TWO HUGE WINS AND A LITTLE DISAPPOINTMENT
I tell ya, sometimes the stars line up in a big smiley face... The great news is that ConocoPhillips withdrew their proposal for their fish-killing open-loop LNG terminal off Dauphin Island, AL in the face of Governor Riley's unwavering opposition. Read the article here. We owe the Governor a big debt of gratitude for his willingness to stand toe-to-toe with Conoco and say "do better and protect the Gulf's fish." Tell him thanks here.
The other huge win was shutting down the MRGO - the hurricane highway. The House-Senate conference committee, due to Senator Mary Landrieu's leadership, included language deauthorizing the MRGO as a deep-draft navigation channel, and directing the Corps of Engineers to develop a plan to close this wetlands-destroying, public-safety nightmare. Clearly, the details of that plan are going to be critical, as there will be a lot of pressure to keep it as navigable as possible to appease the Port of New Orleans and other shipping interests.
I'm hopeful that this marks a new day for our political leaders, indicating a commitment to restoring wetlands and protecting people through our natural barriers, even if it means bucking the status quo and the knee-jerk, short-term concerns of corporate interests. Read the AP article on the issue here. Thank Louisiana's Senators here.
The one disappointment was the decision by the Federal 5th Circuit Court of Appeals on our challenge to Shell's LNG terminal permit. You can read the ruling here.
We are disappointed, but we know the writing is on the wall for future open-loop LNG terminals in the Gulf, and will continue to appeal to Shell to abandon their flawed proposal, and close-the loop on Gulf Landing. On the whole, the continuing opposition to open-loop LNG by Gulf Governors is far more important than the 5th CircuitÂs denial of our appeal, and the pressure is on future off-shore terminals to only move forward in the permitting process if they're serious about closed-loop options.
That said, TORP technology will be holding scoping hearings for their terminal next week in Mobile. The TORP terminal will be 63 miles south of Mobile, in the Gulf and is yet another open-loop proposal! Please make plans to come out June 14th and point out the error of TORP's ways. Here's the low-down from the Federal Register.
I think we've drawn the line in the sand, but the pressure is on to defend it. TORP provides an important opportunity, but we need to tell Shell about the Conoco decision, and urge Shell to mend their flawed proposal, lawsuit or no. Take action to thank Governor Riley and urge Shell to follow his lead here.
For our fish and our future,
Aaron
Aaron Viles is the GRN's Campaign Director
I tell ya, sometimes the stars line up in a big smiley face... The great news is that ConocoPhillips withdrew their proposal for their fish-killing open-loop LNG terminal off Dauphin Island, AL in the face of Governor Riley's unwavering opposition. Read the article here. We owe the Governor a big debt of gratitude for his willingness to stand toe-to-toe with Conoco and say "do better and protect the Gulf's fish." Tell him thanks here.
The other huge win was shutting down the MRGO - the hurricane highway. The House-Senate conference committee, due to Senator Mary Landrieu's leadership, included language deauthorizing the MRGO as a deep-draft navigation channel, and directing the Corps of Engineers to develop a plan to close this wetlands-destroying, public-safety nightmare. Clearly, the details of that plan are going to be critical, as there will be a lot of pressure to keep it as navigable as possible to appease the Port of New Orleans and other shipping interests.
I'm hopeful that this marks a new day for our political leaders, indicating a commitment to restoring wetlands and protecting people through our natural barriers, even if it means bucking the status quo and the knee-jerk, short-term concerns of corporate interests. Read the AP article on the issue here. Thank Louisiana's Senators here.
The one disappointment was the decision by the Federal 5th Circuit Court of Appeals on our challenge to Shell's LNG terminal permit. You can read the ruling here.
We are disappointed, but we know the writing is on the wall for future open-loop LNG terminals in the Gulf, and will continue to appeal to Shell to abandon their flawed proposal, and close-the loop on Gulf Landing. On the whole, the continuing opposition to open-loop LNG by Gulf Governors is far more important than the 5th CircuitÂs denial of our appeal, and the pressure is on future off-shore terminals to only move forward in the permitting process if they're serious about closed-loop options.
That said, TORP technology will be holding scoping hearings for their terminal next week in Mobile. The TORP terminal will be 63 miles south of Mobile, in the Gulf and is yet another open-loop proposal! Please make plans to come out June 14th and point out the error of TORP's ways. Here's the low-down from the Federal Register.
I think we've drawn the line in the sand, but the pressure is on to defend it. TORP provides an important opportunity, but we need to tell Shell about the Conoco decision, and urge Shell to mend their flawed proposal, lawsuit or no. Take action to thank Governor Riley and urge Shell to follow his lead here.
For our fish and our future,
Aaron
Aaron Viles is the GRN's Campaign Director
posted by Aaron at 5:22 PM
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