PHMSA published an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that includes a reconsideration of allowing the transportation of liquefied natural gas (LNG) by rail tank car.
Comments are due by August 4.
The first Trump Administration overturned the longstanding ban on LNG by rail but it was suspended under the Biden Administration and ultimately defeated by a court challenge to protect public safety and the environment.
Trump’s PHMSA is now resurrecting railcar transport of LNG throughout the nation by seeking “stakeholder” input.
This Advanced Notice would be followed by a proposed rulemaking if there is stakeholder response supporting the lifting of the LNG by rail ban. The ban could then be overturned by a new rule.
Click Here for instructions on how to submit comments.
Pennsylvania Proposals
There have been proposals to ship LNG by rail in Pennsylvania.
On April 25, 2023, the Natural Resources Defense Council said a Federal Register notice from the U.S. Department of Transportation announced the agency has denied Energy Transfer Partners a special permit to transport liquefied natural gas (LNG) by rail from Wyalusing, PA to Gibbstown, NJ across the river from Philadelphia. Read more here.
Shipment of LNG by truck would still be allowed. Read more here.
(Photo: Recall what happened as a result of the Norfolk Southern train derailment.)
Resource Links:
-- Reuters: CEO Seeking To Build Pennsylvania LNG Terminal Meets With White House
-- Delaware Currents: Backers Of Gibbstown LNG Dock Seek Permit Renewal From Delaware River Basin Commission
-- Public Citizen: LNG Gas Exports Could Cost Pennsylvanians Up To $16 Billion More In Energy Costs [PaEN]
PA Oil & Gas Industry Public Notice Dashboards:
-- PA Oil & Gas Weekly Compliance Dashboard - July 5 to 11 - Shale Gas Wastewater, Fracking Chemicals Release; Water Pipeline Rupture; Crude Oil Spills; More Abandoned Wells [PaEN]
-- PA Oil & Gas Industrial Facilities: Permit Notices, Opportunities To Comment - July 12 [PaEN]
-- DEP Invites Comments On An Air Quality Permit For A Proposed 218 MW Natural Gas Power Plant For A Data Center In Bradford County; Site Originally Proposed For An LNG Gas Facility [PaEN]
-- DEP Posted 70 Pages Of Permit-Related Notices In July 12 PA Bulletin [PaEN]
Comments On DEP Oil & Gas Methane Emissions Reduction Plan:
-- Shale Gas Industry VP Attacks Credibility Of A Mom And Allegheny County Resident For Comments She Submitted In Support Of DEP Plan To Reduce Methane Emissions From The Oil & Gas Industry [PaEN]
-- PennLive Guest Essay: Why Pennsylvanians Must Speak Up For Reducing Oil & Gas Methane Emissions - Kim Anderson, Evangelical Environmental Network
-- Oil & Gas Methane Pollution Reduction Testimony: Patrice Tomcik, Mother, Butler County Resident And Moms Clean Air Force Member [PaEN]
-- Oil & Gas Methane Pollution Reduction Testimony: Kim Anderson, Evangelical Environmental Network - Rager Mountain Leak Of 1.1 Billion Cubic Feet Of Natural Gas [PaEN]
-- Oil & Gas Methane Pollution Reduction Testimony: Sarah Hertweck, Indiana Township Supervisor - ‘I See Up Close How Hobbled We Are By The State To Make The Best Choices For Our Community’ [PaEN]
-- Oil & Gas Methane Pollution Reduction Testimony: Rachel Meyer, Mother, Beaver County Resident - My Home Is Near A Natural Gas Compressor Station, 8 Shale Gas Well Pads, And The Shell Petrochemical Plant Is In My County [PaEN]
-- Oil & Gas Methane Pollution Reduction Testimony: Barbara Jarmoska, 77 Year Resident Lycoming County - The Degradation Is ‘Shocking And Tragic’ [PaEN]
-- Oil & Gas Methane Pollution Reduction Testimony: Vanessa Lynch, Mother, Allegheny County Resident - Its Been 5 Years Since A Grand Jury Report Said Pennsylvania Failed To Protect Families From Fracking, Let's Right Past Failures [PaEN]
Related Articles This Week - Natural Gas/Energy:
-- Delaware RiverKeeper, Better Path Coalition Urge Public To Oppose Federal Agency Proposal To Lift Ban On Shipping LNG Natural Gas By Rail; Comments Due Aug. 4 [PaEN]
-- Upper Makefield Twp. To Host July 15 In-Person Town Hall With DEP On Energy Transfer/Sunoco Petroleum Pipeline Contamination In Bucks County [PaEN]
-- Williamsport Sun Editorial: Pennsylvania Needs A New Plan For Abandoned Conventional Oil & Gas Wells; Increasing Bond Amounts Only Part Of Solution [PaEN]
-- The Derrick: Aqua Pennsylvania Details $5.5 Million Upgrade Costs For Rhodes Estates Water Systems In Venango County Area; Fallout Continues From Conventional Oil Well Wastewater Spill [PaEN]
-- July 28 Webinar: SLAPP Suits: Legal & Communication Strategies To Protect Your Voice In A Legally Risky Environment [PaEN]
-- PJM Interconnection Opens Next Electric Capacity Auction Bidding Window Of July 9 to 15 For 2026-27 Electric Delivery; Hold Your Breath! [PaEN]
-- US Dept. Of Energy Releases Report On Electric Grid Reliability, Security Saying Generation Growth Must Match Needs Of A.I. Data Centers; But What About ‘Ordinary People’? [PaEN]
NewsClips - Natural Gas/Energy:
-- TribLive: Effort To Find Conventional Oil & Gas Wells Abandoned By Their Owners Coming To Allegheny County
-- The Allegheny Front - Julie Grant: Longtime FracTracker Alliance Activist Ted Auch Moves On, His Concerns About The Industry Persist
-- The Allegheny Front - Reid Frazier: PA Leaders, President To Meet At Carnegie Mellon On Natural Gas, Data Centers As A.I. Threatens To Worsen Climate Change [July 15]
-- Pittsburgh Business Times: Pittsburgh Summit To Showcase Intersection Of Energy, A.I. And Policy [July 15]
-- Post-Gazette - Chloe Jad/Anya Litvak: A Critical Energy And A.I. Summit Is Coming To Pittsburgh July 15; Is The City Ready For Its Close-Up?
-- Post-Gazette: Gov. Shapiro To Attend McCormick’s Energy, A.I. Summit In Pittsburgh
-- Post-Gazette: PA US Sen. McCormick In The Spotlight As He Brings Focus On PA Energy, A.K. To Pittsburgh
-- TribLive: President’s Participation In Energy Summit At Carnegie Mellon Met With Backlash
-- Utility Dive: PJM Market Monitor Urges FERC To Set Conditions On NRG Energy’s Plan To Buy 13GW In Gas-Fired Generation From LS Power To Avoid Market Abuses
-- Reuters: PJM, America’s Largest Power Grid, Is Struggling To Meet Demand From A.I.; Electricity Bills Are Projected To Surge 20% This Summer [PDF of Article]
-- Bloomberg: Electric Bills In US Set To Rise As Utility Requests For Rate Hikes To Accommodate A.I. Data Center Demands Double
-- WESA - Rachel McDevitt: As More A.I. Data Centers Connect To PA’s Electric Grid, Some Worry Prices Will Spike
-- Financial Times: US Utilities Plot Big Rise In Electricity Rates As Data Centre Demand Booms
-- Observer-Reporter: Greene County Planning Commission Approves New Mammoth Natural Gas Compressor Station In Wayne Township
-- Observer-Reporter: New Study Links Chemicals In Plastics To Heart Disease Deaths
-- Clean Air Council, NRDC Sue EPA Over Toxic Refinery Chemical That Threatens Fenceline Communities [PaEN]
-- Inquirer: Strong Odor Like Sulfur Or Gasoline Caused By Equipment Failure At Delaware County Refinery After A Power Outage
-- Pittsburgh Business Times: EQT And KeyState Remain Committed To ARCH2 Hydrogen Hub Projects
-- Observer-Reporter: Study Finds Hundreds Of Miles Of Southwest PA Roads In ‘Poor’ Condition
-- Observer-Reporter: EQT Shale Gas Driller Sues Morgan Twp., Greene County In Federal Court Over Limits On Heavy Equipment Hauling On Local Roads To Prevent Damage [PDF of Article]
-- TribLive Letters: Natural Gas Benefits Pennsylvania - By Patrick Henderson, VP Marcellus Shale Gas Coalition
-- Guest Essay: The Real Story Behind The Act 13 Shale Gas Drilling Impact Fee - It's Not Funding, It's Cleanup Money - By Mary Jo Simmen-Gray, Hempfield, Westmoreland County Resident [PaEN]
-- Pittsburgh Business Times: EQT And KeyState Remain Committed To ARCH2 Hydrogen Hub Projects
-- TribLive: EQT Buys Olympus For $1.8 Billion, Consolidates Grip On Southwest PA Natural Gas
-- Newsweek: Oil & Natural Gas Drilling Plummets Under President Despite ‘Drill, Baby, Drill’ Promise Due To Market Forces
-- Reuters: APA Corp Said It Curtailed US Natural Gas, Liquids Production In 2nd Quarter On Weak Prices
-- Reuters: LNG Canada’s Start-Up Yet To Lift Natural Gas Prices Amid Supply Glu
[Posted: July 8, 2025] PA Environment Digest
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