AAA says the EPA and retailers should stop the sale of gasoline containing 15 percent ethanol, known as E15, because it could damage vehicle engines and void car manufacturers’ warranties. AAA’s statement:

"A recent survey by AAA finds a strong likelihood of consumer confusion and the potential for voided warranties and vehicle damage as a result of the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) recent approval of E15 gasoline. An overwhelming 95 percent of consumers surveyed have not heard of E15, a newly approved gasoline blend that contains up to 15 percent ethanol. With little consumer knowledge about E15 and less than five percent of cars on the road approved by automakers to use the fuel, AAA is urging regulators and the industry to stop the sale of E15 until motorists are better... more »

From where he sits – literally, right across Lafayette Square from the White House – the U.S. Chamber’s Tom Donohue sees increased production of domestic oil and natural gas as the ace card in the high-stakes game policymakers are playing concerning the nation’s fiscal health. Energy “is our country’s true cash cow,” Donohue, the Chamber’s president and CEO, told his organization’s board of directors. “Expanding energy development is an extraordinary opportunity for America on so many levels.” He counted the ways:

• More stable and affordable energy supply.
• Manufacturing revival, built on the availability of affordable energy
• Job creation, including employment gains as a result of export markets.
• Strengthened national security due to reduced imports.
• Larger tax base st... more »

Check out this tweet from earlier in the week from Ryan Avent, economics correspondent The Economist in Washington, D.C.:

Biggest employment gain from Dec 2007 (metros): Odessa, TX (17%), Midland, TX (16%), Bismarck, ND (13%), Lafayette, LA (11%)

— Ryan Avent (@ryanavent) November 28, 2012

According to government data, on a percentage basis four metro areas situated in big-time energy-producing locations lead the nation in employment growth, basically, over the past five years. No coincidence, we think.

That’s because there’s been an almost unending stream of anecdotal evidence of the economic stimulus that’s being provided by the oil and natural gas industry – in Texas, North Dakota, Louisiana, Pennsylvania and other states. A couple of examples …

There was this earlier thi... more »

A new MIT study shows that the extraction of shale gas through hydraulic fracturing emits only a fraction more methane into the air than conventional gas drilling:

"Taking actual field practice into account, we estimate that in 2010 the total fugitive (greenhouse gas) emissions from US shale gas-related hydraulic fracturing amounted to 216 (gigagrams of methane). This represents 3.6% of the estimated 6002 (gigagrams of methane) of fugitive emissions from all natural gas production-related sources in that year … Thus under a goal of GHG reduction it is clear that increased efforts must be made to reduce fugitive losses from this system. However, it is also clear is that the production of shale gas and specifically, the associated hydraulic fracturing operations have not materially al... more »

End it, don’t mend it: That’s industry’s message to Congress on the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS). API Downstream Group Director Bob Greco, during a conference call with reporters on problems with the program:

“We believe the Renewable Fuels Standard is unworkable and should be repealed. Despite repeated and ongoing efforts to address the program’s shortcomings – through regulatory petitions, legal actions and suggested solutions to implementation concerns – little has been done to make the program workable. And sometimes actions have been taken that make matters worse.”

The latest legal action involving the RFS: A lawsuit filed Monday in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia by API, challenging EPA’s decision to mandate the use of 1.28 billion gallons of biodie... more »