Yesterday, the national environmental organization Food & Water Watch issued a letter to the Broward County Commission, urging the Commission to act within their legal authority to direct Port Everglades to halt all shipments of liquefied natural gas (LNG). Citing documents revealed in a Food & Water Watch public records request that demonstrate imminent plans to quadruple the amount of LNG transported through Broward County for export at the Port, the letter requests that the Broward County Commission exercise its “right to restrict or prohibit the entry or handling of any cargo or other property in the Main Zone [at Port Everglades] due to its hazardous… nature.”

As of last week, the U.S. is the world’s largest LNG exporter, threatening climate chaos globally and public safety locally. Beyond the climate hazards of continuing to promote the extraction, transport and burning of fossil fuels, LNG is also a highly dangerous material and its transport is a significant public safety concern. Dangers include explosive vapor clouds from LNG container punctures, boiling liquid expanding vapor explosions, deadly fireballs, and fires untamable by conventional firefighting and hazardous response measures.

Florida’s East Coast is currently involved in a dangerous “bomb train” experiment, putting residents at further risk as the LNG is transported by both truck and train through the county to Port Everglades. The Florida East Coast Railway received a special permit from the Trump administration, which exempted them from the recent federal order to halt LNG transit by rail, citing safety concerns.

With the letter, Food & Water Watch Southern Region Deputy Director Michelle Allen issued the following statement:

“The Broward County Commission has a duty to keep county residents safe. Yet for years, residents have been subjected to the threat of deadly liquefied natural gas (LNG) being silently transported through the region, without a full comprehensive review by the state or the federal government. It’s time to put an end to this senseless threat.

“The evidence is clear — LNG is a danger to communities and our climate. To have any real hope of keeping climate change below a tipping point, we must stop the transport and use of LNG immediately. And to uphold their responsibility to keep constituents safe, the Broward County Commission simply must stop the transport of LNG at Port Everglades now.”

Contact: Phoebe Galt, [email protected]

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