TC Energy, with their subsidiary Iroquois, is pushing for the expansion of the Brookfield Compressor Station, a project that will put the community and environment at risk.
Compressor stations, such as the one in Brookfield, control the pressure and flow of methane gas through pipelines. Expanding a compressor station simply means more methane gas. The bigger the station, the more methane it can push through the pipeline, feeding the demand for this harmful, “natural” gas.
Methane has 80 times the warming power of carbon dioxide over a 20-year period and is responsible for one-third of the global warming we experience today. TC Energy is one air permit away from expanding the Brookfield Compressor Station; or as the permit decision date, July 10, approaches, we are one approval away from condoning a project with little to no long term benefits for the environment or economy and that poses a health risk for Brookfield and the surrounding communities.
As a 17-year-old living 20 minutes from the Brookfield Compressor Station, I am concerned about the damage that expanding the compressor station will have on my community and the environment. If more methane gas leaks into the air, surrounding vegetation will be harmed by the ground-level ozone pollution that methane creates. People with health conditions, such as asthmatics like myself, will have worsening conditions and may need more medical attention. The air that we all breathe will become more polluted, and none of this will change if we don’t act now.
The company has stated that their expansion “will not commence until [the appropriate agencies] are satisfied that the ExC Project can be constructed without significant impacts to the environment.” However, what they claim to be the benefits of the ExC, Enhancement by Compression, project directly contradicts their promise to put the environment first.
This company believes that expanding the Brookfield Compressor Station will “help alleviate the need for gas moratoriums and benefit economic development.” Gas moratoriums are freezes placed on increasing the amount of methane used in one place. So, reducing the amount of gas moratoriums will increase the amount of methane supplied through pipelines. Are we supposed to be satisfied with the idea that TC Energy wants to minimize “significant impacts to the environment,” while also maximizing the very gas causing such a negative impact on it?
While it may seem like fewer moratoriums will allow for faster economic development, the benefits are too short lived to outweigh the inevitable downsides. With more methane gas, we increase the amount of ozone pollution and global warming. Crop yield drops, people get sicker, and the environment gets worse. None of these outcomes benefit our economy.
The expansion of the Brookfield Compressor Station, not only poses a threat to the environment and economy, but also to the community. The compressor station is located just 0.36 miles, 1,900 feet, from the Whisconier Middle School, which enrolls 790 students. There are 2,000 residents living within a mile of the station, 674 of which are children under 18 and 239 are over 65. According to experts, compressor stations should be at least 1.8 miles away from any occupied buildings for safety and health reasons. Methane gas has damaging health effects and can cause or worsen respiratory and cardiovascular conditions, cancer, and strokes. Why would we support a health risk 1900 feet from a school and surrounded by 2,000 residents, especially when methane has caused one-million premature deaths each year globally?
Compressor stations constantly release methane to regulate the pressure of the gas. However, the methane flowing through the pipeline and to the Brookfield Compressor Station does not get used by Connecticut; it’s for New York. If TC Energy expands the Brookfield Compressor Station, we are accepting that methane our state does not even use is being released into our air.
Furthermore, it’s not necessary to expand the Brookfield Compressor Station just to supply New York City with more methane gas; New York recently approved a new pipeline, already increasing their methane supply. New York and Connecticut also have state laws to reduce greenhouse gas usage by 40-45% by 2030, but New York has pushed the date to 2040, failing to meet their climate goals due to heavy reliance on methane gas.
Transporting methane through Connecticut, where the gas is being leaked, and supplying methane to New York, where they are struggling to meet their goals, will not help either state reduce their usage of greenhouse gasses.
TC Energy cannot be allowed to receive their final air permit on July 10, allowing them to expand the Brookfield Compressor Station. For the sake of a healthy community, a better economy, and a thriving environment, we need to stop the use of methane gas. The first step is stopping the expansion of the Brookfield Compressor Station.
Jolie Malo is a 17-year-old high school senior from Bethel.
