Texas GulfLink Project Gets EPA Backing for Crude Export Hub off Texas Coast

Mary Holcomb, Digital Editor

(P&GJ) — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has given its nod to the Texas GulfLink (TGL) Deepwater Port Project, a venture proposed by Texas GulfLink Holdings, a subsidiary of Sentinel Midstream LLC, intended to facilitate crude oil exports from the U.S. coast.

Following a detailed review, the EPA has stated it has "no objection to the issuance of a license" for the project under federal air and water regulations.

The Texas GulfLink port, if approved by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration (MARAD), would be positioned 26.6 nautical miles off Brazoria County, Texas. The project’s design includes single point mooring buoys capable of accommodating large crude carriers for oil loading operations, a step that supporters argue will expand the U.S.’s energy export capacity.

EPA Region 6 Administrator Earthea Nance outlined the agency’s environmental assessment in a letter to MARAD. EPA is preparing construction and operational permits under the Clean Air Act (CAA) and Clean Water Act (CWA) and has recommended heightened focus on “environmental justice and climate change” to protect affected communities. The agency emphasized the importance of addressing the potential impacts on overburdened communities, following President Biden’s executive orders on equity and environmental justice.

EPA's analysis also accounted for potential greenhouse gas emissions and their costs to society. These findings, shared with MARAD and the U.S. Coast Guard, aim to guide decisions about whether to advance the Texas GulfLink project, a decision MARAD is expected to reach by December.

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