Just days after the close of the COP28 climate summit, 170 scientists sent a letter to the Biden administration today urging it to reject the proposed Calcasieu Pass 2 (CP2) liquified natural gas (LNG) export facility in Louisiana. 

The letter cited the enormous impact the proposal would have on global climate pollution – about 20 times that of the recently-approved Willow oil drilling project in Alaska. Original signers of the letter include noted climate and environmental scientists Rose Abramoff, Robert Howarth, Mark Jacobson, Peter Kalmus, Michael Mann, Sandra Steingraber, Farhana Sultana and Aradhna Tripati.

The letter points out that the project is part of broader LNG buildout that will have enormously negative consequences: 

“Taken together, if all U.S. projects in the permitting pipeline are approved, they could lead to 3.9 billion tons of greenhouse gas emissions annually, which is larger than the entire annual emissions of the European Union… We implore you to turn back from this course, reject CP2 and other fossil fuel export projects, and put us on a rapid and just trajectory off fossil fuels.“

The scientists’ letter comes on the heels of one sent last week signed by more than 230 climate, environmental justice, public health, faith and community organizations, also urging Biden to reject CP2. It highlights a forthcoming study by Cornell University climate scientist Robert Howarth that shows, even in the best-case scenarios, LNG is at least 24 percent worse for the climate than coal.

Venture Global is seeking approval from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and the Department of Energy (DOE) to construct CP2 LNG. The export terminal would facilitate the largest volume of LNG ever approved for export. At full volume, the lifecycle emissions of burning that much gas will add up to 190 million tonnes of CO2e each year – equivalent to the emissions from more than 42 million gas-powered cars or 51 coal-fired power plants.