Bianca Sanchez, bianca.sanchez@sierraclub.org
HARTFORD, Conn. - Enbridge has unveiled “Project Beacon,” a proposal to expand the so-called “Algonquin” Pipeline, a name appropriated from the Indigenous people of the region, by installing larger methane gas pipelines and new pipe routes. The gas pipeline runs from New Jersey to Massachusetts, through New York, Connecticut, and Rhode Island carrying methane gas from the Marcellus shale region in Appalachia.
Connecticut is already overreliant on methane gas for electricity when renewable options are readily available to meet the region's needs. Pipeline construction reportedly costs $12.1 million per mile, a high price tag that would be passed on to customers’ through increased electricity and energy bills. For example, the vast majority (69 percent) of what Connecticut residents pay on their gas bills goes towards the construction and maintenance of distribution pipelines plus delivery, while the remaining amount covers the cost of the actual gas.
Gas use and expansion also has negative public health impacts. Pipelines, and other fixtures of gas infrastructure along the route, leak methane gas and toxic chemicals into nearby communities. These pollutants are especially harmful to children and the elderly. For years, the Enbridge-owned compressor station in Cromwell, CT – located along the “Algonquin” pipeline and also slated for a capacity increase – violated their air permits, emitting excess amounts of health-harming volatile organic compounds (VOCs) within one mile of the Cromwell Middle School.
In response to the “Project Beacon” proposal, Sena Wazer of Sierra Club Connecticut issued the following statement:
“The expansion of Enbridge’s pipeline will only raise energy costs and pollute communities. Our overreliance on methane gas is a primary driver of Connecticut’s high electricity costs. Pipeline construction will add to those costs. And to top it off, Enbridge has been fined for exceeding its air pollution limits in our state. Governor Lamont and other Northeastern Governors must stand up and oppose any new gas pipeline expansions. Neither our wallets nor our health can afford it.”
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.