The week ahead: Obama shifting focus to energy with Chicago-area lab visit

President Obama will put energy in focus when he visits the Argonne National Laboratory on Friday.

Obama’s trip to the Chicago-area Energy Department (DOE) facility comes after he and aides met with energy experts and industry officials last Thursday.

Obama is juggling several key energy issues as he heads into that appearance. Gasoline prices have been increasing this year (though they fell last week), lobbying on the Keystone XL oil sands pipeline is intensifying and the Senate is already vetting some of his energy-related Cabinet picks.

The Senate Energy Committee questioned Sally Jewell, Obama’s choice to run the Interior Department, last Thursday.

Jewell, who is currently the chief executive for outdoor equipment retailer REI, has the backing of many industry and green groups.

But some Republicans weren’t ready to offer their support. Expect them to submit formal questions for Jewell throughout the week.

Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) who criticized Jewell’s work on the board of the National Parks Conservation Association, filed his questions last week, his office told The Hill.

And speculation will mount as to whether Obama’s recent picks to run DOE and the Environmental Protection Agency can pass muster with Republicans.

Wednesday will be a busy day for energy and environment on the Hill.

The House Natural Resources Committee will consider the reauthorization of a landmark federal fishing law during a Wednesday hearing.

The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act is set to expire at the end of fiscal 2013. The law established “catch share” fishing programs in federal waters that helped stomp out overfishing in an attempt to spur repopulation.

Catch shares cap the number of fish allowed to be caught in a given location, and allocates the percentage of that total to registered entities.

While many fishermen and environmentalists credit the fishery law with the resurgence of various fish populations, some commercial fishermen and recreational fishers say it’s too restrictive.

Also Wednesday, the House Energy and Commerce subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations will discuss security issues at the nation’s nuclear weapons complexes.

A breach last year at the Energy Department’s Y-12 National Security Complex is the catalyst for the hearing.

A DOE inspector general report on that incident, in which trespassers approached the complex undetected and defaced the building, cited major security culture flaws at the facility.

That has drawn attention from both Democrats and Republicans. They have expressed worry that DOE, which is responsible for safeguarding the nation’s nuclear weapons stockpile, is not doing enough to secure nuclear material.

Witnesses include Deputy Energy Secretary Daniel Poneman and Neile Miller, the acting administrator for the National Nuclear Security Administration, DOE’s nuclear weapons arm.

The House Science, Space and Technology subcommittee on Environment will take a look a federal support for energy technologies during a Wednesday hearing. The hearing will evaluate the costs and benefits for providing financial assistance to a slate of energy technology.

And on Thursday, the House Foreign Affairs subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere will convene a hearing on Keystone XL.

Officially, the hearing will focus on strengthening energy partnerships with Canada and Mexico, though it will include a strong Keystone component.

Witnesses include American Petroleum Institute CEO Jack Gerard and Institute for Energy Research President Thomas Pyle.

The House Natural Resources subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources on Thursday discuss the economic and jobs impacts of expanding energy production on federal lands.

Witnesses include Don Shilling, president of General Equipment & Supplies Inc., and Daniel Weiss, senior fellow and director of climate strategy with the Center for American Progress Action Fund.

Off Capitol Hill, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) will hold its Regulatory Information Conference in Bethesda, Md.

The three-day conference, which begins Tuesday, will delve into the impact the Fukushima Daiichi disaster in Japan has had on U.S. nuclear regulatory framework, innovations in nuclear reactor technology and other topics.

Speakers include NRC Chairwoman Allison Macfarlane and Commissioners William Magwood and William Ostendorff, among others.

China will be the focus of two events hosted by the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars.

On Wednesday, Chinese climate and environmental challenges will get a hard look. Xuedu Lu, adviser on climate change at the Asian Development Bank, will speak.

On Friday, experts will discuss the potential for shale gas in China. They’ll also consider how to encourage China to establish environmental safeguards for hydraulic fracturing, or fracking. Speakers include Briana Mordick, a staff scientist with the Natural Resources Defense Council, and Xizhou Zhou, IHS CERA director of the China energy practice.

Also Friday, the National Capital Area Chapter of the U.S. Association for Energy Economics will explore the costs and benefits of coal emissions control technology.

Ben Yamagata, executive director with the Coal Utilization Research Council, will lead the discussion.