House panel bars filmmaker from Wyo. pollution hearing

The House Science subcommittee hearing on water contamination in Pavillion, Wyo., took an unusual turn Wed. morning when filmmaker and drilling opponent Josh Fox was handcuffed and led away by Capitol Police... Read the full article...
A mom-and-pop oil company prospects for gas in central Wyoming

John Wold is one of Wyoming's most notorious wildcatters. At the age of 95, he still enjoys the thrill and challenge of making new oil and gas discoveries... Read the full article...
EPA moving in on state regulation of drilling

Several ongoing investigations conducted by EPA are generating friction between the agency and state officials across the country over the management of oil and gas drilling, and hydraulic fracturing in particular... Read the full article...
State warms to call for bigger OSHA role in stemming workplace fatalities

After resisting more workplace inspections and increased enforcement of safety regulations, some state officials are now considering a bigger role for the Wyoming Occupational Safety and Health Administration in addressing the state’s high workplace fatality rate... Read the full article...
Wyoming Billionaire Backs Santorum

Friess has made national headlines in recent weeks thanks to his contributions to a super PAC that supports Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum. Friess is the main benefactor of the Red White and Blue Fund, which spent $537,000 on ads to help Santorum win the Iowa caucuses... Read the full article...
Wyoming cautiously reviews insurance exchanges

There are approximately 83,000 uninsured people in Wyoming — a situation that puts families at risk of illness, bankruptcy and death — and an insurance exchange could make insurance more affordable for both small employers and their workers... Read the full article...

Energy

A mom-and-pop oil company prospects for gas in central Wyoming

by High Country News January 31, 2012

John Wold is one of Wyoming’s most notorious wildcatters. At the age of 95, he still enjoys the thrill and challenge of making new oil and gas discoveries.

Read the full article…

EPA moving in on state regulation of drilling

by Environment & Energy Daily January 31, 2012

Several ongoing investigations conducted by EPA are generating friction between the agency and state officials across the country over the management of oil and gas drilling, and hydraulic fracturing in …

Read the full article…

Worker advocates slam state for timid response to workplace fatalities

by Dustin Bleizeffer January 6, 2012

Two worker advocacy groups say that, for 10 years, Wyoming and industry leaders have failed to take the carnage of workplace fatalities seriously, and they’re urging the state to use …

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California company & Wyo legislator seek to delay well-plugging with hopes that microbes will rebuild production

by Dustin Bleizeffer December 20, 2011

The persistent low price of natural gas continues to push coal-bed methane gas operators in the Powder River Basin to the brink of bankruptcy, leaving some 8,000 to 9,000 wells …

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Drilling to Energy Independence: Can the West save us from foreign oil imports?

by Dustin Bleizeffer December 6, 2011

— This story was written in collaboration with the Rural West Initiative at the Bill Lane Center for the American West.
True to the frontier attitude still prevalent here, oil and …

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Feds attempt to speed complicated process of building power lines

by High Country News November 22, 2011

The Obama administration announced in October a new attempt to streamline power line permitting among dozens of federal and state agencies.

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Art & Energy: Coal’s reaction to ‘Carbon Sink’ sculpture reveals the power of art — and the essence of education

by Jeffrey Lockwood November 8, 2011

When British artist Chris Drury created the “Carbon Sink” sculpture on the University of Wyoming campus earlier this year, it’s message of coal’s spiraling environmental influence triggered some passionate response.

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Up In Smoke: How much state gas will be flared without taxation?

by Dustin Bleizeffer November 8, 2011

The Office of State Lands and Investment’s board is considering extending the amount of time an operator is allowed to flare state-owned minerals before severance taxes are applied.

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BLM, OSM merger aimed at improving efficiencies, cutting costs

by Environment & Energy Daily November 1, 2011

Ken Salazar signed an order to fold the Office of Surface Mining into the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, sparking criticism that the move could degrade oversight of surface mining.

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Pathfinder developers hope to offset impacts of energy development

by Gregory Nickerson August 30, 2011

Pathfinder Renewable Wind Energy LLC originally proposed to build a giant wind farm on the Pathfinder Ranch near the Oregon Trail in central Wyoming. Instead, the project will be moved …

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Feds OK Powder River Basin coal leases

by Environment & Energy Daily August 23, 2011

The Bureau of Land Management has approved the latest in a string of coal leases in the Powder River Basin in Wyoming, signaling strong Obama administration support for Western coal …

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Enviro groups sue BLM over Powder River Basin leases

by Environment & Energy Daily August 23, 2011

Environmentalists have filed a lawsuit against the Bureau of Land Management in an effort to stop the mining of roughly 350 million tons of federal coal in Wyoming’s Powder River …

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Significant challenges await 1,100-mile Gateway West power corridor

by Environment & Energy Daily August 9, 2011

Reprinted with permission from Environment & Energy Publishing, LLC.
Not for republication by Wyoming media.

The Bureau of Land Management has taken a major step toward approving what would become the …

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Deadly Workplaces – Wyoming’s workplace fatality rate still ranks among worst in nation

by Dustin Bleizeffer July 12, 2011

Despite being saddled with the worst-in-the-nation distinction for workplace fatalities, the decision to emphasize voluntary collaborative efforts rather than inspection and enforcement was emblematic of a pervasive attitude among industry …

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Are Feds Slowing Oil and Gas Permitting?

by Dustin Bleizeffer June 28, 2011

Of the seven major oil and gas EISs now in the works in Wyoming, none have gotten to the “draft” stage. Once a draft is issued, stakeholders can better predict …

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$Thumbnail image for Critics Find Gaps in State Laws to Disclose Hydrofracking Chemicals$

Critics Find Gaps in State Laws to Disclose Hydrofracking Chemicals

by ProPublica June 28, 2011

Wyoming’s rules are the strongest in place, although it’s unclear how thoroughly they are being enforced. The rules require public disclosure of all the chemicals except for trade secrets, which …

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Gas industry pains over cost of coal

by Dustin Bleizeffer June 9, 2011

In its current rate increase request in Wyoming, Rocky Mountain Power is under scrutiny for having spent hundreds of millions of dollars in pollution controls for its fleet of coal-fired …

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‘Liquid coal’ too costly for Pentagon despite GOP push

by Environment & Energy Daily June 7, 2011

Tom Hicks, deputy assistant Navy secretary for energy, said in testimony to Congress that the rising price of oil “dramatically impacts the military.” For every $1 a barrel increase in …

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Study cautions against energy industry’s effects on mule deer

by Environment & Energy Daily May 31, 2011

Energy development on Western public lands has contributed to the destruction of millions of acres of mule deer habitat in Wyoming, Colorado and Utah, according to a new study that …

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Pristine to Polluted: More drilling proposed near Pinedale despite ozone spikes

by Dustin Bleizeffer May 17, 2011

Despite significant reductions in the volume of emissions from the Pinedale Anticline and Jonah natural gas fields in recent years, the area remains prone to ozone spikes — a human …

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More Wells, Fewer Emissions — Industry counting on advances in technology for cleaner air amid increased production

by Dustin Bleizeffer May 17, 2011

Natural gas operators in the Upper Green River Basin say they’ve been able to drill more wells with fewer emissions in recent years, and they can continue to maintain that …

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Wyoming’s next wave of natural gas drilling

by Dustin Bleizeffer May 17, 2011

Wyoming’s next wave of natural gas drilling
Pristine to Polluted | More Wells, Fewer Emissions | Next Wave of Natural Gas
It may seem counter-intuitive to propose some 21,000 new wells in …

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Winter ozone problem confounds regulators, industry

by Environment & Energy Daily April 26, 2011

The mystery behind the wintertime ozone problem that has plagued parts of the Intermountain West is deepening as pollution levels during the first quarter of 2011 dropped in northeast Utah …

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Niobrara oil search brings seismic surveys

by Gregory Nickerson April 19, 2011

The search for oil in southeast Wyoming has set off a massive seismic survey effort. Last fall, three seismic surveys alone blanketed an area 1,500 square miles in Laramie and …

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Oil & gas industry sitting on 7,200 drilling permits

by Environment & Energy Daily March 29, 2011

The oil and gas industry has nearly 7,200 permits to drill on public lands that it has yet to use. The unused, but still valid, drilling permits paint a starkly …

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Wyoming betting on coal-bed methane comeback despite industry bankruptcies

by Dustin Bleizeffer March 22, 2011

Over the past several years coal-bed methane gas operators in the Powder River Basin have idled thousands of wells due to low pricing, and a handful of operators struggle on …

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Wyoming Range drilling project garners 40,000 comments

by Environment & Energy Daily March 15, 2011

A voluntary agreement by a Houston-based energy company to scale back a drilling project in the Bridger-Teton National Forest and win public support for the proposal appears to have galvanized …

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One Man’s Mystery Leads to a Backlash Against Fracking

by ProPublica March 1, 2011

Meeks used to have abundant water on his small alfalfa ranch, a 40-acre plot speckled with apple and plum trees northeast of the Wind River Mountains and about five miles …

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Wind tower manufacturer comes to Wyoming

by Dustin Bleizeffer February 15, 2011

The $40 million plant will manufacture about 300 wind towers annually and employ about 150 workers, according to the companies. The manufacturing plant may help reduce project development costs for …

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A Reluctant Move Away from Coal

by Allen Best February 8, 2011

Scores of new coal-fired power plants that were being planned across the nation six or seven years ago have mostly been shelved. Last year alone, utilities and power-generating companies dropped …

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Drilling Industry Says Diesel Use Was Legal

by ProPublica February 8, 2011

After three members of Congress reported this week that drilling companies have been injecting large amounts of diesel fuel underground to hydraulically fracture oil and gas wells, the industry is …

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Coal industry seeks exports to Asia while U.S. market falters

by Dustin Bleizeffer January 18, 2011

America’s No. 2 coal-producer, Arch Coal Inc., announced last week that it paid $25 million to acquire 38 percent interest in Millennium Bulk Terminals-Longview, LLC, one of dozens of companies …

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Back on Track: Wyoming coal rebounds amid market, regulatory uncertainty

by Dustin Bleizeffer January 4, 2011

Wyoming coal producers fared well during a tumultuous year for the industry nationwide, increasing output by an estimated 2.6 percent in 2010. It’s a modest recovery in production, after slipping …

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$Thumbnail image for Wyoming fracking rules point the way for public disclosure$

Wyoming fracking rules point the way for public disclosure

by Environment & Energy Daily December 28, 2010

Wyoming’s hydraulic fracturing regulations could be the shape of things to come. The Obama administration is looking to the Cowboy State as a model for fracturing disclosure on federal lands …

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Environmental Concerns Trip Up California Renewable Energy Stance

by Dustin Bleizeffer December 10, 2010

California’s recent policy stance to give preference to instate renewable energy development over out-of-state sources (a move inspired by the need to spur job growth in the financially-strapped state) may …

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Oil and Gas Producers Seek New Water Solutions

by Dustin Bleizeffer December 7, 2010

Oil and natural gas wells within about a 100-mile radius of Rawlins produce more than 400 million barrels of water annually, according to industry estimates. Most all of that water …

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Let’s Talk Energy

by Dustin Bleizeffer December 2, 2010

A journalist acquires a heck of lot more information than ever appears in a traditional news article, and that’s what makes a blog so useful. I can quickly scratch out …

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Niobrara Confidential

by Dustin Bleizeffer December 2, 2010

Investors and royalty owners itching to see initial production results from exploratory Niobrara oil wells may see a logjam of information released after the first of the year.

Wyoming Oil and …

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Industry, Regulators Square Off Over Fracking Disclosure

by Environment & Energy Daily November 30, 2010

A major fight is set to erupt over how much information oil and gas drillers should be required to publicly disclose about the chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing, government and …

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Group Says Coal-Bed Methane Plan Threatens Powder River Basin Elk Herd

by Environment & Energy Daily November 23, 2010

Environmentalists blasted federal plans for allowing nearly 500 new coal-bed methane wells in northeast Wyoming’s Powder River Basin, arguing that the proposal imperils an elk herd and threatens the area’s …

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Wyoming Pursues Carbon Sequestration Near Rock Springs

by Dustin Bleizeffer November 16, 2010

Representatives from the University of Wyoming and its industry partners in the Wyoming Carbon Underground Storage Project are studying the viability of injecting billions of tons of carbon dioxide — …

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Study: Carbon Sequestration Could Foul Drinking Water

by Environment & Energy Daily November 16, 2010

Carbon dioxide leaking from underground storage sites could contaminate drinking-water aquifers with dangerous levels of pollutants such as uranium under the wrong conditions, a new study finds.

If stored CO2 bubbled …

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Potential Oil Boom in SE Wyo Raises Water Questions

by Environment & Energy Daily October 19, 2010

In the arid rolling hills and grasslands of southeast Wyoming there is no surplus of groundwater to allocate, said Bern Hinckley, a hydrogeologist who runs a consulting firm in the …

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Before Deepwater Horizon Disaster – Wyomingites Had Key Roles in MMS

by Rone Tempest June 2, 2010

The federal agency cited for an overly “cozy relationship” with the energy industry, which may have contributed to the Deepwater Horizon drilling disaster, has enjoyed extensive Wyoming political and economic …

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Caps & Coal The Wyoming-California Connection

by WyoFile March 22, 2010

In the summer of 2008, Wyoming’s governor, Dave Freudenthal, went to California for meetings with state officials and utility executives. What he brought was, quite literally, a burning question.

California was …

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Big Piney CO2 Storage Pilot Nears OK

by Environment & Energy Daily February 7, 2010

Federal regulators are nearing approval of a natural gas development project in southwest Wyoming that would serve as a testing ground for new mineral extraction technology while becoming one of …

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Taxing The Wind – Governor Pushes First Statewide Production Levy

by Environment & Energy Daily February 1, 2010

Reprinted from ClimateWire with permission from Environment & Energy Publishing, LLC. www.eenews.net. 202/628-6500
By Debra Kahn, ClimateWire
Wyoming Gov. Dave Freudenthal (D) is determined to levy a production tax on wind power …

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State Oil and Gas Regulators Are Spread Too Thin to Do Their Jobs

by ProPublica January 7, 2010

by Abrahm Lustgarten, ProPublica – December 30, 2009 12:38 pm EST

Larry Parrish knew something was wrong as soon as he wheeled his state-owned pickup off the West Virginia highway …

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Tilting at Windmills: Strange Politics of Wyoming Wind Power

by WyoFile December 22, 2009

by Jonathan Thompson/High Country News
I first see the turbines as I speed along I-25 near Glenrock, Wyo., clutching the steering wheel as I try to avoid being swatted into oblivion …

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Underused Drilling Practices Could Avoid Pollution

by ProPublica December 14, 2009

As environmental concerns threaten to derail natural gas drilling projects across the country, the energy industry has developed innovative ways to make it easier to exploit the nation’s reserves without …

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