A coalition of New Jersey environmental groups is mobilizing opposition to a proposed liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility off the coast of Long Branch.
The Anti-LNG Coalition is composed of 129 environmental advocacy groups from New Jersey and New York, led by Clean Ocean Action (COA).
The coalition has been formed to block Port Ambrose, an LNG project proposed by Liberty Natural Gas, Jersey City, that is pending approval by the U.S. Maritime Administration.
Members of the coalition say the facility would have devastating effects on marine life as well as air and water quality, and set the stage for the export of U.S. natural gas.
“We have two active Coast Guard stations here; several fishing areas; and wildlife migration routes, including [endangered whales]; and a proposed offshore wind area that would be interfered with directly,” said Cassandra Ornell, staff scientist for COA. “Construction of the pipeline proposed … would involve dredging of the sea floor, destruction of undersea habitats, smothering of bottom-dwelling species and increasing the turbidity of the water.”
The Anti-LNG Coalition met for the first time on Dec. 18 at the Unitarian Universalist Meetinghouse in Lincroft.
The groups are trying to mobilize public opposition prior to a Jan. 8 public hearing on the proposal in Eatontown.
“If you look at LNG over its life cycle, it is 40 percent more polluting than coal because LNG must be extracted, superchilled, compacted, transported and then re-gasified,” Ornell said.
Cindy Zipf, executive director of Sandy Hook-based COA, added that construction of the pipeline would not generate local jobs.
“This is not a jobs opportunity. When it is done, there will be five permanent jobs with the pipeline, and the pipeline laying is not local jobs. They will bring in guys from the Gulf of Mexico who lay down underwater pipelines for a living,” she said. New Jersey Sierra Club Outreach Coordinator Nicole Dallara advocated for clean energy in place of the potentially dangerous operation.
“New Jersey has become a maze of pipelines. Some have been built, some have been proposed,” she said. “What is the worst that happens with something like a solar farm? You have a cloudy day. When you have an LNG pipeline, you could have a spill or an explosion. I think we need to all come together and fight these projects, both on land and offshore.”
Environment New Jersey Director Doug O’Malley agreed, citing the rise in solar energy farms across the state.
“Less than five years ago, we had five solar installations in the state. Now we have 30,000,” said O’Malley, speaking for the Long Branch-based group. “One-third of the nation has been going solar over the past few years. The potential for clean energy to take off is upon us, and if we continue to double-down on fossil fuels, it will be a lot harder to make that transition.”
Ornell said concerned residents can visit www.cleanoceanaction.org for information on Port Ambrose, as well as sign a petition addressed to Gov. Chris Christie urging him to veto the project. Christie vetoed a similar proposal by Liberty Natural Gas in 2011.
John Weber, Surfrider Foundation Mid- Atlantic regional manager, said residents can email Christie about the proposal via actnow.surfrider.org. Surfrider is also arranging transportation from the Long Branch train station for residents who want to attend the Jan 8 public hearing that will be hosted by the Army Corps of Engineers.
The Port Ambrose deepwater port came one step closer to approval Dec. 16 when the U.S. Coast Guard and MARAD released a draft environmental impact statement (EIS), initiating a 60-day public comment period at the end of which the Maritime Administration will render a final determination approving, denying or conditionally approving the facility.
The impact statement suggests adverse affects to marine life, air quality, transportation, oceanography and other considerations would be relatively minor, and offers mitigation suggestions to limit potential impacts.
“We are very pleased that the United States Coast Guard’s Draft Environmental Impact Statement … for Port Ambrose supports the project design, location and fundamental need,” Liberty Natural Gas CEO Roger Whelan said. “The [draft EIS] confirms the truth about this offshore natural gas supply project and confirms that our proposal constitutes no significant environmental or security risk to the region.”
But environmentalists say the project involves risk and would increase dependence on fossil fuels.
“The risks associated with LNG are many. From a climate perspective, we worry that LNG enables the spread of fracking,” Patrick Robbins of the Sane Energy Project and Anti-LNG Coalition, said in an interview, referring to the process of extracting natural gas from shale.
“Fracking releases methane gas, which is, over a 20-year time period, more than 80 times more potent a greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide. From a climate perspective, that concerns us very much.”
But Roddy Bachman, a member of the U.S. Coast Guard’s Deepwater Ports Standards Division, said the concerns about fracking are overblown and the facility would likely not be used for export.
“It’s in writing by the Maritime Administration that a conversion to any deepwater port from import to export would require a whole new application, application fees and environmental analysis,” Bachman said.
The Port Ambrose facility would be designed to transport an annual average of 400 million cubic feet per day, according to the Coast Guard’s statement.
Christie and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo have the executive authority to veto the proposal. Under federal regulations, any state within 15 miles of a proposed deepwater port has veto power over such a project.
Following the veto, Liberty Natural Gas submitted a modified proposal, which was ultimately withdrawn in April 2012 after backlash from the public. The most recent application, which has been delayed a number of times, was filed in September 2013.
Two public information sessions will be hosted by the Army Corps of Engineers to provide a forum for stakeholders to raise concerns and ask questions.
The New Jersey public hearing is scheduled for 4:30-8 p.m. Jan. 8 at the Sheraton in Eatontown.