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Press Release 10th December 2009: Safety Before LNG condemns refusal by CER to require an LNG marine Risk assessmentSafety Before LNG says that it is incredible, but not surprising, that the CER can find that there is still no requirement for a Marine Risk Assessment of the proposed LNG terminal and asks the CER which government body is actually going to require one. The European Court of Human Rights has now asked the British Goverment to explain how the safety bodies in the UK could allow the LNG terminal be built in Milford Haven without any marine risk assessments and the exact same embarrassing scenario is now likely for the Shaannon LNG project in Ireland. World-renowned LNG safety expert Dr. Jerry Havens has stated that anyone within 3 miles of an LNG accident will be in danger. A foreshore licence is still required and is permission from the EPA to pollute the area which, given the reaction of the other statutory bodies, should be another time-wasting, money-wasting whitewash. Notes to editor: The CER have given a licence to Shannon LNG to construct the pipeline with only a few interesting conditions.: Pipeline must be built
within 5 years of the consent given (the LNG terminal itself is 10
years)
The pipeline will need further approval on safety grounds before it actually goes into operation. The full decision can be downloaded from the CER website at http://www.cer.ie/en/gas-transmission-network-overview.aspx?article=95c3109f-e0eb-4eb0-a4d7-57d9f249857a&mode=author The CER said that they undertook a safety assessment of the proposal but gave no details of who did this assessment or the findings which is interesting as the CER do not have any LNG expertise and the CER found that there was no requirement for a marine risk assessment. So, even though there has still been no risk assessment of the ship movements of LNG, and despite the recent European Court of Human Rights case into the exact same lack of a marine risk assessment in the Milford Haven LNG terminals and the recent Corrib Pipeline ruling where the corrib pipeline is not allowed to be built in an area if an accident would pose a danger to residents (see http://www.kildarestreet.com/wrans/?id=2009-05-19.1601.0 ) the CER has just proved it does not give a damn about the safety issues surrounding what will become the most sizeable hazard in Ireland. Copy of letter from the CER to Safety Before LNG announcing its decision: Mr Johnny McElligott Safety Before LNG Island View Convent Street Listowel Co. Kerry 9th December 2009 Ref: 39093 Dear Mr. McElligott, Consent to Construct Shannon LNG Natural Gas Pipeline I refer to previous correspondence and submissions from Safety Before LNG on the above. The Commission has now decided to grant Section 39A Consent to Shannon LNG to construct the pipeline. A copy of the decision is available on our website at www.cer.ie . In coming to its decision, the Commission has taken account of the submissions received from various parties and the arguments advanced at the public meeting of 26 May last, as will be clear from the text of the decision. The Commission has also considered the very recent submission from Safety Before LNG of 19 November 2009 and has concluded that the considerations set out the submission would not constitute grounds for refusing a Section 39A Consent.
I should add, incidentally, that Shannon LNG will not be entitled to actually operate the proposed LNG terminal until it has applied for and received a license to operate from the Commission. A prior condition to issuing such a license would be that the Commission has approved a Safety Case for the facility. I trust this is helpful.
Yours sincerely
Denis
Cagney
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