** Oil industry consolidates in attempt to survive
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Tuesday, October 20, 2020
The sprawling Jonah oil field in Wyoming, EcoFlight ([link removed])
Earlier this year, the oil and gas industry outlook took a turn for the worse. The industry was faced with a global supply glut of its own creation, billions of dollars in debt racked up over decades, and sudden loss of demand due to the COVID-19 crisis. Now, as the industry continues to flail, it is consolidating to try and cut costs. ([link removed]) In just the past month there have been multiple announcements of mergers and acquisitions among some of the largest oil companies.
Over the course of this year, companies have cut back on drilling, laid off workers, and written off assets. Michael Lynch, president of Strategic Energy and Economic Research, summarized the state of the industry, saying ([link removed]) , “There’s a lot more red ink than there is black gold. Companies are trying to hunker down and weather the storm. Most people don’t think the oil price will recover for a couple of years.”
The accelerating industry consolidation ([link removed]) has been partially driven by the immense amount of debt taken on by the industry in order to stay afloat in the past. More than 50 North American oil and gas companies with debts totaling over $50 billion ([link removed]) have sought bankruptcy protection this year.
Some analysts believe that oil demand may have peaked in 2019 and could continue to slide in the future as climate concerns rise and electric car popularity skyrockets. Although most American companies are sticking to oil and gas ([link removed]) , many European companies are already pivoting toward renewable investments ([link removed]) .
As the situation for oil and gas companies becomes more dire, some producers may not have the money required to clean up after themselves, creating health and safety concerns among local communities ([link removed]) . In most cases, the bonds posted by companies prior to drilling are insufficient ([link removed]) to cover clean up costs, demonstrating the need for a system overhaul ([link removed]) .
** Video: It's time to ban uranium mining around the Grand Canyon
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A new whiteboard video ([link removed]) released today by the Center for Western Priorities and the Grand Canyon Trust ([link removed]) , in partnership with the Havasupai Community, explains the risks of mining uranium in the Grand Canyon region.
The animated video ([link removed]) highlights the risks of water contamination, particularly for the Havasupai Tribe. The tribe’s blue-green waterfalls at the bottom of Havasu Canyon are fed by a spring that flows from the same deep groundwater that feeds many seeps and springs inside the Grand Canyon. The Havasupai Tribe has led efforts to protect their ancestral homelands in and around the Grand Canyon from mining for decades, and the video urges Congress to permanently ban new uranium mines on public lands in the region.
[link removed]
Watch the new video from Center for Western Priorities, the Grand Canyon Trust, and the Havasupai Community.
Quick hits
** Sportsmen and women are on board for 30x30 effort to protect America's lands and ocean
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E&E News ([link removed])
** Wave of lawsuits impending over Pendley's BLM decisions, could impact states across the West
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E&E News ([link removed]\) | The Hill ([link removed]) | Politico ([link removed]) | Colorado Newsline ([link removed]) | Montana Free Press ([link removed])
** How Trump made America dirtier and the planet warmer
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Guardian ([link removed]) | Global News ([link removed])
** New legal white paper finds the actions of Trump's Interior Department have undermined its conservation mission
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Harvard Law School Environmental & Energy Law Program ([link removed])
** Big oil's answer to melting Arctic: cooling the ground so it can keep drilling
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Guardian ([link removed])
** Energy dominance or climate action: Trump, Biden and the fate of public lands
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High Country News ([link removed])
** Forest Service pact will create Native stewardship program in Alaska, step toward tribal co-management
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Cordova Times ([link removed])
** Colorado’s first-ever criminal charges following an avalanche raise questions, could have big implications for Western backcountry travelers
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Colorado Sun ([link removed])
Quote of the day
We'll go to court to make sure Pendley's illegal decisions end up in the dumpster where they belong."
—Taylor McKinnon, a senior campaigner at the Center for Biological Diversity, E&E News ([link removed])
Picture this
** @U ([link removed]) SFWSRefuges ([link removed])
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The male wood thrush has a Y-shaped syrinx (voice box), allowing it to sing two notes at once. This is handy when males compete to sing the most distinctive and self-harmonious song. Ya’ll better step up in those DMs #ShootYourShot ([link removed]) #WildlifeRefuges ([link removed])
Photo: Michael Schramm / @USFWS ([link removed])
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