Last week, 
the Philadelphia Gas Commission voted 3 to 1 to OK the Passyunk Energy Center. The supporting Commissioners were Derek Green, Curtis Jones and Gene Brown. Green and Jones are also Philadelphia City Council members. The lone dissenting voice was that of City Controller Rebecca Rhynhart. Jocelyn Hill abstained.
Thi
s vote was cast despite the advice of the public advocate and rousing public opposition. Read and view some of the public testimony against the Passyunk Energy Center.
Coryn Wolk of Physicians for Social Responsibility in Philadelphia questioned the environmental assessment report.
Sarah Davidson & Meenal Raval of 350 Philly spoke together.
Sarah referred to 11 testimonies we received against the Passyunk Energy Center. All of these are available in their entirety here, including the expansive testimonies by Coryn Wolk & Walter Tsou. Meenal had concerns about transparency and also referred to recent posts by the Kleinman Center for Energy Policy on the subject, read here. Sarah ended with personal thoughts, read here.
Rich Garella speaks of the broad and narrow view of this decision, asking each Gas Commissioner what their legacy could be. Read his text in entirety here.
Johannah CordonHill & Mark Clincy of Philly Thrive speak of her future, and their Right to Breathe.
There was some local media coverage about this decision:
- December 4 2018, Andy Maykuth, Philadelphia Inquirer, Philly gas commission approves PGWs plan for gas venture, despite insinuations of Russian ties
- December 4 2018, Dana Bate, WHYY, PGW plan for liquified natural gas facility in Southwest Philadelphia clears hurdle
- December 7 2018, Kay Wood, Planet Philadelphia, Radio interview with Meenal Raval of 350 Philly starting at about 29:00 minutes.
What happens next? Very soon after the December 4th vote, the Passyunk Energy Center project was introduced to City Council as ordinance 181063 along with resolution 181081 about the future of PGW. Expect discussions and decisions about both bills after the City Council’s winter recess. Stay tuned for details.
In the meanwhile, please sign our petition opposing the Passyunk Energy Center, here: 350philly.org/nolng.
And don’t forget to ask your City Council member to vote against the Passyunk Energy Center.
350 Philadelphia 
Though the Philadelphia Gas Commission voted to proceed with this project, it still needs City Council to deliberate and vote on this. Which means we get another chance to show public opposition!
Join us on Wednesday Feb 27 at 10am at City Hall Room 400 for a public hearing about this. The bill number is 181063. The hearing will be organized by the Committee on Transportation and Public Utilities.
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