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5. ConocoPhillips in the Alaska Petroleum Reserve
After a coordinated lobbying blitz, an oil company was allowed to drill on federal lands in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska for the first time in its more than 90 year history. ConocoPhillips can now drill as many as 33 wells and construct miles of road and pipeline as part of its Greater Mooses Tooth project—all in a region famous for its delicate biodiversity.
6. BP’s dirty tax break
More than five years after Deepwater Horizon, BP is still paying for its disaster. The problem is that BP is still seeing major tax breaks as part of the costs. Although it was dinged with an out-of-court settlement worth $20.8 billion, most of those costs are going to be tax deductible—allowing the company to capture a tax windfall worth $5.35 billion for the worst oils pill in U.S. history.
7. Fast-tracking the TPP
Big Oil fought hard to help fast track the Trans Pacific Partnership free trade deal—and can you blame them? The deal could allow oil companies and other polluters to sue governments for enacting climate rules. It’s no surprise that similar agreements have already been used to attack renewable energy and fracking bans.
8. Atlantic Drilling
The Obama administration released a 5-year plan for offshore oil and gas leasing in January—and to the surprise of many it proposed new drilling areas off the coasts of Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia. Dozens of municipalities afraid of the effects that drilling could inflict on their local economies have passed resolutions opposing the plan—and it isn’t too late. The plan is likely to be finalized next year and Atlantic drilling could still be nixed.
9. Liquified Natural Gas
The Obama Administration has been lending a helping hand to the fracking boom by opening whole new markets for domestic natural gas. How? By approving permits for specialized export facilities that super-cool gas into a liquid to be shipped overseas. This is a very expensive and energy intensive process that produces a fuel that is worse for the climate than coal. The Obama administration is opting to end the year by approving construction of the newest export project—the Energy Transfer Partners and the BG Group’s Lake Charles LNG facility in Lake Charles, Louisiana.
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