LNG plans outdated within a mere 2 months by Revelation that Corrib Gas
fields are being extended, that Moffat Capacity is being increased by
42% and that Gas Networks Ireland is Eliminating all Single points of
failure in the twinned gas interconnectors
- Claims that the flow of over €27 million by
Shannon LNG into Irish state-controlled bodies during its planning
process put huge and inappropriate pressure on Irish planning
authorites
- Calls for the return of the site to public ownership after it was
revealed that Shannon LNG controversially purchased the lands from the
state-owned Shannon Group for €25 million during the planning process
at a time when it was against government policy to permit any LNG
terminals to be proceeded with.
More Carbon Budget threats to Irish Farming following revelation that the Shannon LNG Emissions would
equal
the Methane Emissions from 1 Million Beef Cattle
- With up to 10
times the emissions of pipeline gas, LNG would mean a higher proportion
of the Carbon Budget Choice would be used for the fracked gas industry
and that even more Irish cattle would have to be culled and food
production reduced at a time of pending world food shortages to
compensate.
Based on figures from the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)), Methane Life Cycle Scientist Professor Robert Howarth of Cornell
University calculated that
the full lifecycle emissions for the 600 MW power plant proposed by
Shannon LNG (to power the 8 data centres it plans for the site) would
be the equivalent of the annual methane emissions of 450, 000 dairy
cows or 999,000 beef cows. Given that there currently is a budget for
emissions, why should farmers suffer the brunt of emissions cuts while
the owners of Shannon LNG, a US-based company, New Fortress Energy, run by the US King of Subprime
lending Wes Edens, makes millions of dollars and emits large amounts of
toxic gases at their expense?
Locking our limited carbon budget into
fracked gas powering Shannon LNG’s proposed development means even more
of the national herd will have to be culled and food production in
Ireland reduced at a time of pending world food shortages.
450,000 dairy cows represents 28% of
the total number of dairy cows (1,603,721) in the country - and
is more than the total number of dairy cows in Kerry, Limerick,
Tipperary and Clare combined.
1 million beef cattle is more than the entire beef cow herd of 936,773 in Ireland.
The Fugitive Methane Emissions alone (as
separate from the carbon dioxide emissions) from the proposed Shannon
LNG project would equal the methane emissions from 237,000 dairy cows
(14.7% of the national herd and greater than the total number of dairy
cows in Kerry and Limerick combined) or 530,000 beef cattle (over 56%
of the national beef cow herd).
As part of its medium-term decarbonisation targets in the Programme for Government, the government has committed to delivering an average 7% reduction in emissions each year to 2030.
However, Norwegian Research firm Rystad Energy found in November 2022 that the production and transport of LNG causes
up to 10 times the carbon emissions of the pipeline gas from the UK
network currently supplying gas to Ireland.
And Shannon LNG itself admitted in its 2021
planning application that the upstream emissions of LNG are 2.5 times
greater than those of natural gas from the UK gas network currently
supplying gas to Ireland.
In 2019, the Joint
Oireachtas Committee on Climate action were informed by scientists that
importing US fracked gas to Tarbert would
have a 44% higher carbon-equivalent footprint over a 20-year period
than importing coal to Moneypoint power station in County Clare.
In effect, unnecessary higher carbon emissions from Shannon LNG's
fracked gas imports would mean other sectors of the economy having to
unacceptably reduce their production even further, such as the dairy and beef sector.
In May 2021, NUI Galway’s Irish Centre for
Human Rights published a research report finding that fracking is
incompatible with states’ human rights law obligations to protect,
respect and fulfil basic human rights including the right to
life,health, water, food, housing, access to information, public
participation, a safe, clean, and healthy environment, and the
rights of marginalised persons & communities. It noted that a
significant body of scientific evidence now exists to demonstrate that
fracking is dangerous to public health, water, air, climate stability,
farming, property, and economic vitality in ways that cannot be
mitigated through regulation.
Fracking pollutes and poisons water, land
and people. North Kerry forms part of the Clare Gas Basin and was
targeted for fracking in 2011. This stopped when Ireland banned
fracking in 2017. It is unacceptable to now impose fracking damage on
other rural communities abroad.
But we also fear that if fracked gas comes into
Ireland, it would only be a matter of time before we see an attempt to
start fracking here under the excuse that it would do less climate
damage than importing US fracked gas. Cuadrilla has already used that
same argument in the UK to lobby for fracking there. Cuadrilla CEO,
Francis Egan, stated that “By
replacing liquefied natural gas imports and continuing to decrease
reliance on coal, with shale gas produced onshore, we will reduce the
UK’s carbon footprint and provide a cost-effective source of energy for
our homes, businesses and industry.”
There is no lack of gas supply in the country, only a lack of power stations to power the grid.
Data centres are currently using 14%
of the country’s electricity supply, which is more than the
electricity consumed by all the rural homes in the country, and this
figure is predicted to rise to 30% within the next 8 years. The Ennis
data centre, which Clare County Council approved in August, will
consume as much electricity as over 200,000 homes, which is the same as the number of homes in counties Clare, Limerick and Kerry combined.
Shannon LNG says that it plans eight data centres
on the site which would consume a large portion of the energy created
from the imported fracked gas in the first place if the project goes
ahead.
If the massive increase in electricity demand for data
centres in the coming years is to be fueled by fracked gas imports then
other sectors in the economy, such as agriculture, will be expected to
reduce their emissions accordingly (as all sectors are currently
fighting for a piece of the carbon pie or budget). While different
sectors of the economy end up fighting for an ever smaller piece of the
carbon budget, Shannon LNG and its fracked gas import supporters think
they should get a free ride. This is not a fair nor sustainable option.
A Review of the Security of Energy Supply of Ireland’s Electricity and
Natural Gas Systems is currently being undertaken by Minister Eamon
Ryan’s Department of Energy. In September 2022, in a move expected to
bring death by a thousand cuts
for the Shannon LNG US fracked gas import project, the Irish Department
of the Environment, Climate and Communications published the policy
options it is proposing as part of its review
of the Security of Energy Supply of Ireland's Electricity and Natural
Gas Systems. Shannon LNG is not the preferred option and it is now
widely expected that this should lead to An Bord Pleanála refusing planning permission
for the controversial fracked gas import project in Tarbert, County
Kerry. At the very least, it is now impossible for An Bord Pleanála to
legally make a decision in favour of Shannon LNG until the public
consultation on the Energy Review options is completed in 2023 as that
would be contrary to the existing government policy and preferred
future policy.
Controversial
Shannon LNG's payments of millions of euros to Kerry County Council
before it lodged its planning application compromises and taints the
Kerry County Development Plan, local activists fear. 'Safety Before
LNG' says that the highly irregular payments need to be fully and
independently investigated.
Shannon LNG has paid €4,103,625 to date to Kerry County Council
as possible development contributions for road widening in Tarbert.
A question mark is hanging over the Council on whether or not it will
have to pay that more-than €4 million back to Shannon
LNG if the development does not go ahead?
Kerry County Council requested and was paid over €2.4 million by
Shannon LNG after its planning permission for an onshore LNG terminal expired
in 2018 and before it lodged a new planning application for a
floating LNG terminal and 600 MW Power Station in Tarbert in
2021.
Fine Gael Councillor Jim Finucane told the Irish Independent Newspaper
that these payments were "good faith"
contributions made by a company that was committed to the area. This
defence by a Fine Gael politician of irregular payments of millions of
euros to the council is unacceptable in this day and age. Is he taking
the people for fools, we ask?
Shannon LNG still had a valid planning permission to construct a 500 MW
power station next to the onshore terminal but the power station was so
intrinsically linked to the proposed terminal it was questionable if
the power station could ever be built as planned if the terminal could
not go ahead. But Shannon LNG paid the money anyway. All of this €2.4
million was paid after Shannon LNG held its first pre-application
planning meeting with Kerry County Council, on January 24th 2020, concerning the new application
for Strategic
Infrastructure Status it had lodged at An Bord Pleanála on
March 20th, 2019 for a Floating LNG terminal and power station.
Even after having the confirmation in the High Court in November 2020
that Shannon LNG had lost all existing planning consent for the onshore
LNG terminal since 2018 Shannon LNG, nevertheless, paid €1,828,625 to
Kerry County Council before it lodged a new planning
application on August 27th 2021 for a floating LNG terminal and 600
MW power plant. Kerry County Council, a prescribed body, ended up supporting the planning application at An Bord
Pleanála at its October 18th 2021 meeting..
Figures detailed in an AIE response from Kerry County Council have
revealed that the local authority requested and was paid 7
payments totalling €4,103,625 by Shannon LNG since 2009. The latest
payment of €578,625 was on August 18th, 2021 - 9 days before Shannon
LNG lodged its planning
application on August 27th 2021 with Kerry County Council
support.
On one occasion, on January 19th 2021, Kerry County Council actually
received €625,000 from Shannon LNG on the very same day it held a
formal pre-application planning meeting with Shannon LNG on a planning
application it had not yet lodged.
This is a summary of the payments from the AIE response:
Outside of our domestic Corrib gas field, Ireland’s gas imports come from the North Sea - from Norway and the UK - via 2 parallel interconnectors.
Ireland and the UK make up the one gas market. Cutting off
UK supply to Ireland would mean cutting off gas to Northern Ireland and
the Isle of Man.
Ireland benefits from all the security of supply advantages
that the UK currently enjoys such as diverse supply routes and gas
storage.
An LNG terminal would make gas prices even more volatile as LNG cargoes can be diverted to other more-profitable destinations.
Ireland was granted the option
of an exemption from mandatory EU-wide gas cuts by the European
Commission because of the begrudging recognition by the European
Commission that the Irish gas grid is not connected to any other EU
Member State.
Article 194
of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union gives each EU
Member State the right of “choice between different energy sources”.
We are strongly of the opinion that the war in Ukraine and
the boomerang sanctions against Russian energy cannot be used as a
fracked gas war-profiteering excuse to import fracked gas from the U.S.
to Europe.In July 2022, the US Energy Information Administration announced that the United States had become the world's largest LNG exporter in the first half of 2022. Replacing
Russian gas imports into Europe with U.S. fracked gas is highly
questionable on human rights, public health, climate and environmental
grounds. Since Ireland’s supply of gas imports does not come from
Russia but from the North Sea via the Moffat interconnectors in
Scotland owned by Gas Networks Ireland, it is unacceptable to use the
war as an excuse to lock Ireland into even more gas infrastructure at a
time when it should be diversifying away from it.
New Fortress Energy, which is currently targeting Ireland
as its sole European destination for U.S. Fracked gas at its proposed
Shannon LNG terminal, cannot therefore claim to be reducing Ireland's
dependence on Russian gas.
On March 1st, 2022, two Irish Members of the European
Parliament (MEPs) - Clare Daly and Mick Wallace - were amongst the 13
MEPS who voted against a resolution in the European Parliament entitled
"Russian Aggression against Ukraine",
while 26 other MEPs abstained and 637 voted for the resolution. While
they both condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine they did not
support the motion on, inter alia, the grounds of neutrality (Ireland's official position we note) and because the motion also called for "expanding liquefied natural gas terminals".
Most disgraceful of all, locally is the fact that the entire
600-acre site of the proposed LNG terminal strategic public land
in North Kerry (under the control of Shannon Group State Body) were
sold to Wes Edens’ Shannon LNG for €25 million in late 2021 after the new planning
application for theLNG terminal was lodged in August 2021 by
Shannon LNG, contrary to the official government policy on the importation of fracked gas published
on May 18th, 2021 in place at the time.
The policy statement declares that "Ireland imports much of its natural gas
via the two interconnector
pipelines from Moffat in Scotland, which provide the majority of
natural gas currently used in Ireland. Given the level of fracked gas
in the imports from Scotland is considered very low, the highest risk
of fracked gas being imported into Ireland on a large-scale would be
via liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals, if any were to be constructed".
The policy statement concludes that “pending
the outcome of the review of the security of energy supply of Ireland’s
electricity and natural gas systems, it would not be appropriate for
the development of any LNG terminals in Ireland to be permitted or
proceeded with”.
The current state of play with the Shannon LNG project
All planning permissions and consents were lost
in November 2020 after Wes Edens' company Shannon LNG, allegedly,
unsuccessfully offered what was described in the Dáil as a bribe
of €1 million to environmental NGO ‘Friends of the Irish Environment’
as a settlement to prevent the illegal An Bord Pleanála decision giving
an extension of planning to Shannon LNG being overturned in the High
Court.
In 2021, Shannon LNG reapplied for planning permission to An Bord Pleanála. Objections against the planning application were lodged by over 1,500 people and 76 politicians,
which included MEPs, Senators, TDs and Councillors - including former
Ireland-South MEP Kathy Sinnott and Sinn Féin President, Mary Lou
McDonald and all the MEPS, TDs and Senators from People Before Profit,
Labour, Independents 4 Change, Right to Change and the Social Democrats
The entire 603 acres state-owned proposed LNG site was sold
by the state body 'Shannon Group', under the control of Transport
Minister Eamon Ryan to Wes Edens’ Shannon LNG for €25 million
in late 2021. Furthermore, the premature sale of the publicly-owned
landbank at the mouth of the Shannon Estuary to the developer of the
proposed US fracked gas LNG import terminal, before any planning
decision is made, has given Wes Edens the capacity to leverage, veto
and undermine any competing alternative proposals from the Shannon Estuary Economic Taskforce which was set up specifically as agreed in the Programme for Government
with the aim of stimulating economic activity "for those areas that
were expecting economic development arising from new fossil-fuel
infrastructure" - the LNG terminal area - when it reports back to the
Tánaiste. This effectively means that if Shannon LNG actually gets
planning permission with 2 LNG tankers at the mouth of the Estuary then
Wes Edens can blockade, monopolise and sterilise the Estuary from
further development.
Previous owner Paddy Power, originally from Tralee and now
living in Dublin, and his family are reported to have received over US $16.7 million
in a buyout deal from New Fortress Energy in 2020 and are due to
receive another $9.9 million once the first gas is supplied to the
proposed LNG terminal
When the more than 600 acres of strategic public land in North Kerry were sold to Wes Edens’ Shannon LNG for €25 million in late 2021 after the new planning application for an LNG terminal was lodged in August 2021 by Shannon LNG, it was contrary to the official government policy on the importation of fracked gas published on May 18th, 2021.The policy statement
declares that "Ireland imports much of its natural gas via the two
interconnector pipelines from Moffat in Scotland, which provide the
majority of natural gas currently used in Ireland. Given the level of
fracked gas in the imports from Scotland is considered very low, the
highest risk of fracked gas being imported into Ireland on a
large-scale would be via liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals, if any
were to be constructed". The policy statement concludes that “pending the outcome of the review
of the security of energy supply of Ireland’s electricity and natural
gas systems, it would not be appropriate for the development of any LNG
terminals in Ireland to be permitted or proceeded with”.
Regarding the ongoing security of energy supply review, the Department for the Environment ordered that “any
options identified must be in keeping with the commitments in the
Programme for Government. This includes any policy statement that is
developed to establish the approach to the Government’s stated
commitment not to support the importation of fracked gas”.
An Bord Pleanála has postponed a decision on the new planning
application for the proposed Shannon LNG terminal.
In a move expected to bring death by a thousand cuts
for the Shannon LNG US fracked gas import project, the Irish Department
of the Environment, Climate and Communications published the policy
options it is proposing as part of its review
of the Security of Energy Supply of Ireland's Electricity and Natural
Gas Systems. Shannon LNG is not the preferred option and it is now
widely expected that this should lead to An Bord Pleanála refusing planning permission
for the controversial fracked gas import project in Tarbert, County
Kerry. At the very least, it is now impossible for An Bord Pleanála to
legally make a decision in favour of Shannon LNG until the public
consultation on the Energy Review options is completed in 2023 as that
would be contrary to the existing government policy and preferred
future policy.
Barrister
John Kenny on how Shannon LNG is a breach of Human Rights Dublin 19
December 2019
Why was the US putting so much pressure on the EU to import US fracked gas even before the war in Ukraine?
The
latest peer-reviewed scientific studies
have found that one third of the total
increased methane emissions from all sources globally, over the past
decade, is
coming from US fracked gas (shale gas).
With
this backdrop, on December 20th, 2019, the US imposed sanctions on the German
Nordstream2 pipeline being built to bring non-fracked gas
directly from Russia
under the Baltic sea to stop Russian gas competing with the US fracked
gas
imports into Europe
"Dig a well, Bring a
soldier home" was
a slogan in the USA several years ago when America was a net importer
of gas.
Now, with fracking (and over 1.7 million wells later
and counting), the
U.S. has become
a net exporter of fracked gas. The rush is on to find a new overseas
market for
U.S. methane before the fracking bubble bursts in the USA.
This
was followed on with a bill passed in U.S. House of Representatives on
March 25th, 2019 (the "European Energy
Security and Diversification Act of 2019") that, if it becomes law,would allocate hundreds of
millions
of US dollars in federal funding over
two years to public and private energy development projects in Europe
and
Eurasia, including LNG terminals, with the potential to use US gas -
gas it now
markets as "Freedom Gas".
The
message from the NordStream2 sanctions is now clear for all to see that
importing US fracked gas has nothing to do about bringing "freedom"
gas to Europe. Rather, it is about locking Europe into buying US
fracked gas
for decades to come, with no consideration of the Climate impacts given
that
the US has signalled its intention to withdraw
from the Paris Accord.
The US is now using all its political, economic and diplomatic power to
force
Europe to buy its filthy fracked gas.
The
focus of climate change mitigation actions (as opposed to Climate
Adaptation) is
to reduce the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions which are driving climate
change.
On
Climate Mitigation grounds, European Fracked gas LNG import
infrastructure cannot
reasonably be expanded at Shannon, Cork and elsewhere throughout Europe
because
scientific evidence has found that purposeful and leaked/fugitive
methane
emissions from fracked gas is accelerating global warming with fracked
gas
imports having a carbon equivalent footprint 44% greater than coal over
the
full life cycle.
Amazingly,
however, unlike
the case for carbon dioxide, the Climate System responds quickly to a
reduction in
methane emissions and could provide the opportunity to immediately slow
the
rate of global warming by around half a degree celsius
Schindell
et al, 2012
Because
methane, with a half-life in the atmosphere of 12 years is faster acting than
carbon dioxide, it means that an effective reduction in
methane emissions in the short term would buy us some desperately
needed time
to do a complete reconstruction of our energy system. Methane
reductions are
critical and the Science is now clear that we will not reach our Paris
Accord.target of keeping the
planet well
below 2degrees
Celsius above the
pre-industrial baselinewith CO2
reductions alone.
Given
that the latest peer-reviewed scientific studies have found that one third of
the total increased methane emissions from all sources globally over
the past
decade is coming from US fracked gas (shale gas) it
is now clear that intense US pressure to find new overseas markets for
its
Methane from fracking - such as in The Trade Deal between the US and
Europe in
July 2018 which agreed an Energy Plan for Europe to build more
terminals to
import LNG from the US on a massive scale - is no
longer sustainable because the US is putting Trade before Climate.
Importing
US fracked gas into countries which have banned fracking, like Ireland,
amounts
to "carbon leakage" because Europe does not count non-territorial
emissions in its carbon budgets. On July 16th, 2019, in a major policy
turnaround, EU Commission President-elect Ursula Von der Leyen
announced that
she would "introduce a carbon
border
tax to avoid carbon leakage". Discussion of the non-territorial
emissions
from the importation of US fracked gas into Europe, the carbon leakage
issue of
the next decade, is currently being met with a total silence and a
reckless refusal
to engage by theEuropean
Commission,
but such refusal is more and more incompatible with a declared
intention by
President Von der Leyen to fight runaway global warming. Any new fossil
gas
infrastructure will amount to a fossil fuel lock in as the
infrastructure would
be there for the next 50 years at least and any rational person would
have to
accept that we are now at a crossroads where there must be a
transparent evidence-based
decision made on preventing fossil gas in the Irish and European Energy
mix.
Is
gas cleaner than coal?
No. When
burned, gas produces less carbon dioxide emissions than coal or diesel
oil
locally, but it is what is not
burned - the purposeful (at
least 0.8%) and leaked/fugitive (at least 2.6%) methane emissions over
the full
life cycle, the non-territorial emissions - that is causing
the problem. Methane
Emissions are the Achilles' heel of natural gas (natural gas is 95%
Methane). Fracking
in the US, requiring hundreds of
thousands of disposable wells to be dug, as opposed to conventional
drilled gas
for example, is causing the huge spike of one third of all global
methane in
the last decade -methane
which is not
burned and therefore accelerating global warming by absorbing 87 times more
heat than carbon dioxide over a 20-year period.
When politicians and the
fossil fuel lobby speak about gas as a transitional fuel they obfuscate
the
impacts of purposeful and leaked/fugitive Methane emissions from
fracking on
the climate by making no distinction between
unconventional/fracked/shale gas
and conventional drilled gas. This is neither reasonable nor rational
especially when reducing methane emissions into the atmosphere may
reverse the
rate of global warming.
Are there other
impacts other than climate impacts?
Yes,
Ireland passed the 'Prohibition of
Onshore Hydraulic Fracturing Act 2017', banning fracking in
Ireland in
recognition of the health and climate impacts of exploiting shale gas
reserves;
Locally,
fracking poisons people (health) and creates environmental pollution.
The
process of fracking is harmful at source in the USA too, and it is
hypocritical
that we would recognise the harm in Ireland by banning fracking, but
then
create demand for it abroad by importing it.
Evidence
that the proposed Shannon LNG project by 'New Fortress Energy" is for
the
Importation of Fracked US gas
Shannon
LNG is being proposed as an LNG Import Terminal by its owners, New
Fortress Energy, to receive fracked gas from the one of the world's
largest natural gas fields, the Marcellus Shale Formation in
Pennsylvania, U.S.A. However, comments by politicians and some
individuals from public organisations that the sources of gas for the
proposed Shannon LNG terminal have not been specified yet are
attempting to cast doubt over this fact. We calculate that almost
100% of the Gas in Pennsylvania is fracked gas since
so-called
conventional wells are also being drilled in shale and also need to be
fracked. However, even if we take the more conservative approach of
only unconventional wells being fracked, then it is still proven from
official US figures that up to 97.85% of gas in Pennsylvania is fracked
gas. This paper puts forward the evidence that
Shannon LNG is a US fracked gas import project. This
information comes from the following sources:
1.
From the Company itself and it’s company filings to the US
Securities
and Exchange Commission (SEC) on November 9th, 2018 where
- New
Fortress Energy tells the SEC that " Certain of our suppliers employ
hydraulic fracturing techniques"
-
New Fortress Energy tells the SEC "Increased regulation or difficulty
in permitting of hydraulic fracturing, and any corresponding increase
in domestic natural gas prices, could materially adversely affect
demand for LNG and our ability to develop commercially viable LNG
facilities"
- New Fortress Energy admits to the SEC that
it "seeks to use “stranded” natural gas
to satisfy the world’s
large and growing power needs”[…] “We are
currently developing two
liquefiers in the Marcellus area of Pennsylvania, each of which is
expected to have the capacity to produce approximately 3 to 4 million
gallons of LNG"
- New Fortress Energy tells the SEC " Shannon,
Ireland – We have entered into an agreement to purchase all
of the
ownership interests in a project company that owns the rights to
develop and operate an LNG terminal and a CHP plant on the Shannon
Estuary near Ballylongford, Ireland [...] We intend to supply all
existing and future customers with LNG produced primarily at our own
Liquefaction Facilities. We have one operational liquefaction facility
in Miami, are currently are currently developing our Pennsylvania
Facilities and plan to develop five to ten additional liquefaction
facilities over the next five years"
2.
From the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP)
98.23% of Gas produced in Pennsylvania in 2018 was fracked gas
3.
From the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) at least 97.85% of
Gas produced in Pennsylvania in 2018 was fracked gas
4.
From the Methane Life Cycle Scientist Professor Robert Howarth, Cornell
University who informed the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Climate
Action on October 9th 2019 that “If Ireland were to import
liquefied
natural gas from the United States, it would largely be shale gas"
5.
From Richard Bruton, T.D., the Minister for Communications, Climate
Action and Environment himself who admitted on RTE Radio on May 10th
2019 that the gas coming from the US would be fracked gas
6. From Business and
Investment Media Reports on the Issue
7. From Industry
Analysis on the Issue
8.
From U.S. President Donald Trump on 23rd October 2019 who stated at the
9th Annual Shale Insight Conference in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania " they
won’t do any fracking in New York [...] They
don’t do it in New
York. Somebody, someday, will explain why. They do it in
Pennsylvania. They do it in Ohio."
EU
Commission accused of breaking Climate laws on
very day President announces European Green Deal
The
appeal was lodged following the shock written admission 5 days earlier
by the
Director General
of DG Energy herself - Mrs
Ditte Juul-Jorgensen –
that the Commission breached the EU PCI
Regulation by not evaluating climate impacts when assessing all the
proposed
gas PCI projects. This list includes the controversial Shannon LNG
project
being proposed for the large-scale importation of US fracked gas into
Europe. The Trans-Atlantic group of NGOs’ appeal
raised the accusation
that Trade Considerations for the importation of US fracked gas, as
agreed by
Presidents Trump and Juncker in July 2018, are dominating over Climate
in the
European Commission institutional mindset, forcing European Commission
staff to
illegally turn a blind eye to the disastrous Climate impacts of filthy
fracked
gas imports and blatantly commit discriminatory breaches of EU
Regulations in
the process.
By
law, the
potential overall benefits of each proposed project of common interest
must
outweigh its costs and the criteria to make this assessment must
include the
Sustainability Criteria,
which means reducing Emissions and Climate Impacts.
The
Director General claimed that the breach
of EU Regulations will be fixed for future
PCI lists but did not offer to do any climate impact assessment of the
currently proposed PCI list it approved, and which is currently before
the
European Parliament, rendering the entire PCI list legally unsafe due
to a
serious discriminatory breach of the PCI Regulation by DG Energy.
The
Climate activists were
reacting to the latest
peer-reviewed research which notes
that Methane is a greenhouse gas 100 times more powerful than
carbon-dioxide
and that shale gas
development in North America is the single largest driver of this
increase in
methane, accounting for one-third of the increase in global emissions
from all
sources.
The
appeal comes on the very day that President
Ursula Von der Leyen announced the adoption of the European
Green Deal. How the Commission deals with the carbon leakage
and
non-territorial emissions of US fracked gas imports into Europe on a
massive
scale which leave a carbon footprint 44% greater than that of coal will
quickly
reveal whether the European Green Deal is to signal real actions or
just
aspirations.