Monthly Archives: April 2014

Florida LNG Company FLiNG “expects to quadruple its LNG capacity in the first quarter of 2016.” They serve the Caribbean and Central American export markets.

FLiNG (Florida LNG Group, LLC) says of itself…..

FLiNG “is  located immediately adjacent to Floridian Natural Gas Storage, which is scheduled to begin producing LNG in early 2016. …. We serve the Florida market as well as the Caribbean, and Central American export markets. FLiNG Energy is close to all major Florida ports, another logistical advantage that allows us to support international LNG users.”

Where will that gas come from???

LNG World News carried a FLiNG press release 21 Januar 2014, FLiNG Energy to Serve LNG, CNG Markets in Florida and Caribbean.

Sierra Club petition against TPP

Sierra Club has a petition to stop Congressional fast-track for the Trans-Pacific Parternership (TPP), and that will probably stop the TPP, because in regular Congressional hearings the parts that have been kept secret would get exposed, which would make TPP very hard to approve. Look at what Wikileaks found in the TPP environment chapter, and in the intellectual property chapter. The U.S. is apparently lobbying for criminal offenses for even unintentional infringements of “copyright, related rights and trademarks” Yet there are no criminal sanctions for destroying our environment, and the draft TPP text even points out:

On the other hand, WTO rules do allow members to derogate from their obligations in some cases, for instance where a measure is aimed at the conservation of natural resources, provided certain conditions are met.

Do we want corporate profit to override our clean water and air and native plants and animals, not to mention our property rights?

Here’s the Sierra Club petition: The Trans-Pacific Partnership could leave a big fracking mess!

The TPP is being pushed by Continue reading Sierra Club petition against TPP

Proposed Sabal Trail Pipeline Threatens Southwest Georgia Communities –in Georgia Sierran

In the April-May-June 2004 2014 issue of Georgia Sierran Georgia Sierra Club‘s Chapter newsletter. The same issue has an excellent article on Georgia’s aquifers, including the Floridan Aquifer that is a drinking water source for all of Florida, through which the Sabal Trail pipeline proposes to bulldoze.

Proposed Sabal Trail Pipeline Threatens
Southwest Georgia Communities

By John Quarterman

Why should a shell corporation owned by two companies in Houston, Texas and Juno Beach, Florida get to take Georgians’ property to pipe fracked methane to Florida through our fragile karst limestone drinking water aquifer?

Yet that’s what Sabal Trail Transmission, LLC, proposes to do, Continue reading Proposed Sabal Trail Pipeline Threatens Southwest Georgia Communities –in Georgia Sierran

EPA comments in Moultrie Observer

The Colquitt County newspaper noticed the EPA questions to FERC about the Sabal Trail fracked methane pipeline, and even got sort of a response out of Sabal Trail.

Alan Mauldin wrote for the Moultrie Observer 26 April 2014, EPA letter lists concerns with Sabal Trail,

One issue raised by EPA is whether laying a new, 36-inch pipeline in proximity to a 10-inch pipeline built in the 1950s would present a danger to the public.

The alternate route that would take the pipeline through the heart of Colquitt County would for some of its path run parallel to the old iron pipeline.

“Consequently, concerns exist with the safety of Continue reading EPA comments in Moultrie Observer

Can Sabal Trail fracked methane go to China?

People talk about LNG exports to China through the Transco – Sabal Trail – Florida Southeast Connection pipeline, even though FPL says it knows nothing about exports through that Southeast Market Pipelines Project (SMPP), and FERC also seems to know nothing. If that fracked gas really can go to China, where’s FERC’s rationale for federal eminent domain, which depends on Florida needing the gas? Nevermind FPL’s own 10-Year Site Plan doesn’t support a need for the gas, and EPA doesn’t buy what it’s seen as rationalizations for that alleged need: can the gas go to China?

FERC has admitted in more than one Scoping Meeting that it’s not the pipeline company that has to get export authorization: it’s the end user. And FPL is not the only end user and FERC is not the only export-authorizing agency. Continue reading Can Sabal Trail fracked methane go to China?

FPL supports solar power without spending money on it –FPL to FERC

FPL doubled down on a need because it claims fracked methane is “clean”, in its FERC filing of 21 April 2014. FPL says it is “a strong supporter of solar power” even though it didn’t increase its solar capacity from 2010 to 2013 because of the lame baseload capacity excuse. FPL says it knows nothing about Export of Gas, even though Floridian LNG, located next to FPL’s Martin County “Clean Energy” Center right at the end of the Transco-Sabal-FSC pipeline, was approved for LNG export by the U.S. DoE Office Fossil Energy (FE) 14 November 2013, and Crowley Maritime’s Carib Energy was approved for export from Florida by FE 27 July 2011. And FPL says its ratepayers are not paying the costs of the pipeline, even though FPL VP of development and external affairs Pam Rauch argued in pring 29 July 2012 for a “Clean Energy” (fracked methane) Center at Cape Canaveral that was one of several mentioned by the Tampa Times 24 October 2014 as a reason for a new pipeline, and that same Pam Rauch filed PF14-2 with FERC for the Florida Southeast Connection (FSC) pipeline that connects from Sabal Trail to FPL’s “Clean Energy” Center in Martin County, next to Floridian LNG. FPL doesn’t seem to know what’s going on next to it, and maybe not what its own employees are doing. I hope EPA doesn’t consider the questions it filed with FERC the same day answered by this weak tea from FPL.

April 21, 2014
Ms. Kimberly D. Bose
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
888 First Street, N.E.
Washington, D.C. 20426

Subject: Southeast Market Pipelines Project
Docket Nos. PF14-1-000, PF14-2-000, and PF14-6-000

Dear Ms. Bose:

Florida Power & Light Company (“FPL”) hereby submits these comments in response Continue reading FPL supports solar power without spending money on it –FPL to FERC

The EPA’s questions must be given serious thought by FERC –Beth Gordon

Published with permission of the author, who stressed she sent this email “Not as a member of Spectrabusters. Just me.” I added a few links. -jsq

From: Beth Gordon
Date: April 24, 2014, 8:15:30 AM EDT
To: John Peconom of FERC
Subject: EPA comments

Dear Mr. Peconum,

Does FERC, or Spectra, intend answer the questions posed by the EPA? I read their posted comments yesterday. They obviously share many people’s feeling that Sabal Trail’s claims don’t add up. Florida doesn’t need this gas. In fact right now, Florida has so much that we store it. Spectra and FPL need this amount of gas for LNG plants for export, obviously. And for the Riviera beach connection to a 46 inch pipeline to run to the Bahamas undersea. Switching over one coal plant doesn’t justify a 3 billion dollar pipeline. Especially where FPL has raised, rather than lowered, electric bills on account of this endeavor.

The EPA’s questions must be given serious thought by FERC before it awards this project, and the eminent domain rights attendant to it. Floridians will see no Continue reading The EPA’s questions must be given serious thought by FERC –Beth Gordon

Executive Order 13406: Protecting the Property Rights of the American People

This document appears to say the federal government can’t take private property “merely for the purpose of advancing the economic interest of private parties”, which would seem to preclude federal eminent domain being applied for the Sabal Trail pipeline if its gas is really for export.

Executive Order 13406 of June 23, 2006,
Protecting the Property Rights of the American People,

By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, and to strengthen the rights of the American people against the taking of their private property, it is hereby ordered as follows:

Section 1. Policy. It is the policy of the United States to protect the rights of Americans to their private property, including by limiting the taking of private property by the Federal Government to situations in which the taking is for public use, with just compensation, and for the purpose of benefiting the general public and not merely for the purpose of advancing the economic interest of private parties to be given ownership or use of the property taken. Continue reading Executive Order 13406: Protecting the Property Rights of the American People

FPL’s own projections don’t support need for a new pipeline

How does a 13% projected power increase justify a 33% 50% increase in fracked methane delivered by a third new pipeline? And why isn’t FPL doing more with solar power in the Sunshine State?

Updated 12 August 2014: Fixed 50% increase, which was so absurdly high that I didn’t believe it when I first wrote this. Yet 3/2 is a 50% increase.

FPL’s 10-Year Site Plan web page says:

FPL submitted its 10-Year Power Plant Site Plan 2014-2023 to the Florida Public Service Commission in April 2014.

The document includes on page 37 FPL’s own Schedule 2.1 History and Forecast of Energy Consumption And Number of Customers by Customer Class (Projected), which shows 55,739 GWh for 2014 and 62,870 GWh projected for 2023. That’s an increase of 13% over a decade. How does that (very aggressive) forecasted increase justify a natural gas increase of 33% 50% by adding a third pipeline? (And by the way, those numbers are significantly less than the numbers in FPL’s 2011 plan of Continue reading FPL’s own projections don’t support need for a new pipeline