Budget & Policy

GHG Monitor 9/12/2014 An article in the Sept. 5 issue of GHG Monitor incorrectly identified Oct. 8 as the end date to submit responses to a Request for Information issued by the Department of Energy’s Office of Fossil Energy concerning advanced post-combustion carbon capture technologies that are ready to be tested at a large pilot scale. The […]

Jeremy L. Dillon RW Monitor 9/12/2014 The two nominations to fill the vacancies on the Nuclear Regulatory Commission moved out of committee this week, and now await full Senate approval after a quick turnaround from hearing to vote. The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee voted 11-7 and 11-6 to move Jeffery Baran and Stephen […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 9/12/2014 House lawmakers are pushing back action on a short-term Continuing Resolution necessary to keep funding the federal government at the start of Fiscal Year 2015 as the President this week requested that authorization to take action against ISIS in Iraq and Syria be included in the CR. The CR would […]

Brian Bradley NS&D Monitor 9/12/2014 After the expiration of the current five-year Future Years Defense Program (FYDP), ongoing development of the long-range strike bomber (LRS-B) and replacement of 14 Ohio-class submarines could cause a significant dent in the post-Fiscal Year 2019 defense budget, according to a report by Todd Harrison, senior fellow of defense budget […]

Mike Nartker NS&D Monitor 9/12/2014 Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall—the Obama Administration’s choice to serve as the new No. 2 official in DOE—this week joined the lengthy list of DOE nominees awaiting full confirmation by the Senate. The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee approved Sherwood-Randall’s nomination to serve as the next Deputy Secretary of Energy by a […]

House lawmakers are pushing back action on a short-term Continuing Resolution necessary to keep funding the federal government at the start of Fiscal Year 2015 as the President yesterday requested authorization to take action against ISIS in Iraq and Syria be included in the CR. The CR would fund most Department of Energy and National […]

The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee is scheduled to vote today on Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall’s nomination to serve as the next Deputy Secretary of Energy. If confirmed by the full Senate, she would replace Dan Poneman as the No. 2 official in DOE, with Poneman set to leave the Department this fall. Randall currently serves […]

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s (D-Nev.) political influence hung over the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee hearing on the two nominations to fill the vacancies at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission yesterday, as Republicans called into question whether the two nominees were Reid’s political pawns or independent regulators. The Republicans, led by Sens. John Barrasso […]

The House Appropriations Committee unveiled a short-term Continuing Resolution yesterday that includes funding anomalies to prevent hundreds of layoffs at Portsmouth and to aid in recovery activities from a truck fire and radiological release at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant. The CR will fund most Department of Energy and National Nuclear Security Administration programs at […]

Suggesting that it is too late to negotiate with Russia over alleged violations of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.), the ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, argued yesterday that the U.S. should expand its missile defense capabilities and “reinstate” funding to modernize the nation’s nuclear arsenal and weapons complex […]

As lawmakers returning to Congress this week resume work on a continuing resolution, the Obama Administration has requested funding anomalies for Department of Energy programs at Portsmouth, the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant and Fort St. Vrain, according to a White House Office of Management and Budget report. The short-term CR under development is expected to […]

Abby L. Harvey GHG Monitor 9/5/2014 The Department of Energy’s Office of Fossil Energy is seeking information regarding advanced post-combustion carbon capture technologies that are ready to be tested at a large pilot scale, according to a request for information issued early this week. Information obtained in response to the RFI will be used in […]

After the expiration of the current Future Years Defense Program (FYDP), ongoing development of the long-range strike bomber (LRS-B) and replacement of 14 Ohio-class submarines and could draw would-be funding from other areas of the post-FY 2019 defense budget, according to Todd Harrison, senior fellow of defense budget studies at the Center for Strategic and […]

Abby L. Harvey GHG Monitor 9/5/2014 Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Gina McCarthy stressed this week the importance of the agency’s proposed carbon emissions regulations for existing coal fired power plants while the proposed regulations continue to come under fire from lawmakers and a coalition of attorneys general from a number of states. The proposed regulations […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 9/5/2014 Lawmakers are expected to return from their summer recess next week and passing a Continuing Resolution to fund the government at the start of Fiscal Year 2015 will be among the top priorities. But lawmakers are expected to strive for a short-term “clean” CR—that is, one devoid of many policy […]

Jeremy L. Dillon RW Monitor 9/5/2014 The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee will hold a hearing next week to consider the two pending nominations for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The Obama Administration in July nominated Stephen Burns and Jeff Baran to fill open spots on the NRC. Burns previously worked for the NRC, rising […]

Abby L. Harvey GHG Monitor 9/5/2014 The Environmental Protection Agency announced this week that four Class VI Underground Injection Control (UIC) permits have been issued to the FutureGen 2.0 carbon capture and sequestration project. The permits, which will allow the FutureGen Alliance to construct and operate four wells to inject carbon dioxide into the Illinois […]

Abby L. Harvey GHG Monitor 9/5/2014 While capturing carbon is the most expensive part of the carbon capture and storage process, carbon storage takes the longest to implement and is not on track for a large-scale deployment of CCS technology, Stefan Bachu, Distinguished Scientist at Alberta Innovates – Technology Futures, said during a presentation at […]

Abby L. Harvey GHG Monitor 9/5/2014 A three-year project being carried out by the National Energy Technology Laboratory to determine and test the capability of FuelCell Energy’s Direct FuelCell (DFC) carbon capture technology has moved into the third and final phase, FuelCell Energy announced late last week. The technology has the potential to significantly increase […]

Abby L. Harvey GHG Monitor 9/5/2014 More than three years after submitting applications for two Class VI Underground Injection Control (UIC) permits, Archer Daniels Midland is expecting approval by the year’s end. The permits would allow the construction and operation of two wells for the injection of carbon dioxide more than 5,000 feet underground into […]

GHG Monitor 9/5/2014 IN CONGRESS The House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Energy and Power is scheduled to hold a hearing next week on the impact on states of the Environmental Protection Agency’s proposed carbon emissions standards for existing coal-fired power plants. The hearing will be held Sept. 9 at 10 a.m. in Room 2123 […]

The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee will hold a hearing next week to consider the two pending nominations for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The Obama Administration in July nominated Stephen Burns and Jeff Baran to fill open spots on the NRC. Burns previously worked for the NRC, rising to General Counsel under then-Chairman Gregory […]

The Department of Energy is pursuing an anomaly of $66 million in the event of a short-term Continuing Resolution to avoid some looming layoffs at the Portsmouth site, WC Monitor has learned. About 700 Portsmouth workers are at risk of layoffs in the start of the new fiscal year Oct. 1 due to both a […]

The Department of Energy is pursuing an anomaly of $66 million in the event of a short-term Continuing Resolution to avoid some looming layoffs at the Portsmouth site, WC Monitor has learned. About 700 Portsmouth workers are at risk of layoffs in the start of the new fiscal year Oct. 1 due to both a […]

Staff Reports NS&D Monitor 8/29/2014 Fiscal Year 2015 is still a month away, but Consolidated Nuclear Security is making preparations for what’s likely to come: a Continuing Resolution. CNS, the managing contractor for the Y-12 and Pantex nuclear production facilities, issued preliminary guidance to employees this week to help get fiscally ready. “CNS expects to […]

Site Facing Impending Layoffs Set to Reduce D&D Workforce by One-Third Mike Nartker WC Monitor 8/29/2014 As the clock ticks down on impending layoffs at the Portsmouth D&D project, Ohio Senator Rob Portman (R) held what he described as “frustrating” discussions with Department of Energy officials during a visit to the site late this week. […]

Kenneth Fletcher WC Monitor 8/29/2014 The Department of Energy expects budget constraints to restrict the amount of high-level waste that can be transferred from Savannah River’s H-Canyon to the site’s tank farms, potentially impacting future missions for the facility. DOE informed M&O contractor Savannah River Nuclear Solutions that it will be limited to transferring 50,000 […]

Abby L. Harvey GHG Monitor 8/29/2014 The Industrial Technology Research Institute has developed a technology capable of using calcium as an absorbent in the carbon capture process. The High Efficiency Calcium Looping Technology (HECLOT) is inexpensive and efficient, according to a fact sheet provided to GHG Monitor by ITRI this week. According to the fact […]

Abby L. Harvey GHG Monitor 8/29/2014 A sharp increase to the social cost of carbon estimate developed by an interagency working group has been attributed to updated academic models and new scientific data, the Government Accountability Office said in a report released this week. The GAO was asked by House Republicans to look into the […]

GHG Monitor 8/29/2014 IN DOE The National Coal Council, a federal advisory committee to the Secretary of Energy, announced this week that the council’s fall meeting will be held Oct. 16 from 9 a.m.–12:30 p.m. at the Gaylord National Resort, located at the National Harbor in Oxen Hill, Md. Speakers at the meeting will include […]