USA: Environmental Groups Oppose Cove Point LNG Export Terminal

An unprecedented coalition of concerned citizens — from business leaders to watermen to environmentalists — announced its opposition Tuesday to a proposed $3.8 billion liquefied natural gas (LNG) export facility on the Chesapeake Bay in Calvert County, Maryland.

Standing outside the Public Service Commission office in downtown Baltimore, the group declared its intention to challenge an upcoming series of federal, state and local permits needed by Virginia-based Dominion Resources before it can begin construction. Against a backdrop of posters saying “No LNG Exports on Chesapeake Bay,” they unveiled a letter signed by more than 120 groups urging Governor Martin O’Malley to stand with them against the project, given the great harm it could inflict on Maryland communities, the climate and the Chesapeake Bay.

Coalition members said Governor O’Malley should, as a minimum first step, demand that the federal government prepare a full Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) that carefully considers the implications of building an LNG export terminal on the Chesapeake Bay. Much to the dismay of local citizens, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has indicated that it will only prepare an Environmental Assessment, which is a far less detailed impact review.

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Source: CCAN, September 19, 2013