Bob Hastings of the Alabama Sierra Club reports from the
Alabama FERC Scoping Meetings. -jsq
I attended both the Alexander City and Butler hearings, and was
disappointed in both. There was apparently a lot of apathy and/or
intimidation among people affected.
There were about 50-75 people at
Alex City but only about 7 people spoke. I read the
Alabama-Georgia-Florida Sierra Club statement, and got a few
compliments after the meeting.
At Butler, there were only 7 people
present (plus about 15 “company” employees who answered questions,
but there were not many questions). Because of the small group, we
sat in a circle with the FERC reps and listened to their statements
and asked a few questions. No landowners made statements and I
agreed to submit mine online. It was a long drive for not much
information.
I was also told that about 25 people attended the Seale hearing but
no one submitted comments (according to Bill Braun, a “first zero”
for FERC hearings).
Bill Braun was the FERC representative (a contract environmental
consultant) from Minnesota who described the projects at all three
hearings in Alabama, along with
Kara Harris.
Seems like everyone wants to build a pipeline these days. I’m sure almost everyone has heard about the Keystone XL pipeline, and our Mobile Group has done a good job of publicizing their opposition to the oil pipeline to be constructed through a major water supply area for the city of Mobile. But there are several other pipelines being proposed for Alabama. One of these is the so-called Sabal Trail Pipeline that would carry natural gas extracted through hydraulic fracturing from Pennsylvania and Texas through Alabama, Georgia, and Florida. The new pipeline would begin in Alexander City, where it Continue reading Alabama Sierra Club against the Sabal Trail methane pipeline