gaspump_hosetalker2-e1402694020933.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-18370 size-full\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/06/gaspump_hosetalker2-e1402694020933.jpg\" alt=\"A working concept of a gas pump climate change warning labels that the City of Berkeley is considering. (Courtesy 350 Bay Area)\" width=\"640\" height=\"361\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A working concept of gas pump climate change warning labels that the City of Berkeley is considering. (Courtesy Raymond Pajek)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The City of Berkeley is considering requiring gas stations to display climate change warning labels on gas pumps. Environmental group \u003ca href=\"http://www.350bayarea.org/\">350 Bay Area\u003c/a>, which is leading the “Beyond The Pump” campaign, says the goal is to inform the public about the harmful effects of CO2 emissions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We have to change the social context of burning gasoline,” says Jamie Brooks, with 350 Bay Area. Putting messages at the point of sale of gas will influence human behavior, he says. He compared the proposed stickers to the warning labels on cigarettes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_18384\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 298px\">\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/06/Gas-Label-cropped-image1.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-18384 size-full\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/06/Gas-Label-cropped-image1.jpg\" alt=\"A working concept of Berkeley's gas pump warning label. (Courtesy Raymond Pajek)\" width=\"298\" height=\"450\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A working concept of Berkeley’s gas pump warning label. (Credit: 350 Bay Area)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The Western States Petroleum Association sent \u003ca href=\"http://www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/uploadedFiles/Planning_and_Development/Level_3_-_Commissions/Commission_for_Community_Environmental_Advisory/2014%2006%2012_CEAC_AGN_Item%20XII.b.pdf\">a letter\u003c/a> to the City of Berkeley arguing that the ordinance is unconstitutional. The oil lobby group says it would violate a gas station owner’s right to free speech by compelling them to display statements about “alleged” impacts of global warming.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But 350 members say the labels would simply cite state laws, such as AB 32, which state that emissions are harmful to humans and the environment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We feel that the message is accurate and noncontroversial,” said Jack Fleck, a retired transportation engineer and 350 Bay Area member. “It is simply a fact that the state has found that greenhouse gases pose a serious threat to the public health.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Berkeley’s \u003ca href=\"http://www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/Community_Environmental_Advisory_Commission/\">Community Environmental Advisory Commission\u003c/a> voted Thursday in favor of drafting an ordinance. The city council could vote on the proposal as early as this fall.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "Crude-by-Rail: More Information Coming to California",
"headTitle": "Crude-by-Rail: More Information Coming to California | KQED",
"content": "\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_18141\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 640px\">\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/06/bnsf.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-18141\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/06/bnsf.jpg\" alt=\"Tank cars travel near the Feather River in Northern California. (Jake Miille/Jake Miille Photography http://jakemiillephotography.com/) \" width=\"640\" height=\"360\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Tank cars travel near Lake Oroville in Northern California. (\u003ca href=\"http://jakemiillephotography.com/\">Jake Miille/Jake Miille Photography\u003c/a>)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Beginning Saturday, railroads must notify states when certain large shipments of crude oil come through by train. The new rule is in response to safety concerns with crude-by-rail.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The \u003ca href=\"http://www.dot.gov/briefing-room/emergency-order\">emergency order\u003c/a>, issued by the federal Department of Transportation last month, applies to trains carrying a million gallons or more of crude from the Bakken formation in North Dakota. That’s the oil that has exploded in numerous fiery derailments, including one in Quebec last summer that killed 47 people.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Brad Alexander, spokesman for California’s Office of Emergency Services, says the state hasn’t received any notifications yet, but has gotten a non-disclosure agreement from Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway (BNSF).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“As a public entity, we can’t sign a non-disclosure agreement,” he said. “But we want to let BNSF know that we will be treating this information with great respect and keeping it in accordance with federal and California laws.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>BNSF said Friday the company will comply with the order, even if states don’t sign the agreement. The railway operates oil terminals in Richmond, Sacramento and Bakersfield. The other major railroad in California, Union Pacific, said through a spokesman that it does not currently transport any Bakken oil through California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Crude-by-Rail is Expanding in California\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Aside from BNSF’s facilities, there are three other existing crude-by-rail operations in California that could take in crude oil from the Bakken or from other mid-continent fields. Other fields produce less volatile crude than the Bakken formation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And five more crude-by-rail terminals have been proposed, including two in the Bay Area: the \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/audio/valero-rail-project-fuels-tar-sands-speculation-in-bay-area/\">Valero refinery in Benicia\u003c/a> and the \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/audio/bay-area-residents-resist-crude-by-rail-as-accidents-rise/\">WesPac oil terminal in Pittsburg\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Crude-by-rail has been a growing industry — and concern — as a North American oil boom has developed. Without pipelines to transport oil from Alberta’s tar sands and North Dakota’s Bakken, oil companies have turned to trains to get crude to coastal refineries.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In January 2013, about 156,000 barrels of oil came into California by rail. By the end of the year, that number had increased nearly eight-fold. In December 2013, oil companies brought more than a million barrels into the state by rail. Now, that still accounted for only one percent of all the oil refined in the state in 2013. But if all the proposed oil terminals go through, crude-by-rail could account for 23 percent of California’s oil.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As the number of trains carrying oil across the country has gone up, so have accidents. Lynchburg, Virginia and Casselton, North Dakota were both recent sites of derailments and explosions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Diane Bailey of the Natural Resources Defense Council said she’s concerned about safety in California, too. “None of these massive oil infrastructure projects should be moving forward while we’re still working to understand and address the public safety risks at local, state and federal levels,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>A Flurry of Legislation\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In addition to the DOT’s emergency order, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration sent proposed regulations on crude-by-rail to the White House earlier this year. Those are expected to be made public later this summer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Meanwhile, legislation from Congressman Mike Thompson, a Bay Area Democrat, has passed the House as part of the Intelligence Authorization Act. If passed by the Senate, it would require the Department of Homeland Security to study the safety of oil refineries and railroads that connect to them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On the state level, Senator Fran Pavley, a Democrat from Agoura Hills, \u003ca href=\"http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/postquery?bill_number=sb_1319&sess=CUR&house=B&author=pavley_%3Cpavley%3E\">introduced a bill\u003c/a> that would focus California’s \u003ca href=\"http://www.dfg.ca.gov/ospr/\">Office of Spill Prevention and Response\u003c/a> (OSPR) not only on marine oil spills, but on inland spills as well, like those that might occur from rail. That bill has passed the Senate and is now in the Assembly. In his budget proposal earlier this year, Governor Jerry Brown put $6.7 million towards OSPR, citing the rise of crude-by-rail. Finally, Assemblyman Roger Dickinson, a Sacramento Democrat, introduced \u003ca href=\"http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/postquery?bill_number=ab_380&sess=CUR&house=B&author=dickinson_%3Cdickinson%3E\">AB 380\u003c/a>, which would require railroads to give more information about crude-by-rail shipments to emergency responders. That bill is in a Senate committee.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_18141\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 640px\">\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/06/bnsf.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-18141\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/06/bnsf.jpg\" alt=\"Tank cars travel near the Feather River in Northern California. (Jake Miille/Jake Miille Photography http://jakemiillephotography.com/) \" width=\"640\" height=\"360\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Tank cars travel near Lake Oroville in Northern California. (\u003ca href=\"http://jakemiillephotography.com/\">Jake Miille/Jake Miille Photography\u003c/a>)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Beginning Saturday, railroads must notify states when certain large shipments of crude oil come through by train. The new rule is in response to safety concerns with crude-by-rail.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The \u003ca href=\"http://www.dot.gov/briefing-room/emergency-order\">emergency order\u003c/a>, issued by the federal Department of Transportation last month, applies to trains carrying a million gallons or more of crude from the Bakken formation in North Dakota. That’s the oil that has exploded in numerous fiery derailments, including one in Quebec last summer that killed 47 people.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Brad Alexander, spokesman for California’s Office of Emergency Services, says the state hasn’t received any notifications yet, but has gotten a non-disclosure agreement from Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway (BNSF).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“As a public entity, we can’t sign a non-disclosure agreement,” he said. “But we want to let BNSF know that we will be treating this information with great respect and keeping it in accordance with federal and California laws.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>BNSF said Friday the company will comply with the order, even if states don’t sign the agreement. The railway operates oil terminals in Richmond, Sacramento and Bakersfield. The other major railroad in California, Union Pacific, said through a spokesman that it does not currently transport any Bakken oil through California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Crude-by-Rail is Expanding in California\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Aside from BNSF’s facilities, there are three other existing crude-by-rail operations in California that could take in crude oil from the Bakken or from other mid-continent fields. Other fields produce less volatile crude than the Bakken formation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And five more crude-by-rail terminals have been proposed, including two in the Bay Area: the \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/audio/valero-rail-project-fuels-tar-sands-speculation-in-bay-area/\">Valero refinery in Benicia\u003c/a> and the \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/audio/bay-area-residents-resist-crude-by-rail-as-accidents-rise/\">WesPac oil terminal in Pittsburg\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Crude-by-rail has been a growing industry — and concern — as a North American oil boom has developed. Without pipelines to transport oil from Alberta’s tar sands and North Dakota’s Bakken, oil companies have turned to trains to get crude to coastal refineries.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In January 2013, about 156,000 barrels of oil came into California by rail. By the end of the year, that number had increased nearly eight-fold. In December 2013, oil companies brought more than a million barrels into the state by rail. Now, that still accounted for only one percent of all the oil refined in the state in 2013. But if all the proposed oil terminals go through, crude-by-rail could account for 23 percent of California’s oil.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As the number of trains carrying oil across the country has gone up, so have accidents. Lynchburg, Virginia and Casselton, North Dakota were both recent sites of derailments and explosions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Diane Bailey of the Natural Resources Defense Council said she’s concerned about safety in California, too. “None of these massive oil infrastructure projects should be moving forward while we’re still working to understand and address the public safety risks at local, state and federal levels,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>A Flurry of Legislation\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In addition to the DOT’s emergency order, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration sent proposed regulations on crude-by-rail to the White House earlier this year. Those are expected to be made public later this summer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Meanwhile, legislation from Congressman Mike Thompson, a Bay Area Democrat, has passed the House as part of the Intelligence Authorization Act. If passed by the Senate, it would require the Department of Homeland Security to study the safety of oil refineries and railroads that connect to them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On the state level, Senator Fran Pavley, a Democrat from Agoura Hills, \u003ca href=\"http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/postquery?bill_number=sb_1319&sess=CUR&house=B&author=pavley_%3Cpavley%3E\">introduced a bill\u003c/a> that would focus California’s \u003ca href=\"http://www.dfg.ca.gov/ospr/\">Office of Spill Prevention and Response\u003c/a> (OSPR) not only on marine oil spills, but on inland spills as well, like those that might occur from rail. That bill has passed the Senate and is now in the Assembly. In his budget proposal earlier this year, Governor Jerry Brown put $6.7 million towards OSPR, citing the rise of crude-by-rail. Finally, Assemblyman Roger Dickinson, a Sacramento Democrat, introduced \u003ca href=\"http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/postquery?bill_number=ab_380&sess=CUR&house=B&author=dickinson_%3Cdickinson%3E\">AB 380\u003c/a>, which would require railroads to give more information about crude-by-rail shipments to emergency responders. That bill is in a Senate committee.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_17661\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 640px\">\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/05/pumpjacks.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-17661\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/05/pumpjacks.jpg\" alt=\"Pumpjacks draw oil out of the Monterey Shale near McKittrick, California. (Photo by David McNew/Getty Images)\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Pumpjacks draw oil out of the Monterey Shale near McKittrick, California. (Photo by David McNew/Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The controversy over hydraulic fracturing in California has been largely centered around the Monterey Formation, the rock layer that was said to be the largest oil resource in the country and almost a sure bet for a drilling boom.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At least, until this week. Federal officials with the Energy Information Administration are \u003ca href=\"http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-oil-20140521-story.html\">reportedly downgrading their estimate\u003c/a> of how much oil could be pumped out of the formation. Just a few years ago, the agency projected that oil companies could retrieve 15 billion barrels of oil. Now, it’s down to 600 million.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Just to clarify: these numbers don’t reflect how much oil is underground in California. Most geologists agree that there’s still plenty down there. The EIA is attempting to estimate how much could be pumped out with current technology. As with other oil and gas reserves around the country, this number fluctuates quite a bit based on assumptions about the geology and what oil companies can accomplish.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The total resource can be huge – just ridiculously large,” says Don Gautier, geologist emeritus with the U.S. Geological Survey. “What fraction of it can actually be recovered? That can be very uncertain.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>What’s Unknown About the Monterey Formation\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So why the uncertainty around the Monterey Shale? It has to do with the lack of information about the rock formation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Monterey has already been incredibly productive in California. It’s been the source of most oil production in the state over the last century. The rock layer covers 1,700 square miles and can be several thousand feet thick in places. It was created millions of years ago, when dead microorganisms piled up on the bottom of an ancient sea.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_17668\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 311px\">\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/05/NatGasSchematic2.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" wp-image-17668\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/05/NatGasSchematic2.jpg\" alt=\"Conventional drilling taps into reservoirs where oil and gas has pooled underground. Unconventional drilling goes deeper into the rock layers that generate oil.\" width=\"311\" height=\"376\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Conventional drilling taps into reservoirs where oil and gas has pooled underground. Unconventional drilling goes deeper into the rock layers that generate oil.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>That organic material created oil-bearing rock and over the millennia, oil has seeped out and pooled in underground reservoirs. Finding and tapping these reservoirs, what’s known as “conventional” oil development, has made California the third-largest oil producer in the country.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The buzz these days, however, is over “unconventional” development. That’s where oil and gas companies drill down into the rock layers that produce the oil – known as “source rock.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>These rocks are dense and historically, haven’t been very productive – until hydraulic fracturing came along. When water and sand are injected underground at high pressure, they create tiny fractures in the rock that help release the oil.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Historically, oil companies in California haven’t had to tap into the source rock. There were plenty of conventional reservoirs to develop. But as the technology has improved and production in older reservoirs has declined, oil producers have started looking deeper, down to the Monterey Shale source rock.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Is the Oil Still There?\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>North Dakota has seen a massive oil boom in the source rock of its Bakken formation, due in large part to hydraulic fracturing. Fracking opened up source rock that was considered beyond reach just a few decades ago.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The question in the Monterey Shale is whether the source rock still holds lots of oil. California’s abundant seismic activity could have forced much of the oil to migrate out.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“These are very effective mechanisms that allow oil to be expelled from the source rock,” says Gautier. “Whereas up in the Bakken, the oil was generated 100 million years ago and has been sitting like a dead lump since.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[contextly_sidebar id=”087bded8a228f2ed2d9be0d52ba4272a”]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Because of these unknowns, many believe there’s huge uncertainty about the amount of oil that can be recovered in the Monterey.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We just don’t know,” says Gautier. “One of the possibilities is that most of the recoverable oil has already been expelled and migrated. So what’s left behind is residual oil that won’t really yield significant production. That isn’t to say there isn’t a whole lot of oil in the Monterey or even that there isn’t a lot of oil remaining in California.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>USGS is working on its own estimate of recoverable oil in the Monterey, expected early next year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The seismically warped rock layers in California could also make it challenging to use the same fracking techniques that have been so effective in North Dakota. Oil wells are drilled horizontally for miles sometimes along a layer of rock. California’s roller-coaster rock layers could make horizontal drilling a challenge.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Oil companies are still in the early stages of drilling exploratory wells in the source rock. Until more of that data are available, the jury is still out on the Monterey Shale.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The fact of the matter is there’ve only been a handful of wells that even intended to test the idea,” says Gautier.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>What the Industry Is Saying\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Despite the lackluster new estimate, the oil industry says the number has little effect on their efforts.\u003c/p>\n\u003caside class=\"pullquote alignleft\">‘Whether there are 15 billion barrels or 600 million barrels… it’s still a lot of oil.’\u003ccite>— Susan Hersberger, Aera Energy\u003c/cite>\u003c/aside>\n\u003cp>“The oil is still there,” says Catherine Reheis-Boyd of the Western States Petroleum Association, an industry group.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s just a matter of technology and it’s a matter of the skill and experience and innovative spirit that we really believe the men and women of the petroleum industry possess,” she says. “And they will solve the puzzle and they will improve production rates from the Monterey Shale.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Several oil companies say their exploratory wells are getting them closer to the answer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Preliminary data from our first exploration wells tells us the oil is there,” says Susan Hersberger of \u003ca href=\"http://aeraenergy.com/\">Aera Energy\u003c/a>, one of the largest oil production companies in California. “But this data has also confirmed that the Monterey Shale has some characteristics that warrant further study and testing, so that we might unlock its potential.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Similar to the decades-long exploration of the Bakken, the Monterey exploration process will also be a long and complex journey,” she says. “Whether there are 15 billion barrels or 600 million barrels or something in between, it’s still a lot of oil. We see potential and are in it for the long-term.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Calls for a Fracking Moratorium\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A collation of environmental and community groups called \u003ca href=\"http://www.californiansagainstfracking.org/\">Californians Against Fracking\u003c/a> is using the new estimate to raise concerns over groundwater contamination and environmental damage.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This bombshell from the EIA gives you a new opportunity to make the right call and halt fracking,” they wrote in a letter to Governor Jerry Brown.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The group, which is calling for a moratorium on fracking, says the lower estimate of the Monterey’s potential means that economic benefits touted by the industry are inflated.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Governor Brown has resisted a moratorium, citing the state’s efforts to \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/2013/11/15/what-californias-new-fracking-rules-would-do-and-not-do/\">develop regulations for fracking this year\u003c/a> that require groundwater monitoring, new permitting requirements and notification of neighbors in the area.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"100%\" height=\"166\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"no\" src=\"https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/150669396&color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_artwork=true\" class=\"iframe-class\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_17661\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 640px\">\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/05/pumpjacks.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-17661\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/05/pumpjacks.jpg\" alt=\"Pumpjacks draw oil out of the Monterey Shale near McKittrick, California. (Photo by David McNew/Getty Images)\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Pumpjacks draw oil out of the Monterey Shale near McKittrick, California. (Photo by David McNew/Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The controversy over hydraulic fracturing in California has been largely centered around the Monterey Formation, the rock layer that was said to be the largest oil resource in the country and almost a sure bet for a drilling boom.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At least, until this week. Federal officials with the Energy Information Administration are \u003ca href=\"http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-oil-20140521-story.html\">reportedly downgrading their estimate\u003c/a> of how much oil could be pumped out of the formation. Just a few years ago, the agency projected that oil companies could retrieve 15 billion barrels of oil. Now, it’s down to 600 million.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Just to clarify: these numbers don’t reflect how much oil is underground in California. Most geologists agree that there’s still plenty down there. The EIA is attempting to estimate how much could be pumped out with current technology. As with other oil and gas reserves around the country, this number fluctuates quite a bit based on assumptions about the geology and what oil companies can accomplish.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The total resource can be huge – just ridiculously large,” says Don Gautier, geologist emeritus with the U.S. Geological Survey. “What fraction of it can actually be recovered? That can be very uncertain.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>What’s Unknown About the Monterey Formation\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So why the uncertainty around the Monterey Shale? It has to do with the lack of information about the rock formation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Monterey has already been incredibly productive in California. It’s been the source of most oil production in the state over the last century. The rock layer covers 1,700 square miles and can be several thousand feet thick in places. It was created millions of years ago, when dead microorganisms piled up on the bottom of an ancient sea.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_17668\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 311px\">\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/05/NatGasSchematic2.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" wp-image-17668\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/05/NatGasSchematic2.jpg\" alt=\"Conventional drilling taps into reservoirs where oil and gas has pooled underground. Unconventional drilling goes deeper into the rock layers that generate oil.\" width=\"311\" height=\"376\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Conventional drilling taps into reservoirs where oil and gas has pooled underground. Unconventional drilling goes deeper into the rock layers that generate oil.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>That organic material created oil-bearing rock and over the millennia, oil has seeped out and pooled in underground reservoirs. Finding and tapping these reservoirs, what’s known as “conventional” oil development, has made California the third-largest oil producer in the country.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The buzz these days, however, is over “unconventional” development. That’s where oil and gas companies drill down into the rock layers that produce the oil – known as “source rock.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>These rocks are dense and historically, haven’t been very productive – until hydraulic fracturing came along. When water and sand are injected underground at high pressure, they create tiny fractures in the rock that help release the oil.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Historically, oil companies in California haven’t had to tap into the source rock. There were plenty of conventional reservoirs to develop. But as the technology has improved and production in older reservoirs has declined, oil producers have started looking deeper, down to the Monterey Shale source rock.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Is the Oil Still There?\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>North Dakota has seen a massive oil boom in the source rock of its Bakken formation, due in large part to hydraulic fracturing. Fracking opened up source rock that was considered beyond reach just a few decades ago.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The question in the Monterey Shale is whether the source rock still holds lots of oil. California’s abundant seismic activity could have forced much of the oil to migrate out.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“These are very effective mechanisms that allow oil to be expelled from the source rock,” says Gautier. “Whereas up in the Bakken, the oil was generated 100 million years ago and has been sitting like a dead lump since.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Because of these unknowns, many believe there’s huge uncertainty about the amount of oil that can be recovered in the Monterey.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We just don’t know,” says Gautier. “One of the possibilities is that most of the recoverable oil has already been expelled and migrated. So what’s left behind is residual oil that won’t really yield significant production. That isn’t to say there isn’t a whole lot of oil in the Monterey or even that there isn’t a lot of oil remaining in California.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>USGS is working on its own estimate of recoverable oil in the Monterey, expected early next year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The seismically warped rock layers in California could also make it challenging to use the same fracking techniques that have been so effective in North Dakota. Oil wells are drilled horizontally for miles sometimes along a layer of rock. California’s roller-coaster rock layers could make horizontal drilling a challenge.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Oil companies are still in the early stages of drilling exploratory wells in the source rock. Until more of that data are available, the jury is still out on the Monterey Shale.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The fact of the matter is there’ve only been a handful of wells that even intended to test the idea,” says Gautier.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>What the Industry Is Saying\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Despite the lackluster new estimate, the oil industry says the number has little effect on their efforts.\u003c/p>\n\u003caside class=\"pullquote alignleft\">‘Whether there are 15 billion barrels or 600 million barrels… it’s still a lot of oil.’\u003ccite>— Susan Hersberger, Aera Energy\u003c/cite>\u003c/aside>\n\u003cp>“The oil is still there,” says Catherine Reheis-Boyd of the Western States Petroleum Association, an industry group.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s just a matter of technology and it’s a matter of the skill and experience and innovative spirit that we really believe the men and women of the petroleum industry possess,” she says. “And they will solve the puzzle and they will improve production rates from the Monterey Shale.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Several oil companies say their exploratory wells are getting them closer to the answer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Preliminary data from our first exploration wells tells us the oil is there,” says Susan Hersberger of \u003ca href=\"http://aeraenergy.com/\">Aera Energy\u003c/a>, one of the largest oil production companies in California. “But this data has also confirmed that the Monterey Shale has some characteristics that warrant further study and testing, so that we might unlock its potential.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Similar to the decades-long exploration of the Bakken, the Monterey exploration process will also be a long and complex journey,” she says. “Whether there are 15 billion barrels or 600 million barrels or something in between, it’s still a lot of oil. We see potential and are in it for the long-term.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Calls for a Fracking Moratorium\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A collation of environmental and community groups called \u003ca href=\"http://www.californiansagainstfracking.org/\">Californians Against Fracking\u003c/a> is using the new estimate to raise concerns over groundwater contamination and environmental damage.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This bombshell from the EIA gives you a new opportunity to make the right call and halt fracking,” they wrote in a letter to Governor Jerry Brown.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The group, which is calling for a moratorium on fracking, says the lower estimate of the Monterey’s potential means that economic benefits touted by the industry are inflated.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Governor Brown has resisted a moratorium, citing the state’s efforts to \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/2013/11/15/what-californias-new-fracking-rules-would-do-and-not-do/\">develop regulations for fracking this year\u003c/a> that require groundwater monitoring, new permitting requirements and notification of neighbors in the area.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"audio-wrap\">\n\u003ch2>Listen:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>http://www.kqed.org/.stream/anon/radio/science/2014/04/20140407science.mp3\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_16174\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 640px\">\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/04/Chevron1-1024x576.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-16174\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/04/Chevron1-1024x576.jpg\" alt=\"Water from Chevron's Kern River oil field supplies orchards near Bakersfield. (Lauren Sommer/KQED)\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Water from Chevron’s Kern River oil field supplies almond orchards near Bakersfield. (Lauren Sommer/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>With California’s reservoirs running low, many Central Valley farmers are struggling to keep their trees and crops alive this year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the southern San Joaquin Valley, some are getting extra water from an unlikely source: the oil industry.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California is the third largest oil-producing state in the country, extracting roughly 200 million barrels a year. But in the process of getting oil, companies also produce massive volumes of water, found naturally in the same underground formations.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“To produce one barrel of oil, we produce about nine barrels of water,” says Chevron’s Thep Smith, walking around the company’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=209G4bJ7A9Y\">Kern River oil field\u003c/a>, east of Bakersfield. Almost 10,000 pump jacks cover the hills. The field is more than a century old, but is still the second-most productive in the state.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The rock formations that bear oil in California are also full of briny, brackish water, leading to an old saying about oil companies in California: they’re actually water companies that get oil as a byproduct. “This is really a water plant that skims oil,” Smith says.\u003c/p>\n\u003caside class=\"alignright\">\n\u003cstrong>How Water and Oil Mix in California\u003c/strong>\u003cbr>\n\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/2014/03/31/how-water-and-oil-mix-in-california/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">See how water\u003c/a> is part of fracking and oil production in California.\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/2014/03/31/how-water-and-oil-mix-in-california/\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-15920\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/03/KQED-Fraq-panel1-blank.jpg\" alt=\"KQED-Fraq-panel1-blank\" width=\"276\" height=\"276\">\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\u003c/aside>\n\u003cp>After the oil is separated, Chevron handles millions of gallons of water a day. The company uses about a quarter of it to enhance oil production, turning the water into steam and injecting it back into the rock formation to boost oil flow.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The stuff here is really heavy oil,” Smith says, “kind of like molasses. At room temperature, it actually is almost solid.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After using some for steam, there’s still plenty of water to get rid of. Many companies dispose of it long-term by pumping it back underground, where it’s trapped in rock layers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>From Pump Jacks to Produce\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the only project of its kind in the state, Chevron’s water travels several miles through a 40-inch pipe, until it arrives in a reservoir used by the Cawelo Water District. Chevron provides up to a quarter of the water district’s supply each year, around 26,000 acre-feet.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The fact that we have this water coming in, it’s a tremendous bonus,” says David Ansolabehere, general manager of the irrigation district, near Bakersfield. “We deliver water to about 45,000 acres, about 95 percent permanent crops which are nut trees, citrus and vineyards,” he says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The district mixes Chevron’s water with an equal amount of freshwater, until it reaches a quality that works for local orchards.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We can’t deliver it straight,” Ansolabehere says. “It has too much salt, but we blend it down and then it’s irrigation quality.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_16177\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 640px\">\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/04/Chevron2-1024x576.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-16177\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/04/Chevron2-1024x576.jpg\" alt=\"Water from Chevron arrives in a reservoir that serves the Cawelo Water District. (Lauren Sommer/KQED)\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Water from Chevron gushes out of a pipeline in a reservoir that serves the Cawelo Water District. (Lauren Sommer/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>During this year’s drought, it’s the district’s only reliable supply, since water deliveries from state and federal water projects have been cut completely.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s going to be very tough,” Ansolabehere says. “We’re looking at just making sure the landowners can keep their trees alive this year.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Other Central Valley water districts are in the same boat right now, which is why Ansolabehere says there’s been a lot of interest in this recycling project.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Lately, I’ve been getting a lot of phone calls,” he says, “meeting with people that want to do the same type of thing.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Oil Industry as Water Source, Not Sink\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Oil and agriculture have long been neighbors in Kern County. And it hasn’t been lost on farmers that while their water supplies are going dry this year, the industry next door is \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/2014/03/31/how-water-and-oil-mix-in-california/\">swimming in billions of gallons\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s especially true on the west side of the San Joaquin Valley, where many water districts rely almost entirely on tenuous supplies imported from elsewhere in the state.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[contextly_sidebar id=”54626724379a9606d2f66d79412499c5″]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“You have tremendous water resources that are a byproduct of oil production,” says Tupper Hull of the Western States Petroleum Association, an oil industry group.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s very conceivable that in the very near future,” Hull says, “oil production could be a net provider of water for California ag and other purposes, as opposed to a consumer.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Opponents have criticized the \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/audio/with-drought-new-scrutiny-over-frackings-water-use/\">oil industry’s use of water\u003c/a>, largely because the controversial oil extraction technique known as hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, consumes freshwater. Recycling water would offset that use, but to duplicate Chevron’s project in other parts of the state, the industry would face significant hurdles.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>High Water Treatment Costs\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“One of the problems they’ve seen at that project is very high arsenic levels in the water,” says Kassie Siegel of the \u003ca href=\"http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/\">Center for Biological Diversity\u003c/a>, an environmental advocacy group.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Until a few years ago, Chevron released water from the Kern River field into a local creek during the winter, when demand from farmers was low. The water wasn’t diluted and the company was fined by the regional water quality control board for violating limits on arsenic.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It just shows again that there’s no safe way to deal with the oil and gas wastewater,” Siegel says. “Every single method that has been proposed and used has real risks and health harms associated with it.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_16179\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 640px\">\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/04/Chevron3-1024x576.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-16179\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/04/Chevron3-1024x576.jpg\" alt=\"Chevron's Kern River oil field produces millions of gallons of water a day. (Lauren Sommer/KQED)\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Chevron’s Kern River field produces millions of gallons of brackish water a day as a byproduct of oil extraction. (Lauren Sommer/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Dealing with contaminants could be even tougher in other oil fields. “The water that’s here at Kern River field is at an almost near freshwater quality,” says Chevron’s Abby Auffant, “and that is different from water elsewhere.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Water produced in the company’s other fields is significantly saltier and would need to go through a treatment process like reverse osmosis, which adds cost.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If we were able to identify a cost-effective manner in which to treat the water,” Auffant says, “it’s certainly something that we would be interested in.”\u003c/p>\n\u003caside class=\"pullquote alignleft\">“It’s very conceivable that in the very near future, oil production could be a net provider of water.”\u003c/aside>\n\u003cp>The economic case improves in drought years when water prices are sky-high, but drought economics only last so long.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Normally the water’s going for $30-40 an acre-foot,” says Ansolabehere. “When it costs you $500 to treat it, there’s not really a market except for years like this and then you can’t get the treatment in place in time to really make any effect. So you have to think a couple years ahead.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As technology advances and reduces those costs, he adds, it becomes more likely that water recycling projects would come together.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For many, the drought has added new urgency, as a reminder of the state’s limited water resources. “I think as the resource becomes more strained, people look to these other sources as a solution,” says Harry Starkey, general manager of the West Kern Water District, west of Bakersfield.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“That conversation is happening on the west side,” Starkey says. “It’ll be interesting to see if you can get oil companies, that tend to be very private, to engage. Getting those two to partner up in those regards – they’re different classmates. It’s a matter of building trust.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s something many farmers are watching closely, as they face the long, dry summer ahead.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"excerpt": "As water supplies tighten for California farmers, some are looking to an unlikely new source: a water recycling project in one of the state's oldest oil fields.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/div>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_16174\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 640px\">\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/04/Chevron1-1024x576.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-16174\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/04/Chevron1-1024x576.jpg\" alt=\"Water from Chevron's Kern River oil field supplies orchards near Bakersfield. (Lauren Sommer/KQED)\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Water from Chevron’s Kern River oil field supplies almond orchards near Bakersfield. (Lauren Sommer/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>With California’s reservoirs running low, many Central Valley farmers are struggling to keep their trees and crops alive this year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the southern San Joaquin Valley, some are getting extra water from an unlikely source: the oil industry.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California is the third largest oil-producing state in the country, extracting roughly 200 million barrels a year. But in the process of getting oil, companies also produce massive volumes of water, found naturally in the same underground formations.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“To produce one barrel of oil, we produce about nine barrels of water,” says Chevron’s Thep Smith, walking around the company’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=209G4bJ7A9Y\">Kern River oil field\u003c/a>, east of Bakersfield. Almost 10,000 pump jacks cover the hills. The field is more than a century old, but is still the second-most productive in the state.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The rock formations that bear oil in California are also full of briny, brackish water, leading to an old saying about oil companies in California: they’re actually water companies that get oil as a byproduct. “This is really a water plant that skims oil,” Smith says.\u003c/p>\n\u003caside class=\"alignright\">\n\u003cstrong>How Water and Oil Mix in California\u003c/strong>\u003cbr>\n\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/2014/03/31/how-water-and-oil-mix-in-california/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">See how water\u003c/a> is part of fracking and oil production in California.\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/2014/03/31/how-water-and-oil-mix-in-california/\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-15920\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/03/KQED-Fraq-panel1-blank.jpg\" alt=\"KQED-Fraq-panel1-blank\" width=\"276\" height=\"276\">\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\u003c/aside>\n\u003cp>After the oil is separated, Chevron handles millions of gallons of water a day. The company uses about a quarter of it to enhance oil production, turning the water into steam and injecting it back into the rock formation to boost oil flow.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The stuff here is really heavy oil,” Smith says, “kind of like molasses. At room temperature, it actually is almost solid.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After using some for steam, there’s still plenty of water to get rid of. Many companies dispose of it long-term by pumping it back underground, where it’s trapped in rock layers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>From Pump Jacks to Produce\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the only project of its kind in the state, Chevron’s water travels several miles through a 40-inch pipe, until it arrives in a reservoir used by the Cawelo Water District. Chevron provides up to a quarter of the water district’s supply each year, around 26,000 acre-feet.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The fact that we have this water coming in, it’s a tremendous bonus,” says David Ansolabehere, general manager of the irrigation district, near Bakersfield. “We deliver water to about 45,000 acres, about 95 percent permanent crops which are nut trees, citrus and vineyards,” he says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The district mixes Chevron’s water with an equal amount of freshwater, until it reaches a quality that works for local orchards.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We can’t deliver it straight,” Ansolabehere says. “It has too much salt, but we blend it down and then it’s irrigation quality.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_16177\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 640px\">\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/04/Chevron2-1024x576.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-16177\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/04/Chevron2-1024x576.jpg\" alt=\"Water from Chevron arrives in a reservoir that serves the Cawelo Water District. (Lauren Sommer/KQED)\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Water from Chevron gushes out of a pipeline in a reservoir that serves the Cawelo Water District. (Lauren Sommer/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>During this year’s drought, it’s the district’s only reliable supply, since water deliveries from state and federal water projects have been cut completely.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s going to be very tough,” Ansolabehere says. “We’re looking at just making sure the landowners can keep their trees alive this year.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Other Central Valley water districts are in the same boat right now, which is why Ansolabehere says there’s been a lot of interest in this recycling project.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Lately, I’ve been getting a lot of phone calls,” he says, “meeting with people that want to do the same type of thing.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Oil Industry as Water Source, Not Sink\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Oil and agriculture have long been neighbors in Kern County. And it hasn’t been lost on farmers that while their water supplies are going dry this year, the industry next door is \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/2014/03/31/how-water-and-oil-mix-in-california/\">swimming in billions of gallons\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s especially true on the west side of the San Joaquin Valley, where many water districts rely almost entirely on tenuous supplies imported from elsewhere in the state.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“You have tremendous water resources that are a byproduct of oil production,” says Tupper Hull of the Western States Petroleum Association, an oil industry group.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s very conceivable that in the very near future,” Hull says, “oil production could be a net provider of water for California ag and other purposes, as opposed to a consumer.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Opponents have criticized the \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/audio/with-drought-new-scrutiny-over-frackings-water-use/\">oil industry’s use of water\u003c/a>, largely because the controversial oil extraction technique known as hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, consumes freshwater. Recycling water would offset that use, but to duplicate Chevron’s project in other parts of the state, the industry would face significant hurdles.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>High Water Treatment Costs\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“One of the problems they’ve seen at that project is very high arsenic levels in the water,” says Kassie Siegel of the \u003ca href=\"http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/\">Center for Biological Diversity\u003c/a>, an environmental advocacy group.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Until a few years ago, Chevron released water from the Kern River field into a local creek during the winter, when demand from farmers was low. The water wasn’t diluted and the company was fined by the regional water quality control board for violating limits on arsenic.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It just shows again that there’s no safe way to deal with the oil and gas wastewater,” Siegel says. “Every single method that has been proposed and used has real risks and health harms associated with it.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_16179\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 640px\">\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/04/Chevron3-1024x576.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-16179\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/04/Chevron3-1024x576.jpg\" alt=\"Chevron's Kern River oil field produces millions of gallons of water a day. (Lauren Sommer/KQED)\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Chevron’s Kern River field produces millions of gallons of brackish water a day as a byproduct of oil extraction. (Lauren Sommer/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Dealing with contaminants could be even tougher in other oil fields. “The water that’s here at Kern River field is at an almost near freshwater quality,” says Chevron’s Abby Auffant, “and that is different from water elsewhere.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Water produced in the company’s other fields is significantly saltier and would need to go through a treatment process like reverse osmosis, which adds cost.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If we were able to identify a cost-effective manner in which to treat the water,” Auffant says, “it’s certainly something that we would be interested in.”\u003c/p>\n\u003caside class=\"pullquote alignleft\">“It’s very conceivable that in the very near future, oil production could be a net provider of water.”\u003c/aside>\n\u003cp>The economic case improves in drought years when water prices are sky-high, but drought economics only last so long.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Normally the water’s going for $30-40 an acre-foot,” says Ansolabehere. “When it costs you $500 to treat it, there’s not really a market except for years like this and then you can’t get the treatment in place in time to really make any effect. So you have to think a couple years ahead.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As technology advances and reduces those costs, he adds, it becomes more likely that water recycling projects would come together.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For many, the drought has added new urgency, as a reminder of the state’s limited water resources. “I think as the resource becomes more strained, people look to these other sources as a solution,” says Harry Starkey, general manager of the West Kern Water District, west of Bakersfield.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“That conversation is happening on the west side,” Starkey says. “It’ll be interesting to see if you can get oil companies, that tend to be very private, to engage. Getting those two to partner up in those regards – they’re different classmates. It’s a matter of building trust.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s something many farmers are watching closely, as they face the long, dry summer ahead.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "How Water and Oil Mix in California",
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"content": "\u003cp>[http_redir]\u003cbr>\nCalifornia is the third-largest oil producing state in the country. To produce oil, companies deal with massive amounts of water. They need it for hydraulic fracturing, and they produce a lot from underground. (\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/audio/with-drought-new-scrutiny-over-frackings-water-use/\">More in our related story\u003c/a>)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Water Usage in the Fracking Process\" src=\"http://publicmedia.psu.edu/kqed/indexV2.html\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"640\" height=\"800\" scrolling=\"yes\" class=\"iframe-class\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_16193\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 626px\">\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/03/water-oil-ratio-CA.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-16193\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/03/water-oil-ratio-CA.jpg\" alt=\"Graphics designed by Penn State Public Media/WPSU\" width=\"626\" height=\"563\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Graphics designed by \u003ca href=\"http://exploreshale.org/\">Penn State Public Media/WPSU\u003c/a>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>[http_redir]\u003cbr>\nCalifornia is the third-largest oil producing state in the country. To produce oil, companies deal with massive amounts of water. They need it for hydraulic fracturing, and they produce a lot from underground. (\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/audio/with-drought-new-scrutiny-over-frackings-water-use/\">More in our related story\u003c/a>)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Water Usage in the Fracking Process\" src=\"http://publicmedia.psu.edu/kqed/indexV2.html\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"640\" height=\"800\" scrolling=\"yes\" class=\"iframe-class\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_16193\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 626px\">\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/03/water-oil-ratio-CA.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-16193\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/03/water-oil-ratio-CA.jpg\" alt=\"Graphics designed by Penn State Public Media/WPSU\" width=\"626\" height=\"563\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Graphics designed by \u003ca href=\"http://exploreshale.org/\">Penn State Public Media/WPSU\u003c/a>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"title": "Bay Area Residents Resist Crude-by-Rail as Accidents Rise",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"audio-wrap\">\n\u003ch2>Listen:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>http://www.kqed.org/.stream/anon/radio/science/2014/02/20140217science.mp3\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Update: \u003c/strong>On Tuesday, February 18, Pittsburg sent a \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/02/WesPac-DEIR-Letter.pdf\">letter to WesPac\u003c/a>, reopening the comment period on the environmental review process for the project. The comment period had initially closed in September, 2013. This step will prolong the approval process for the project.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And on Friday, February 21, the \u003ca href=\"http://www.ktiv.com/story/24787278/apnewsbreak-railroads-confront-crude-safety\">AP reported\u003c/a> that railroads that haul crude oil had reached an agreement with transportation officials to adopt increased safety measures.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Original story:\u003c/strong> The city of Pittsburg, 20 miles east of Oakland, is considering approving a new oil terminal to supply crude to Bay Area refineries. The oil would come via ship, pipeline and railroad. But there have been a number of recent accidents around the United States involving rail shipments of crude oil, and some locals are concerned about the safety of the project.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>‘A Dynamite Factory in Our Backyard’\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On a Saturday morning in January, about 150 people gathered at a playground in Pittsburg. Greg Osorio, a local pastor stepped up to a microphone and got the rally started.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They want to put a dynamite factory in our backyard with crude oil bombs,” he said. “Right next to housing. Turn around and look at that.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A cluster of faded yellow metal oil tanks sit just behind the park. Each one is the size of a house. Right now they’re empty, and have been for 15 years. But they soon could be filled with crude oil.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Riding the Crude-by-Rail Boom\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_14385\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 640px\">\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/02/train.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-14385 \" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/02/train.jpg\" alt=\"Tank cars on the tracks in Pittsburg. (Molly Samuel/KQED)\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Tank cars on the tracks in Pittsburg. (Molly Samuel/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"http://www.pittsburgterminalproject.com/index.htm\">WesPac\u003c/a>, an Irvine-based company, is proposing to re-open and upgrade the tanks. The property, which includes a power plant that’s still in use, once belonged to PG&E and is now owned by an energy company called NRG. WesPac wants to take over the tanks to bring in oil, store it and redistribute it to Bay Area refineries to make into gasoline, diesel, jet fuel and other products. The $200 million project would be able to store up to 375,000 barrels of oil in 17 tanks.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s consistent with the types of operations that are going on in that area already,” said \u003cstrong>\u003c/strong>Art Diefenbach, the project manager for WesPac. This is an existing facility in a traditionally industrial town, he says, so the project makes sense here. After the tanks were decommissioned, neighborhoods grew up around them, but Diefenbach says that won’t present a problem.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’ll be installing additional safety equipment and noise reduction equipment and air pollution control equipment so that it’s actually going to be better than it is today,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>\u003c/strong>Better, he means, than sitting empty. Plus, the project would create up to 40 permanent jobs, though those wouldn’t be guaranteed to Pittsburg residents.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But community members aren’t just concerned about the oil in the tanks; they’re also concerned about the trains that would deliver it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_14372\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 600px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-14372\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/02/crudebyrailincalifornia.png\" alt=\"Barrels of oil coming into California by train, 2009-2013. Data from the California Energy Commission.\" width=\"600\" height=\"371\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Barrels of oil coming into California by train, 2009-2013. Data from the \u003ca href=\"http://energyalmanac.ca.gov/petroleum/statistics/2013_crude_by_rail.html\">California Energy Commission\u003c/a>.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In 2008, there was no oil coming into California by rail. Last year in December alone, trains carried more than a million barrels into the state.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That’s because there’s an oil boom in North Dakota and Canada, explained Tupper Hull, the spokesman for the \u003ca href=\"https://www.wspa.org/\">Western States Petroleum Association\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The problem that we have is, there’s not a terribly good infrastructure to get oil to the coasts where most of the refining and frankly most of the customers are, for that energy, located,” he said.\u003cstrong>\u003cbr>\n\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Without pipelines, oil companies are turning to trains. While crude delivered by rail accounts for a little less than two percent of all the oil California uses now, that may be changing. WesPac is one of six crude-by-rail projects being considered in the state. If they all get approved, rail could provide a quarter or more of California’s oil, according to the California Energy Commission.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>More Trains, More Accidents\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But more crude-by-rail has led to more crude-by-rail accidents. Last summer in Quebec, 47 people died when an oil train exploded. In the past four months, there have been derailments in Pennsylvania, North Dakota, Alabama and New Brunswick, Canada.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[contextly_sidebar id=”d273e0a75a34e70e6e84cc38b95cf978″]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“People here are concerned about that happening,” said Andres Soto, an organizer with \u003ca href=\"http://www.cbecal.org/\">Communities for a Better Environment\u003c/a>. “They’d rather prevent it than respond to it.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Pittsburg is a city that’s weathered industrial catastrophes before. In 1944, 320 people were killed when two Navy munitions ships in nearby Port Chicago exploded.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Andres Soto says he thinks oil companies aren’t being transparent about safety concerns.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They don’t want to admit the risk,” he said. “Because if they did, the community would say, ‘Not in my backyard.’ And the people have a right to say that.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There have been some responses: The National Transportation Safety Board is \u003ca href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/24/business/us-and-canada-urge-new-safety-rules-for-crude-oil-rail-shipments.html\">making recommendations\u003c/a> to improve crude-by-rail safety; Governor Jerry Brown’s budget proposal boosts funding for the agency that cleans up oil spills; Attorney General Kamala Harris wrote a letter to the Pittsburg planning department, expressing her concerns about the WesPac project, particularly the impacts on air quality and the risk of accidents.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Tupper Hull says the companies he works with are aware of the safety concerns, and he expects there will be more regulations.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_14383\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 307px\">\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/02/monterreys.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" wp-image-14383 \" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/02/monterreys.jpg\" alt=\"Pittsburg residents George and Lyana Monterrey are among those leading protests against the oil terminal. (Molly Samuel/KQED)\" width=\"307\" height=\"173\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Pittsburg residents George and Lyana Monterrey are among those leading protests against the oil terminal. (Molly Samuel/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“We’re in one of these eras where the market has brought us good news, and now we’re catching up on the regulatory and the infrastructure side.” Good news, he said, because this is domestic oil—rather than from overseas—and it’s cheap.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lyana Monterrey, a Pittsburg resident and one of the people leading the charge against the project, isn’t buying it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Not here,” she said. “Not next to a community. You don’t sacrifice people, community for your profits. That’s wrong. That’s an injustice.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The city of Pittsburg is\u003ca href=\"http://www.ci.pittsburg.ca.us/index.aspx?page=700\"> currently considering\u003c/a> the project. The city council is expected to decide on its fate soon.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[googlemaps https://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=696+west+10th+street+pittsburg+ca&aq=&sll=37.975598,-122.187538&sspn=0.220294,0.302467&t=h&gl=us&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=696+W+10th+St,+Pittsburg,+California+94565&ll=38.035383,-121.894855&spn=0.016901,0.027423&z=15&output=embed&w=640&h=500]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>The oil tanks are the round shapes on the map.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"excerpt": "The East Bay city of Pittsburg is considering a new oil terminal to supply crude to Bay Area refineries, but some locals are concerned about the safety of the project.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/div>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Update: \u003c/strong>On Tuesday, February 18, Pittsburg sent a \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/02/WesPac-DEIR-Letter.pdf\">letter to WesPac\u003c/a>, reopening the comment period on the environmental review process for the project. The comment period had initially closed in September, 2013. This step will prolong the approval process for the project.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And on Friday, February 21, the \u003ca href=\"http://www.ktiv.com/story/24787278/apnewsbreak-railroads-confront-crude-safety\">AP reported\u003c/a> that railroads that haul crude oil had reached an agreement with transportation officials to adopt increased safety measures.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Original story:\u003c/strong> The city of Pittsburg, 20 miles east of Oakland, is considering approving a new oil terminal to supply crude to Bay Area refineries. The oil would come via ship, pipeline and railroad. But there have been a number of recent accidents around the United States involving rail shipments of crude oil, and some locals are concerned about the safety of the project.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>‘A Dynamite Factory in Our Backyard’\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On a Saturday morning in January, about 150 people gathered at a playground in Pittsburg. Greg Osorio, a local pastor stepped up to a microphone and got the rally started.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They want to put a dynamite factory in our backyard with crude oil bombs,” he said. “Right next to housing. Turn around and look at that.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A cluster of faded yellow metal oil tanks sit just behind the park. Each one is the size of a house. Right now they’re empty, and have been for 15 years. But they soon could be filled with crude oil.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Riding the Crude-by-Rail Boom\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_14385\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 640px\">\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/02/train.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-14385 \" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/02/train.jpg\" alt=\"Tank cars on the tracks in Pittsburg. (Molly Samuel/KQED)\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Tank cars on the tracks in Pittsburg. (Molly Samuel/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"http://www.pittsburgterminalproject.com/index.htm\">WesPac\u003c/a>, an Irvine-based company, is proposing to re-open and upgrade the tanks. The property, which includes a power plant that’s still in use, once belonged to PG&E and is now owned by an energy company called NRG. WesPac wants to take over the tanks to bring in oil, store it and redistribute it to Bay Area refineries to make into gasoline, diesel, jet fuel and other products. The $200 million project would be able to store up to 375,000 barrels of oil in 17 tanks.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s consistent with the types of operations that are going on in that area already,” said \u003cstrong>\u003c/strong>Art Diefenbach, the project manager for WesPac. This is an existing facility in a traditionally industrial town, he says, so the project makes sense here. After the tanks were decommissioned, neighborhoods grew up around them, but Diefenbach says that won’t present a problem.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’ll be installing additional safety equipment and noise reduction equipment and air pollution control equipment so that it’s actually going to be better than it is today,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>\u003c/strong>Better, he means, than sitting empty. Plus, the project would create up to 40 permanent jobs, though those wouldn’t be guaranteed to Pittsburg residents.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But community members aren’t just concerned about the oil in the tanks; they’re also concerned about the trains that would deliver it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_14372\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 600px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-14372\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/02/crudebyrailincalifornia.png\" alt=\"Barrels of oil coming into California by train, 2009-2013. Data from the California Energy Commission.\" width=\"600\" height=\"371\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Barrels of oil coming into California by train, 2009-2013. Data from the \u003ca href=\"http://energyalmanac.ca.gov/petroleum/statistics/2013_crude_by_rail.html\">California Energy Commission\u003c/a>.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In 2008, there was no oil coming into California by rail. Last year in December alone, trains carried more than a million barrels into the state.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That’s because there’s an oil boom in North Dakota and Canada, explained Tupper Hull, the spokesman for the \u003ca href=\"https://www.wspa.org/\">Western States Petroleum Association\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The problem that we have is, there’s not a terribly good infrastructure to get oil to the coasts where most of the refining and frankly most of the customers are, for that energy, located,” he said.\u003cstrong>\u003cbr>\n\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Without pipelines, oil companies are turning to trains. While crude delivered by rail accounts for a little less than two percent of all the oil California uses now, that may be changing. WesPac is one of six crude-by-rail projects being considered in the state. If they all get approved, rail could provide a quarter or more of California’s oil, according to the California Energy Commission.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>More Trains, More Accidents\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But more crude-by-rail has led to more crude-by-rail accidents. Last summer in Quebec, 47 people died when an oil train exploded. In the past four months, there have been derailments in Pennsylvania, North Dakota, Alabama and New Brunswick, Canada.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“People here are concerned about that happening,” said Andres Soto, an organizer with \u003ca href=\"http://www.cbecal.org/\">Communities for a Better Environment\u003c/a>. “They’d rather prevent it than respond to it.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Pittsburg is a city that’s weathered industrial catastrophes before. In 1944, 320 people were killed when two Navy munitions ships in nearby Port Chicago exploded.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Andres Soto says he thinks oil companies aren’t being transparent about safety concerns.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They don’t want to admit the risk,” he said. “Because if they did, the community would say, ‘Not in my backyard.’ And the people have a right to say that.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There have been some responses: The National Transportation Safety Board is \u003ca href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/24/business/us-and-canada-urge-new-safety-rules-for-crude-oil-rail-shipments.html\">making recommendations\u003c/a> to improve crude-by-rail safety; Governor Jerry Brown’s budget proposal boosts funding for the agency that cleans up oil spills; Attorney General Kamala Harris wrote a letter to the Pittsburg planning department, expressing her concerns about the WesPac project, particularly the impacts on air quality and the risk of accidents.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Tupper Hull says the companies he works with are aware of the safety concerns, and he expects there will be more regulations.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_14383\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 307px\">\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/02/monterreys.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" wp-image-14383 \" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/02/monterreys.jpg\" alt=\"Pittsburg residents George and Lyana Monterrey are among those leading protests against the oil terminal. (Molly Samuel/KQED)\" width=\"307\" height=\"173\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Pittsburg residents George and Lyana Monterrey are among those leading protests against the oil terminal. (Molly Samuel/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“We’re in one of these eras where the market has brought us good news, and now we’re catching up on the regulatory and the infrastructure side.” Good news, he said, because this is domestic oil—rather than from overseas—and it’s cheap.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lyana Monterrey, a Pittsburg resident and one of the people leading the charge against the project, isn’t buying it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Not here,” she said. “Not next to a community. You don’t sacrifice people, community for your profits. That’s wrong. That’s an injustice.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The city of Pittsburg is\u003ca href=\"http://www.ci.pittsburg.ca.us/index.aspx?page=700\"> currently considering\u003c/a> the project. The city council is expected to decide on its fate soon.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003ciframe\n src='https://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=696+west+10th+street+pittsburg+ca&aq=&sll=37.975598,-122.187538&sspn=0.220294,0.302467&t=h&gl=us&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=696+W+10th+St,+Pittsburg,+California+94565&ll=38.035383,-121.894855&spn=0.016901,0.027423&z=15&output=embed&w=640&h=500'\n title='https://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=696+west+10th+street+pittsburg+ca&aq=&sll=37.975598,-122.187538&sspn=0.220294,0.302467&t=h&gl=us&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=696+W+10th+St,+Pittsburg,+California+94565&ll=38.035383,-121.894855&spn=0.016901,0.027423&z=15&output=embed&w=640&h=500'\n width='640'\n height='500'\n scrolling='no'\n frameborder='no'>\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>The oil tanks are the round shapes on the map.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13016\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 640px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13016\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/01/pittsburgoilprotest.jpg\" alt=\"About 150 people marched to Pittsburg city hall on Saturday, protesting a proposed oil terminal. (Molly Samuel/KQED)\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">About 150 people marched to Pittsburg city hall on Saturday, protesting a proposed oil terminal. (Molly Samuel/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The East Bay city of Pittsburg is considering a new oil terminal, which would supply crude to Bay Area refineries. Some residents are hoping to stop the plan in its tracks.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The terminal would bring in oil via ship, pipeline and railroad. At maximum capacity, it could handle 375,000 barrels of crude a day. Local residents are concerned about the effects it would have on air and water quality, and — in light of \u003ca href=\"http://www.nationaljournal.com/energy/regulators-face-growing-pressure-after-oil-by-rail-accidents-20140109\">a number of recent accidents\u003c/a> outside California — the safety of transporting crude oil by rail.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At a rally on Saturday, about 150 people gathered to protest the project, proposed by an Irvine-based energy company called \u003ca href=\"http://www.wespac.com/index01.html\">WesPac\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We got kids, we got grandkids, nieces and nephews and young people like myself who grew up here all our lives,” said Quincy Kaisa, president of the Pittsburg Ethics Council, a group formed to fight the oil terminal. “We hope to better the future of Pittsburg, but we can’t do that if WesPac is polluting our air and our water supply.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[contextly_sidebar id=”7aba884b2c7b476e2da12e3cd59fb67d”]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>WesPac is proposing to re-open a marine terminal and oil storage facility that used to belong to PG&E. \u003ca href=\"http://www.pittsburgterminalproject.com/projectoverview.htm\">The company’s plan\u003c/a> is to update the existing infrastructure and to build a new rail terminal nearby, on property that would be leased from BNSF Railway Company.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Our project is going to be completely silent and odorless and the safest facility in the country for this type of business,” said WesPac project manager Art Diefenbach. “And it’s consistent with the types of operations that are going on in that area already.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Refineries here in the Bay Area have traditionally taken in crude via pipeline, from Southern California, or by ship, from Alaska or overseas. But California’s oil fields are producing less, while there’s a boom in the central part of the country, in places like North Dakota’s Bakken formation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Oil companies are eager to get access to the lower-cost crude, and the way to get that crude oil to refineries on the West Coast is by rail. Valero, in Benicia, is looking to build \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/audio/valero-rail-project-fuels-tar-sands-speculation-in-bay-area/\">its own rail facility\u003c/a>, and there are \u003ca href=\"http://www.kansascity.com/2014/01/10/4742631/california-expects-more-crude.html\">other projects in the table\u003c/a> in California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But after a series of derailments and explosions, transporting crude oil by rail — especially from the Bakken Shale in North Dakota — is coming under closer scrutiny. \u003ca href=\"http://www.phmsa.dot.gov/portal/site/PHMSA/menuitem.ebdc7a8a7e39f2e55cf2031050248a0c/?vgnextoid=c6efec1c60f23410VgnVCM100000d2c97898RCRD&vgnextchannel=d248724dd7d6c010VgnVCM10000080e8a8c0RCRD&vgnextfmt=print\">Federal agencies are investigating\u003c/a> the risks of transporting Bakken crude by rail. And Governor Jerry Brown proposed boosting the funding for California’s oil spill response program in his \u003ca href=\"http://www.ebudget.ca.gov/2014-15/pdf/BudgetSummary/NaturalResources.pdf\">budget proposal\u003c/a>, citing the expected increase of oil shipments by rail.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The city of \u003ca href=\"http://www.ci.pittsburg.ca.us/index.aspx?page=700\">Pittsburg is preparing an environmental impact report\u003c/a> on the WesPac project. That’s expected to be completed sometime this month, after which the planning department and city council will decide whether it can go forward.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13016\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 640px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13016\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2014/01/pittsburgoilprotest.jpg\" alt=\"About 150 people marched to Pittsburg city hall on Saturday, protesting a proposed oil terminal. (Molly Samuel/KQED)\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">About 150 people marched to Pittsburg city hall on Saturday, protesting a proposed oil terminal. (Molly Samuel/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The East Bay city of Pittsburg is considering a new oil terminal, which would supply crude to Bay Area refineries. Some residents are hoping to stop the plan in its tracks.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The terminal would bring in oil via ship, pipeline and railroad. At maximum capacity, it could handle 375,000 barrels of crude a day. Local residents are concerned about the effects it would have on air and water quality, and — in light of \u003ca href=\"http://www.nationaljournal.com/energy/regulators-face-growing-pressure-after-oil-by-rail-accidents-20140109\">a number of recent accidents\u003c/a> outside California — the safety of transporting crude oil by rail.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At a rally on Saturday, about 150 people gathered to protest the project, proposed by an Irvine-based energy company called \u003ca href=\"http://www.wespac.com/index01.html\">WesPac\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We got kids, we got grandkids, nieces and nephews and young people like myself who grew up here all our lives,” said Quincy Kaisa, president of the Pittsburg Ethics Council, a group formed to fight the oil terminal. “We hope to better the future of Pittsburg, but we can’t do that if WesPac is polluting our air and our water supply.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>WesPac is proposing to re-open a marine terminal and oil storage facility that used to belong to PG&E. \u003ca href=\"http://www.pittsburgterminalproject.com/projectoverview.htm\">The company’s plan\u003c/a> is to update the existing infrastructure and to build a new rail terminal nearby, on property that would be leased from BNSF Railway Company.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Our project is going to be completely silent and odorless and the safest facility in the country for this type of business,” said WesPac project manager Art Diefenbach. “And it’s consistent with the types of operations that are going on in that area already.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Refineries here in the Bay Area have traditionally taken in crude via pipeline, from Southern California, or by ship, from Alaska or overseas. But California’s oil fields are producing less, while there’s a boom in the central part of the country, in places like North Dakota’s Bakken formation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Oil companies are eager to get access to the lower-cost crude, and the way to get that crude oil to refineries on the West Coast is by rail. Valero, in Benicia, is looking to build \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/audio/valero-rail-project-fuels-tar-sands-speculation-in-bay-area/\">its own rail facility\u003c/a>, and there are \u003ca href=\"http://www.kansascity.com/2014/01/10/4742631/california-expects-more-crude.html\">other projects in the table\u003c/a> in California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But after a series of derailments and explosions, transporting crude oil by rail — especially from the Bakken Shale in North Dakota — is coming under closer scrutiny. \u003ca href=\"http://www.phmsa.dot.gov/portal/site/PHMSA/menuitem.ebdc7a8a7e39f2e55cf2031050248a0c/?vgnextoid=c6efec1c60f23410VgnVCM100000d2c97898RCRD&vgnextchannel=d248724dd7d6c010VgnVCM10000080e8a8c0RCRD&vgnextfmt=print\">Federal agencies are investigating\u003c/a> the risks of transporting Bakken crude by rail. And Governor Jerry Brown proposed boosting the funding for California’s oil spill response program in his \u003ca href=\"http://www.ebudget.ca.gov/2014-15/pdf/BudgetSummary/NaturalResources.pdf\">budget proposal\u003c/a>, citing the expected increase of oil shipments by rail.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The city of \u003ca href=\"http://www.ci.pittsburg.ca.us/index.aspx?page=700\">Pittsburg is preparing an environmental impact report\u003c/a> on the WesPac project. That’s expected to be completed sometime this month, after which the planning department and city council will decide whether it can go forward.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "Activists Take Aim at Bay Area Crude Oil Projects",
"headTitle": "Activists Take Aim at Bay Area Crude Oil Projects | KQED",
"content": "\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11741\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 640px\">\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2013/12/airdistrictprotest.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11741\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2013/12/airdistrictprotest.jpg\" alt=\"Pennie Opal Plant from the environmental group Idle No More at a rally at the Air District in San Francisco says she's concerned about crude oil from the Tar Sands. (Molly Samuel/KQED)\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Pennie Opal Plant from the environmental group Idle No More at a rally in San Francisco. She says she’s concerned about local refineries bringing in crude oil from Canadian tar sands. (Molly Samuel/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Local community and environmental activists are sounding an alarm over four proposed energy projects in the Bay Area. Demonstrators rallied Wednesday morning outside a \u003ca href=\"http://www.baaqmd.gov/\">Bay Area Air Quality Management District\u003c/a> board meeting, calling on the Air District to put the developments on hold.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Two of the proposals are for crude-by-rail projects. One would be an addition to the Valero refinery in Benicia; the other would be an oil terminal in Pittsburg that would receive crude by pipeline, rail and ship. Activists are concerned about crude-by-rail because, they say, trains would provide a means to bring in what they call “dirty” oil from the Canadian tar sands.[contextly_sidebar id=”e215254f951b640c3ec1b5e5143e9370″]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The other two projects, at Chevron’s Richmond refinery and the Phillips 66 refinery in Rodeo, concern equipment upgrades, which, activists say, will position refiners to process heavier grades of crude.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“What’s really at stake here is the public’s health,” said Andres Soto, an organizer with the East Bay group \u003ca href=\"http://www.cbecal.org/\">Communities for a Better Environment\u003c/a>. “We’re asking the District to not issue any more permits until this issue about the quality of the crude is publicly disclosed, publicly discussed, and either mitigation or a moratorium on its processing here in the Bay Area is established.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The oil companies have not disclosed where exactly the oil involved in these projects would be coming from. But, as Valero spokesman Bill Day told me for a \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/audio/valero-rail-project-fuels-tar-sands-speculation-in-bay-area/\">previous story\u003c/a>, they’re all looking for ways to get oil out of the middle of the continent and to the refineries on the coasts:\u003c/p>\n\u003cblockquote>\u003cp>“Whether it’s in Texas, up in Canada, in the Northeast, in the Marcellus Shale, up in the Dakotas in the Bakken Shale, that’s where the new crude oil is coming from, and there are huge amounts of it,” says Bill Day, a spokesman for the San Antonio-based Valero. “There’s no such thing as dirty oil or clean oil, I want to be very clear about that.”\u003c/p>\u003c/blockquote>\n\u003cp>Air district engineer Jim Karas, who briefed the Board on the projects at Wednesday’s meeting, told me none of the projects can go ahead without its approval, and the Air District won’t allow the refineries to go over the pollution limits already in place. “That is what we do. That’s our business,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But he also pointed out, that with or without oil from the tar sands, the refineries are processing what the environmentalists might call “dirty” crude.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The reality is that the refiners already process very heavy crude,” he said. “That’s California crude. That’s what they were built to handle.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Board heard updates but did not make any decisions on the projects at the meeting.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Track the projects:\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"http://www.ci.benicia.ca.us/index.asp?SEC=%7BC45EA667-8D39-4B30-87EB-9110A2F9CE13%7D\">Valero crude-by-rail in Benicia\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"http://www.ci.pittsburg.ca.us/index.aspx?page=700\">WesPac oil terminal in Pittsburg\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"http://www.chevronrevisedrenewalproject.com/\">Chevron hydrogen plant and sulfur removal in Richmond\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"http://ca-contracostacounty.civicplus.com/DocumentCenter/Index/2713\">Phillips 66 propane recovery in Rodeo\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp> \u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11741\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 640px\">\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2013/12/airdistrictprotest.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11741\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2013/12/airdistrictprotest.jpg\" alt=\"Pennie Opal Plant from the environmental group Idle No More at a rally at the Air District in San Francisco says she's concerned about crude oil from the Tar Sands. (Molly Samuel/KQED)\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Pennie Opal Plant from the environmental group Idle No More at a rally in San Francisco. She says she’s concerned about local refineries bringing in crude oil from Canadian tar sands. (Molly Samuel/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Local community and environmental activists are sounding an alarm over four proposed energy projects in the Bay Area. Demonstrators rallied Wednesday morning outside a \u003ca href=\"http://www.baaqmd.gov/\">Bay Area Air Quality Management District\u003c/a> board meeting, calling on the Air District to put the developments on hold.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Two of the proposals are for crude-by-rail projects. One would be an addition to the Valero refinery in Benicia; the other would be an oil terminal in Pittsburg that would receive crude by pipeline, rail and ship. Activists are concerned about crude-by-rail because, they say, trains would provide a means to bring in what they call “dirty” oil from the Canadian tar sands.\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The other two projects, at Chevron’s Richmond refinery and the Phillips 66 refinery in Rodeo, concern equipment upgrades, which, activists say, will position refiners to process heavier grades of crude.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“What’s really at stake here is the public’s health,” said Andres Soto, an organizer with the East Bay group \u003ca href=\"http://www.cbecal.org/\">Communities for a Better Environment\u003c/a>. “We’re asking the District to not issue any more permits until this issue about the quality of the crude is publicly disclosed, publicly discussed, and either mitigation or a moratorium on its processing here in the Bay Area is established.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The oil companies have not disclosed where exactly the oil involved in these projects would be coming from. But, as Valero spokesman Bill Day told me for a \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/audio/valero-rail-project-fuels-tar-sands-speculation-in-bay-area/\">previous story\u003c/a>, they’re all looking for ways to get oil out of the middle of the continent and to the refineries on the coasts:\u003c/p>\n\u003cblockquote>\u003cp>“Whether it’s in Texas, up in Canada, in the Northeast, in the Marcellus Shale, up in the Dakotas in the Bakken Shale, that’s where the new crude oil is coming from, and there are huge amounts of it,” says Bill Day, a spokesman for the San Antonio-based Valero. “There’s no such thing as dirty oil or clean oil, I want to be very clear about that.”\u003c/p>\u003c/blockquote>\n\u003cp>Air district engineer Jim Karas, who briefed the Board on the projects at Wednesday’s meeting, told me none of the projects can go ahead without its approval, and the Air District won’t allow the refineries to go over the pollution limits already in place. “That is what we do. That’s our business,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But he also pointed out, that with or without oil from the tar sands, the refineries are processing what the environmentalists might call “dirty” crude.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The reality is that the refiners already process very heavy crude,” he said. “That’s California crude. That’s what they were built to handle.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Board heard updates but did not make any decisions on the projects at the meeting.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Track the projects:\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"http://www.ci.benicia.ca.us/index.asp?SEC=%7BC45EA667-8D39-4B30-87EB-9110A2F9CE13%7D\">Valero crude-by-rail in Benicia\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"http://www.ci.pittsburg.ca.us/index.aspx?page=700\">WesPac oil terminal in Pittsburg\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"http://www.chevronrevisedrenewalproject.com/\">Chevron hydrogen plant and sulfur removal in Richmond\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"http://ca-contracostacounty.civicplus.com/DocumentCenter/Index/2713\">Phillips 66 propane recovery in Rodeo\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp> \u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "Mad About Mud: Debate Heats up Over Waste From Oil & Gas Wells",
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"content": "\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11722\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 640px\">\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2013/12/drilling.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11722\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2013/12/drilling.jpg\" alt=\"Gas well being drilled outside Sacramento. (Lauren Sommer/KQED)\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Gas well being drilled outside Sacramento. (Lauren Sommer/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The debate over hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, to extract oil and gas has largely focused on the chemicals injected underground and their potential impact on public health. Now environmental groups are turning their attention to the waste produced by simply drilling a well in the first place. Water regulators in the Central Valley, home to most of the state’s oil production, will consider the issue at a \u003ca href=\"http://www.waterboards.ca.gov/centralvalley/board_decisions/tentative_orders/1312/10_low_threat_gen_waiv/1_general_waiver_buff.pdf\">meeting Thursday\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Drilling mud is the slick concoction used to cool and lubricate a drill bit, and it’s used for all kinds of wells, not just oil and gas. After a well is drilled, the mud and other wastes from drilling the well are often stored aside in unlined pits near the drilling site.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Five years ago, the Central Valley Regional Water Board included drilling muds in a broad waiver that exempted drillers from having to report and monitor those muds, saying they posed little threat to water quality. \u003ca href=\"http://www.waterboards.ca.gov/centralvalley/board_decisions/tentative_orders/1312/10_low_threat_gen_waiv/2a_general_waiver_stfrpt_strike.pdf\">Other exemptions\u003c/a> included swimming pool discharge and water from air conditioners.[contextly_sidebar id=”9f3d8e70ddfe05096a04256919fbf9ad”]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That waiver is now up for renewal, and environmentalists say when it comes to drilling muds, oil and gas companies should not get a free pass. Especially since the last time the Regional Water Quality Control Board looked at the health effects of drilling muds was back in 1981, before the fracking boom.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The most obvious step is to take a time out and really update our understanding of drilling muds and the risk they pose, especially with the spread of new techniques like fracking,” said Hollin Kretzman, a staff attorney with the \u003ca href=\"http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/\">Center for Biological Diversity\u003c/a>. Kretzman says the waste generated from oil wells could contain harmful chemicals and contaminate groundwater.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>No one’s opposing a study, said Tupper Hull, of the \u003ca href=\"https://www.wspa.org/\">Western States Petroleum Association\u003c/a>. “We have no problem with that,” he said. “But imposing additional regulations that make drilling more costly, more time consuming, energy production more costly for consumers, without evidence of harm, just doesn’t make sense.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But after reviewing\u003ca href=\"http://www.waterboards.ca.gov/centralvalley/board_decisions/tentative_orders/1312/10_low_threat_gen_waiv/5_general_waiver_all_com.pdf\"> comments from several environmental groups\u003c/a>, the Water Board’s staff is recommending that regulators revoke the waiver for drilling wastes while they study potential health effects.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Meanwhile, proposed fracking regulations would require the State Water Quality Control Board to put together a regional groundwater monitoring program for areas where well stimulation, like fracking, takes place. But those rules are largely concerned with chemicals injected into the ground, not drilling muds or the waste from simply digging a well.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"excerpt": "Drilling mud is the slick concoction used to cool and lubricate a drill bit, and it’s used for all kinds of wells, including oil and gas. Environmental groups are turning their attention to drilling mud, which is currently exempted from water monitoring. ",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11722\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 640px\">\u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2013/12/drilling.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11722\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2013/12/drilling.jpg\" alt=\"Gas well being drilled outside Sacramento. (Lauren Sommer/KQED)\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Gas well being drilled outside Sacramento. (Lauren Sommer/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The debate over hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, to extract oil and gas has largely focused on the chemicals injected underground and their potential impact on public health. Now environmental groups are turning their attention to the waste produced by simply drilling a well in the first place. Water regulators in the Central Valley, home to most of the state’s oil production, will consider the issue at a \u003ca href=\"http://www.waterboards.ca.gov/centralvalley/board_decisions/tentative_orders/1312/10_low_threat_gen_waiv/1_general_waiver_buff.pdf\">meeting Thursday\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Drilling mud is the slick concoction used to cool and lubricate a drill bit, and it’s used for all kinds of wells, not just oil and gas. After a well is drilled, the mud and other wastes from drilling the well are often stored aside in unlined pits near the drilling site.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Five years ago, the Central Valley Regional Water Board included drilling muds in a broad waiver that exempted drillers from having to report and monitor those muds, saying they posed little threat to water quality. \u003ca href=\"http://www.waterboards.ca.gov/centralvalley/board_decisions/tentative_orders/1312/10_low_threat_gen_waiv/2a_general_waiver_stfrpt_strike.pdf\">Other exemptions\u003c/a> included swimming pool discharge and water from air conditioners.\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That waiver is now up for renewal, and environmentalists say when it comes to drilling muds, oil and gas companies should not get a free pass. Especially since the last time the Regional Water Quality Control Board looked at the health effects of drilling muds was back in 1981, before the fracking boom.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The most obvious step is to take a time out and really update our understanding of drilling muds and the risk they pose, especially with the spread of new techniques like fracking,” said Hollin Kretzman, a staff attorney with the \u003ca href=\"http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/\">Center for Biological Diversity\u003c/a>. Kretzman says the waste generated from oil wells could contain harmful chemicals and contaminate groundwater.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"id": "code-switch-life-kit",
"title": "Code Switch / Life Kit",
"info": "\u003cem>Code Switch\u003c/em>, which listeners will hear in the first part of the hour, has fearless and much-needed conversations about race. Hosted by journalists of color, the show tackles the subject of race head-on, exploring how it impacts every part of society — from politics and pop culture to history, sports and more.\u003cbr />\u003cbr />\u003cem>Life Kit\u003c/em>, which will be in the second part of the hour, guides you through spaces and feelings no one prepares you for — from finances to mental health, from workplace microaggressions to imposter syndrome, from relationships to parenting. The show features experts with real world experience and shares their knowledge. Because everyone needs a little help being human.\u003cbr />\u003cbr />\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/podcasts/510312/codeswitch\">\u003cem>Code Switch\u003c/em> offical site and podcast\u003c/a>\u003cbr />\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/lifekit\">\u003cem>Life Kit\u003c/em> offical site and podcast\u003c/a>\u003cbr />",
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"id": "commonwealth-club",
"title": "Commonwealth Club of California Podcast",
"info": "The Commonwealth Club of California is the nation's oldest and largest public affairs forum. As a non-partisan forum, The Club brings to the public airwaves diverse viewpoints on important topics. The Club's weekly radio broadcast - the oldest in the U.S., dating back to 1924 - is carried across the nation on public radio stations and is now podcasting. Our website archive features audio of our recent programs, as well as selected speeches from our long and distinguished history. This podcast feed is usually updated twice a week and is always un-edited.",
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"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Commonwealth-Club-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
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"meta": {
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"source": "Commonwealth Club of California"
},
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"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cDovL3d3dy5jb21tb253ZWFsdGhjbHViLm9yZy9hdWRpby9wb2RjYXN0L3dlZWtseS54bWw",
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"id": "forum",
"title": "Forum",
"tagline": "The conversation starts here",
"info": "KQED’s live call-in program discussing local, state, national and international issues, as well as in-depth interviews.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 9am-11am, 10pm-11pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Forum-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED Forum with Mina Kim and Alexis Madrigal",
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"order": 9
},
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"id": "freakonomics-radio",
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"officialWebsiteLink": "http://freakonomics.com/",
"airtime": "SUN 1am-2am, SAT 3pm-4pm",
"meta": {
"site": "radio",
"source": "WNYC"
},
"link": "/radio/program/freakonomics-radio",
"subscribe": {
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"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/freakonomics-radio/id354668519",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/podcasts/WNYC-Podcasts/Freakonomics-Radio-p272293/",
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},
"fresh-air": {
"id": "fresh-air",
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"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=214089682&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
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"info": "A live production of NPR and WBUR Boston, in collaboration with stations across the country, Here & Now reflects the fluid world of news as it's happening in the middle of the day, with timely, in-depth news, interviews and conversation. Hosted by Robin Young, Jeremy Hobson and Tonya Mosley.",
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"hidden-brain": {
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"info": "Shankar Vedantam uses science and storytelling to reveal the unconscious patterns that drive human behavior, shape our choices and direct our relationships.",
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"airtime": "SUN 7pm-8pm",
"meta": {
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"source": "NPR"
},
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"how-i-built-this": {
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"title": "How I Built This with Guy Raz",
"info": "Guy Raz dives into the stories behind some of the world's best known companies. How I Built This weaves a narrative journey about innovators, entrepreneurs and idealists—and the movements they built.",
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"airtime": "SUN 7:30pm-8pm",
"meta": {
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"link": "/radio/program/how-i-built-this",
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"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/how-i-built-this-with-guy-raz/id1150510297?mt=2",
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"hyphenacion": {
"id": "hyphenacion",
"title": "Hyphenación",
"tagline": "Where conversation and cultura meet",
"info": "What kind of no sabo word is Hyphenación? For us, it’s about living within a hyphenation. Like being a third-gen Mexican-American from the Texas border now living that Bay Area Chicano life. Like Xorje! Each week we bring together a couple of hyphenated Latinos to talk all about personal life choices: family, careers, relationships, belonging … everything is on the table. ",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Hyphenacion_FinalAssets_PodcastTile.png",
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"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/hyphenacion",
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"order": 15
},
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},
"jerrybrown": {
"id": "jerrybrown",
"title": "The Political Mind of Jerry Brown",
"tagline": "Lessons from a lifetime in politics",
"info": "The Political Mind of Jerry Brown brings listeners the wisdom of the former Governor, Mayor, and presidential candidate. Scott Shafer interviewed Brown for more than 40 hours, covering the former governor's life and half-century in the political game – and Brown has some lessons he'd like to share. ",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-Political-Mind-of-Jerry-Brown-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
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"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/jerrybrown",
"meta": {
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"order": 18
},
"link": "/podcasts/jerrybrown",
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},
"latino-usa": {
"id": "latino-usa",
"title": "Latino USA",
"airtime": "MON 1am-2am, SUN 6pm-7pm",
"info": "Latino USA, the radio journal of news and culture, is the only national, English-language radio program produced from a Latino perspective.",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/latinoUsa.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "http://latinousa.org/",
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},
"link": "/radio/program/latino-usa",
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"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=79681317&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
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"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510016/podcast.xml"
}
},
"marketplace": {
"id": "marketplace",
"title": "Marketplace",
"info": "Our flagship program, helmed by Kai Ryssdal, examines what the day in money delivered, through stories, conversations, newsworthy numbers and more. Updated Monday through Friday at about 3:30 p.m. PT.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 4pm-4:30pm, MON-WED 6:30pm-7pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Marketplace-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.marketplace.org/",
"meta": {
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"source": "American Public Media"
},
"link": "/radio/program/marketplace",
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},
"masters-of-scale": {
"id": "masters-of-scale",
"title": "Masters of Scale",
"info": "Masters of Scale is an original podcast in which LinkedIn co-founder and Greylock Partner Reid Hoffman sets out to describe and prove theories that explain how great entrepreneurs take their companies from zero to a gazillion in ingenious fashion.",
"airtime": "Every other Wednesday June 12 through October 16 at 8pm (repeats Thursdays at 2am)",
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"officialWebsiteLink": "https://mastersofscale.com/",
"meta": {
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"source": "WaitWhat"
},
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"rss": "https://rss.art19.com/masters-of-scale"
}
},
"mindshift": {
"id": "mindshift",
"title": "MindShift",
"tagline": "A podcast about the future of learning and how we raise our kids",
"info": "The MindShift podcast explores the innovations in education that are shaping how kids learn. Hosts Ki Sung and Katrina Schwartz introduce listeners to educators, researchers, parents and students who are developing effective ways to improve how kids learn. We cover topics like how fed-up administrators are developing surprising tactics to deal with classroom disruptions; how listening to podcasts are helping kids develop reading skills; the consequences of overparenting; and why interdisciplinary learning can engage students on all ends of the traditional achievement spectrum. This podcast is part of the MindShift education site, a division of KQED News. KQED is an NPR/PBS member station based in San Francisco. You can also visit the MindShift website for episodes and supplemental blog posts or tweet us \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/MindShiftKQED\">@MindShiftKQED\u003c/a> or visit us at \u003ca href=\"/mindshift\">MindShift.KQED.org\u003c/a>",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Mindshift-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED MindShift: How We Will Learn",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/mindshift/",
"meta": {
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"source": "kqed",
"order": 12
},
"link": "/podcasts/mindshift",
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"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM1NzY0NjAwNDI5",
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}
},
"morning-edition": {
"id": "morning-edition",
"title": "Morning Edition",
"info": "\u003cem>Morning Edition\u003c/em> takes listeners around the country and the world with multi-faceted stories and commentaries every weekday. Hosts Steve Inskeep, David Greene and Rachel Martin bring you the latest breaking news and features to prepare you for the day.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 3am-9am",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Morning-Edition-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/programs/morning-edition/",
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"link": "/radio/program/morning-edition"
},
"onourwatch": {
"id": "onourwatch",
"title": "On Our Watch",
"tagline": "Deeply-reported investigative journalism",
"info": "For decades, the process for how police police themselves has been inconsistent – if not opaque. In some states, like California, these proceedings were completely hidden. After a new police transparency law unsealed scores of internal affairs files, our reporters set out to examine these cases and the shadow world of police discipline. On Our Watch brings listeners into the rooms where officers are questioned and witnesses are interrogated to find out who this system is really protecting. Is it the officers, or the public they've sworn to serve?",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/On-Our-Watch-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "On Our Watch from NPR and KQED",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/onourwatch",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 11
},
"link": "/podcasts/onourwatch",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1567098962",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5ucHIub3JnLzUxMDM2MC9wb2RjYXN0LnhtbD9zYz1nb29nbGVwb2RjYXN0cw",
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"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510360/podcast.xml"
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},
"on-the-media": {
"id": "on-the-media",
"title": "On The Media",
"info": "Our weekly podcast explores how the media 'sausage' is made, casts an incisive eye on fluctuations in the marketplace of ideas, and examines threats to the freedom of information and expression in America and abroad. For one hour a week, the show tries to lift the veil from the process of \"making media,\" especially news media, because it's through that lens that we see the world and the world sees us",
"airtime": "SUN 2pm-3pm, MON 12am-1am",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/onTheMedia.png",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.wnycstudios.org/shows/otm",
"meta": {
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"source": "wnyc"
},
"link": "/radio/program/on-the-media",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/on-the-media/id73330715?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/On-the-Media-p69/",
"rss": "http://feeds.wnyc.org/onthemedia"
}
},
"pbs-newshour": {
"id": "pbs-newshour",
"title": "PBS NewsHour",
"info": "Analysis, background reports and updates from the PBS NewsHour putting today's news in context.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 3pm-4pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/PBS-News-Hour-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.pbs.org/newshour/",
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"source": "pbs"
},
"link": "/radio/program/pbs-newshour",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/pbs-newshour-full-show/id394432287?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/PBS-NewsHour---Full-Show-p425698/",
"rss": "https://www.pbs.org/newshour/feeds/rss/podcasts/show"
}
},
"perspectives": {
"id": "perspectives",
"title": "Perspectives",
"tagline": "KQED's series of daily listener commentaries since 1991",
"info": "KQED's series of daily listener commentaries since 1991.",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Perspectives_Tile_Final.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED Perspectives",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/perspectives/",
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"source": "kqed",
"order": 14
},
"link": "/perspectives",
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"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/432309616/perspectives",
"rss": "https://ww2.kqed.org/perspectives/category/perspectives/feed/",
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},
"planet-money": {
"id": "planet-money",
"title": "Planet Money",
"info": "The economy explained. Imagine you could call up a friend and say, Meet me at the bar and tell me what's going on with the economy. Now imagine that's actually a fun evening.",
"airtime": "SUN 3pm-4pm",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/planetmoney.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/sections/money/",
"meta": {
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"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/planet-money",
"subscribe": {
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"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/planet-money/id290783428?mt=2",
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"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510289/podcast.xml"
}
},
"politicalbreakdown": {
"id": "politicalbreakdown",
"title": "Political Breakdown",
"tagline": "Politics from a personal perspective",
"info": "Political Breakdown is a new series that explores the political intersection of California and the nation. Each week hosts Scott Shafer and Marisa Lagos are joined with a new special guest to unpack politics -- with personality — and offer an insider’s glimpse at how politics happens.",
"airtime": "THU 6:30pm-7pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Political-Breakdown-2024-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
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"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/politicalbreakdown",
"meta": {
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"source": "kqed",
"order": 5
},
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