PROVIDENCE – Noxious fumes, truck traffic that rattles nearby homes with vibrations and the potential for explosions were among the warnings from residents and environmental activists of consequences of liquid propane gas during a public hearing Wednesday before the City Council Ordinance Committee.
Overwhelmingly, those who spoke supported proposed resolutions that would ban storage of the “toxic” substance citywide and urge energy regulators to stop an existing company from expanding such operations in the Port of Providence without a full review.
Many of those who spoke directly named Sea 3 Providence LLC and its proposal to add 540,000 gallons worth of fuel storage tanks to its portside facility as the inspiration for their opposition. But whether either city resolution, if passed, can block the $15 million to $20 million project is unclear.
The company in March filed its petition for a declaratory order with the R.I. Energy Facility Siting Board, seeking to expand operations without the full review and public input process typical for major changes to energy storage projects. State energy regulators have yet to vote on the petition, but a citywide zoning ban on propane gas storage would not necessarily stop the expansion since the application has already been filed. Nor would the ban stop existing operations from continuing, as Robert Azar, the city’s deputy director of planning and development, told the City Plan Commission meeting during an October meeting.
While the city can continue pressuring energy regulators to deny the declaratory order, that also doesn’t stop Sea 3 from submitting a full application to the Energy Facility Siting Board for further consideration, according to Emma Rodvien, coordinator for the Energy Facility Siting Board.
The ordinance committee will vote on both resolutions at a later meeting, with their decisions sent as recommendations to the full City Council for final approval.
