The Biden administration is contemplating an overhaul of the way federal agencies approve massive natural gas export projects to allow for consideration what the climate impact of those facilities would be, according to an environmental advocacy source familiar with the plans.
The overhaul would effectively pause the federal approval process for a massive and controversial gas export project known as CP2, the source said – a facility that is being proposed for the southwest Louisiana coast, as well as other natural gas projects that are pending federal approval.
The administration’s potential change in posture on these facilities comes as President Joe Biden gears up for a tough reelection campaign, seeking to win the support of young, climate-minded voters. Environmental groups have recently turned their focus to the surge of new and planned fossil fuel infrastructure along the Gulf Coast – and the Biden administration’s role in approving it.
The administration is considering a broad overhaul of how the Department of Energy makes so-called public interest determinations – a key step needed to approve liquified natural gas facilities. This could include updating how the administration determines climate impacts of these projects, modernizing and updating the climate impact considerations, and considering the full upstream and downstream life cycle impacts of these projects, the source said.
The Energy Department, which is responsible for making public interest determinations as one step in the approval process, has never rejected a proposed natural gas project on these grounds.
The White House declined to comment. The Department of Energy did not return CNN’s request for comment. The New York Times and Bloomberg also reported the administration is considering changes to how it approves natural gas projects.
Natural gas is big…
Read the full article here
Leave a Reply