PROVIDENCE – An R.I. Superior Court judge has upheld the 2022 citywide ban on bulk storage of liquid propane gas.
The decision on Dec. 20 upheld the 2022 citywide ban on bulk storage of liquid propane gas, ruling against ProvPort marine terminal operator Sea 3 Providence LLC, who had appealed the law alleging it was inconsistent with the city's 2014 Comprehensive Plan.
At the time of the lawsuit, Sea 3 was already seeking a proposed $20 million expansion of their facility by adding six LPG storage tanks and a new rail delivery system.
The City Council on Monday called the ruling a win for “Environmental Justice," though it acknowledged the decision was unlikely to impact Sea 3’s proposal because the applications had already been filed with the R.I. Energy Facility Siting Board and the city prior to the ordinance’s introduction.
City Council Majority Leader Pedro Espinal, whose South Providence district includes the Sea 3 facility, said “for generations, the community I call home has endured massive amounts of pollution and devastating health outcomes as a result.”
“Enough is enough,” he said. “No more putting lives at risk just to increase your profits.”
Moving forward, any Sea 3 expansion "will be confined to their original plan... and still will require approvals from city and state agencies," a process they claim could still "halt [the] expansion entirely."
The release also said the updated Comprehensive Plan now "paves the way" for the city to ban future uses of fossil fuels "that it determines go against the public interest of public health and quality of life in near-industry neighborhoods."
Further zoning ordinance amendments are "currently under discussion" and “environmental justice at the port will be prioritized," they said.
In reaction to the ruling, Sea 3 attorney Nicholas Hemond on Monday said while he respected the judge's ruling, the team is now mulling a request that the R.I. Supreme Court review the lower court's decision, know as a petition for writ of certiorari.
The court allowed council's attorneys "to justify their actions after the fact," he added.
As for the expansion in the works, "it can continue, as is."
"This is Providence’s only major LPG terminal and the largest in the state," said Hemond. "If we have a shortage of supply and people don’t have enough propane to heat their homes or businesses, they can look to the Providence City Council as the reason why."
Christopher Allen is a PBN staff writer. You may contact him at Allen@PBN.com
