Monthly Archives: April 2014

Stop the Sabal Trail pipeline –Food & Water Watch

Environment, FERC, Florida, Hazards, Water, , , , , ,

An ally takes action against the methane pipeline and for clean water and springs. Food & Water Watch today posted Stop the proposed natural gas highway near Florida’s Springs: Tell Florida lawmakers to keep our springs safe!

It’s linked to a petition, Sign the petition to keep the Sabal Trail Pipeline out of Florida!:

The Sabal Trail is a proposed pipeline that would run from Alabama to Florida carrying natural gas extracted through fracking. Experts fear that this pipeline will endanger our water resources as well as senstive ecosystems in Florida, like our precious springs. The pipeline will also encourage more hydraulic fracking or “fracking.” Fracking is a type of gas drilling that injects millions of gallons of hydraulic fluids — a mixture of chemicals, water and sand — into a well to create pressure that cracks open rock underground, releasing natural gas. This process can deplete and contaminate local water, damage the environment and threaten public health.

Please follow the link and sign!

-jsq

Extend the FERC scoping period and obtain critical information from Sabal Trail Transmission –Greenlaw

Alabama, Dougherty County, Economy, Environment, FERC, Florida, Georgia, Law, Water, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Two of the most organized Riverkeepers in Georgia, plus the Georgia Sierra Club and a group of landowners in Dougherty County, Georgia, have retained environmental law firm Greenlaw to address the Sabal Trail Pipeline. The task is difficult because of lack of information from Sabal Trail and from FERC. Here Steve Caley of Greenlaw spells out what his clients have asked for and how it’s been refused. You can help by also asking FERC or your elected officials to ask FERC to provide the missing information and to extend the Scoping Period. The PDF of the letter includes the attached documents. -jsq

April 7, 2014

Continue reading Extend the FERC scoping period and obtain critical information from Sabal Trail Transmission –Greenlaw →

Sabal Trail will be expected to adhere and honor all Lowndes County Ordinances –Bill E Slaughter, JR to FERC

Agriculture, Colquitt County, Environment, FERC, Georgia, Health, Law, Lowndes County, Trees, Water, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Filed with FERC 11 April 2014. These are apparently the items he referred to Saturday 29 March 2014 at the SpectraBusters panel at VSU. There’s much more that can be done but this is a good step forward. -jsq

Bill E Slaughter, JR, Hahira, GA.
April 10, 2014

To whom it may concern:

If the route for the proposed Sabal Trail Pipeline comes through any part of Lowndes County as Chairman of the Lowndes County Commission and on the behalf of the Commission and Citizens of Lowndes County I would like to address several concerns we have with the Sabal Trail Pipeline Docket # P14-1-000.

  1. All road crossings must obtain a Lowndes County R/W Encroachment Permit for each crossing which will include all information required by the Lowndes County Engineer.
  2. All road crossings shall be perpendicular to the R/W.
  3. All road crossings shall be Continue reading Sabal Trail will be expected to adhere and honor all Lowndes County Ordinances –Bill E Slaughter, JR to FERC →

A Listening Session with Congressman Sanford Bishop

Dougherty County, Georgia, Hazards, Health, Safety, Solar, , , , , , , , , , ,

Received yesterday from one of the organizers. -jsq

A Listening Session
with Congressman Sanford Bishop

Thursday, April 17, 2014 at 10:00 AM
Room 100 of the Dougherty County Government Center
222 Pine Avenue
Albany, Georgia

Subject: Sabal Trail Transmission
Gas Pipeline Proposed Project

The session is being held to allow citizens to provide feedback and share concerns with the Congressman on the proposed Sabal Trail Transmission Gas Pipeline Project. This is a very significant concern for a variety of reasons, among them public safety, environmental and economic impact.

Congressman Bishop’s district covers most of the path of the proposed pipeline, making him a key ally in Congress to oppose the pipeline, if he can be convinced to do so. Continue reading A Listening Session with Congressman Sanford Bishop →

Does FERC ever question the honesty and integrity of companies such as Sabal? –Sandra Slack

Brooks County, Dougherty County, Explosion, FERC, Florida, Georgia, Hazards, Lowndes County, Martin County, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Filed with FERC 11 April 2014. -jsq

When this project process first began, Florida newspapers, such as the ones in Martin County, Gainesville, Ocala, and others, ran the story with a map of the proposed pipeline, from FPL, plainly showing the route running from Alabama straight to Florida completely bypassing Georgia. The now “preferred” route runs approximately 156 miles, or more through Georgia. Sabal has not been forthcoming, even in their Resource Report 10, as to the reason for the change. Has there been any encouragement from any governmental entity, State or Federal, for Sabal to reroute this pipeline through the state of Georgia? If yes, which entity and why? If no, why did FERC allow Sabal to change routes? Cost would be an invalid answer.

In August and September of 2013, landowners who previously had not agreed to allow Sabal personnel onto their property began receiving letters first from Sabal and then from the law firm of Hunton & Williams of Atlanta, Ga., on behalf of Sabal, using intimidating and Continue reading Does FERC ever question the honesty and integrity of companies such as Sabal? –Sandra Slack →

Port Dolphin off Tampa already approved by FERC for LNG import

FERC, Florida, LNG, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Offshore deepwater LNG import project Port Dolphin was approved by FERC in 2009, despite interventions by a long list of other pipeline companies, FPL, and other entities. FERC granted Port Dolphin permission to interconnect with Gulfstream and Florida Gas Transmission, the two pipelines FPL requires Sabal Trail to connect to. What if Port Dolphin files to export LNG, as so many other import-permitted projects are doing?

Port Dolphin’s own website doesn’t seem to be responding. The Internet Archive’s Wayback Machine has a cached copy from 12 January 2014, with this map:

Manatee Chamber of Commerce lists Port Dolphin’s contact information as: Continue reading Port Dolphin off Tampa already approved by FERC for LNG import →

Alabama Sierra Club against the Sabal Trail methane pipeline

Alabama, FERC, Fracking, Hazards, Marengo County, Safety, Trees, , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Robert W. Hastings, Alabama Sierra Club contact for the joint Alabama, Georgia, and Florida Sierra Club statement against the pipeline, and author of a FERC ecomment against the pipeline, was elected Chairman of the Alabama Chapter 9 March 2014.

He wrote in the April Alabama Sierran about the Sabal Trail pipeline,

Seems like everyone wants to build a pipeline these days. I’m sure almost everyone has heard about the Keystone XL pipeline, and our Mobile Group has done a good job of publicizing their opposition to the oil pipeline to be constructed through a major water supply area for the city of Mobile. But there are several other pipelines being proposed for Alabama. One of these is the so-called Sabal Trail Pipeline that would carry natural gas extracted through hydraulic fracturing from Pennsylvania and Texas through Alabama, Georgia, and Florida. The new pipeline would begin in Alexander City, where it Continue reading Alabama Sierra Club against the Sabal Trail methane pipeline →

Re: AES Ocean Express pipeline from Florida to Bahamas

Economy, FE, Florida, LNG, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Yet another LNG export scheme linked with the so-called Southeast Market Pipelines Project, in addition to at least two more. Why should anybody give up their land for export profit for a few companies somewhere else? An undersea pipeline originally for import to Florida, now being promoted for LNG export because of U.S. surplus methane from fracking, already approved by the U.S. a decade ago, only waiting for approval by the Bahamas, which is being pressured by an international bank to do so. It would run from FPL’s Port Everglades “Clean Energy Center” in Broward County, a location linked since it was announced with FPL’s Florida Southeast Connection, which would get its gas from the Sabal Trail and Transco pipelines, starting with fracking in Pennsylvania and Texas.

Candia Dames wrote for dennisdamesonline.net 23 January 2004, AES Corp. Clears Hurdle For LNG Pipeline, Continue reading Re: AES Ocean Express pipeline from Florida to Bahamas →

Maybe no Palm Beach to Bahamas pipeline, there are others

FERC, Florida, LNG, , , , , , , , ,

Maybe no pipeline from Palm Beach to the Bahamas, but that wasn’t the only Bahamas methane pipeline project, and they haven’t all been dropped.

David Fleshler wrote for the Orlando Sun-Sentinel 12 October 2006, Relief As Natural Gas Pipeline Plan Is Dropped, Continue reading Maybe no Palm Beach to Bahamas pipeline, there are others →

JAX-based Crowley authorized to export LNG from Martin County, Florida

Duval County, FE, FERC, Florida, Law, LNG, Martin County, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Why didn’t FERC or Sabal Trail or FPL or Williams tell us about LNG export to FTA countries authorized by FE in 2011, before Sabal Trail and the others even submitted their pre-filing applications to FERC?

The Carib Energy that has requested authorization for LNG export to non-FTA countries: we’ve heard of them before. Carib’s parent company Crowley Maritime is based in Jacksonville, FL, and Jaxport is also eyeing LNG export, plus a closer connection.

Remember, Crowley already has authorization from U.S. DoE’s Office of Fossil Energy (FE) to export to Free Trade Agreement countries: Continue reading JAX-based Crowley authorized to export LNG from Martin County, Florida →