WASHINGTON – A House subcommittee approved a bill Wednesday designed to speed up the granting of permits for natural gas pipelines, paving the way for a possible boom in the natural gas industry, but coming amid questions over safety and health.
“The legislation simply gives companies looking to invest in a gas pipeline infrastructure some degree of certainty regarding how long a permitting process will take,” Rep. Mike Pompeo, R-Kansas, said.
Natural gas is getting renewed interest in Congress this summer as President Barack Obama again seeks to commit America to clean, renewable forms of energy.
For Texas, natural gas is big business. The state is not only the largest consumer of natural gas but also the biggest producer, accounting for nearly a quarter of U.S. natural gas production. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, Texas has 163 natural gas production plants.
Speedy action on the bill could serve as an incentive for bringing new natural gas and pipeline companies on line in Texas.
“It’s feasible that more lines are going to built in Texas and that Texas would have more supply, which would lend itself to exports,” a congressional source familiar with the issue said.
The bill would require federal agencies to plow through the paperwork and accept or deny an application for new projects within 12 months of the initial request. If 12 months pass without any decision, pipeline applications are automatically accepted.
Previously, there was no set timeline for when a permit would be granted.
However, critics are worried about how expedited licensing could affect industry safeguards.
Luke Metzger, director of Environment Texas, is concerned that safety and health protections may be thrown aside in the industry’s eagerness to expand markets abroad.
“If we’re exporting it, we’re keeping all the pollution and sending the product elsewhere in the world,” Metzger said.
The legislation itself focuses only on interstate natural gas pipelines, but could also have an impact on the exporting of liquid natural gas.
“Liquid natural gas exports are indirectly affected by anything like this,” said the congressional source. “One could be led to believe that this bill would stabilize the natural gas line infrastructure.”
Others question whether health and safety will be sacrificed in an attempt to meet deadlines.
Rep. Gene Green, D-Texas, an energy advocate in his native Houston and a member of the committee, agreed.
“I am concerned about some unintended consequences,” Green said in a statement. “For example, agencies may deny the permit because they lack sufficient time for an adequate and legally defensible review.”
Still, the legislation was welcomed as a way to get Texas to expand its natural gas market.
“If the demand is there for natural gas exports, that’s how natural gas should go,” Susan Ginsberg, vice president at the Independent Petroleum Association of America, said.
Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, agreed, saying both consumers and producers would benefit if the bill became law.
“Rising demand for natural gas is outpacing the capacity of our aging pipeline infrastructure,” Barton said in a statement. The bill would “promote investment in pipelines thereby increasing access to affordable and reliable gas.”
The Republican-controlled House panel passed the bill 17-9, setting the stage for action by the full Energy and Commerce Committee.