Patrick Lynch (D)
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (Legal Newsline)-Rhode Island Attorney General Patrick Lynch said Friday he objects a five-year extension of time for completion of the liquefied natural gas facility proposed in Fall River, Mass.
The attorney general said Weaver's Cove Energy LLC has failed to gain a bevy of state and federal approvals for the project. He also claims that the project would endanger the Taunton River, which recently gained congressional protection under the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act.
In court papers filed Thursday, Lynch said there is no justification for the extension of the original 2015 deadline for completion of the project. He asked that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission vacate the time extension granted.
Lynch called the request for an extension was "deficient, unsupported, and premature," a statement said.
"I deal with facts, evidence, and the law. To the extent its 'facts' were even accurate at the time it presented them to FERC, however, Weaver's Cove keeps changing its facts to justify a time extension," Lynch said.
"The facility as originally proposed cannot be built, and the new scheme to convert our precious Mount Hope Bay into a private corporation's profit center borders on delusional. I would hope the investors behind this project will wake up and pull the plug on this arrogant and unworkable idea before they waste any more of their time and money, and ours," he added.
From Legal Newsline: Reach reporter Chris Rizo at chrisrizo@legalnewsline.com.