** READ THE LETTER HERE **
Washington, DC — Today, residents from around the Gulf Coast of Texas and Louisiana sent a letter to President Biden and Secretary Granholm to thank them for pausing the approval of new licenses for the export of liquefied methane gas (LNG). The letter also shares key priorities that local communities want to see incorporated into the Department of Energy’s (DOE) review of criteria used to determine whether a gas export application is in the public interest. Below is an excerpt from the letter:
“This is a critical moment for our communities and we urge the DOE to take this pause as an opportunity to revise studies with rigor, create new studies with the leading science, and incorporate the concerns of our families and communities into the decision-making process.
As Secretary Granholm has stated, no one wants to live with an oil refinery in their backyard. The same goes for these gas export facilities in our communities. The risks are borne by us - disproportionately low income and communities of people of color that are already overburdened with industrial pollution and excess - while the gas is exported overseas. We ask DOE to give us a chance to have a say in this process.”
From risk to explosion to major health impacts from air pollution vented and flared from the facilities, often in violation of local, state, and federal regulations, environmental justice and public health must be fully incorporated in DOE’s assessment, the letter says. The signers urge the Biden Administration to work with local communities to incorporate their lived experience and knowledge into the public interest determination process, alongside the thorough research on local impacts of LNG.
“We already suffer the impacts of the operating export terminals and are bracing for the harms to be caused by those under construction and that already have their permits.” the letter states.
Residents signed onto the letter have led the fight against the buildout of LNG and petrochemical facilities in their communities for years. These residents represent local and national organizations, including Vessel Project, For a Better Bayou, Sierra Club, Better Brazoria, Climate Conversation Brazoria County, Port Arthur Community Action Network, and Micah Six Eight Mission.
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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.