History Made! FERC Overrules NY DEC on Millennium Pipe Permit
Finally the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has had enough shenanigans from the corrupted New York Dept. of Environmental Conservation (DEC). In a historic, precedent-setting decision, on Friday FERC overruled DEC’s denial of a water permit for Millennium Pipeline’s tiny 7.8 mile pipeline spur from the main Millennium Pipeline to a natural gas power plant under construction in Orange County, NY. On Wednesday, Aug. 30, the DEC issued a denial letter to FERC and Millennium. In it, they claim that FERC’s review of the power plant project (that the pipeline will feed) is deficient based on a recently-decided court case about a pipeline project in Florida (see Corrupt NY DEC Denies Water Permit for 7.8 Mile Power Plant Pipeline). The radicalized DEC used the Florida case as an excuse to refuse stream crossing permits for the Millennium Pipeline project–claiming FERC had not considered long-term effects of mythical man-made global warming that would come from the power plant if the Millennium pipeline is connected to and feeds the plant. The DEC decision was a naked attempt to grab power not given to it under federal law. FERC said ENOUGH, and ruled on Friday the DEC had taken too long (over one year) in dithering with a decision on the Millennium pipeline request. A recent ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia said FERC has the power and authority to overrule the DEC when they take longer than one year to grant permits (see DC Court Tells Millennium FERC Can Override NY DEC Pipeline Delay). So FERC just exercised their federal, court-approved authority and smashed the DEC into the ground. LOVE IT! Of course the humiliated DEC spit and sputtered and said they will likely sue…
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Bad news for the Sisters of the Corn and the radicals at Lancaster Against Pipelines. On Friday the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) granted Williams permission to begin construction on Atlantic Sunrise, a $3 billion, 198-mile pipeline project running through 10 Pennsylvania counties to connect Marcellus Shale natural gas from northeastern PA with the Williams’ Transco pipeline in southern Lancaster County. Last week the Sierra Club and a mish mash of other nutball groups begged FERC to delay issuing an order that Williams can commence with construction, claiming FERC’s delay in considering a rehearing delayed a lawsuit and the lawsuit hasn’t had enough time to work it’s way through the court system (see
TransCanada, one of Canada’s leading midstream/pipeline companies, cooked up a deal last year to pipe natural gas from Canada’s West Coast to the East Coast in order to fend off cheap supplies of Marcellus/Utica gas that will flow into Canada when/if the NEXUS and Rover pipelines get built (see
As MDN told you two weeks ago, radicals from the Chesapeake Climate Action Network (CCAN) said they would stage “massive” protests at several Virginia Department of Environmental Quality offices last week to protest against two Marcellus/Utica pipeline projects: the $5 billion Atlantic Coast Pipeline and $3.5 billion Mountain Valley Pipeline. Both projects have large segments crossing Virginia (see
It certainly isn’t journalism. It’s one-sided, anti-fossil fuel advocacy. And it’s profoundly biased. StateImpact Pennsylvania, a Public Broadcasting initiative that’s funded, in part, with taxpayer money, is about to expand by adding another three propagandists to the three it has now. Joy. Four PBS organizations, led by WITF in Harrisburg, PA, is receiving a $652,902 grant from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) to expand its propaganda operation and write more anti-drilling, anti-pipeline stories. Stories that are one-sided. Aren’t you glad your taxpayer dollars go to fund this “reporting?” They’ll throw in a little global warming hysteria, just to spice it up…
Republicans hold majorities in both the Pennsylvania Senate and the Pennsylvania House. As is happening on the national level, the Republican Party in PA is also rife with establishment, left-leaning members who are not in their positions to benefit their constituents and all residents of the Keystone State, but are there to feather their own nests. Swamp dwellers. They are Republicans In Name Only (RINOs). One such RINO is PA Rep. Kate Harper, a “Republican” from Montgomery County–a Philadelphia suburb. Harper has been in the House since Jan. 2, 2001 (16 years, long past time she was voted out of office). Harper proposed an insane severance tax as part of this year’s budget deal. It’s not her first time at the trough. Harper has been proposing a severance tax for years (see
Last week MDN told you that New York’s highest court, the Court of Appeals, had just ruled that the New York State Attorney General, Eric Schneiderman, has the right to demand documents in a court case that accuses Exxon of hiding internal research that shows burning oil and gas leads to catastrophic, man-made global warming (see
MDN previously wrote about Natural Gas Intelligence’s awesome, huge 52″ x 36″ wall map showing every major (most minor) natural gas pipelines (202 of them!), resource plays (185 of them!) and more (
Events related (or of interest) to the Marcellus and Utica Shale, primarily pro-drilling events.
The “best of the rest” – stories that caught MDN’s eye that you may be interested in reading. In today’s lineup: PTT Ohio cracker decision to come last quarter 2017; PA budget fight gets “personal” and regional; DRBC sitting on $30M in cash/investments; PA cracker will have big impact on Lawrence County; West Goshen still suing re Mariner East 2 pipeline; OH gas plants primed to seize King Coal’s crown; Belmont County cracker will benefit WV; NC regulators ask questions of Atlantic Coast Pipeline; Energy Dept. does quick turnaround, approves natgas export plant in record time; Trump may replace (not repeal) Clean Power Plan; and more!