Category Archives: FERC

Ask GAO to investigate why FERC Doesn’t Work

You can support hundreds of organizations and thousands of individuals who have already asked Congress to:

Help secure an independent investigation by the Government Accountability Office into the abuses of power, process and law by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) when it comes to interstate natural gas pipelines and LNG export facilities. Write your congressional representative now to urge their help in securing this necessary independent review.

Here’s a handy web form by Delaware Riverkeeper Network.

If you want something local to say, try reading Continue reading Ask GAO to investigate why FERC Doesn’t Work

Suwannee County Votes to Send Letter to Army Corps Of Engineers Asking for Independent Geological Study

Tuesday April 5th Suwannee County voted 4 to 1 , with chairman Bashaw dissenting, to send a letter requesting that the Corps perform an independent environmental study concerning the geological omissions Sabal Trail withheld from their Environmental Study submitted to FERC to receive a permit to bore under the Suwannee River.

After comparing Sabal Trail’s EIS with that of local geologist Dennis Price, Chris Mericle discovered omissions and discrepancies in this report endangering the Floridan Aquifer which supplies 60% of Florida’s water supply as well as endangering millions of citizens and hundreds, if not thousand, of springs.

Sabal Trail submitted information for the pipeline permit to FERC stating the closest sinkhole to the pipeline route boring under the Suwannee River would be 750′ from the pipeline which is not true. Commissioner Wainwright and other BOCC officials discovered one active sinkhole 75′ from the 36″ fracked gas pipeline. In fact there is a sinkhole smack in the middle of the pipeline route with sinkholes covering the entire area.

SBOCC discovered this after attending a hike of the pipeline route and Falmouth Springs, which is part of a interconnected cave system that extends to the Suwannee River crossing at Suwannee River State Park which Sabal Trail claims is 100′ underground, when in fact one can see the springs practically at ground level and is part of this connected cave system and caverns named the Falmouth Cathedral Cave System. There are in fact many of these cave systems all connected within the pipeline route and throughout Florida.

Thank you SBOCC and all who assisted in this effort.

All counties in North Florida and central Florida should follow suite.

Perhaps a RICO investigation by the US Attorney General of Spectra Energy/Sabal Trail and the oil industry funded pipeline government agency, FERC, as well as invested Florida governor Scott is in order.

I do believe the time has come to stop this dangerous gas pipeline to export the natural gas that fracking invested FPL, Duke Energy and NextEra wish to export to other countries with zero benefit to the citizens of Florida.

Deb

SpectraBusters Allies cited as why Sabal Trail may fail

SpectraBusters allies were just called out by fossil fuel industry publication OilPrice, and by notorious financial blog Zerohedge, as reasons why Sabal Trail may lose.

Irina Slav, OilPrice, 31 March 2016, Gas Pipeline Uses 160 Eminent Domain Suits To Get Property In 3 States, picked up by “Tyler Durden”, Zerohedge.com, 1 April 2016,

Eminent domain is a tough pill to swallow for Americans who take their property rights very seriously, and the aggressive moves by Sabal Trail to seize property for a natural gas pipeline running through three southern states is turning into a drama of immense proportions.

The rest is the best story I’ve seen about Continue reading SpectraBusters Allies cited as why Sabal Trail may fail

Construction of Sabal Trail pipeline is not inevitable –L. Elliott Jones

Especially preventable after Sabal Trail’s river easements went down in flames in a historic vote by the Georgia House last week. -jsq

L. Elliott Jones, Albany Herald, 28 March 2016, L. ELLIOTT JONES: Construction of Sabal Trail pipeline is not inevitable
GUEST COLUMNIST: Efforts are still under way to prevent the construction of the gas pipeline
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Carlton Fletcher’s story, “Dougherty County leaders OK inevitable agreement on pipeline” on March 21, presented only one part of the current story on the Sabal Trail pipeline. There are two schools of thought on the Sabal Trail pipeline: those who believe construction of the pipeline is inevitable, and those who believe the pipeline can and should be prevented, and are working hard to do so. No one, in either group, believes it is needed in Georgia.

Continue reading Construction of Sabal Trail pipeline is not inevitable –L. Elliott Jones

Six rehearing requests to FERC, including from Sabal Trail and Transco

The pipeline companies want rehearings, apparently because they don’t like the restrictions the 20160303-5168-31286889-0001 FERC order put on them, so maybe we’ll actually see a rehearing. The other four rehearing requests all don’t like what FERC certified Sabal Trail to do, and some have new reasons beyond what was in the FEIS or the docket beforehand. Poor FERC! Nobody likes your Order! How about stop permitting new fossil fuel projects and promote renewable sun and wind power instead?

The six requests for rehearings, including one by Transco and one by Sabal Trail, all conveniently grouped by FERC in a subdocket at the end of the results if you search for CP15-17 in FERC’s Docket Search: Continue reading Six rehearing requests to FERC, including from Sabal Trail and Transco

Strom Crystal River LNG export approval 2014-10-21

Strom can ramp up its LNG export to the Gulf from Crystal River an order of magnitude with its initial units, Legal Style and then add more units, all without any further approval by anybody, says this Order from the U.S. DoE Office of Fossil Energy, which also appears to permit bomb trains shipping LNG anywhere in Florida, or maybe even other states, with some of the fracked methane probably coming from Sabal Trail if built. This FE Order was issued 21 October 2014, one month to the day before Sabal Trail filed in the FERC formal process in 21 November 2014. Yet not a word was said about Strom or any other LNG export by FERC or Sabal Trail in any of the FERC Scoping Meetings I went to, as I pointed out at the one 1 October 2015 in Lake City, Florida.

FE is even more a rubberstamp regulatory-captured lapdog of the fossil fuel industry than is FERC, and Strom is setting up to require no further approvals by them or anybody else: Continue reading Strom Crystal River LNG export approval 2014-10-21

Resolution against Sabal Trail pipeline –Groveland, FL 2014-04-21

In April 2014 the Groveland, Florida City Council unanimously voted to ask FERC Summary to move the Sabal Trail pipeline off of private property and the Green Swamp and onto Florida state lands.

The vote is recorded in their minutes of April 21, 2014:

  1. Resolution 2014-04-06: Sabal Trail Transmission Line
    Action: Motion to approve
    Moved by Vice Mayor James Smith, Seconded by Council Member John Griffin.
    Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 5).
    Motion approved.

The text of the resolution is in their agenda packet: Continue reading Resolution against Sabal Trail pipeline –Groveland, FL 2014-04-21

NY Gov. asks FERC to suspend license for a Spectra pipeline

Petitions to the New York Governor may have helped him send this message to FERC about Spectra’s AIM pipeline project that would go far too close to the document-forging caught-fire leaked-oil-into-the-Hudson River Indian Point nuclear plant:

Lisa W. Foderaro, New York Times, 28 Feb 2016, Plan to Expand a Pipeline at Indian Point Raises Concern,

On Monday, the state plans to notify the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission that it will take a hard look at the project in light of a series of problems at the nuclear plant since last May. In addition, the state will ask federal regulators to suspend their approval of the project — effectively halting construction — until the study is completed.

“I am directing Continue reading NY Gov. asks FERC to suspend license for a Spectra pipeline

Suwannee County Commissioners and public to hike to Sabal Trail Suwannee River Crossing

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Live Oak, February 10, 2016 — The date has been set to go see where Spectra Energy of Houston Texas has been permitted by the Picture by Alton Burns Federal Energy Regulatory (FERC) in Washington, DC to drill under the Suwannee River for its Sabal Trail fracked methane pipeline despite widespread local opposition. The Suwannee Board of County Commissioners already voted a resolution to move Sabal Trail’s compressor station. Still mulling stronger action, the SBOCC agreed at a recent meeting to go with local guides, including WWALS Watershed Coalition board member Chris Mericle, on a hike with the public to where FERC said construction monitoring was important for the river and our drinking water in the Floridan Aquifer, but Sabal Trail should be left to self-monitor. The day and time have been set: 8:15 AM Thursday February 18, 2016.

All interested individuals will meet at: Continue reading Suwannee County Commissioners and public to hike to Sabal Trail Suwannee River Crossing

We will accept Sabal Trail’s answers –FERC issues certificates

Property rights, environment, or safety? 14% pipeline company profit is more important! said FERC. But this fight is not over.

Page 1 Without ever appearing on FERC’s public calendar, and a month in advance of when FERC previously said, FERC yesterday issued certificates for Sabal Trail, the Transco Hillabee Expansion Project, and Florida Southeast Connection. Trial-style evidentiary hearing? Nope, FERC believes Sabal Trail. Consolidation of the three dockets into one? Nope, everybody should have opposed all three, says FERC. Environmental justice? Hey, demographics don’t matter, pipeline siting is all about engineering and “environmental” issues. And profit. Don’t forget profit for the pipeline companies. Solar power? Nevermind, Continue reading We will accept Sabal Trail’s answers –FERC issues certificates