Docket Nos. CP19-502-000, CP19-502-001
The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or Commission) prepared a final supplemental environmental impact statement (EIS) to address the July 16, 2024 Opinion issued by the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit (court) regarding the Commission’s environmental review of the Commonwealth LNG Project (Project), proposed by Commonwealth LNG, LLC (Commonwealth).
On November 17, 2022, the Commission issued its Order Granting Authorization Under Section 3 of the Natural Gas Act (Order) for the Project. The July 16, 2024 court opinion found, as relevant here, that FERC failed to properly assess the cumulative effects of the project’s nitrogen dioxide (NO2) emissions and remanded the Order to FERC for further proceedings (Healthy Gulf v. FERC, 107 F.4th 1033 [D.C. Cir. 2024]). The final supplemental EIS was prepared to assess the issue raised by the court.
Commonwealth requests authorization to site, construct, and operate a natural gas liquefaction and export facility, including a Natural Gas Act section 3 natural gas pipeline, in Cameron Parish, Louisiana. Commonwealth states the purpose of the Project is to liquefy and export to foreign markets, domestically produced natural gas sourced from the existing interstate and intrastate pipeline systems of Kinetica and Bridgeline, respectively, in southwest Louisiana.
The final supplemental EIS was prepared in compliance with the requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the FERC regulations implementing NEPA under Title 18 of the Code of Federal Regulations, Part 380.
Commission staff conclude that cumulative modeled National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) exceedances for 1-hour NO2 may be significant.
The Commission will take into consideration the analysis and conclusions of the final supplemental EIS in its response to the court.