Court rules against LNG terminal and pipeline project at Port of Brownsville

_{Editor’s note: This story was updated on Aug. 9 to reflect the reaction from Cameron County Judge Eddie Trevino Jr.}

HARLINGEN, Texas ( Border Report ) — A court in Washington, D.C., has struck down the approval by a federal regulatory agency for the building of a liquified natural gas (LNG) export terminal and pipeline in Brownsville, Texas.

The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday ruled to vacate, or cancel, previous approval for two LNG export terminals, as well as construction of a pipeline to carry the natural gas, at the Port of Brownsville, which was previously signed off by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC.)

The project has been in the works for a decade. Companies want to export the gas from the Port of Brownsville, a deep-water seaport that connects to the Gulf of Mexico via a 17-mile long ship channel.

The court found there hasn’t been enough study on how the projects could affect local communities, wildlife and the environment.

“The Commission erroneously declined to issue supplemental environmental impact statements addressing its updated environmental justice analysis for each project and its consideration of a carbon capture and sequestration system for one of the terminals,” according to the court ‘s 34-page ruling .

Environmentalists are hailing the ruling, which in effect halts construction by Texas LNG, Rio Grande LNG and the Rio Bravo Pipeline Company.

The companies seeking to expand the LNG business into South Texas said they would not give up.

The Sierra Club was among several groups, including the City of Port Isabel, that sued to stop construction. The nonprofit environmental watchdog organization says this is the first time a court has struck down an LNG approval by FERC.

“This decision affirms what South Texas communities have long known and been fighting for: Environmental justice matters and FERC absolutely must consider these issues when deciding on such massively harmful projects,” Sierra Club senior lawyer Nathan Matthews said in a statement.

“This is a victory for our ancestors and for the land. I feel proud to be Esto’k Gna; proud to be Carrizo Comecrudo. I feel proud to continue to fight for and protect our sacred homelands, our ancestors, and our histories,” said Juan Mancias, tribal chairman of the Carrizo-Comecrudo Tribe of Texas, which was part of the lawsuit.

Mary Angela Branch, a board member of Save RGV, says the ruling came exactly 10 years after her nonprofit formed to try to stop the LNG facility. And it came over three years after the lawsuit was filed.

“It was a major, major victory, and that has never happened to FERC with a court, and we’re absolutely thrilled,” Branch told Border Report on Wednesday.

“The court said that FERC did not do their due diligence in taking into account cumulative effects and climate change and environmental justice on this, and cumulative impacts to the people and to the environment, on health and and well being,” she said. “And how serendipitous that it’s actually 10 years to the day that Save RGV from LNG was actually formed.”

The nonprofit started on Aug. 6, 2014, and was originally named Save RGV from LNG. But it changed its name to Save RGV after it started to fight for other issues, such as lobbying the Federal Aviation Administration against approving SpaceX launches at its South Texas Starbase facility — just 5 miles from the Port of Brownsville, where Branch says combining rocket launches and LNG facilities do not mix in this unique border ecosystem.

“It’s a great victory, and we’re hoping it’s more than a moral victory, and that construction will cease and they will pack up, clean up and go away,” she said. “And we’re hoping that that we will carry forth and get the attention of the FAA.”

Under the ruling, FERC now has to reconsider the effects these projects could have and that will require new Environmental Impact Statements and public commenting periods before new permits are issued.

A Texas LNG spokesperson on Wednesday told Border Report they believe they can resolve this issue and continue construction soon.

“We are studying the opinion, which is a procedural decision to correct a technical deficiency. We have full confidence FERC will address this matter judiciously and efficiently and look forward to working with them on this important issue. Texas LNG is an industry-leading export facility designed to be the greenest on the planet once operational. Our project has undergone environmental impact studies previously and received tremendous support from government officials and financial and export partners. Our team is committed to resolving this issue quickly and completely to continue our progress toward FID and construction in the near term,” the Texas LNG spokesperson said.

NextDecade Corp., which owns Rio Grande LNG, issued this statement: “NextDecade is disappointed in the Court’s decision and disagrees with its conclusions. The Company is reviewing the Court’s decision and assessing all of its options. At this time, construction continues on the first three liquefaction trains and related infrastructure (Phase 1) at the Rio Grande LNG Facility, and the company is evaluating the impact of the Court’s decision on the timing of a positive final investment decision (FID) on Train 4.”

NextDecade broke ground on the facility in October 2023 to build a levee system and other preliminary structures needed for a terminal.

Cameron County Judge Eddie Trevino Jr. said the following regarding the courts decision: “Although we feel the action of vacating an existing permit for an infrastructure project under
construction is unprecedented, Cameron County maintains respect for the D.C. Circuit Court of
Appeals and the legal process. We understand that the ruling is based in part on how the FERC
conducted its administrative and environmental review. It appears that the issues being addressed are more procedural rather than substantive concerns. Cameron County remains committed to the Project and the significant economic benefits it will bring to the Cameron County and the Rio Grande Valley.”

Branch claims companies target South Texas because it is a low-income area with Hispanics who lack having their voices usually heard in Washington, D.C.

Branch says the dust from the clearing of land has affected nearby communities and endangered wildlife.

“It’s a hellscape. It is. They’ve built up nine feet, obviously, to get off of the flooding areas. It is 24/7 lights, constant construction. The dust storms, back when we were having all that dry spell that was a dust bowl with all the bulldozers and the construction trucks and construction equipment all just settling over the Bahia Grande. My house in Port Isabel, which is on the bay, was caked in in dirt like I’d never seen it before,” Branch said. “But if they will pack up and leave and clean up their mess then maybe in decades more, the habitat will return, and the animals and the ecosystem will thrive again.”

Sandra Sanchez can be reached at SSanchez@BorderReport.com.

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