Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) Chairman
Richard Glick
denied taking orders from the White House when he rushed by means of rules mandating local weather opinions for brand spanking new pure gasoline pipelines and liquefied pure gasoline terminals. Documents shared with us elevate questions on that reply.
The Institute for Energy Research obtained Mr. Glick’s assembly calendar from Nov. 8, 2020, by means of this previous April 19 by way of a Freedom of Information Act request. Not surprisingly, it consists of many conferences with utilities, power suppliers and FERC employees. But beginning final September, he started holding biweekly conferences with Deputy White House National Climate Advisor
Ali Zaidi.
This is notable as a result of Louisiana Sen.
Bill Cassidy
requested Mr. Glick point-blank at a listening to on March 3: “Has anyone higher up in the Administration ever spoken to you in regards to somehow slow-walking or otherwise impeding or otherwise accentuating policy that would have the effect of impeding the development of natural gas pipelines?” Mr. Glick replied, “Absolutely not.”
Recall how Mr. Glick and his two fellow Democratic commissioners in February revised FERC’s long-standing coverage for allowing new pipelines and LNG exports by mandating an evaluation of the direct and doubtlessly oblique greenhouse-gas emissions from upstream gasoline manufacturing and downstream consumption. This was mere days earlier than
Vladimir Putin
invaded Ukraine.
Mr. Glick falsely claimed the coverage change was required by federal court docket rulings. FERC is required by legislation to certify gasoline tasks so long as they’re within the public curiosity and gained’t have a big environmental affect. The new coverage merely supplied a regulatory pretext to veto enormously vital gasoline tasks corresponding to pipelines that trigger little or no direct hurt to the setting.
After getting rapped by West Virginia Sen.
Joe Manchin,
the Democratic commissioners paused their new local weather coverage in late March. But President Biden final month appointed Mr. Glick for a second five-year time period, and the chairman is prone to revive the coverage as soon as confirmed. That’s why his common conferences with Mr. Zaidi benefit scrutiny.
The conferences continued till a minimum of early April. It’s unimaginable to know what Messrs. Glick and Zaidi have been discussing, and the Institute for Energy Research tells us that its FOIA requests for the chairman’s correspondence with the White House and outdoors teams appear to be getting slow-rolled. But it’s onerous to consider the 2 by no means talked about pipelines.
Mr. Glick might assist his affirmation possibilities by truthfully telling Congress what he mentioned with Mr. Zaidi. If he has nothing to hide, he has nothing to lose.
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