Wrightway
While oil and gas lauds his victory, environmentalists fear what it means
Texas’ oil and gas industry hailed Republican James Wright’s election to the Texas Railroad Commission while environmental groups lamented Democrat Chrysta Castañeda’s loss as a setback in efforts to combat climate change.
In a race that gained national attention, Wright defeated Castañeda by 1million votes Tuesday, winning 53 percent, for a seat on the three-member commission that oversees the state’s oil and gas industry.
“Texans have spoken. Our state is not for sale to radical liberals from New York and California,” Wright said in a statement early Wednesday. “Texas will determine its own energy future, and that is a future that includes an all-of-the-above approach led by fossil fuels. Together we will find newways to improve our climate and environment.”
Todd Staples, the president of the Texas Oil and Gas Association, on Wednesday welcomed Wright to the commission.
“Texas oil and natural gas leads in resource development, creating jobs and supporting economic growth while taking every step to protect the environment,” Staples said in a statement. “Commissioner-Elect Jim Wright knows this, and we are confident that as a Railroad Commissioner he will continue to embrace science-based regulation and foster an environment that encourages investment and innovation.”
Democrats had high hopes this year of breaking the decadeslong grip Republicans had over the Railroad Commission, the state’s oldest regulatory agency.
Wright, an oil and gas businessman and political newcomer who upset oneterm in cumbent Ryan Sitton in the March primary, was seen as a vulnerable candidate. Commissioners run statewide cam-
paigns and serve six-year terms as full-time executives, earning $141,000 a year.
The race for railroad commissioner drew outsize attention this year as an important election in a battleground state and one with national environmental implications.
Last month, billionaire Michael Bloomberg, a former New York mayor and Democratic presidential hopeful, poured $2.6 million into Castañeda’s campaign. The Sierra Club also contributed tens of thousands more to the Dallasarea lawyer and engineer.
Castañeda had positioned herself as an environmentally conscious candidate, promising to ride herd on the industry and rein in flaring and venting, in which producers release, or burn off cheap natural gas during supply gluts or when pipelines are at capacity.
The practice, which contributes to atmospheric warming, has skyrocketed in Texas since the fracking boom.
“I think the oil and gas industry has taken note ofmy flaring reduction message
and the importance of the environment to Texas voters,” Castañeda said Wed
nesday. “I hope the industry will improve its efforts to eliminate routine flaring and reduce greenhouse gas emissions as quickly as possible. I’m proud to have served in getting that message out.”
By contrast, Wright campaigned as more of an industry ally, a strong probusiness candidate who promised to protect private property interests.
His position paper on the petroleum industry’s challenges didn’t mention climate change. He received large contributions from oil and gas interests regulated by the commission — a long tradition that has been criticized as skewing the regulatory agency’s decisions in favor of the industry.
Wright also has had runins with the agency he is seeking to join. In 2017, he was fined $180,000 for permitting and environmental violations.
In 2016, the Texas Sunset Advisory Commission, which evaluates state agencies every decade or so, recommended the Railroad Commission change its name to the more descriptive Texas Energy Resources Commission.
“The agency’s outdated name misleads the public and continues to impede the agency’s efforts to be more transparent,” the Sunset Commission wrote.
But the petroleum industry opposed the change, and the name stuck.
Robin Schneider, executive director for the Texas Campaign for the Environment, said Castañeda would have brought more transparency to the state agency and pushed for more public input on environmental issues such as flaring and abandoned oil and gas wells.
Despite the loss, Schneider said she took heart in Castañeda’s campaign, which elevated the commissioners race to a national stage and shined a light on environmental issues facing the oil and gas industry.
“Her race really educated lots and lots of people in Texas and beyond about the importance of this agency and the problem of methane emissions and other types of pollution,” Schneider said. “Unfortunately, having (an) R next to your name is still your best ticket to victory in this state.”