By John Burton
It appears the company behind the liquid natural gas terminal off the New York/ New Jersey coast is stepping back – at least for now – but may live to fight another day, following the New York governor’s veto of the plan.
In the aftermath of Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s veto last week that effectively killed the Port Ambrose liquid natural gas (LNG) terminal, the group behind the proposal, Liberty Natural Gas, Jersey City, asked that its license application to federal agencies be withdrawn.
In an emailed statement last week Roger Whelan, Liberty’s chief executive officer, said “It is clear there is not a path forward for Port Ambrose in New York at this time given the current political environment.”
In response to Liberty’s actions, U.S. Representative Frank Pallone Jr. (D-NJ), whose 6th Congressional District takes in much of Monmouth County’s shorefront, while criticizing his own governor, Chris Christie, for failing to evoke his veto power for the project, said, “I am glad that in the end, the dangerous proposal has seen its final day.”
But this may not be the final chapter in the saga that Liberty has been working for and environmentalists and some elected officials locally have been battling against the better part of six years.
“Liberty Natural Gas can run but they cannot hide. Their wrongful proposal is dead in the water,” said Cindy Zipf, executive director of Clean Ocean Action, one of the environmental groups that had been mounting public opposition to the plan.
On the other hand, “I think it’ll come back,” Zipf acknowledged, suspecting Liberty withdrawing its application so it could again possibly resubmit it in the future in a modified form and not have to overcome the formal federal denial.
And Liberty seemed to hint that the project may again resurface: “Liberty will seek to engage with the State of New York to keep Port Ambrose as a potential resource in New York’s energy portfolio,” said Daron T. Threet, a Washington, D.C. lawyer representing Liberty, in his letter to federal authorities seeking the application’s withdrawal.
And Liberty’s Whelan, in his statement, offered, “We continue to believe that Port Ambrose is needed to reduce and stabilize volatile energy prices in New York, would help reduce the use of heating oil and coal in the region, and would complement renewable energy sources.”
Cuomo’s veto amounts to the final word on the project. But Zipf is asking the U.S. Maritime Administration and the U.S. Coast Guard to finalize the application process, as required by federal statute, and include a formal record of decision, officially denying Liberty’s application.
Several calls to the maritime administration’s press office were not returned.
Liberty Liquid Natural Gas LLC, is a for-profit company that had sought federal approval to construct a liquid natural gas terminal and its accompanying pipeline in the Atlantic Ocean, 28 miles off Long Branch’s coast and 18 miles off shore from Jones Beach, in Long Island, New York. The license application was being reviewed by the maritime administration and Coast Guard under the provisions of the federal Deep Water Port Act.
Liberty has argued during the process that the facility would have a positive economic effect for the region and its operators would work with local and federal regulators to ensure its safety.
But environmental groups and many others have been voicing their objections, believing the facility poses an environmental, economic and national security risk – as a possible terrorist target. Environmental groups had worked to mobilize public response, encouraging people to attend public input sessions and submit opens.
Christie had vetoed similar projects in 2011 and 2012 and had maintained he would continue to oppose them. However, Christie has yet to make a public statement on this application, with spokespeople referencing the governor’s previous statements on the matter.
For Zipf that’s not good enough. “We really need to hold him accountable,” she said. “It’s about New Jersey’s honor.”
