Industry Shadows the PA Pipeline Infrastructure Taskforce (PITF) – Part 2

Industry Shadows the PA Pipeline Infrastructure Taskforce (PITF) – Part 1

Industry Shadows the PA Pipeline Infrastructure Taskforce (PITF) – Part 3

America’s Natural Gas Alliance (ANGA) represents independent natural gas exploration and production companies

One of the original founders was Aubrey McClendon, former CEO of Chesapeake Energy and now CEO of America Energy Partners.

Representing ANGA on the PITF Natural Gas End User Workgroup is Paul Hartman, Regional Director of State Affairs.

ANGA’s current list of members include McClendon’s company American Energy Partners, Anadarko, Apache, bhpBilliton, Cabot Oil & Gas Corporation, Chesapeake Energy, Cimarex, Devon Energy, EOG Resources, Freeport-McMoRan Oil & Gas, Newfield, Noble Energy, QEP, Range Resources, Seneca Resources, Southwestern Energy, Ultra Petroleum and XTO Energy (a subsidiary of ExxonMobil).

Members of PITF who are also connected to ANGA:

• Range Resources
• Seneca Resources via parent company National Fuel Gas Company
• Southwestern Energy

Other Connections to Industry Groups

While the Consumer Energy Alliance (CEA) and ANGA have direct seats on PITF workgroups, there are members of PITF with connections to the Marcellus Shale Coalition (MSC) and the Center for Sustainable Shale Development (CSSD).

The Marcellus Shale Coalition (MSC) is an industry coalition made up of 299 natural gas and related corporations and businesses.   Its function is to promote natural gas and MSC does this through public relations and lobbying at the state and federal levels.

MSC describes itself [2]as:

The Marcellus Shale Coalition (MSC) works with exploration and production, midstream, and supply chain partners in the Appalachian Basin and across the country to address issues regarding the production of clean, job-creating, American natural gas from the Marcellus and Utica Shale plays.

We provide in-depth information to policymakers, regulators, media, and other public stakeholders on the positive impacts responsible natural gas production is having on families, businesses, and communities across the region.

Sourcewatch describes MSC as:

The Marcellus Shale Coalition is an industry coalition that fights against environmental protections sought by citizens facing the prospect of methane gas drilling near their water supplies. It is engaged in an extensive state and federal lobbying campaign to protect the financial interests of the corporate members of the coalition.

Center for Sustainable Shale Development (CSSD) is a coalition of energy companies, environmentalists and Pennsylvania philanthropies created a new center that reportedly provides more stringent standards for fracking of natural gas in parts of the eastern United States. The CSSD standards in some areas are slightly “stronger” than existing Federal and State regulations; however they mostly mimic existing regulations.

CSSD has developed guidelines and standards for fossil fuel activities and upon an audit of a given corporation’s operations the CSSD issues a certification.

Participation in CSSD’s program is voluntary.

Per Public Accountability Initiative report, “Big Green Fracking Machine“:

The major philanthropic force behind CSSD, The Heinz Endowments, has significant, undisclosed ties to the natural gas industry. The foundation has contributed more than $250,000 to CSSD, providing funding to every environmental group involved as well as to CSSD itself. Heinz Endowments president Robert F. Vagt is currently a director at Kinder Morgan*, a natural gas pipeline company, and owns more than $1.2 million in company stock.

Environmental sponsors with CSSD board seats are closely linked to the natural gas industry. Although five environmental groups were involved in the discussions leading to CSSD’s creation, only three have seats on the Center’s board of directors.

One of the groups on the CSSD board, the Pennsylvania Environmental Council, is controlled by fracking interests: half of the Pennsylvania Environmental Council’s board comes from Marcellus Shale Coalition member companies and all but two directors come from companies with a stake in the natural gas industry.

Another group on CSSD’s board, the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), has significant board and funder ties to the natural gas industry and has lent its name to studies proclaiming fracking to be environmentally safe that were later discredited.

The third, the Clean Air Task Force, has ties to the industry through several board members.

To date only Royal Dutch Shell and Consol Energy have been issued a certification.

Related:

• Marcellus Shale Coalition: In the Lobby
• GREENWASHED Center for Sustainable Shale Development

© 2015 by Dory Hippauf