Rep. Gallison had been barred from LNG meeting for refusing to sign non-disclosure statement
The top man at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) phoned Rep. Raymond E. Gallison Jr. Thursday to personally apologize for the treatment given Rep. Gallison at a liquefied natural gas meeting Tuesday.
FERC Chairman John Wellinghoff called Rep. Gallison to say he was sorry and added that he finds it totally inappropriate that anyone should be made to sign a non-disclosure form in order to attend a meeting of a public agency.
“He was very apologetic and made it clear that the commission would not be doing that in the future,” Rep. Gallison said.
Furthermore, Mr. Wellinghoff assured Rep. Gallison that the next meeting on the subject would not be held in Washington, DC, as had been stated, but that all meetings on the proposal to ship LNG up the bay in tankers will be conducted in this area.
The meeting in question had been scheduled by FERC Tuesday to discuss a pipeline to the proposed LNG facility in Mount Hope Bay. It was abruptly canceled when Rep. Gallison was denied entry for refusing to sign a non-disclosure agreement.
Rep. Gallison (D-Dist. 69, Bristol, Portsmouth), an outspoken opponent of several projects that have been proposed to bring LNG by tanker up the Rhode Island coast, said he would not sign the agreement because he feared it would bar him from speaking to anyone about his opposition to the project again.
“They can’t muzzle me,” Rep. Gallison said Tuesday of FERC’s requirement that he sign a non-disclosure agreement.”
Rep. Gallison said that Mr. Wellinghoff agreed that it was not right to require silence of anyone, especially an elected representative, as the price for attending a hearing.
In his phone call, Mr. Wellinghoff also told Rep. Gallison that any filings made by the LNG company relating to the process will be public information, even if that takes more time to accomplish.
Rep. Gallison also said he sees the FERC chairman’s remarks as vindication of an action he felt important and for which he took criticism .
“It’s very unfortunate this happened,” said Hess spokesman James Grasso on Tuesday. “He (Rep. Gallison) has been involved for some time and I think he knows the rules, and I think he’s refused to play by the rules.”
Throughout the process, Rep. Gallison said the Weaver’s Cove people were loud and boisterous about me stopping this hearing. They wanted it to go on.”
True enough, Mr. Grasso said, project officials had hoped that meeting would be held. But Rep. Gallison’s actions were strange, he said, given the LNG opponent’s history on the subject.
“If you were really concerned about the project I would think that he would want to know the facts. One of the real issues here with this project is people don’t know the facts. Had he attended he would have learned a lot more of the facts than the misinformation that’s out there.”
“How could I go in that way?” said Rep. Gallison of the confidentiality requirement. “I have an interest as both a citizen of Bristol and as a representative to know what’s going on.”
He (Rep. Gallison) has been involved for some time and I think he knows the rules, and I think he’s refused to play by the rules.”
GEE, NOT THE FIRST TIME HE REFUSED TO PLAY BY THE RULES I REMEMBER SOME HIDDEN INCOME!
They can’t muzzle me,” Rep. Gallison said Tuesday
THEN TELL US ALL HOW YOU FORGOT TO REPORT ALL THAT IMCOME FROM THE STATE!
The Rep. uses this to grand stand,he spreads mistruths to stir up the public.Case in point, the bridges do not have to close that was a lie he spread to gather support.Best I can figure he is waiting for the bribe, then things will work just fine.
Wellinghoff's decision on this may represent a breath of fresh air in FERC’s LNG terminal review process. Up until now, project proponents could hide questionable aspects of their project from public scrutiny by raising the "security" flag.
In this case, Weaver’s Cove would like to minimize the number of people who know about or can discuss publicly their hair-brained project and the extensive damage it would cause to the Bay and the unnecessary risks it presents to the public. All of this horseplay is happening because of a poor site selection in the first place. These facilities present an unacceptable risk when placed near residential neighborhoods. Moving the off-loading operation four miles away does not diminish the risks associated with the LNG storage tanks, it only broadens the potential impact to more people.
If they want to build an offshore terminal, the technologies to do so are well established and require no secrecy. There are two new terminals in Massachusetts Bay quietly doing their business. These two projects deliver natural gas directly to the local gas grid and are far enough offshore to not endanger the public.
Weaver’s Cove proponents continue to insist on storing massive amounts of LNG in Fall River. To do so they propose an cryogenic LNG pipeline that is submerged and of unprecedented length. Because of their cryogenic temperatures, LNG pipelines between a loading terminal and their associated LNG storage tanks require regular inspections in order to detect cracks and facilitate repair. How is this to be done buried in the mud of Mount Hope Bay.
Gordon Shearer and his team, in refusing to walk away from this ill-conceived project, has turned it into a debacle that is an embarrassment to the rest of the LNG industry. They need to face reality and quietly go away.
We should be thankful that Rep. Gallison and Selectman Lawless stood up to FERC’s absurd gag rule and brought the situation to a head. Hopefully the rules for project disclosure will now be modified to protect the public’s interests.
Untill he gets the bag of money, then all will be just fine.You buy the lie, I do not, Gallison is a crook.The cost of heating our homes has skyrocketed because of people like him.
