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Dangerous Gas Pipeline Proposed for Greenwich Village – explosive Fracking issue!

Sane Energy Project was formed in January of 2011 to fight Spectra Energy’s proposed gas pipeline. In a stunning display of community outreach, with only 2 weeks until the deadline, Sane Energy spurred almost 500 citizens to file as “intervenors” in the project. High-profile intervenors included City Council Speaker, Christine Quinn; Councilman James Gennaro, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer; The Park Slope Food Co-op; Riverkeeper; Sierra Club; Josh Fox; Mark Ruffalo and many other individuals and groups in New York and New Jersey.

This proposed 30″-46″ high pressure gas pipeline is slated to run through Linden, Bayonne, Staten Island, and Jersey City, before crossing under the Hudson River at Hoboken and entering Manhattan at the West Village.

Pipelines are dangerous and polluting, releasing toxic emissions in the normal course of operation. The builder has a spotty safety record: Spectra Energy's subsidiary, Texas Eastern, was fined $15million for discharging PCBs at 89 sites along one pipeline.

The Spectra pipeline would have a more profound effect than most. It would enable the conversion of New York City’s buses, boilers and power plants to shale gas and, with its proximity to our port, create a natural drive to build LNG export terminals. This will increase the demand to frack in the Marcellus Shale and in the NYC and Delaware River Basin watersheds.

The proposed pipeline is now making its way through the FERC (Federal Energy Regulatory Commission) review process. The EIS (Environmental Impact Statement) will be released shortly. Once the EIS is released,  it is crucial that as many people as possible participate in the brief, 45-day public comment period, and urge NYC officials to pass a resolution against the pipeline.