Broad Coalition Condemns FERC’s Approval of Dangerous CP2 LNG Export Facility

Washington, DC — Late last week, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission gave the controversial Venture Global permission to proceed with construction of its CP2 LNG export facility, despite Former FERC Chairman Phillips raising concerns about the facility’s emissions last year — which are equivalent to more than 47 million gasoline-powered cars or 54 coal-fired power plants. 

A report from Louisiana Bucket Brigade found that Venture Global was in noncompliance for 82 days and had over 2,000 permit violations in 2023 at one of its other facilities, Calcasieu Pass LNG, where CP2 would sit adjacent to. When neighbors’ documentation is combined with filed reports, operational problems were documented on 115 out of 181 days in the first half of the year, or 63% of the time. Shrimpers and fishermen have also broadly opposed CP2, citing the likelihood that the project would wipe out their way of life. 

A report by the Bullard Center for Environmental Justice found that LNG export facilities in the Gulf South add to the environmental burdens BIPOC, lower-income, and fenceline communities bear from decades of oil and gas development, where the dominating presence of this industry has created sacrifice zones. These vulnerable communities do not reap the gains from the industry operating in their neighborhoods–tax incentives go to fossil fuel companies instead of investing in education or other public services.

Moreover, approving more LNG exports raises US consumers' power bills while putting US resources in the hands of the nation’s geopolitical rivals. CP2 is already contracted with China Gas for a portion of its LNG exports, despite concerns from national security experts that companies connected to the Chinese Communist Party are leveraging US gas to build geopolitical power and make profits reselling US LNG to Europe and other markets. 

Below are statements in response: 

“I am deeply disheartened by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's decision to permit the construction of the CP2 LNG export facility. This isn't just a setback for our communities; it’s a grave threat to our environment and a direct assault on the livelihoods of our fishermen and shrimpers,” said Roishetta Ozane, Founder of the Vessel Project of Louisiana. “With CP1 showing 82 days of noncompliance and thousands of permit violations, it’s clear that Venture Global doesn’t care about our communities and this project won’t be any different as it also prioritizes profit over people. The emissions from CP2 will be staggering, equivalent to millions of gas-powered cars, and this will only exacerbate the climate crisis we are already facing. I will  continue to fight to oppose this and other reckless decisions that jeopardize our resources and put our communities at risk for the benefit of geopolitical interests because my children’s lives depend on it, this planet depends on it.” 

“CP2 isn’t just another permit—it’s an eviction notice for the ecosystems, livelihoods, and cultures that define coastal Louisiana. I’ve watched fisher families grieve as the shrimp vanish and they now get nosebleeds while they working in the waters their family has known for generations” said Alyssa Portaro, Founder of Habitat Recovery Project. “FERC’s decision ignores science, skips community input, and rewards a company already proven to violate basic protections. We’ve worked with over 150 fishermen this past year and they all see this is not development—it’s dispossession. We deserve air monitors, not more emissions; restoration, not abandonment. We will continue to work toward a future where our people, waters, and ways of life are protected—not sold off to the highest bidder.”

“Moving forward with CP2 is bad news for the American public and for our climate,” said Gillian Giannetti, senior attorney at NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council). “LNG extraction and export contaminates our water, spews toxic pollution into our communities, releases climate-warming emissions, and drives up U.S. energy costs. FERC once again greenlighting CP2 is throwing the health of our communities and the public interest out the window just to line the pockets of fossil-fuel-industry billionaires. NRDC remains dedicated to protecting Gulf communities affected by this dangerous proposal.”

“Granting Venture Global the permission to proceed with the construction of CP2 LNG is catastrophic for both frontline communities and the environment,” said Elizabeth Purcell, Environmental Policy Coordinator at Turtle Island Restoration Network. “Ignoring the findings of the most recent DOE LNG Export Study and giving CP2 LNG the green light for construction is irresponsible and reprehensible. This administration proves time and time again that they place corporate interests and profits over our planet and our people.”

“Organizations and impacted landowners have spoken out against the horrific impacts that CP2 would have on their communities, their health, and their livelihoods, but now, FERC has greenlit Venture Global to begin construction immediately, even during future challenges to the project,” said Nathan Matthews, Sierra Club Senior Attorney. “This shows once again that the Trump Administration is ignoring the realities of LNG exports in order to rubberstamp these projects so that Big Oil and Gas CEOs can reap the benefits while everyday Americans suffer the consequences.”

“FERC has once again shown that it does not care about people. By reauthorizing CP2, they’ve ignored basic public health standards and the lived reality of communities in Cameron. This project will be built less than a mile from people’s homes — yet there’s not even an air monitor in town. Our shrimp are disappearing, our air is poisoned, and our voices are silenced, while corporations get nearly a billion dollars a year in tax abatements to export gas — and profits — out of our communities. This isn’t regulation. It’s abandonment,” said James Hiatt, For a Better Bayou. 

“FERC’s approval of CP2 is yet another attack on the frontline communities of Cameron Parish, American energy consumers and global climate stability,” said Drew Guillory, Food and Water Watch Policy Analyst. “LNG exports poison air and water, drive up domestic energy prices and spew climate emissions into the atmosphere. In a region already ravaged by industrial pollution, FERC is giving the green light to more pollution and misery, all for the sake of corporate profits”

“This decision is both unlawful and morally indefensible,” said Megan Gibson, Senior Attorney at the Southern Environmental Law Center. “FERC is once again rubber-stamping fossil fuel infrastructure that will permanently displace fishermen, effectively eradicate their way of life, bulldoze fragile coastal wetlands, and lock in decades of pollution for export. There is no public benefit here—only private gain for a company aiming to export U.S. gas overseas.” 

"Approving Venture Global’s CP2 LNG facility dismisses the well-documented risks LNG projects pose to public health, air quality, and local economies while deepening the climate crisis.” said Anastasia Gordon, Director of Federal Policy at WE ACT for Environmental Justice. “Gulf Coast communities have long battled fossil fuel pollution, enduring disproportionate health impacts like cancer and asthma. FERC’s decision also overlooks the financial burden on families as LNG expansion drives up energy costs. We remain committed to advocating for energy policies that prioritize public interest, advance environmental justice, and protect vulnerable communities.

“FERC’s decision to greenlight CP2 is a direct assault on environmental justice. The Gulf South isn’t a sacrifice zone.” said Alexa White, Climate and Environmental Justice Policy Director at the Hip Hop Caucus. “It is home to Black, Brown, and Indigenous families who deserve clean air, safe water, and a future. This approval ignores the overwhelming evidence that LNG expansion poisons our communities, destabilizes our climate, and burdens working families with rising energy costs. Hip Hop Caucus stands with frontline leaders demanding accountability, not another pipeline of pollution.”

“Authorizing the construction of another mega-polluting fossil fuel project in the Gulf South epitomizes this administration's interest in catering to the political will of those who get rich off of harming communities with oil and gas pollution,” said Kelsey Crane, Senior Policy Advocate at Earthworks. “The health, safety, and livelihoods of Louisianans are impacted by this decision, which worsens the injustices they face every day. This approach to energy policy is not in the public’s best interest, and will ultimately cause serious harm across the country.”

Additional Information: 

The DOE’s 2024 LNG Export Study: Energy, Economic, and Environmental Assessment of U.S. LNG Exports found that: 

• There are enough LNG exports already approved to meet global demand for decades to come;
• Unfettered exports of LNG will increase wholesale domestic natural gas prices by over 30%;
• LNG facilities tend to be concentrated in communities overburdened with petrochemical pollution;
• Increasing LNG exports threatens our ability to meet our global commitment of limiting warming to 1.5ºC and would displace more renewables than coal globally. 

A broad coalition of local residents, fishermen, economists, environmental organizations, and retired military officials submitted comments on the Department of Energy’s report, telling the Trump Administration that LNG exports, especially the CP2 LNG export facility, are not in the public interest. Regardless, the Trump Administration has already begun greenlighting new LNG projects despite public opposition, while burying the truth about the dangers of LNG exports. 

LNG exports in the United States have rapidly increased in recent years, harming public health, devastating the environment, raising prices for families, and threatening national security. Peer-reviewed research indicates that the climate impact of LNG is even greater than coal. Nevertheless, the oil and gas industry is seeking to build on its record profits by rapidly increasing the US’s LNG export capacity – even as demand drops in Europe and security concerns rise around exports via China.

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