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LNG Is Bad for Climate. Under Trump, It Would Be Even Worse. [1]
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Date: 2024-08
A second Trump presidency would spell a full-blown disaster for climate and environmental justice. By contrast, the Biden-Harris administration has shown it is willing to stand up to fossil fuel interests, in this particular case, by announcing the LNG pause. If Vice President Kamala Harris is elected, our role as the climate movement will be to urge her to continue on the path she and President Biden started. Once in power, she must use her full suite of executive authorities to responsibly phase out fossil fuels production, including stopping new LNG infrastructure and phasing down existing LNG infrastructure.
What’s Next? Here Are the 3 Key Takeaways From Our Full Report.
We break down the urgency of this moment and the next steps DOE, the Biden-Harris administration, and the climate movement must take in our latest memo (PDF). For a full analysis of the costs of LNG and opportunities ahead, head to the report—here’s an overview of what you can expect inside.
1. LNG Disproportionately Harms Frontline Communities in the Gulf
LNG export terminals, often sited in Black, Brown, and low-income communities, threaten public health by releasing dangerous pollutants. Due to an ongoing history of fossil fuel racism, communities on the Gulf Coast unjustly live near oil and gas facilities that are linked to health impacts like headaches, dizziness, and respiratory irritation—not to mention other severe health issues like cancer or heart disease. Republicans and Big Polluters know this, along with the fact that more LNG terminals will increase monthly energy bills and devastate our climate. And yet, they are still forging ahead to pad their pockets. DOE has the authority to stop LNG expansion, and it must, to protect people and our planet.
2. A Second-Term Trump Administration Would Spell an LNG Disaster for Our Climate
Before the Louisiana court order, Donald Trump promised to immediately end the LNG pause if elected, and he is unlikely to appeal the Louisiana preliminary injunction on the LNG pause. He’d also likely halt DOE’s public interest determination update in its tracks. Under the highly probable scenario all projects in the permitting pipeline are rubber-stamped under a second Trump term, we can then expect four times more U.S.-sourced LNG export capacity compared to our 2023 levels (PDF), amounting to a whopping 3.9 gigatons of carbon dioxide pollution each year. That, alone, is the equivalent of 63 percent of our nation’s greenhouse gas pollution in 2021.
3. DOE Has an Opportunity to Get the Public Interest Determination (PID) Process Right
If we want to curb LNG pollution, a Harris administration is our sole ticket for change in a decisive decade to hit our climate benchmarks. Her administration must listen to and act on the recommendations of environmental justice stakeholders, determine LNG permits are not in the public interest, and replace energy demand at home by supporting the rapid build-out of clean energy in export countries. The Biden-Harris administration took a step forward with the pause. Now, it’s time DOE secures a climate victory with a commonsense determination that new LNG exports are not in the public interest. After all, we need to move forward to a cleaner, healthier energy economy built for people, not polluters.
Take Action Now
During the pause, DOE will reassess how it determines which projects get the green light, taking into account climate and economic impacts. But in the meantime, GOP members of Congress are doing everything they can to get President Biden to backtrack on the pause. Tell your members of Congress that you support a pause on LNG and continued action to end the era of fossil fuels.
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[1] Url:
https://evergreenaction.com/blog/lng-is-bad-for-climate-under-trump-it-would-be-even-worse-5
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