The proposed Jordan Cove liquefied natural gas export facility and its 230-mile feeder pipeline in Southern Oregon would cause adverse and significant impacts if built, according to Federal Energy Regulatory Commission staff, Kallanish Energy reports.
The FERC staff issued its final environmental analysis of the natural gas export project Friday, concluding it would result in “temporary, long-term and permanent impacts on the environment,” The Oregonian reported.
The report says many of those impacts would not be significant or could be reduced to less than significant levels with avoidance and mitigation measures, the analysis said.
But some would be adverse and significant, staff concluded.
Commissioners make the final decision
The staff analysis is neither an approval nor denial of the project; that’s up to a vote of the agency’s commissioners after the analysis goes through a public comment period and incorporates any subsequent revisions.
A final order is expected from commissioners on Feb. 13. Even if it wins regulatory commission approval, construction of the project would be contingent on the project obtaining a host of other state, federal and local approvals.
Specifically, the regulatory staff concluded the project would permanently and significantly impact the visual character of Coos Bay; generate significant but temporary noise and housing problems; significantly impact operations of the Southwest Oregon Regional Airport, and adversely affect 18 federally-listed or proposed threatened and endangered species.
Jobs and tax benefits
Jordan Cove spokesman Paul Vogel pointed to the jobs and tax benefits the project would deliver and said backers had committed to undertake extensive mitigation to preserve old growth forests, wetlands and riparian habitat.
Opponents of the project emphasized the project was earlier rejected by FERC in 2016 because backers couldn’t demonstrate a public need for the project that outweighed its impacts on landowners impacted by the proposed Pacific Connector pipeline, which would stretch across much of Southern Oregon.
The LNG terminal would be located in Coos County, Oregon, and would be capable of liquefying up to 1.04 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day (Bcf/d) for export.
Five liquefaction trains
The roughly 200-acre LNG terminal site would include: a pipeline gas conditioning facility; five natural gas liquefaction trains; two full-containment LNG storage tanks and associated equipment; LNG loading platform and transfer line; marine facilities; an access channel from the existing Coos Bay Federal Navigation Channel to the LNG terminal; modifications adjacent to the existing Federal Navigation Channel; a temporary workforce housing facility; the non-jurisdictional Southwest Oregon Regional Security Center and Fire Department building; and other security and control facilities, administrative buildings, and other support structures.
The pipeline would originate at interconnections with existing pipeline systems in Klamath County, Oregon, and would span parts of Klamath, Jackson, Douglas, and Coos counties, in Oregon, before connecting with the LNG terminal.
The roughly 229-mile-long, 36-inch line would be capable of transporting up to 1.2 Bcf/d of natural gas.
This post appeared first on Kallanish Energy News.
