Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2010

Floor Speech

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Mr. WHITEHOUSE. Mr. Chairman, I share the sentiments of the senior Senator from Rhode Island, Mr. REED.

Rhode Islanders are strongly opposed to this project. Furthermore, the process for siting the LNG facility has afforded us too few opportunities to address the impacts it will have on our state's economy, safety, and environment.

The Coast Guard is charged with the narrow task of determining whether LNG tankers can safely transit Rhode Island waters on their way to an offshore berthing station just on the other side of the state line in Massachusetts. However, the safe transit of these tankers is only one of the many important considerations that can, and should, be taken into account in determining the suitability of such a project. Narragansett Bay is the backbone of the Rhode Island economy, as it sustains our fishing, recreation, and tourism sectors. The proposed LNG facility in Fall River threatens to undermine these pillars of our economy.

I am not opposed to LNG as a fuel source. However, I have serious concerns with the proposal under consideration. The LNG tankers transiting Rhode Island waters must pass through heavily populated communities, under the presence of heavy security. The Coast Guard admits that this will likely displace other users of the bay and disrupt traffic on the bridges the tankers must travel beneath. This is too high a burden for Rhode Island to carry for a facility that is located in a neighboring state--and I am not convinced this burden is worth the marginal benefits of the proposed LNG facility.

I thank the Chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee, Senator ROCKEFELLER, for his willingness to work with us on an issue critical to the State of Rhode Island.

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