Energy & Environment — Biden confronting pressure on gasoline prices

President Biden’s latest moves on gas prices come as recent price fluctuations push the issue back in the spotlight.

Meanwhile, the Interior Department is advancing new offshore oil and gas leasing, and many more electric vehicle chargers are needed to meet federal sustainability goals.

This is Overnight Energy & Environment, your source for the latest news focused on energy, the environment and beyond. For The Hill, we’re Rachel Frazin and Zack Budryk. Someone forward you this newsletter? Subscribe here. 

Gas prices return to spotlight ahead of midterms

Gas prices are returning to the spotlight just weeks ahead of the midterms, turning up the heat on President Biden and congressional Democrats. 

Despite a drop in the past few days — and being well below the summer peak — gasoline prices are up nearly 20 cents from where they were a month ago.

In an apparent effort to blunt criticism over rising prices at the pump, the White House is signaling action on the issue, with Biden on Wednesday touting the release of
15 million barrels from the country’s strategic reserve. 

However, experts say the move is unlikely to have major implications at the pump.  

The state of play:  

Just last month, gas prices were falling, adding to a checklist of Democratic wins over the summer that had the party feeling optimistic about November’s elections.  

But changes in gas prices have helped slow that momentum.  

• Prices on Thursday averaged $3.84, about 16 cents higher than they were a month before.
  
• Yet the average price of gas is about 8 cents lower than where it was a week ago.

Both gasoline prices and inflation more broadly are seen as a top concern for voters, and Republicans have sought to hammer Democrats on the issue during the midterm homestretch.

Some analyses have found that Biden’s favorability has correlated with gasoline prices, even though there is little he can do to counter global market forces.  

Some context for this week’s announcement:  

• The latest release from the strategic reserve was not a new move, but rather part of the 180 million barrel release Biden previously announced in March.
  
• Robert Weiner, a professor at George Washington University’s business school, said it was unlikely to deliver savings at the pump: “I don’t see how this would have any effect because it doesn’t change expectations. All it is is repeating something that has already been announced.” 

However, in a speech Wednesday, Biden also said he told his team to “be prepared to look for further releases in the months ahead if needed,” though he did not explicitly commit to future actions.  

Weiner said new releases at a large scale could actually draw prices down, but added the suggestion alone from Biden’s Wednesday speech is not enough.  

Read more about the political implications here.  

INTERIOR ADVANCES OFFSHORE OIL LEASING 

The Interior Department on Thursday took additional steps to advance new oil and gas drilling offshore after it was required to do so by the Democrats’ climate and tax law.

The department issued a proposed sale notice for an auction for new oil and gas leases in the Gulf of Mexico, which is now slated to take place on March 29, 2023. It also finalized an environmental review for a sale in Alaska’s Cook inlet slated for the end of this year. 

After previously evaluating smaller sale options in a supplemental environmental review, the new proposal would offer up “all of the available unleased acreage” with a few exceptions.  

However, the proposal also noted that the administration is “considering” additional exclusions.  

The Democrats’ Inflation Reduction Act required the department to hold the oil and gas auctions. Such a provision was likely included to secure the support of swing vote Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.).  

More EVs, chargers needed to meet federal goals 

Meeting federal emissions goals may require federal agencies to acquire about 30,000 emissions-free vehicles per year and about 25 times the current number of charging ports, according to the Government Accountability Office (GAO). 

• The Biden administration in December issued an executive order mandating all new federal vehicle acquisitions be emissions-free by 2035, with the requirement applying to all light-duty vehicle acquisitions by 2027.
  
• The order covers about 380,000 vehicles, including about 260,000 light-duty vehicles, according to the report.  

A GAO analysis found that agencies replace about 8 percent of their fleets annually, 73 percent of which are light-duty vehicles. Acquisition of zero-emission vehicles is likely to be relatively simple for federal agencies, according to the office. 

The analysis also reported that the General Services Administration (GSA) estimates electric options for all categories of light vehicles within five years. The report also found that typical agency vehicle mileage is well-suited for a transition to electric. 

The challenge: Charging infrastructure, however, will likely be a more complicated prospect, according to the report. Access to such infrastructure is typically in limited supply at federal facilities, and the GSA estimates indicate the government will likely require as many as 100,000 charging ports to meet its needs. Federally owned and operated charging ports currently stand at about 4,000 across fewer than 500 cities, according to the GAO report.

The locations and jurisdictions of the ports are also a potential logistical problem, according to the report.  

Washington, D.C., contains the single zip code with the most federal vehicles, but only has 110 charging ports in 35 locations, compared to California, which has more than a quarter of all federally owned charging infrastructure. Nearly half of federally owned charging infrastructure is owned by either the Department of the Navy or the Department of Education. 

The necessary charging infrastructure build-out will require major financial investments, according to the report, which notes that the costs per charging station can range from $1,000 to $100,000. 

Read more about the challenge here.  

PFAS found in water systems serving millions: GAO

“Forever chemicals” have been identified in water systems that serve about
9.5 million people in six states alone, according to a new analysis of state data by a congressional watchdog.  

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) this week published a report saying that the toxic chemicals had been found in at least 18 percent of water systems in Illinois, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Ohio and Vermont.

• “Forever chemicals” are the nickname of per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), a group of chemicals known to linger in human bodies and the environment.
  
• The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently determined that the two types of forever chemicals monitored in the GAO’s report are unsafe to consume, even at extremely low levels.  

Where are they? Per the report, the substances were found in water systems serving about 5.8 million people in New Jersey, 2.1 million people in New Hampshire, 600,000 people in Illinois, 500,000 people in Ohio, 300,000 people in New Hampshire and fewer than 100,000 people in Vermont.

In addition to finding the chemicals in the drinking water systems at large, the GAO report also called on the EPA to do further analysis of whether disadvantaged communities faced disproportionate impacts from PFAS.  

The EPA agreed with the recommendation. 

Read more about the findings here.

HFC PHASEDOWN ACCELERATES 

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on Thursday took an additional step toward the phaseout of a certain type of potent planet-warming gas.  

The agency is required by a bipartisan 2020 law to implement a phasedown of the greenhouse gases known as hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), which can be hundreds or even thousands of times as powerful as carbon dioxide.  

HFCs can be used in air conditioning, refrigeration, fire suppression and aerosols. 

Last year, the EPA finalized a rule that established the baseline level it would seek to phase the gases down from, as well as establishing methods for initial phasedowns. Ultimately, the EPA is expected to cut the use of HFCs down by 85 percent from that baseline over 15 years.

On Thursday, it proposed a separate rule that would set the methodology for issuing allowances to produce and consume the gases in 2024 and beyond. In 2024, the number of allowances available to companies will be 40 percent lower than historic levels, the agency said. 

Read more about the new rule here.

WHAT WE’RE READING

• The U.S. Never Banned Asbestos. These Workers Are Paying the Price. (ProPublica and NPR)
• America’s new nuclear power industry has a Russian problem (Reuters)  Colorado River managers try to buy water savings but hurdles remain (AZCentral) 
• Bodies of water all over North America are drying up due to drought, climate change: Experts (ABC News)
• These watchdogs are patrolling for climate law problems (E&E News) 

ICYMI

• Ukrainians asked to reduce power usage in wake of Russian infrastructure attacks 
• Biden to tout EVs on guest appearance on ‘Jay Leno’s Garage’ 
• Alligators exposed to ‘forever chemicals’ show autoimmune impacts: study  

🥬 Lighter click: Lettuce remember.  

That’s it for today, thanks for reading. Check out The Hill’s Energy & Environment page for the latest news and coverage. We’ll see you tomorrow.