WASHINGTON (December 17, 2024)—Today, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) released an updated study evaluating the economic, national security, and environmental impacts of liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports. The study is intended to inform future DOE decisions on whether new LNG export applications to non-free trade agreement countries are in the public interest. These updates include refinements of a range of relevant environmental, climate, and economic parameters. In a statement accompanying the report, DOE Secretary Granholm sounds a clear warning on the perils of an unfettered expansion of fossil fuel exports. The DOE has also announced a 60-day comment period for this study.
Below is a statement by Dr. Rachel Cleetus, the policy director for the Climate and Energy Program at the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS).
“The Department of Energy has a duty to assess whether gas exports are in the public interest—and it simply cannot arrive at rigorous, well-informed decisions if it’s relying on outdated science, outdated economics, and outdated views on the rapidly evolving global energy transition now underway.
“Secretary Granholm was right to stand up to fossil fuel industry attempts to derail this study and undertake this important update. The study makes it clear that expanding fossil fuel exports would greatly harm the economy, climate and environment.
“The country should base decisions about a further ramp-up in gas exports on the best available science, and this study provides a strong foundation. The bottom line is that continuing the unimpeded expansion of fossil gas infrastructure risks exacerbating unaffordable energy costs for households and businesses, sacrifices the rights of fenceline communities to clean air and water, and further contributes to the deadly and worsening effects of the climate crisis.
“At a time when the world should be increasingly committed to moving away from fossil fuels, the U.S. must adopt a forward-looking view to ensure the public is not saddled with the costs and consequences of short-sighted decisions that pander to the narrow interests of polluting corporations.”