Sparrows Point AES LNG Project Passes Air Quality Test

The Federal Energy Regulary Commission (FERC) assessed the potential air quality impacts of building and operating a liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal at Sparrows Point and 88-mile pipeline and found the project would uphold Maryland’s air quality goals. Receiving passing air quality grades is just one in a list of nearly 170 conditions that Virginia-based AES Corp. must meet in order to begin building the $400 million project that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approved in January and reaffirmed in December.

But that list could be useless because of a ruling last week by a three-judge panel on the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond to uphold Maryland’s denial of a water quality permit to the project. AES cannot move forward with the project without Maryland approving the water permit. (Maryland Daily Record, 12/29/09)