Rep. Grijalva makes a statement about concerns on gas pipeline in his district | Environment

The following is a statement from U.S. Representative Raul Grijalva's office

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, the ranking member of the House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands, sent a letter to Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano today asking her to consider the national security implications of the proposed Sasabe Lateral Gas Pipeline, a 60-mile pipeline projected to cut through the ecologically sensitive Altar Valley southwest of Tucson. The pipeline will allow the El Paso Natural Gas Company to export natural gas to Mexico.

Grijalva’s new letter is available at http://1.usa.gov/U0bEZd. The text is included below.

El Paso has requested a right of way to build a pipeline from Three Points, Ariz., to Sasabe, Sonora, Mexico. The company has proposed two potential routes for the project, both of which pass through the Altar Valley, an area home to the Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge and a major corridor for illegal immigration and smuggling.

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), the lead agency responsible for granting the right of way, is preparing a draft Environmental Impact Statement (dEIS) that analyzes the proposed routes and other alternatives. 

Grijalva’s letter cites border security concerns – echoed in a recent letter from U.S. Customs and Border Patrol official Roger San Martin to FERC – in asking Napolitano to urge FERC to consider alternatives that avoid the Altar Valley. San Martin’s letter is reviewable at http://1.usa.gov/RUsZ54.

Grijalva writes that FERC “should consider alternative routes that use existing infrastructure and avoid the Altar Valley. The construction of a pipeline along either proposed route will very likely create a corridor for illegal activity and complicate Customs and Border Patrol attempts to keep this country and its citizens safe.”

 For more information about the proposed project, please contact El Paso Natural Gas Company at 1 (877) 598-5263.