(The Center Square) — As the federal government lines up billions of dollars to build out hydrogen hubs, a multi-state coalition sent a letter to the Department of Energy demanding a halt to the Appalachian project until officials are more transparent with the public.

“I really can’t stress just how few safeguards there are on this,” Tom Torres, hydrogen campaign coordinator with the Ohio River Valley Institute and author of the letter, said. “It’s incumbent on policymakers to ask some really tough questions about what are valuable investments, what people in the region deserve, and what are alternative pathways of development that can give people a much better return on investment.”