Americas News
Concerns Raised Over Emissions from LNG Project
A liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal under development near Kitimat in British Columbia, Canada is raising new concerns from the Gitga'at First Nation, which says it is worried about pollution not only from the facility but also from the additional ship traffic the project will attract, the Vancouver Sun reports.
Located 70 kilometers from Kitimat. the Gitga'at band council says that winds could send air pollution into its territory if gas, rather than electricity, is used to fuel the liquefaction process.
The council says it does not object to LNG, but it is looking for more information on the emissions from the LNG facilities and from the anticipated 500 to 1,000 tankers per year that would be needed to transport the fuel from the Douglas Channel.
"We are not getting any firm numbers right now on the Kitimat expansion projects," said Gitga'at councilor Marven Robinson.
"A lot of these vessels planned for these places basically have to pass through our territory twice — right in front of our village," he said.
"We have everything to lose.
"It's one thing if there an accident, but we are also trying to look at all the emissions."
The Provincial Government of British Columbia says it wants to "meet growing demand" for LNG in Asia and produce and extra 1.9 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of LNG a year, more than doubling the 1.2 Tcf it already produces.
LNG plans for Kitimat include two large LNG facilities and one smaller one, and in September the province reached a deal with the Haisla First Nation in which the group would work with an industry partner to lease or buy land to help develop the plant.
Although the LNG projects have proved less controversial than bringing oil tar sands from the province of Alberta to the West Coast for export, environmentalists have argued that the LNG facilities would create significant pollution.
