The Truth about Renewable Natural Gas
Despite the fossil fuel industry’s greenwashing, “renewable” natural gas still pollutes the climate and hurts our health.


Despite the fossil fuel industry’s greenwashing, “renewable” natural gas still pollutes the climate and hurts our health.

Winter snow and ice bring out Big Gas’s fearmongers. Why is the region’s electric grid operator among them?

“Renewable natural gas” is not a large-scale climate solution. It’s a shameless attempt by the fossil fuel industry to convince New Englanders to pay for more polluting pipelines.

Getting serious about climate change means getting serious about our gas use. It means all of us working together to build a clean energy future that doesn’t require the expensive and polluting buildout of more fracked gas. We don’t need it. And we can’t afford it.

In 2015, energy giant Invenergy announced its plan to pave over a pristine forest in Burrillville, Rhode Island, to build a 1,000-megawatt fracked gas and diesel oil power plant. For the next four years, CLF and the town of Burrillville fought to keep the polluting behemoth from being built.

Ever winter, as the cold rolls in and New Englanders turn up their heat, the gas industry starts calling for more pipelines. But if we want to avoid a climate catastrophe, we need to end fossil fuel use—including the use of fracked gas—by 2050 at the very latest.

Two utilities are looking to pass the costs of new gas projects along to Mainers. But their proposals are inconsistent with Maine’s new climate law.

Today, Invenergy was denied a permit to pave over a pristine forest in Burrillville to build a fracked gas and diesel oil power plant that would emit carbon pollution for decades. This is a victory for CLF, for the people of Burrillville, and for a world facing a climate emergency.

Here in New England, we rely too much on fracked gas to heat and power our homes and businesses. If we want to avoid a climate catastrophe, we need to end fossil fuel use by 2050.

After a month-long hiatus, the Invenergy Final Hearing has resumed. At stake is whether Rhode Island’s Energy Facility Siting Board will grant Invenergy a permit to pave over a forest in Burrillville to build a new fracked gas and diesel oil power plant.
