A group of progressive Democrats are calling for a freeze of deepwater oil export terminal approvals — including a massive proposed port off the coast of Texas — until regulators take more account of climate considerations.
In a Friday letter, the lawmakers said projects like the Sea Port Oil Terminal (SPOT) licensed in April by the Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration (MARAD) “would cause great environmental harm.”
The letter to MARAD Administrator Ann Phillips was led by Massachusetts Sen. Ed Markey, chair of the Senate Environment and Public Works Subcommittee on Clean Air, Climate and Nuclear Safety, and House Natural Resources ranking member Raúl Grijalva of Arizona.
Reps. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), and Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont — an independent who caucuses with Democrats — were also among 22 signers.
