PRESS RELEASE
CAREFUL ABOUT SPENDING BILLIONS ON POLLUTING
LNG, LIQUID NATURAL GAS, AND CONCERNS ABOUT
HEALTH EFFECTS
DUKE4GOV.COM
CONTACTDUKE4GOV@PROTON.ME
HAWAI’I ENERGY SOLAR NOT LNG. Why Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Pollutes
the Environment, not good investment for Oahu’s energy needs
Liquefied Natural Gas (often called LNG) is natural gas cooled to about −162°C
so it shrinks to roughly 1/600th of its gaseous volume, making it easier to
transport. It is mostly methane (CH₄). While burning gas for energy is sometimes
called “cleaner” than coal or oil, LNG is far from truly clean. Here’s a breakdown
of why it pollutes the environment, what it does to air, water, and health, and
why solar power is a better alternative.
Air Pollution
LNG contributes significantly to air pollution at multiple stages:
1. Methane leaks: Methane is a very potent greenhouse gas, about 80 times
more effective at trapping heat than CO₂ over a 20-year period. Leaks
occur during drilling, processing, piping, liquefaction, shipping, and
regasification. Even relatively small leaks erase LNG’s climate advantage
over coal or oil. According to studies, total methane leakage of around 3%
makes gas worse for the climate than burning coal. Some studies
estimate U.S. supply chain leakage at about 2–3%, making that threshold
dangerously close.
2. Combustion emissions: Burning natural gas releases CO₂ (the main
greenhouse gas), nitrogen oxides (NOₓ), carbon monoxide (CO), fine
particulate matter (PM2.5), and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). NOₓ
is a key contributor to ground-level ozone formation (smog), and PM2.5 is
associated with serious cardiovascular and respiratory diseases. VOCs
such as benzene and formaldehyde are toxic and carcinogenic. So
although gas combustion emits less CO₂ than coal or oil, it still releases
significant quantities of harmful pollutants.3. Flaring: Excess gas is frequently burned off (flared) at well sites, releasing
CO₂, black carbon (soot), and other pollutants.
Water Pollution
LNG operations also harm water resources:
• Hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”) waste: Extracting natural gas often
involves fracking, which uses large volumes of water mixed with
chemicals and sand. The flowback fluid that returns to the surface
contains heavy metals, naturally occurring radioactive materials (NORM),
salts, and chemical additives. This wastewater can contaminate surface
and groundwater if not properly managed.
• Thermal pollution: Power plants that burn gas use water for cooling and
discharge heated water back into the water or ocean, raising
temperatures and harming aquatic ecosystems.
• Marine impacts: LNG shipping and terminal operations can disrupt marine
environments. Ballast water discharge can introduce invasive species and
pollute. Regasification terminals may discharge cold or chemically treated
seawater back into the ocean, affecting local marine life.
Health Impacts
LNG-related pollution has well-documented human health effects:
• Respiratory disease: PM2.5, NOₓ, and ozone cause or worsen asthma,
chronic bronchitis, COPD, and other lung conditions. COPD (chronic
obstructive pulmonary disease) is a long-term lung disease that makes it
hard to breathe. Children, elderly people, and those with existing
respiratory issues are especially vulnerable.
• Cardiovascular disease: Long-term exposure to PM2.5 increases risk of
heart attacks, strokes, hypertension, and premature death.
• Cancer risk: Benzene and formaldehyde, released during gas processing
and combustion, are known human carcinogens. Long-term exposure to
benzene is strongly linked to leukemia.
• Neurological and developmental effects: Certain VOCs and heavy metals
associated with fracking wastewater have been linked to neurological
damage and developmental problems in children.
• Mental health and community impact: Noise, truck traffic, and
environmental degradation near gas facilities can increase stress, anxiety,
and reduced quality of life.
How Long Do Health Effects Persist?
Health effects from LNG-related pollution are both acute (short-term) and
chronic (long-term):• Short-term exposure to high levels of NOₓ, SO₂, or ozone causes
immediate irritation of eyes, throat, and lungs, and can trigger asthma
attacks within hours or days.
• Chronic exposure over months or years is where the most serious harms
develop. Long-term PM2.5 exposure can lead to permanent reductions in
lung function, chronic cardiovascular disease, and increased cancer risk.
These effects accumulate silently over years, often appearing as disease
much later in life.
• Some effects persist even after exposure ends: Cancer caused by
benzene may take 10–20+ years to manifest after chronic exposure
(latency period). Cardiovascular damage from years of PM2.5 exposure
may not fully reverse. Childhood lung development impairment from
chronic pollution may permanently reduce adult lung capacity.
Why Solar Energy Is a Better Alternative
Solar power offers compelling advantages over LNG:
• Zero fuel combustion, zero emissions at point of generation: Solar panels
produce electricity without burning anything, emitting none of the CO₂,
NO
ₓ, PM2.5, or VOCs associated with gas combustion.
• No methane leaks: Unlike LNG, solar energy involves no methane
infrastructure, eliminating the super-potent greenhouse gas leakage
problem.
• Minimal water use: Solar photovoltaic systems require almost no water to
operate, unlike gas power plants that need cooling water. This matters
increasingly as water scarcity grows, and drinking water purity is vital.
• No toxic wastewater: Solar doesn’t generate fracking wastewater or
produce contaminated flowback fluids. There is no risk of groundwater
contamination from solar operation.
• Better public health outcomes: Replacing gas-fired power with solar
eliminates the air pollution that causes respiratory disease, heart attacks,
and cancer. Studies estimate that transitioning to renewable energy could
save millions of lives globally by reducing air pollution alone.
• Lower lifecycle emissions: While solar panels have manufacturing-related
emissions, lifecycle CO₂ from solar is roughly 20–50 grams per kWh,
compared to about 400–500 grams per kWh for natural gas. That’s
roughly a 90% reduction.
• Energy independence and price stability: Solar fuel (sunlight) is free and
inexhaustible. Gas prices are volatile and depend on extraction, pipelines,
and geopolitics. Once installed, solar provides decades of low-cost
energy.
• Declining costs: Solar energy costs have fallen dramatically over the past
decade. Utility-scale solar is now among the cheapest forms of newelectricity generation in many parts of the world, often cheaper than new
gas plants.
• No long-tail health liability: Unlike gas infrastructure that continues
polluting for its entire operating life, solar has no ongoing emissions,
meaning no accumulated health damage to nearby communities.
Summary
| LNG | Solar | |
| Air pollution | CO₂, NOₓ, PM2.5, methaneleaks, VOCs | None duringoperation |
| Waterpollution | Fracking wastewater,thermal pollution, marinedisruption | Minimal wateruse |
| Healthimpacts | Respiratory disease,cardiovascular harm,cancer risk | Negligibledirect healthimpacts |
| Climateimpact | Significant (methane +CO₂) | Very lowlifecycleemissions |
| Fuel cost | Volatile, finite | Free (sunlight) |
| Long-termhealthlegacy | Decades of pollution,persistent contamination | No ongoingpollution |
In short, LNG is not a clean bridge fuel—it leaks methane, pollutes air and water,
and causes real, lasting harm to human health. Solar power avoids nearly all of
these problems while delivering competitive, increasingly affordable energy.
Transitioning from gas to renewables like solar protects both the climate and
public health, now and for future generations.
Hawai’i wants Solar, not foreivironment, not good investment for Oahu’s energy needs