Candidates clash with Wolf on pipeline
HARRISBURG » While supporting community efforts for Gov. Tom Wolf to stop construction of the Sunoco Mariner East 2 pipeline, all five Democratic candidates for lieutenant governor are seemingly at odds with the governor on the future of the project.
A questionnaire circulated by Food & Water Action, the political arm of national advocacy group, Food & Water Watch, surveyed the Democratic candidates. All candidates responded with a “yes” answer to the following question: “Do you support community calls on Gov. Wolf to stop the Mariner East 2 pipeline?”
The five candidates — Mike Stack, Kathi Cozzone, John Fetterman, Ray Sosa and Nina Ahmad — also support efforts to create a pipeline risk assessment
study and vow not to accept political donations from pipeline builder Sunoco.
“We can add all of Gov. Wolf’s possible running mates to the growing chorus of local, state, and federal elected officials calling for Wolf to stop the pipeline,” said Food & Water Action Pennsylvania Director Sam Bernhardt. “Gov. Wolf is out of touch with Pennsylvania voters, who overwhelmingly oppose the Mariner East 2 pipeline.
“We’re glad to see all five candidates for lieutenant governor stand with frontline communities in calling for Wolf to stop the pipeline.”
A Sunoco Pipeline spokesperson said earlier this week that construction on the Sunoco Mariner East 2 pipeline is 98 percent complete. Plans call for the pipeline to zig-zag 350 miles from West Virginia, Ohio and Pennsylvania Marcellus shale deposits to the former Sunoco Refinery in Marcus Hook, Delaware County. It would carry highly volatile liquids and follow much of the same right of way as the 1930sera Mariner East 1 pipeline.
Cozzone is a Chester County commissioner in addition to a candidate for lieutenant governor. She was appointed by Wolf to serve as the chairwoman of the County Government Workgroup on the Pipeline Infrastructure Task Force, which issues recommendations.
“Sunoco can’t accomplish what they’re trying to do in a safe way,” Cozzone said. “If it’s going to happen, it should happen in a way safe for the community and environment.”
As the incumbent lieutenant governor, Stack has bumped heads with Wolf.
“The PUC is operating on laws regulating the construction and management of gas and oil pipelines that are significantly outdated,” he said. “These laws need to be updated and reformed providing more transparency and local control.”
A Stack staffer said there is no simple answer to the survey question. In a statement, Stack talked about his relationship with state Sen. Andy Dinniman, D19th Dist., who has been a strong critic of pipelines.
“I entirely support the governor’s reasoned and deliberative approach to the concerns raised by Pennsylvania’s weak and antiquated pipeline regulations,” he said. “Over the past three months, I have met numerous times with top PUC officials, and Senator Dinniman is a frequent and welcomed visitor to my office.
“As a former senator, I admire Sen. Dinniman’s passion for the protection of his constituents and I have promised him to do what I can to resolve their concerns in a way that will protect their safety and property rights and while also being sustainable in court.”
Ahmad, of Philadelphia, is a scientist and believes in an evidence-based approach to all problems. She said that the evidence is telling us that we are on “a calamitous path.
“While this has been an industry that has been useful for our economy, we have to have a plan in place to transition from fossil fuels to clean energy,” Ahmad said.
The candidate suggested that instead, a new train line might stretch across the state.
“Let’s do something that doesn’t hurt the environment,” she said.
Fetterman, the mayor of Braddock, and the only candidate from the western portion of the state, responded to the survey: “I was proud to sign the #nofossilfuelmoney pledge. I never have and never will take money from the fossil fuel industry. I have the utmost respect for the hard work that these activists in Delco and Chester are doing. I was appalled by the situation when I visited the different sites. On top of it all, it was quite frankly creepy. I wish these communities the best in their work and hope they can make progress.”
Sosa, a banker from Montgomery County, said that the shale industry is a “big part” of the Pennsylvania economy.
“I am a firm believer in limiting it, regulating it, tax it correctly and migrate it to green/renewable energy,” Sosa said. “A deep and comprehensive impact report must be funded and an independent civilian oversight board has to be appointed to assess the impact to the community.
“Our EPA has not done its job. It is our turn to protect our environment.”
J.J. Abbott, Wolf spokesman, responded to an inquiry concerning how the governor feels about all of the candidates seemingly opposing his pipeline policies.
“Governor Wolf has made growing Pennsylvania’s energy economy and creating jobs a priority,” Abbott wrote. “We should be focused on implementing policies to protect our environment and ensure we have clean air and water while creating good paying jobs in the energy sector.
“The governor and his administration have held the operator accountable every step of the way, and he will continue supporting the Pennsylvania Utility Commission and the Department of Environmental Protection’s strong enforcement of state law, regulations and permit conditions on this project.”