FERC GHG and EJ Policy Act

Summary#

This bill amends the Natural Gas Act to require the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to assess and address greenhouse gas emissions and impacts on environmental justice communities when it considers issuing certificates for natural gas projects. It adds a new subsection requiring FERC to decide whether a proposed action has significant environmental effects, including effects on environmental justice communities, and whether those effects can be mitigated. The bill requires applicants to submit a mitigation proposal with their certificate application and lets FERC attach conditions to certificates to reduce or offset impacts.

The bill directs FERC to quantify reasonably foreseeable greenhouse gas emissions using evidence in the record, including pipeline capacity and use, construction and operation, upstream and downstream emissions (including combustion and leakage), and cumulative effects. It sets a presumption that projects emitting at least 100,000 metric tons of CO2 equivalent per year have a significant effect on climate change. The bill also requires converting non-CO2 gases to CO2 equivalent using 20-year global warming potentials from the most recent IPCC assessment.

FERC must evaluate effects on environmental justice communities using record evidence such as existing environmental and public health stressors, new adverse stressors from the project, cumulative stressors, potential future stressors, and other factors identified after public engagement. If FERC approves a project without requiring mitigation to bring significant effects below the threshold, it must explain why mitigation was not practicable. If FERC finds a project is needed despite significant unmitigated effects, it must explain why the project is nonetheless required by the present or future public convenience and necessity.

What it means for you#

• Communities near proposed natural gas projects: the commission must consider local health and environmental stressors and how a project could add to them. Affected communities get a role in identifying relevant factors through public engagement.
• Project applicants and developers: must include a mitigation proposal with certificate applications and be prepared for FERC to attach conditions to certificates to reduce climate and local environmental impacts.
• Regulators and reviewers: must quantify foreseeable greenhouse gas emissions, apply the 100,000 metric ton CO2e per year significance presumption, and weigh environmental effects against project benefits.

Expenses#

No publicly available information on costs, budget effects, or funding in the bill text.

Proponents' View#

The bill is written to confirm and clarify FERC's obligation to assess and mitigate impacts to climate change and environmental justice communities when approving projects under the Natural Gas Act. It requires mitigation proposals, greenhouse gas quantification, and explanations when mitigation is not required.

Opponents' View#

No publicly available information on opponents' views in the bill text.