Great decision this week from the Kentucky Court of Appeals:
Here are some choice snippets:
In granting summary judgment, the trial court believed that KRS 278.502 only granted condemnation powers to entities providing public utilities regulated by the Public Service Commission. It also believed that since the pipeline was only going to be utilized to move NGLs to the Gulf of Mexico, the pipelines would not be “in public service.” We agree.
And another logical finding:
If these NGLs are not reaching Kentucky consumers, then Bluegrass and its pipeline cannot be said to be in the public service of Kentucky. We therefore affirm the circuit court’s judgment that Bluegrass does not possess the ability to condemn property through eminent domain.
Another Bakken BOOM! train explodes
May 6th, 2015
This photo was taken by neighbor Jennifer Willi, who lives about 1/2 mile from the scene of the derailment, near Heimdal, North Dakota. At least 10 cars exploded and are burning. They should publish the destination of the cars so people will know the reach of these trains! They line up outside the Delaware City refinery; blew up in Lac Megantic, Ontario; Lynchburg, VA. We are all at risk!
Some coverage, with a snippet from each:
Crude oil train derails in North Dakota, residents evacuate town
“It’s all over the place,” Wells County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Janelle Pepple told the Daily News. “Thick, billowing black smoke; flames shooting 100 feet in the air. It’s a pretty spectacular-looking fire.”
North Dakota Town Evacuated After Train Derailment
North Dakota Town Evacuated After Oil Cars Derail And Catch Fire
Roehrich said she couldn’t get close enough to the train to see whether it was exploding or just burning. “It looks a lot like Casselton,” she said, referring to the fiery train wreck of oil tankers near Casselton in late 2013.
(with the admission that new cars don’t really matter)
BNSF said the tank cars that derailed were constructed under a 2011 voluntary rail industry standard intended to make them tougher than older cars that were long known to pose a safety risk. But the new cars have proved equally dangerous. The five major oil train accidents so far this year in the U.S. and Canada all involved the newer cars, each of which can hold about 30,000 gallons of fuel.
From KMSP:
A new MnDOT analysis released in March shows 326,170 Minnesotans live within the half-mile evacuation zones along state oil train routes.
This video was up on KMSP’s site, then disappeared, maybe it will come back:
SF 1735 – SHAME on each Senator who voted for it
May 5th, 2015
UPDATE: It’s over… the Senate Rules committee let it go to the floor…
So this morning, SF 1735 was up before the Senate Rules committee. It was “late” and so Sen. John Marty brought it to Rules with a Motion to suspend the rules and let it go to the floor, late as it was. And that passed, and so now it is going on to the Senate floor.
Unbelievable… SHAME on Sen. John Marty and the Senate Energy Committee for ramming this through despite all those testifying against it. SHAME on the Rules committee for letting this bill go through. SHAME on all those funded “environmental” groups who sat through watching this happen, sat there silently. SHAME on Bill Grant, now Deputy Commissioner of Commerce, f/k/a Ass. Director of Izaak Walton League, for shepherding this through.
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Again, this may be the last meaningful opportunity to influence S.F. 1735. Suggestions:
Senate Rules and Administration Committee emails: sen.michelle.fischbach@senate.mn, sen.warren.limmer@senate.mn, sen.scott.newman@senate.mn, sen.paul.gazelka@senate.mn, sen.jim.metzen@senate.mn, sen.rod.skoe@senate.mn (Committee page for links to those who use “contact” forms, CLICK HERE). Chair, Tom Bakk, 651-296-8881
Call/Email Sen. John Marty asking him to WITHDRAW S.F 1735, the Xcel deregulation bill, but act to defend the Community Solar Garden law: (651) 296-5645, jmarty@senate.mn
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Plains & Eastern UnClean Line non-NEPA process begins!
April 27th, 2015
The long awaited moment has arrived — the substantive review by DOE of the Plains & Eastern UnClean Line is now public. Remember, there are NO RULES, this is uncharted territory, they’ve not done anything like this before!
There’s a lot of stuff here — this is cut and pasted from the DOE SITE, and downloading will take a while:
Plains & Eastern Clean Line Transmission Line – Part 2 Application
Non-NEPA Review (1222 Review): In addition to conducting a NEPA review of the proposed Plains & Eastern Clean Line Transmission Line project, DOE will also conduct due diligence on non-NEPA factors such as the project’s technical and financial feasibility and whether the project is in the public interest. DOE will conduct a thorough review that includes making all required statutory findings and will consider all criteria listed in Section 1222 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005, as well as all factors included in DOE’s 2010 Request for Proposals.
In December 2014, DOE requested additional information from the applicant to supplement and update its original application. The updated Part 2 application and other documentation are now available below for a 45-day public comment period. The public comment period begins on April 28, 2015, the date the Notice of Availability is published in the Federal Register, and will close on June 12, 2015. DOE is accepting comments on whether the proposed project meets the statutory criteria listed in Section 1222 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005, as well as all factors included in DOE’s 2010 Request for Proposals. All comments submitted during either comment period will be considered in the DOE’s ultimate decision as to whether to participate in the proposed project under the Section 1222 Program. Therefore, comments submitted during the NEPA public comment period do not need to be re-submitted during the 1222 public comment period, regardless of the subject discussed in the comments.
Some appendices have been redacted to protect privileged or confidential business information.
Bill Howley, “The Power Line” blogger, has died
April 26th, 2015
Bill Howley died yesterday.
Bill Howley is known by anyone working in opposition to transmission projects. Due to a transmission line proposed in his community, he learned pretty much everything there is to know about transmission, wrote about it faithfully and fearlessly for years, and became an expert on advocacy, economics and technology of all things electrical. He’s one of the first resources people would turn to when they first learned of transmission projects. Recently, he’d taken the position of Program Director for WV SUN.
Bill Howley’s blog, since 2008 — take a few minutes to get an idea of the depth of his work. Here’s hoping that his family will keep this blog going in perpetuity, a memorial to his work and as a guiding light for all those who are dealing with transmission projects:
The Power Line
The View from Calhoun County
From the Hur Herald from Sunny Cal:
People’s Advocate Bill Howley of Calhoun County has died.
He was a well-known researcher, consultant, consumer advocate, activist, writer, and paralegal.