Local, national organizations raise alarm over massive increase in greenhouse gas pollution from TC Energy’s gas pipeline expansion proposal
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Environmental Leaders Urge West Coast Governors to Oppose GTN Pipeline Expansion
Local, national organizations raise alarm over massive increase in greenhouse gas pollution from TC Energy’s gas pipeline expansion proposal
Portland, Ore. (October 24, 2022)—Local and national organizations leading the fight against climate change sent a letter calling on Governors Brown, Inslee, and Newsom to make their opposition to the Gas Transmission Northwest (GTN) Pipeline Expansion proposal–called GTN XPress–loud and clear. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) is expected to announce a decision on the expansion in February.
“There are over 30 organizations with a range of climate, social justice, health, and place-based goals that fiercely oppose this project,” said Audrey Leonard, Staff Attorney for Columbia Riverkeeper. “We’re urging our Governors to publicly oppose GTN XPress, which directly contradicts state climate goals. This proposal will pollute our communities, impact health and safety, and contribute to the climate crisis.”
“Northwest communities have organized to win strong climate goals in our states and this project threatens our ability to meet those emission reductions. Over the last five years, while many worked to defeat new pipelines like Jordan Cove LNG, FERC approved more than a dozen pipeline expansion projects across the country. We need our governors to stand with us and send a strong message to the Federal government to stop rubber stamping pipeline expansions,” said Maig Tinnin, Rogue Valley Coordinator for Rogue Climate.
"Like our West Coast neighbors, concerned Idahoans oppose any new or expanded fossil fuels extraction, transportation, and infrastructure projects," said Wild Idaho Rising Tide (WIRT) Organizer Helen Yost. "We encourage California, Oregon, and Washington governors to further consider the broad climate impacts of their public actions and decisions, especially for under-represented, rural communities."
Local and national organizations that joined the letter include: 198 methods, 350 Eugene, 350 PDX, 350 Seattle, 350 Spokane, 350 Yakima, Beyond Toxics, Breach Collective, Cascadia Climate Action Now, Cascadia Wildlands, Citizens for Renewables, Columbia Riverkeeper, Earth Ministry/Washington Interfaith Power & Light, Electrify Corvallis, Environmental Caucus Democratic Party of Oregon, Food & Water Watch, Idaho Conservation League, Onward Oregon, Oregon Chapter Sierra Club, Oregon Just Transition Alliance, Oregon Physicians for Social Responsibility, Pineros y Campesinos Unidos del Noroeste (PCUN), RE Sources, Rogue Climate, Rogue Riverkeeper, San Francisco Bay Physicians for Social Responsibility, Save California Salmon, Sierra Club Washington State Chapter, Spokane Riverkeeper, Twin Harbors Waterkeeper, Vashon Climate Action Group, Verde, Washington Physicians for Social Responsibility, Waterkeeper Alliance, and Wild Idaho Rising Tide, signed the letter calling on Governors Brown, Inslee, and Newsom, to continue to lead the fight against climate change.
TC Energy, the company behind the controversial Keystone XL Pipeline, operates a 1,354 mile fracked gas pipeline that runs from Kingsgate, British Columbia, through Idaho, Washington, and Oregon. Under the GTN XPress proposal, TC Energy would add 150 million cubic feet per day of methane gas capacity to the existing GTN Pipeline. According to FERC, the expansion will emit more than 3.24 million metric tons of greenhouse gas equivalent, however the agency’s calculations do not include upstream emissions, and are likely a significant underestimate. If approved, FERC’s low estimation of the project found it will increase greenhouse gas emissions in Washington by 3.8%, Oregon by 7.7%, or Idaho by 16% every year. Washington and Oregon laws require decreasing emissions by 95% and 75%, respectively, by 2050.
In August, the Attorney Generals for Washington, Oregon, and California expressed their opposition to GTN XPress and filed a motion to intervene at FERC, explaining the expansion would undermine the states’ climate goals. The letter asks the governors to speak out against GTN XPress because the federal government needs to hear a clear and unified voice from state leadership that West Coast states oppose the gas expansion project.
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Local and national organizations leading the fight against climate change sent a letter calling on Governors Brown, Inslee, and Newsom to make their opposition to the Gas Transmission Northwest (GTN) Pipeline Expansion proposal–called GTN XPress–loud and clear.
