Marion County Adopts Resolution Opposing Bluegrass NGL Pipeline

Marion County Adopts Resolution Opposing Bluegrass NGL Pipeline  
 

1. The lack of advance review by any governmental body as to the necessity, alternatives, routing and public health, safety, and environmental consequences of natural gas liquids pipelines such as this, creates a situation in which the adverse effects on Pubic health, safety, and the environment are not carefully assessed, avoided and minimized, and mitigated. Those effects include heightened risks to Public Health and public safety associated with the transportation under pressure of flammable petroleum hydrocarbons; adverse impacts on the use and value of property of individual landowners; impacts on land, air, and water resources associated with leaks and spills; impacts on roads, and public land of local communities; and on local government emergency response capacity, including fire, police EMT, Public Health and environmental response services.
2. The possibility that landowners in Marion County may be burdened with easements on their property for the pipeline due to threat that their property may be condemned in the absence of agreement. The lack of clear limitations on the exercise of eminent domain in Kentucky law leaves open the possibility that a private, for profit company that is not a Kentucky-regulated public utility, may obtain easements under the threat of condemnation even though Kentucky law might not support such an action. Negotiations for acquisition of easements under duress are inherently unfair.

1. Urges the Governor to amend the Special Session Call to address these two concerns by subjecting natural gas liquids pipelines to the jurisdiction of a siting board with the Authority to require a comprehensive review and mitigation of all adverse effects of such a pipeline, and by limiting condemnation powers to Public Service Commission-regulated public utilities;
2. Requests that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (COE) Louisville District work in conjunction with other Corps Districts through which the proposed pipeline would traverse, to demand a comprehensive Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the entire Bluegrass Pipeline Project, thus providing assurances that the various agencies responsible for avoiding adverse effects on land, air and water resources, fish and wildlife, historic and archaeological properties, protected species, and public health and safety, are coordinating the review of the necessity for and effects of such a project; and
3. Calls on the Bluegrass Pipeline partners to agree to work with those agencies and the COE, to voluntarily commit to development of an EIS irrespective of whether the companies believe one is required; and to forswear the threat and attempted use of condemnation in any negotiations with landowners.