Stories by Scott McNally

Scott McNally is a consultant on green energy development and carbon policy, working for energy companies across the United States and Canada. Scott formerly worked on energy policy for the State of North Dakota, the U.S. Department of Energy (ARPA-E), the White House Council on Environmental Quality, and was previously an engineer at Shell Oil Company. Scott holds a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Texas at Austin, an M.S. in Energy Resources Engineering from Stanford University, and a Master's in Public Policy from Harvard University. Scott can be reached at scottmcnally@gmail.com

Energy

Better Than a Carbon Tax? An Option That Reduces More but Hurts Less

We should treat a carbon tax like a speeding ticket

March 22, 2017 — Scott McNally

Guest Post: Exploding Oil Trains - Should we worry about the train or its cargo?

If you haven't seen the video of the train carrying Bakken crude oil exploding, it is quite an impressive and scary sight. Fortunately, in the Casselton, ND incident, nobody was hurt by the explosion...

September 21, 2014 — Scott McNally

Sustainability

Stanford Divests from Coal—Good Choice or Bad Call?

Stanford University will stop investing in coal companies after its Board of Trustees voted in support of eliminating direct investments in publically traded companies that mine coal for electricity generation...

May 7, 2014 — Scott McNally

Sustainability

Guest Post: Waterless Fracking?

Propane Fracking vs. Water Fracking: Which is better (worse)? With all the negative attention surrounding hydraulic fracturing, a process that stimulates shale plays but requires the use of millions of gallons of water, it is no surprise that companies are looking at alternatives...

October 10, 2012 — Scott McNally

Sustainability

Guest Post: Oil and Gas An American Jobs Producer?

The U.S. national unemployment rate is 8.2%. That is pretty high. But one thing is clear: states that produce oil and gas, on average, are in significantly better shape than those that don’t...

July 19, 2012 — Scott McNally

Sustainability

Guest Post: End Oil Subsidies? The $4 Billion Question

By now, you have probably heard the call by democrats and environmentalists to “end the $4 billion in subsidies for big oil.”The five major oil companies that have a significant presence in the United States - Exxon, Chevron, Shell, BP and Conoco - are some of the biggest businesses in America, and have some of the highest gross profits of all U.S...

February 21, 2012 — Scott McNally

Sustainability

Guest Post: Rick Santorum and Climate Change

How to Explain Climate Change to a SkepticRick Santorum has recently described climate change as a hoax – a bunch of “bogus” science that tries to make nature’s normal “boom and bust” cycle into something man-made...

February 16, 2012 — Scott McNally

Sustainability

Guest Post: Why Obama Rejected Keystone XL

Keystone XL should be approved. It is an economic, geopolicitcal, and even an environmental no-brainer, but it was still rejected. Why? Many are claiming that President Obama was swayed by the protestors outside the White House, or by environmental groups, or that he just hates oil and doesn’t want to create jobs...

February 1, 2012 — Scott McNally

Sustainability

Guest Post: Shale Gas - The Low Carbon Option?

It may be surprising to hear that hydraulic fracturing is not the cause of water contamination , but what may be even more surprising is that shale gas produced using fracking may have lower life cycle greenhouse gas emissions than conventional gas.According to a recent Environmental Science and Technology report, “shale gas life-cycle [greenhouse gas] emissions are 6% lower than conventional natural gas”There are several reasons why shale gas could have lower greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, but perhaps the most significant reason is that multiple horizontal wells (used when tapping shale gas) can be drilled from a single well pad...

January 27, 2012 — Scott McNally

Guest Post: Water Contamination – Fracking is not the problem

With the current negative attention and controversy surrounding shale gas drilling, the words `hydraulic fracturing' or `fracking' have become synonymous with something else: water contamination...

January 25, 2012 — Scott McNally