Monthly Archives: May 2015

GDOT No Eminent Domain for Kinder Morgan Palmetto Pipeline

May 19, 2015Florida, Georgia, Uncategorizedeminent domain, GDOT, Kinder Morgan, Palmetto PipelineDebra Johnson

In a blow to Kinder Morgan’s proposed Palmetto Pipeline, GDOT has denied Kinder Morgan’s request for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity. This means the pipeline company cannot declare eminent domain on property owned by landowners who object to this $1 billion pipeline, that would transport gasoline, ethanol, and diesel from Belton, South Carolina to Jacksonville, Florida.

Official Statement from GDOT:

“After careful consideration of information in the application submitted by Kinder Morgan on behalf of Palmetto; numerous public comments submitted at seven (7) public meetings held by Palmetto; two (2) public hearings hosted by the Georgia DOT; and approximately 3000 public comments submitted online and by mail to myself and the Utilities staff, the Department has determined that it will not issue a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity.”

Perhaps the same action can be done concerning the Sabal Trail Pipeline proposing to be gouged through Alabama, Georgia and Florida rivers, wetlands, and atop the Floridian Aquifer.

As reported by WALB Channel 10 News this morning ……

http://www.walb.com/story/29098768/palmetto-pipeline-kinder-morgan-cant-take-lan

~~DLJ

Against Sabal Trail in Savannah 2015-05-21

May 19, 2015Chatham County, Environment, Georgia, Law, Wateraquifer, Chatham County, conservation, Economy, environment, Georgia, Jacksonville, John S. Quarterman, Kinder Morgan, Law, LNG, Lowndes County, north Florida, Palmetto Project, pipeline, Push Back the Pipeline, river, Sabal Trail Transmission, Savannah, Sierra Club, south Georgia, Spectra Energy, SpectraBusters, T. Boone Pickens, Water, watershed, WWALS, WWALS Watershed CoalitionJohn S. Quarterman

Maybe Push Back the Pipeline can help convince Georgia Governor Nathan Deal and GDOT to oppose Sabal Trail like they successfully opposed the Palmetto pipeline. In Savannah Thursday May 21st a landowner affected by Sabal Trail and WWALS Watershed Coalition President John S. Quarterman will make the case at the Coastal Group of the Georgia Sierra Club. More details and background from WWALS, and see below about the event. All opponents of the Sabal Trail and Palmetto pipelines are invited.

Connect Savannah, today, (also on Push Back the Pipeline), Georgia’s Other Unwanted and Unneeded Pipeline,

When: Thu., May 21, 7 p.m.
Phone: 912-961-6190
Price: Free
Where: First Presbyterian Church
520 Washington Ave Savannah-Eastside
912-354-7615
www.fpc.presbychurch.net
The Palmetto Pipeline is not the only pipeline project in Georgia Continue reading Against Sabal Trail in Savannah 2015-05-21 →

USA Today – Gas Pipeline Companies Feel the Heat of Opposition

May 18, 2015Economy, Law, LNG, PoliticsAmerica's Natural Gas Alliance, Atlantic Coast Pipeline, FERC, LNG export, LNG pipeline industry, pipeline opposition, protestDebra Johnson

As reported in mainstream media outlet USA Today, opposition to LNG pipelines is causing the natural gas pipeline industry headaches.

Industry executives say they need additional laws to allow them to gouge pipelines across our water and property so that they may export their gas to other countries solely profiting their industry. There is no public necessity and/or need for these pipelines.

To quote Diane Leopold, the president of Dominion Energy, Continue reading USA Today – Gas Pipeline Companies Feel the Heat of Opposition →

Help Brownsville, Texas fend off five LNG projects

May 17, 2015Cameron County, LNG, Solar, TexasAnnova LNG, Barca LNG, battery, Boca Chica, Brownsville, EOS LNG, Gulf Coast LNG, John S. Quarterman, Kingsville, LNG, Next Decade LNG, Raymondville, Rio Grande LNG, solar, South Padre Island, SpaceX, SpectraBusters, storage, Tesla, Texas, Texas LNGJohn S. Quarterman

Houston is also invading Texas with LNG export projects and their pipelines, five of them at the mouth of the Rio Grande next to spring break resort South Padre Island. Help stop those, and help stop all LNG export boondoggles everywhere.

John Young, 16 May 2015, comment on Texas,

5 LNG export operations are targeting the Port of Brownsville, next door to South Padre Island. 2 have recently had Open Houses here (Annova LNG & Texas LNG) and a third, Rio Grande LNG (www.riograndelng.com), has three Open Houses planned this coming week (Kingsville Tue 05-19; Raymondville Wed 05-20; & Brownsville Thur 05-21-2015): http://www.valleymorningstar.com/news/local_news/article_397be0b6-faaf-11e4-bfe2-c75ef8558c93.html.

See our saveRGVfromLNG Facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Question-Port-of-Brownsville-LNG/806304399382328

Anything you can do to help Continue reading Help Brownsville, Texas fend off five LNG projects →

Sabal Trail is Bull: see them sue a landowner in Moultrie May 28th 2015

May 16, 2015Economy, Georgia, Law, Politicsbull, china shop, Economy, eminent domain, Georgia, John S. Quarterman, Law, lawsuit, Moultrie, PoetsLoveBirds, Politics, pronghorn antelope, SpectraBustersJohn S. Quarterman

Spectra may bull through pronghorn antelope in Texas, but suing a Georgia Centennial Family Farm provokes some resistance.

PoetsLoveBirds, 14 May 2015, Spectra Energy: Like a Bull in a China Shop,

Spectra Energy is a Fortune 500 company based in Houston, Texas. They say that they are one of North America’s leading natural gas, natural gas liquids and crude oil infrastructure companies. Their claim to fame — It builds pipelines to ship natural gas. It builds storage facilities to hold natural gas. It distributes natural gas. …

But wait, let’s hear from Spectra Energy. On their spiffy website, sporting Continue reading Sabal Trail is Bull: see them sue a landowner in Moultrie May 28th 2015 →

FERC blocks people from attending and recording open meeting

May 14, 2015FERC, LawBeyond Extreme Energy, Cove Point, FERC, John S. Quarterman, Law, recording, rubberstamp, SpectraBustersJohn S. Quarterman

FERC doesn’t follow its own rules requiring public benefits for pipelines, so it’s not surprising it doesn’t follow its own rules on public meetings. This time FERC is well into lawsuit territory.

Anne Meador and John Zangas, DC Media Group, 14 May 2015, Dozens Denied Access to FERC Public Meeting,

Federal Protective Services took extraordinary measures to prevent disruption of the Commission meeting by planned protests, barring access to about 30 members of the public. FPS also banned the use of recording devices, brushing aside FERC’s own rule expressly permitting it. Two people were escorted out of the meeting room, five detained and three arrested.

That’s arrested for exercising their First Amendment “right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances”, not to mention Continue reading FERC blocks people from attending and recording open meeting →

Revealed: FBI violated its own rules while spying on Keystone XL opponents | US news | The Guardian

May 13, 2015Economy, Environment, Harris County, Law, Texas, WaterJohn S. Quarterman

Actually, property rights, safety, and environment are vital to the security and economy of the United States, and the invading Sabal Trail and Palmetto pipelines from Houston, Texas threaten all those things just like the invading Keystone XL pipeline from Alberta threatens them. That’s why FERC has run to today for its meeting, but it can’t hide from the protesters who will show up anyway. That is why some brave landowners legally oppose Sabal Trail taking their land, as in Moultrie May 28th.

The FBI seems to have gotten all that backwards:

“The Houston Division has identified an emerging threat from environmental extremists targeting construction projects of the TransCanada Keystone XL Pipeline within the Houston Domain. Many of these extremists believe the debates over pollution, protection of wildlife, safety, and property rights have been overshadowed by the promise of jobs and cheaper oil prices. These extremists include those who oppose federal, state, and local governments’ interaction or legal interference in matters of domestic oil and natural gas production.
“The Keystone pipeline, as part of the oil and natural gas industry, is vital to the security and economy of the United States.”

And actually, we support local, state, and federal governments stopping these pipeline invasions. The FBI should be helping us by exposing the corruption funded by the fossil fuel industry. Starting with the institutionalized corruption that is FERC, which brags to Congress about 100% “cost recovery” from the industries it “regulates”.

Paul Lewis, The Guardian, 12 May 2015, http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/may/12/revealed-fbi-spied-keystone-xl-opponents

U.S. Senate hearing on LNG export, pipelines, solar, smart grid tomorrow 2015-05-14

May 13, 2015Law, LNG, Solarenergy, Energy and Natural Resources Committee, Government, infrastructure, John S. Quarterman, Law, LNG, Senate, solar, SpectraBusters, windJohn S. Quarterman

Many energy infrastructure bills to be considered tomorrow, some apparently bad: S. 411 — Natural Gas Gathering Act “To authorize the approval of natural gas pipelines and establish deadlines and expedite permits for certain natural gas gathering lines on Federal land and Indian land.” That one proposed by the same Wyoming Sen. John Barrasso who complained about conflicts of interest for former FERC Chair Jon Wellinghoff until he resigned; the same Senator who didn’t like that new FERC Chair Norman Bay mentioned sun first among New Mexico’s abundant energy resources. Sourcewatch says “John Barrasso has voted in favor of big oil companies on 100% of important oil related bills, according to Oil Change International.”

Some bills to be considered tomorrow are apparently good: S. 1237 – To amend the Natural Gas Act to limit the authority of Continue reading U.S. Senate hearing on LNG export, pipelines, solar, smart grid tomorrow 2015-05-14 →

TPP fast track loses Senate vote

May 12, 2015Law, LNG, PoliticsCongress, John S. Quarterman, Law, LNG, Politics, Senate, SpectraBusters, TPP, Trans-Pacific PartnershipJohn S. Quarterman

Pipeline-pushing members of Congress explicitly promote the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) as a way to authorize more fracked methane export, which would promote more pipelines. Sabal Trail may say its gas isn’t for export, but those three already-authorized LNG export operations right where it goes in Florida suggest otherwise. Fortunately, TPP just lost a U.S. Senate vote for fast track, so now at least it can’t be pushed through without proper debate. If it’s so good for us, let’s see TPP declassified and the full text released to the public now.

Carter Dougherty and Heidi Przybyla, Sydney Morning Herald, 13 May 2013, Trans-Pacific Partnership: Senate Democrats revolt against Obama trade bill, Continue reading TPP fast track loses Senate vote →

Sabal Trail as environmental and property rights issue @ LCDP 2015-06-01

May 11, 2015Environment, Georgia, Law, Lowndes County, Politics, Watereminent domain, environment, Georgia, John S. Quarterman, Law, LCDP, Lowndes County, Lowndes County Democratic Party, property rights, SAVE, SpectraBusters, Valdosta, WACE, Water, WWALSJohn S. Quarterman

SpectraBusters board member Debra Johnson will be a panelist at the June 1st Lowndes County Democratic Party monthly meeting about environmental issues and property rights, 6PM 1 June 2015, at the Lowndes County Board of Elections office, 2808 North Oak Street, Valdosta, Georgia. This topic obviously includes among other issues the Sabal Trail fracked methane pipeline. Other panelists will be from the Lowndes County Commission, WWALS, WACE, and SAVE.

Anyone can speak up from the audience, and local TV covered Continue reading Sabal Trail as environmental and property rights issue @ LCDP 2015-06-01 →