The National Resources and Defense Council in partnership with David Gardiner & Associates published the 6th edition of the Fighting Oil Addition: Ranking States’ Gasoline Price Vulnerability and Solutions for Change report last month.

The study identifies those states whose citizens are most impacted by gasoline prices as well as states that are doing the most to break their oil addiction. The report uses two indicators to provide state rankings, gasoline price vulnerability, and adoption of smart solutions to reduce oil dependence. Among its conclusions, the research finds that few states are taking significant steps to reduce oil dependence.

To read the report in its entirety, visit http://bit.ly/NRDC6thFOA.

As part of our commitment to providing support for pressing environmental issues, The Horinko Group has published two new fact sheets that outline Market-Based Resource Solutions. The fact sheets focus on two sectors of interest for The Horinko Group: Water-Energy-Waste and Public Private Partnerships (P3).

Click here to download the Water-Energy-Waste Sectors: Integrating Market Systems and Environmental Solutions fact sheet.

Click here to download the Financing Water Infrastructure through Public-Private Partnerships fact sheet.

Earlier this month, The Horinko Group’s Marianne Horinko and Brendan McGinnis traveled to Oklahoma City, OK to kick-off the Mentoring Environment and Energy Together (MEET) Mentor-Protégé Program. 

The mentoring program aims to provide personal professional growth and environmental/energy education for young professionals in the greater Oklahoma City area.

Initial meetings included presentations by Ms. Horinko and Mark Stansberry, Chairman of The GTG Group on the next four years of energy, environment, and politics.  Participants also visited a Devon Energy drilling and hydraulic fracturing well site.

This effort builds on THG’s release of its comprehensive white paper on the current and future environmental, regulatory, and legal issues tied to horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing.

To download the report in its entirety, visit http://bit.ly/THGHF2012.

The Horinko Group has released the proceedings from its Fourth Annual Summit, The Next Generation of Environmental Compliance and Enforcement.

Government, industry, and academic leaders weighed in at The Horinko Group’s Fourth Annual Summit on the challenges that surround environmental compliance and enforcement and what the next generation may look like. 

A lively discussion ensued, delving into subjects including technology and compliance, rule clarity, case selection, and innovative approaches to enforcement in light of resource scarcity. 

Proceedings from the keynote speeches, panel presentations, and discussion sessions can now be downloaded on our website.

Click here to download the 2012 Fourth Annual Summit Proceedings.

In an article entitled, The Art of the Possible in Energy and Environment Policy, National Journal’s Energy and Environment reporter Amy Harder asks whether the results of the 2012 election pave the way for Washington to achieve bipartisan energy and environment policies. 

A range of responses submitted by environmental leaders in government, think tanks, trade associations, NGOs and academia, discuss issue areas from climate change to natural gas to renewables and make a wide variety of predictions and recommendations taking into account the political challenges, opportunities and need for bipartisan cooperation.

To read the article in its entirety, visit http://bit.ly/NJEEBart.

At the request of the U.S. intelligence community, the National Research Council recently conducted a study to assess the impacts of climate change on social and political stresses. In an 18-month study, researchers investigated possible connections between climate and national security concerns and attempted to identify ways to better equip the intelligence community to take climate change into account in their assessments going forward.

Among many lines of research, the study focused on security risks that may arise in situations where the consequences of droughts, heat waves, or storms exceed the capacity of a country or population to cope with such an event and potentially drive migration across international borders. The study makes numerous recommendations on how to proceed given the current and not nearly well enough understood link between climate events and security outcomes.

To read the full report, visit http://bit.ly/NAPBECScssisa.

Prepared by The Horinko Group
Fall 2012

The Hydraulic Fracturing guidebook is a content-rich white paper that focuses on the current and future environmental, regulatory, and legal issues tied to hydraulic fracturing. This report provides an overview of the history, economics, and resource availability of natural gas drilling using unconventional techniques. Environmental concerns, current and pending regulations on the state and federal level, and the current status and implications for legal proceedings are thoroughly investigated.

The Horinko Group prepared this guidebook to serve as the foundation for a coalition on responsible natural gas development that will work to ensure the continued growth of the industry, while protecting our shared environment.

Click here to download a PDF copy of the report or preview it below.

USDA’s Economic Research Service recently released a report entitled, Water Conservation in Irrigated Agriculture: Trends and Challenges in the Face of Emerging Demands. This report relies on findings from several national surveys and current literature to assess water resource use and conservation measures within the U.S. irrigated crop sector.

U.S. agriculture accounts for 80-90 percent of the Nation’s consumptive water use (water lost to the environment by evaporation, crop transpiration, or incorporation into products). Expanding water demands to support population and economic growth, environmental flows (water within wetlands, rivers, and groundwater systems needed to maintain natural ecosystems), and energy-sector growth, combined with Native American water-right claims and supply/demand shifts expected with climate change, will present new challenges for agricultural water use and conservation, particularly for the 17 Western States that account for nearly three-quarters of U.S. irrigated agriculture.

To download the report in its entirety, visit http://bit.ly/USDAers-wcia.

For Release: September 13, 2012
info@thehorinkogroup.org

Washington, DC, September 13, 2012 – The Horinko Group is pleased to announce the appointment of Mark Heaney of AlterEcho to the newly created position of Senior Advisor for Regulation & Policy.

Mr. Heaney brings more than two decades of federal and state regulatory consulting expertise to The Horinko Group. He is the Vice President and Principal in Charge at AlterEcho, a nationwide environmental management and consulting firm. In his role as Senior Advisor, Mr. Heaney will bolster The Horinko Group’s ability to provide thorough and up-to-date knowledge of environmental policies and regulations to clients across private and public sectors.

Marianne Horinko, President of the Horinko Group, states, “We could not be more enthusiastic to be bringing Mr. Heaney on board. His practice with the complexities and nuances of environmental regulations as well as his experience with innovative problem solving will be a wonderful asset to our team.”

“More and more, clients face tremendous challenges in navigating the maze of complex and evolving environmental rules and regulations,” Mr. Heaney says. “I’m looking forward to giving clients the knowledge and support they need to tackle those challenges, while they move ahead in creating successful ventures that are responsive to today’s environmental needs.”

Prior to joining The Horinko Group, Mr. Heaney developed a wide range of regulatory expertise as a management consultant for A.T. Kearney and TechLaw, Inc. He has managed several contracts for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, focusing on issues such as hazardous waste management, environmental oversight and pollution prevention. He has worked with utilities, chemical manufacturers, medical waste companies, non-profit corporations and other organizations, assisting them in the development of best practices for regulatory compliance, policy development, sustainability and community outreach.

Mr. Heaney earned a Bachelor’s Degree in political science and environmental studies from Colgate University, and a Master’s Degree in Environmental Management from Long Island University.

The Executive Order released on September 10, 2012 affirms the Federal Government’s Gulf Coast ecosystem restoration efforts following the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and realigns responsibilities for these efforts. To this end, it announces the creation of the Gulf Coast Restoration Council, which will build upon the success and take over the functions of the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Task Force. The Task Force will be terminated following the creation of the Council.

The Executive Order supports the ongoing role of the Natural Resource Damage Assessment Trustee Council and names EPA and USDA as additional trustees for this council solely for efforts pertaining to damages resulting from the Deepwater Horizon Oil spill.

To read the full Executive Order, visit http://wh.gov/WOYw.