Coast Guard says LNG shipments are 'safe and secure'

(Stan Grossfeld/Globe Staff)

An LNG tanker heads under the Tobin Bridge on its way to the Everett facility.

By John C. Drake, Globe Staff

The Coast Guard captain in charge of the port of Boston said federal authorities are well-equipped to secure liquefied natural gas shipments into the region and respond in case of a terrorist attack.

"Here in the port of Boston, we have safe and secure transits," said Captain Gail Kulisch. "We can do that because we have a very robust safety and security plan with many partners contributing to that for each and every transit."

Kulisch commented a day after the Government Accountability Office questioned the Coast Guard’s readiness to protect some ports.

Kulisch said the Coast Guard secured 22 billion gallons of petroleum passing through the port of Boston in 2007, including highly hazardous LNG making its way to Everett.

US Representative Edward J. Markey, who had requested the report from the government watchdog agency, said LNG and oil tankers are "serious targets" for terrorists.

The Distrigas facility in Everett is the nation's only urban LNG importation terminal.

In its report, the GAO stated that some ports don’t have the resources to meet the Coast Guard’s own security standards for escorts and boardings.

Kulisch said that was not the case in Boston.

“In the port of Boston, we exceed safety and security requirements,” she said in a news conference at the Coast Guard station in Boston.

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