In a pivotal moment for climate policy, the U.S. mulls over expanding its natural gas exports, raising alarms about global warming.
Shanna Hanbury reports for Mongabay.
In short:
- The Biden administration's consideration of new LNG export facilities could significantly increase U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, contradicting climate commitments.
- Studies show that LNG's methane emissions during transport make it more harmful than coal, challenging the notion of natural gas as a "cleaner" fossil fuel.
- Expanding LNG infrastructure risks locking in decades of fossil fuel dependence, undermining global efforts to mitigate climate change.
Key quote:
"It is as if they don’t realize that the climate emergency is a terrible climate war that kills millions of people."
— Carlos Nobre, co-chair of the Science Panel for the Amazon.
Why this matters:
In the U.S., at least 30 new LNG terminal facilities have been constructed or proposed since 2016, according to the Oil and Gas Watch project. This expansion threatens to derail global climate goals.
