WBUR - Why A Federal Order In The Weymouth Compressor Case Has The Natural Gas World Worried

A thorough and outstanding article from Miriam Wasser on the FERC order. FRRACS is an original intervenor and will be filing a brief, as per usual. All eyes are on our little compressor now. It's time for to do the right thing.

WBUR - Why A Federal Order In The Weymouth Compressor Case Has The Natural Gas World Worried (link)

Excerpt: “In the six years since Massachusetts residents began fighting a proposed natural gas compressor station in Weymouth, the controversial and now-operational project has mostly been an issue of local concern. Not anymore.

As a challenge to the compressor station’s permit to operate winds its way through the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) — the agency in charge of approving interstate energy projects — some on the five-person body have signaled that they’re no longer interested in doing business as usual.

In a 3-2 vote last month, the commission began what some FERC experts are calling “a seemingly unprecedented” review process that not only raises questions about the future of the Weymouth Compressor, but has many in the gas industry worried about the fate of their current and future projects.

At the simplest level, this case is about whether FERC should hold a hearing to relitigate the Weymouth Compressor’s license to operate, known as a “service authorization order.” This happens all the time when project opponents appeal a FERC decision.

But two things make this situation unique: the potential precedent it could set, and the fact that FERC has a new commissioner who has promised to give more weight to climate change and environmental justice concerns.” (WBUR, 2021)