The Eastern Shore Natural Gas Company (ESNG) wants to build 19+ miles of new pipeline to carry fracked gas from Delaware through Maryland. The pipeline is already under construction in Delaware to carry gas from that state into Maryland. The seven miles of pipeline proposed for Maryland would supply concentrated animal feeding operations, businesses, and residential areas. The two “anchor” customers for gas delivery are the Eastern Correctional Institution (ECI) and the University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) in Somerset County. If built, the Del-Mar pipeline would trigger another pipeline to connect the prison to the university. The public has been consistently left in the dark by the Hogan Administration when it comes to these dangerous projects. But we do know that these pipelines would cross farms, forests, and countless waterways that feed into the Chesapeake Bay. They would also worsen global warming, bringing more sea-level rise to the already vulnerable tidal regions of the Eastern Shore.
Somerset County officials are advocating that the pipeline be built, citing badly needed economic development. However, they appear to have not considered renewable energy options. The cost to taxpayers for the pipeline will be approximately $500 million, and the project will hamper our state goals to be utilizing 50% renewable energy by 2030. At a time when the Maryland state budget is so tight, it is perplexing why Gov. Hogan would not want to pursue less expensive energy alternatives. In addition, it is disturbing that although Marylanders have made it clear that they want to pursue cleaner, renewable energy by passing the Clean Energy Jobs Act in 2019, Gov. Hogan is still relying on fossil fuels.
Susan Olsen
Chair, Sierra Club Maryland Chapter Lower Eastern Shore Group