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Decision Likely Next Week On Pipeline Case
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After a two-day hearing that went into the evening hours on Thursday, the decision on whether TransCanada's use of eminent domain is necessary to gain access to land needed for an oil pipeline project through Marshall County is in the hands of Judge Jack Von Wald.
Attorneys were given 10 days to file briefs following the necessity hearing that was held last week Wednesday and Thursday at the Marshall County Courthouse. The judge will likely issue his decision sometime next week.
If Judge Von Wald decides that the use of eminent domain is needed, court trials on the issue to determine the financial terms of the condemned land will begin in Britton on June 9.
Ten property owners from Marshall and Day Counties have refused to sign easement agreements with TransCanada to allow the use of their land for installation of the oil pipeline. More than three-quarters of the affected landowners have signed easement agreements.
TransCanada has started condemnation proceedings through the right of eminent domain against those property owners. Eminent domain allows a company or utility to use land in return for payment even if an easement agreement can't be reached.
Plans call for construction of the Keystone Pipeline to begin this spring. The pipeline will transport crude oil from the province of Alberta, Canada, to refineries in Illinois. It would be 1,800 miles long and run through 10 counties in South Dakota for 220 miles. The line could carry as many as 590,000 barrels of crude oil per day.
During the hearing landowners expressed their concerns for the first day and a half with TransCanada officials testifying Thursday afternoon.
A leak into the James Aquifer, which is used as a drinking water source, has been a primary concern of landowners. During the hearing the landowners also wanted to show that TransCanada has been difficult to work with and has not been open to easement negotiations.
Permanent easements offered landowners the equivalent of $2,520 per acre. But some landowners want to negotiate some of the terms of the agreement.
The pipeline cleared a major hurdle last month when the South Dakota Public Utilities Commission (PUC) gave its approval, with some stipulations, to build the pipeline through the state. Prior to that ruling the PUC heard from landowners in a series of hearings on the project.
TransCanada has met all the federal and state requirements for the pipeline project to move forward. If Judge Von Wald rules that eminent domain is necessary, construction of the pipeline will begin when the June trials are completed.
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©Marshall County Journal 2009
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