January 20, 2021 10:50 a.m.

On Tuesday, federal officials upheld a key denial of a permit for the proposed Jordan Cove LNG export terminal and Pacific Connector gas pipeline.

A meeting summary from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission said a petition from Jordan Cove and Pacific Connector requested that the commission find that the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality waived its authority to issue a Clean Water Act section 401 certification for the Jordan Cove Energy Project. The commission found that proponents never requested certification with respect to the commission’s authorizations for the project and that the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality could not have waived its authority to issue certification for a request it never received.

A release from the Western Environmental Law Center said the project cannot move forward without a Clean Water Act approval from the state of Oregon.

Impacted Douglas County landowner Stacey McLaughlin said, “The evidence was clear, FERC had no choice other than to deny Pembina’s request to waive Oregon’s 401 water quality authority”.

The decision means Pembina could still reapply for the certification from the DEQ.

The proposal includes a 36-inch pipeline that would cross nearly 230 miles in four counties in southwestern Oregon, including Douglas. Natural gas would be transported in the pipeline from Malin to Coos Bay where it would be shipped to overseas markets.

Sierra Club senior attorney Nathan Matthews said the decision is “…yet another victory for our clean water and our communities”. According to Matthews, the organization “…has said time and again that this project will never be built”. He said the latest announcement is just further proof of that.