Shannon Van Hoesen, shannon.vanhoesen@sierraclub.org
Washington, DC - A report today indicates the Biden administration is considering updating the criteria it uses to determine whether an application for exporting liquified gas, known as LNG, is in the public interest. According to POLITICO, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is “reviewing whether it is properly accounting for the climate impacts from a proposed project as well as the national security and the domestic economic consequences.”
The United States is already the world’s top exporter of LNG. DOE has never rejected a project on the grounds of harm to the public interest despite clear and growing evidence that gas exports are inconsistent with meeting global climate targets, destroy local communities and critical ecosystems, and increase domestic energy costs.
Last summer, DOE denied a decade-old Sierra Club petition for rulemaking to issue regulations defining whether proposed gas exports are consistent with the public interest. The agency claimed to have “rigorous standards” for approving gas exports, but failed to lay out what those supposed standards are.
Sierra Club and a broad coalition of partners have been pressuring the Biden administration and federal regulators to reject expanded gas exports. In particular, the coalition is urging DOE to reject CP2, a behemoth gas export facility proposed on Louisiana’s Gulf Coast, and has collected more than 360,000 petition signatures in support.
In reaction, Sierra Club Executive Director Ben Jealous issued the following statement:
“The Biden administration has a duty to protect Americans and ensure a livable future. Stopping the expansion of gas exports is one way to honor that responsibility. By recognizing that gas exports are not in the public interest, President Biden has an opportunity to make good on his climate commitments, ease energy prices for American families, and bolster our national security. For too long the federal criteria for evaluating whether gas exports are in the public interest have been nothing more than a rubber stamp. We are encouraged that the administration plans to act to protect the planet, communities, and our pocketbooks.”
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About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.