CHEVRON SHAREHOLDER PROPOSAL:
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HYDRUALIC FRACTURING OPERATIONS | Symbol: CVX | |
Lead Filer: Green Century Capital Management and the Sisters of St. Francis along with over 15 cofilers |
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Hydraulic fracturing and related operations result in significant environmental and social impacts, which are contributing to increased community opposition.
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Chevron’s shareholders face significant financial risks due to tightening state and federal regulations including bans and moratoria.
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Expectations around disclosure are shifting rapidly and companies and regulators are responding.
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Chevron does not provide investors with sufficient information to determine of the company is mitigating the risks associated with fracturing operations.
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This is not a solicitation of authority to vote your proxy. Please DO NOT send us your proxy card; Green Century Capital Management is not able to vote your proxies, nor does this communication contemplate such an event. Green Century Capital Management urges shareholders to vote for Item number 8 following the instruction provided on the management’s proxy mailing. |
TABLE OF CONTENTS
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BACKGROUND ON HYDRAULIC FRACTURING
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BACKGROUND ON INVESTOR CAMPAIGN
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CHEVRON RELIES HEAVILY ON HYDRAULIC FRACTURING TO PRODUCE NATURAL GAS
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1. |
HYDRAULIC FRACTURING OPERATIONS RESULT IN SIGNIFICANT ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIAL IMPACTS, WHICH ARE CONTRIBUTING TO INCREASED COMMUNITY OPPOSITION
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ENFORCEMENT ACTIONS
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In May 2011, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) levied a record-breaking $1.1 million dollar fine on Chesapeake Energy for alleged violations related to its fracturing operations.10
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In June 2010, a blowout at an EOG well reportedly spewed gas and wastewater for 16 hours and was described by the Pennsylvania DEP as an event that posed “a serious threat to life and property.”11 In response, the company was forced to shut down its operations in Pennsylvania for 40 days and pay $353,400 in fines.12
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In August 2010, the Pennsylvania DEP fined Atlas Resources over $97,000 “for allowing used hydraulic fracturing fluids to overfill a wastewater pit and contaminate a high-quality watershed.”13
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According to media reports, Range Resources faced enforcement actions twice in 2009 for spills of hydraulic fracturing fluids. In October 2009, the Company faced a $23,500 fine after it spilled close to 5000 gallons of water including fracturing fluids into a protected watershed that was a rich fish habitat. In another case, Range spilled more than 10,000 gallons of wastewater and as a result, there was a substantial fish kill and significant clean-up was required.14
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Cabot Oil & Gas Corporation has experienced significant problems with its natural gas wells and hydraulic fracturing operations. In September 2009, Pennsylvania ordered Cabot Oil & Gas to shut down all hydraulic fracturing operations in Susquehanna County. 15
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In April 2010, in an effort to protect the residents of Dimock Township affected by gas migration from company wells, Pennsylvania ordered Cabot Oil & Gas to pay a $240,000 fine, install water treatment systems in 14 homes where drinking water was contaminated and barred the company from drilling any new wells in the township for a year.16
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In December 2010, Cabot Oil & Gas agreed in a settlement with Pennsylvania DEP to pay $4.1 million to residents in Dimock Pennsylvania alleging that the company contaminated their water supply, and to reimburse the state $500,000 for investigative expenses.17 The company still faces private lawsuits related to contaminated wells in the town.
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WATER-RELATED IMPACTS
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QUANTITY OF WATER USED
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LITIGATION RISKS FROM ALLEGED WATER CONTAMINATION
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According to analysis done by Sedgwick LLP in September 2011, over three dozen fracking-related lawsuits had been filed, ten of which were class action suits.21
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In December 2010, two lawsuits were filed in federal court alleging that Chesapeake Energy and Encana Oil & Gas operations contaminated property owners’ water wells.22
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In September 2010, 13 families in Pennsylvania sued Southwestern Energy alleging that their drinking water was contaminated by the company’s drilling operations.23
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In Colorado several years ago, EnCana reached a reportedly multi-million dollar settlement with a private landowner and was fined $266,000 by regulators for release of gas production waste and failure to protect water bearing formations.24
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IMPACTS OF CHEMICAL ADDITIVES
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AIR IMPACTS:
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A recent report from the Colorado School of Public Health documented that air emissions near fracking sites could pose health risks to individuals living in the surrounding communities. According to the lead author of the report, “Our data shows that it is important to include air pollution in the national dialogue on natural gas development that has focused largely on water exposures to hydraulic fracturing.”26
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In Utah’s sparsely-populated Uintah Basin, “ozone levels spiked above federal limits 26 times…in the first three months of 2011…and have even exceeded those of famously smoggy Los Angeles.”27
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In Colorado, air emissions from oil and gas operations were found to be contributing as much as 97% of the smog-forming compounds from stationary sources in some Colorado counties.28
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In addition to smog-forming pollutants, natural gas extraction emits other air contaminants that can affect human health, such as benzene and other volatile organic compounds. In April 2011, the Earthworks Oil and Gas Accountability Project, an NGO, released a report entitled Flowback – How the Texas Natural Gas Boom Affects Health and Safety.29 The report includes a study on air pollutants and health issues In a Texas town called Dish. Residents of Dish live near natural gas facilities (wells, compressors, pipelines) located in the Barnett Shale. In 2009, air sampling revealed hazardous pollution – including benzene and related compounds – in the town at levels exceeding state safety guidelines. Further testing found many of these same contaminants in residents’ blood. Wilma Subra, a chemist on the board of the organization Earthworks, said, “What is most revealing is that the community is reporting health symptoms that overlap significantly with the known health effects of chemicals already detected.”30 While companies contend this research was flawed, these kinds of reports contribute to increased unease from surrounding communities.
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In July 2011, Global Community Monitor, an NGO, released a report Gassed – Citizen investigation of toxic air pollution from natural gas development. The report found that in Northwest New Mexico, the switch from drilling for oil to drilling for natural gas has brought more severe and more frequent odor incidents causing health effects in communities. Residents commonly report headaches, nausea, dizziness, and nose, eye and throat irritation during odor events.31
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SOCIAL IMPACTS
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INCREASED CRIME
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“In Pennsylvania’s Bradford County, DUI arrests by state troopers are on track to rise 40 percent this year after climbing 60 percent last year…the number of sentences handed out for criminal offenses was up 35 percent in 2010…Sheriff Clinton Walters said his officers are handling about a 25 percent increase from last year in everything from warrants for people who fail to appear in court to protection-from-abuse orders. This flood of arrests is such that his office’s van is no longer big enough to transport all the inmates at once from jail to court…”35
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“In Sweetwater County, Wyo., where natural gas exploration boomed about a decade ago, the population increased from 37,600 in 2000 to 43,800 in 2010, and arrests for drunkenness, drugs and DUI more than doubled from 603 in 2000 to a peak of 1,535 in 2008, according to state figures.”36
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SKYROCKETING RENTS
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Tioga County, Pennsylvania, is smack in the middle of the drilling boom. The influx of gas-industry workers has resulted in skyrocketing rents which is increasing instances of homelessness. Dana Augustine, a waitress at a local café, was concerned because “she’d gotten the word that her land lord will be doubling the rent sometime soon and her mother already had to move when her lease expired and the rent rose from $675 to $1,700.”37 In light of such significant increases in rent, it is not surprising that there has been a significant uptick in homelessness in the region. According to the vice president of a local shelter program who doubles as the county’s part-time housing specialist, she has seen a dramatic increase in the number of families affected. “She’s seen 134 families in her office this year, up from 17 percent in 2008. She estimates 75 percent of Tioga residents with nowhere to live were displaced by gas workers.”38
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INCREASED TRUCK TRAFFIC
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2. |
CHEVRON SHAREHOLDERS FACE SIGNIFICANT FINANCIAL RISKS DUE TO TIGHTENING REGULATIONS INCLUDING BANS AND MORATORIA.
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STATE AND LOCAL ACTIONS
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New York: New York State is revising its guidelines related to hydraulic fracturing and vocal and politically well connected support for increased protections has emerged. New York City’s drinking watershed lies under a portion of the Marcellus shale. Currently, the state is under a defacto moratoria while regulations are finalized.
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Updated draft regulations were issued in September 2011 and the public comment period closed in January 2012, after an “unprecedented turnout” at hearings; final rules are expected soon.42 While regulations are winding through the state process, more than 70 cities, towns and counties in New York have enacted various rules and restrictions, and in some cases bans.43
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In February 2012, the New York State Supreme Court affirmed that two local governments had the authority to prohibit natural gas drilling within their borders.44
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Maryland: In June 2011, the state announced it would conduct a comprehensive study on the implications of natural gas drilling. Permits will not be approved before the completion of the study in 2014.
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Pennsylvania: Between March 2010 and September 2011 over 100 municipalities in the state, including Pittsburgh, enacted ordinances to restrict or limit hydraulic fracturing operations.45
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New Jersey: The state has a one-year ban on drilling, though this action is largely ceremonial since there are not significant quantities of gas in the New Jersey, though it is a voting member of the Delaware River Basin Commission discussed below.46
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Texas:
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Flower Mound, TX
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In this city, citizen pressure resulted in a 6-month moratorium (effective in June 2010) on pipelines and centralized waste facilities, and a 90-day ban on drilling permits and gas production. The Council created a committee to advise Flower Mound on how gas drilling should be regulated.47 In September 2010, the council extended the moratoriums for another 45 days to allow the town's Oil and Gas Advisory Board time to complete a review of oil and gas ordinances.48 The moratoriums were extended again until July 2011, when a new ordinance took effect. The new oil and gas rules required 1,500-foot setbacks from residences, monitoring requirements such as water well testing, pre- and post-drilling soil sampling, air quality monitoring, the establishment of noise limits, and numerous other stipulations to reduce the impact on Flower Mound residents during gas drilling, hydraulic fracturing and production.49
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Southlake, TX
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The city of Southlake adopted a 180-day moratorium on new gas drilling permits. In June 2011 the council extended the moratorium for another 120 days. The oil and gas ordinance that was created during the moratorium period requires a 1000-foot setback from habitable structures and from the property line of schools and hospitals, prohibits earthen drilling pits, requires low toxicity drilling fluids, bans fracturing fluid waste ponds within city limits, bans drilling in environmentally sensitive areas,50 and the ordinance was later amended to prohibit hydraulic fracturing during the summer months.51 Southlake’s restrictions on fracking operations, according to media reports, have had a significant impact on companies operating in the region.
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State
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Communities
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Boroughs/
Township/Counties
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Other
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California
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· Berkeley
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Colorado
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· Colorado Springs
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· Commerce City53
· Longmont
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· Boulder County
· El Paso County54
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Maryland
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· Mountain Lake Park
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Michigan
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· Detroit
· Ferndale
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· Wayne County
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New Jersey
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· Bethlehem
· Byram
· Clinton
· Closter
· Highland Park
· Holland
· New Brunswick
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· Readington
· Red Bank
· Secaucus
· Stillwater
· Trenton
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· Clinton Township
· Delaware Township
· Franklin Township
· Princetown Township
· Princeton Borough
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· State-wide moratorium on fracking activity in the state.55
· Musconetcong River Management Council
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New York
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· Albany
· Alfred
· Andes
· Auburn
· Augusta
· Barrington
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· Geneva
· Gorham
· Highland
· Ithaca Town
· Ithaca City
· Jerusalum
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· Otsego Town
· Otisco
· Paris
· Rensselaerville
· Rome
· Saugerties
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· Cayuga County
· Cortland County
· Onondaga County
· Ontario County
· Putnam County
· Rockland County
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· Canandaigua Lake Watershed Association
· New York State
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· Benton
· Binghamton
· Buffalo
· Brighton
· Camillus
· Canadaigua
· Cherry Valley
· Cochecton
· Cooperstown
· Cortlandville
· Conesus
· Danby
· Dewitt
· Dryden
· Elbridge
· Fabius
· Freeville
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· Kirkland
· Lebanon
· Livonia
· Lumberland
· Marshall
· Marcellus
· Middlefield
· Middlesex
· Milford Town
Milo Town
· Naples Village
· New Hartford
· New Lisbon
· New York City
· Niles
· Oneota
· Onondaga Town
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· Sharon
· Skaneateles
· South Brisol
· Spafford
· Springfields
· Syracuse
· Torrey
Tully
Tusten
· Utica
· Ulysses
· Virgil
· Vernon
· Wales Town
· Westmoreland
· West Bloomfield
· Whitesboro
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· Sullivan County
Tompkins County
· Ulster County
· Westchester County
· Yates County
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N. Carolina
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· Creedmoor
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Ohio
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· Amesville
· Athens
· Burton
· Canal Fulton
· Canton
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· Columbiana
· Garrettsville
· Girard
· Hartville
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· Munroe Falls
· North Canton
· Yellow Springs
· Youngstown
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· Hinckley Township
· Medina Township
· Plain Township
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Pennsylvania
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· Baldwin
· Easton
· Forest Hills
· Harveys Lake
· Murraysville
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· New Hope
· Philadelphia
· Phoenixville
· Pittsburgh
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· South Fayette (ban)56
· W. Homestead
· Wilkinsburg
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· Media Borough
· State College Borough
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· Buckingham Township Civic Association
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Texas
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· Bartonville
· Dallas57
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· Denton58
· Flower Mound
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· Grand Prairie59
· South Lake60
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West Virginia
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· Lewisburg
· Morgantown (overturned)
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Wellsburg
(repealed)
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· Pocahontas County Free Libraries
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Wyoming
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· Bridger-Teton National Forest
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Virginia
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· Staunton
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· Shenandoah County
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REGIONAL ACTION—THE DELAWARE RIVER BASIN COMMISSION
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INTERNATIONAL ACTION
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CANADA: In March 2011, the Province of Quebec instituted a de facto ban on hydraulic fracturing pending review by a committee appointed by the Province’s Environmental Minister to determine if shale gas could be extracted in the region without impacting the environment. In April 2012, the committee recommended that the minister should not allow hydraulic fracturing even for research purposes.61
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FRANCE: In response to the potential environmental damage the process poses, the country has a nationwide ban in place. In October, President Sarkozy stated that “Development of hydrocarbon resources underground is strategic for our country but not at any price. This won’t be done until it has been shown that technologies used for development respect the environment…”62
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BULGARIA: In January 2012, Bulgaria banned hydraulic fracturing and suspended Chevron’s license to explore for shale gas in the country.63
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ROMANIA: In Mach 2012, the Romanian government granted Chevron three licenses to explore and develop shale gas in the country. Since that time thousands of people have mobilized in opposition and according to media reports, one municipality “has started a campaign to collect signatures to support a legislative initiative to ban extraction of the unconventional gas.”64
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SOUTH AFRICA: The Government has stopped licensing fracking permits in the Karoo region while it reviews the potential impacts on the issue.65
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IRELAND: In January 2012, the Clare County Council became the first local authority to ban fracking in the country. 66
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IMPACT OF BANS AND MORATORIA
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According to media sources, both ExxonMobil and Chesapeake Energy were financially affected by the restrictions in Southlake TX.
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In May 2011 the Dallas Morning News reported that “The anti-drilling movement is beginning to have an effect on the natural gas industry, which has had to slow down and even cancel some projects. XTO Energy, owned by Exxon Mobil Corp., halted plans to drill in Southlake, and after paying millions of dollars to lease city land, now must wait for Dallas to rewrite drilling ordinances.”67
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After the ordinance passed, Chesapeake reportedly sent out a letter to leaseholders stating the following: “The City of Southlake recently approved a new municipal ordinance regulating natural gas operation within the city limits. As a direct result of that ordinance, Chesapeake will not be seeking any permit approvals and will allow the last of our nearly 1,400 leases in Southlake to expire.”68 Clearly, this move has had a significant impact on Chesapeake’s operations.
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Royal Dutch Shell has estimated 40% of its New York acreage could be off-limits because of potential state rules.69
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In late October 2009, in the face of the massive public controversy about its plans to engage in drilling and hydraulic fracturing near the New York City watershed, Chesapeake Energy, reportedly the only company to hold leases within that watershed, announced it would “voluntarily” refrain from drilling within the boundary. 70
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Companies in New York State are exercising the “right” of force majeure, or “an unforeseen event that hinders the terms of the contract” to extend leases.71 This is not a popular move and companies are facing two class action lawsuits in federal court representing 300 landowners.72
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Determining the impact of the DRBC defacto moratorium has been very difficult. According to media reports, two companies operating in the region affected by the moratorium had “put their lease contracts on hold, citing a ‘force majeure’ clause that allows such suspensions because of regulation outside the ‘normal and ordinary course of business.’"73 According to other media reports the companies had invested more than $100 million into the leases before putting them on hold.74
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In response to the commission’s draft regulations, Chris Tucker, a spokesperson for Energy In Depth, a pro-drilling association said, “Unfortunately, while a lot of the words in here sound good, a lot of the numbers sounds like a swift kick to the stomach. I’ve never seen bonding and fee requirements this high. They very well might prove prohibitive.”75
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EXPECTATIONS AROUND DISCLOSURE ARE SHIFTING AND REGULATORS AND COMPANIES ARE RESPONDING.
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STATE-LEVEL CALLS FOR INCREASED DISCLOSURE
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Arkansas
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Colorado
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Montana
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Pennsylvania
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Texas
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Wyoming
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FEDERAL EFFORTS TO INCREASE DISCLOSURE
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FRAC Act: In June 2009, the Fracturing Responsibility and Awareness of Chemicals Act—or FRAC Act—was introduced in Congress to reinstate the EPA’s authority to regulate hydraulic fracturing under the Safe Drinking Water Act.76 In March 2011, it was reintroduced in the House and Senate. Although it is not expected to move in the current congress, companies should acknowledge the potential for its future enactment.
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Congressional Committee Review: In February and May 2010 the U.S House Subcommittee on Energy and the Environment sent letters to a 14 companies involved in hydraulic fracturing asking for increased disclosure on the chemicals used in the fracturing process and their potential impacts on human health or the environment. In July 2010, the committee sent letters to ten oil and gas producers to obtain additional information. According to the committee, “[t]his investigation will help us better understand the potential risks this technology poses to drinking water supplies and the environment, and whether Congress needs to act to minimize those risks.”77
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Department of the Interior requirements: In February 2012 the Department of the Interior announced draft rules that would require natural gas companies to disclose the chemicals used in all fracturing operations on public lands. According to media reports the rules would require companies to disclose the “complete chemical makeup of all materials used.”78 According to the Secretary of the Interior, “those rules are common sense and if we do not move forward with that kind of program from the Department of the Interior, my own view is that the failure of disclosure and failure of giving the American people confidence that hydraulic fracturing will in fact work will end up being the Achilles heel of the energy promise of America.”79
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Environmental Protection Agency: Currently, the EPA is taking a close look at fracturing and plans draft rules requiring increased disclosure of the chemicals used in the process. In 2009, Congress requested that the EPA carry out a study on the “relationship between hydraulic fracturing and drinking water” and the Agency’s Science Advisory Board encouraged the use of a “life cycle approach.” In late 2011 the EPA announced its final research plan and confirmed that the initial research results and study findings will be released to the public in 2012 and the final report will be available in 2014.80 At the same time, in response to a petition filed by Earthjustice, the agency will use its authority under the Toxic Substances Control Act to require companies to provide increased disclosure on the chemicals used in the fracturing process.81
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CHEVRON DISCLOSURE IS INSUFFICIENT TO MITIGATE THE ASSOCIATED RISKS AND PROVIDE INVESTORS WITH SUFFICIENT INFORMATION.
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Analysis of Chevron’s Existing Reporting
Against the Guidelines of the Proposal
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Topic Requested in
Proposal
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Chevron Reporting
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Chevron Omissions
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Risk from any substantial community opposition or concerns
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For its U.S. assets, Chevron does not describe which operations are affected by community opposition, nor the long or short-term effects of that opposition, for instance whether assets may be idled or other costs imposed on the company.
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Government enforcement actions including allegations of violations
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No reporting
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Some violations have been disclosed in PA media and by the state’s DEP but violations in other states are unknown.
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Total aggregate government fines on an annual basis
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No reporting
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No aggregate disclosure of penalties.
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Facility shutdown orders, license suspensions or moratoriums on licensing, exploration or operations
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In its 10-K the company does acknowledge that its permits in Bulgaria were revoked after the country banned hydraulic fracturing.
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Proponents note that the company does provide some general information about the ban and the company’s response, but request more information on the financial impacts of this action.
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Communities where opposition is anticipated
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None identified
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No reporting on this topic.
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Financial or operational risks to particular operations, facilities and plans from proposed federal or state laws or regulations, including moratoriums
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In its 10-K the company does acknowledge that its permits in Bulgaria were revoked after the country banned hydraulic fracturing.
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Investors note the reference to the Bulgaria ban in the 10-K, but the company fails to disclose the financial impacts of this action, therefore it is impossible for investors to determine the implications on the company’s bottom line.
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Any limitations from regional water supply or waste disposal issues on operations or expansion
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Company does have a position statement on water and discloses that in its Marcellus operations, it is “working to capture and reuse 100 percent of produced water and fracturing fluids.” (emphasis added)
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This vague and general disclosure does not provide investors with sufficient information. For example, it is unclear to what extent the company is making progress toward this goal.
Furthermore, the company is silent on how it disposes of its waste water. s achieved this ogal eint ssociated with watis "orking to eps taken by the compan
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SUMMARY: The Company fails to satisfy the majority of information requests included in the proposal.
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CONCLUSION
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This is not a solicitation of authority to vote your proxy. Please DO NOT send us your proxy card; Green Century Capital Management is not able to vote your proxies, nor does this communication contemplate such an event. Green Century Capital Management urges shareholders to vote for Item number 8 following the instruction provided on the management’s proxy mailing. |