Meanwhile, Repubs in Congress legislate to force LNG terminal on NJ & DE

[cyberpj]

U.S. may get final say on gas terminal
/ From staff and wire reports
04/06/2005

Federal regulators would get clearer authority to override state and local opposition in approving import terminals for liquefied natural gas under new energy legislation drafted by House Republicans.

The bill, which lawmakers are to begin considering in detail today, mirrors a broad energy package that failed to pass Congress more than a year ago. One of the few new provisions would solidify the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission as the final arbiter over approval of liquefied natural gas terminals.

A state appeals board in Delaware last week upheld the state's refusal to consider a permit for a liquefied natural gas delivery pier in the Delaware River opposite Claymont. The Coastal Zone Industrial Control Board rejected energy company BP's claim that its $500 million project should be exempt from the state's ban on bulk transfer facilities in Delaware's part of the river.

http://www.delawareonline.com/newsjournal/local/2005/04/06usmaygetfinalsa.html

[LynneSin]

1. It's Delaware vs. New Jersey and believe me I don't want that terminal

Two Very Very important facts:

#1) That pier is going to be near one of the heavily populated areas of Delaware - thousands of lives could be affected if that pier goes up in flames. Whereas on NJ - their side of the coast is deserted

#2) Also mentioned below - that pier will be about a mile from a Nuclear Power Plant over on the NJ side. So if that pier goes up in smoke we're going to have to worry about the affects on the nearby Nuclear Power Plant.

New Jersey needs to get over themselves and realize that there are lives at stake here!!


http://www.delawareonline.com/newsjournal/local/2005/03/27bpcontroversysp.html

DELAWARE VS. NEW JERSEY
New Castle County and Salem County, N.J., are a mile or more apart across the Delaware River, but an economic gulf separates them. Median household incomes are 15 percent higher in New Castle County, and Delaware residents on average are younger and have more education and job opportunities. Salem County has more open land, and in some areas not much else but deep resentment over Delaware's control of growth on the river.
• ECONOMIC

DELAWARE

Local industries support nearby LNG supplies. Delmarva Poultry Industry Inc. endorses the terminal, saying natural gas could ease pressure on propane supplies heavily used to warm thousands of poultry houses.

New Castle County: Per capita income: $25,413; Families in poverty: 5.6 percent; unemployment rate: 5 percent; college degree holders: 29.5 percent; median age: 35; over 65: 11.6 percent; under 5 years: 6.7 percent. Largest private employer: MBNA

NEW JERSEY

Logan Township and Gloucester County anticipate a $5 million to $7 million annual tax gain, $54 million in new annual economic activity as a result of direct and "spinoff" employment.

Salem County: Per capita income: $20,874; families in poverty: 7.2 percent; unemployment rate: 6 percent; college degrees: 15.2 percent; median age: 38; over 65: 14.5 percent; under 5 years: 6.1 percent. Largest employer: Salem/Hope Creek Nuclear Power Plant

• SAFETY

DELAWARE

Fire and emergency management agencies working jointly with New Jersey, Pennsylvania and the federal government to develop safety and security plans. North of Wilmington more than 11,000 people live within 1.3 miles of the main shipping channel, the limit of dangerous heat for those directly exposed to the worst spill federal officials consider likely in the event of a terrorist attack.

NEW JERSEY

LNG tankers would pass little more than a mile west of nation's second-largest nuclear plant. State fire and safety official leads national "Safe Energy" task force now developing national planning model for LNG projects. New Jersey fire agencies would lead responses to problems at BP's storage terminal; Claymont Volunteer Fire Company would lead responses to problems on the water or pier.

• POLITICAL

DELAWARE

Gov. Ruth Ann Minner supports the decision to exclude the BP LNG terminal from state's Coastal Zone. General Assembly members from riverside districts and state environmental groups oppose the project based on the Coastal Zone ban and safety concerns. Some Delaware labor groups, including the state's Building and Trades Council, favor the project.

NEW JERSEY

Gov. Richard J. Codey supports the project, calls for talks with Delaware aimed at garnering needed approval. Senator and assemblymen from South Jersey areas closest to the site oppose the Delaware ruling, press for sanctions against Delaware if the Coastal Zone rule blocks construction. New Jersey environmental groups are studying the proposal. Local industrial users and regional gas suppliers support the project, citing potential to stabilize prices and supplies.

• ENVIRONMENTAL

DELAWARE

Riverside areas from Wilmington north are among the most urbanized and heavily industrialized in Delaware. Coastal Zone Act bans new heavy industry or bulk transport terminals from the state's portion of the Delaware River and adjoining land. Delaware only recently began tightening its oversight of direct industrial discharges into Delaware's part of the waterway from New Jersey, after the DuPont Co. proposed new uses for its commercial wastewater treatment plant at Chambers Works.

NEW JERSEY

Riverside areas closest to the property are among the most sparsely populated in the state; wetlands cover 38 percent of land area. State is reviewing the project under federally mandated Coastal Zone Management Program and considering permits. BP says construction will occur only on land already zoned for industrial activity. Remaining land will be maintained as open space, with "negligible" effects on wetlands, an adjacent creek or the river.

[cyberpj]

2. It's getting closer - they're going to take the decision away from us

Gas pier's risks overlooked, Del. says
By JEFF MONTGOMERY / The News Journal
04/14/2005

Delaware said the federal government overlooked environmental risks in its review of BP's proposed liquefied natural gas terminal along the Delaware River.

On Wednesday, as the House Energy and Commerce Committee signed off on a new national energy bill, the state Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control filed an objection to the environmental impact study of BP's plan by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

FERC found that the terminal posed "negligible" environmental risks. But DNREC Secretary John A. Hughes said in a critique that FERC's approach was not consistent with environmental regulations for the nation's coastal areas. He also said the agency's studies were biased in favor of BP's proposal, while failing to adequately consider alternative sites.

The commission failed to provide full evaluations of toxic pollution threats during construction, and failed to account for risks to spawning areas for striped bass, Atlantic sturgeon and the protected shortnose sturgeon, Hughes said.

DNREC also has said the commission did not answer questions about community safety during tanker deliveries.

http://www.delawareonline.com/newsjournal/local/2005/04/14gaspiersrisksov.html

[LynneSin]

3. Did you see what Carper did today - he's blocking the EPA nominee

I have a feeling that his block is a manuever to stop this bill from happening.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=536&e=1&u=/ap/20050414/ap_on_go_co/senate_epa_nominee

[cyberpj]

4. I hope you're right. The article implies he likes the nominee but

is holding out for certain reports.

Not sure how blocking the EPA nominee holds up the energy bill.

?