The European Court of Justice
(ECJ) has found against the Irish State Planning Authority,
An Bord Pleanala, which was responsible for extending planning
permission for a fracked gas import terminal to the advantage of US
fracked gas exporter 'New Fortress Energy' and all permits and
permissions for Shannon LNG are now set to be quashed by the Irish High
Court. Today, An Bord Pleanala has been made accountable by the ECJ and
has serious questions to answer on how
it used its new powers under the Strategic Infrastructure Act 2006, to
accept €30,000 (US$ 35,000) from Shannon LNG
to give planning consent for a US fracked gas import terminal
in Ireland, overriding the recommendations of one of its own officials
that the applicant should be refunded the €30,000 as long ago as
September 29th, 2017.
There is jubilation in County Kerry, Ireland, today with the news that
Shannon LNG is set to lose planning permission to build a US
fracked gas import terminal in Tarbert, following the
judgement of the European Cout of Justice today..
There will be no existing permission for any LNG terminal anywhere in
Ireland when the Irish High Court rules following the ECJ decision
today. Ireland already banned fracking and earlier this summer the
New Programme for Government in Ireland declared that "it does not make sense to
develop LNG gas import terminals importing fracked gas"
and that the government "does
not support the importation of fracked gas" in
Ireland.
A new government policy statement against fracked gas imports is expected
by Government imminently and this new policy statement is now all the
easier because all rights to import fracked gas will soon have expired in the
country.
There is no social licence for fracked gas anywhere in Ireland.
New Fortress Energy, with no mercy for the communities affected by
fracking in Pennsylvania had hoped to be able to export even more
fracked gas from the USA by using an out-of-date planning consent for
an LNG terminal in Ireland, obviously hoping that the Irish would turn
a blind eye to the dubious procedures used by the Irish Planning
Authority, An Bord Pleanala, to give it an extension of planning
permission. But the European Court of Justice just said no.
'Safety Before LNG'
stated that today's decision was to be expected and does not come as
any surprise and thanks the 'Friends
of the Irish Environment' and its unstoppable legal team
of James Devlin, John Kenny and Fred Logue for fighting to prevent
climate chaos from the environmental madness that is the US fracked gas
industry.
The 'Friends of the
Irish Environment' environmental NGO has declared to the
world that Ireland is not for sale to the US fracked
gas industry.
'Safety Before LNG' stated that the US fracked gas exporter 'New Fortress Energy'
will not be able to get full development consent for years because
there is no social licence in Ireland for the importation of
fracked gas from America due to its devastating health and climate
impacts, rendering it dirtier than coal
Fracked gas is illegal in Ireland and planning permission for the
proposed 26km pipeline connecting the terminal has already expired.
The licence to pollute from the Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) will prove an even more difficult barrier for 'New Fortress Energy'
due to stricter rules in force since 2014 obliging the EPA to
consider effects on human health.
Ireland will not accept light-touch regulation where fracked gas is
concerned and the environmental standards in Ireland will be
too high for the US fracked gas exporter 'New Fortress Energy'
to jump over.
'Safety Before LNG'
says it is is now clear that the 'New
Fortress Energy'/Shannon plan to import fracked
gas from the USA is nothing more than an unachievable illusion created
to increase the value of its shares.
Time to move on to a more sustainable future.
Will those responsible for this mess every be held accountable, and will those who are accountable ever be held responsible?
End.
Contact:
John McElligott
Safety Before LNG
(087-2804474)
SafetyBeforeLNG@hotmail.com
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