Dave Bangert
Donnellson
An important deadline is coming soon for Iowans. In November, the Iowa Utility Board will stop accepting comments on the petition by Dakota Access LLC for a permit to construct a hazardous liquid pipeline that would cut diagonally across Iowa from northwest to southeast through farmland, woodland and even near homes. It is projected to transfer 18.9 to 23.9 million gallons of highly flammable crude oil per day.
The IUB is a three member board that has the power to grant Dakota Access LLC the right to build this pipeline, and to use eminent domain to do it. Anyone can file a comment or objection to the granting of this permit; you do not have to be a landowner.
Reasons to object:
Pipelines leak. On July 10, a leak of 4,200 gallons of crude oil occurred near Grantfork, Ill., much of which went into a nearby creek. Just do a web search on "pipeline leaks" and see what you find. A complete break in this pipeline for just one minute would release 13,000 gallons of crude oil. A leak of 1/1000th of the capacity would still be 18,000 gallons/day; how soon would they notice this?
Eminent domain. There are landowners in the path of this pipeline who will not take $1 million to allow an easement for it on their property; they feel that strongly about the sanctity of their land. This isn’t just farmland; in some cases it’s woodlands and streams that have been the introduction to nature for generations of Iowans. Why should they be forced to allow a corporation to strip away the trees, bury a huge pipeline and never allow another tree to be planted there again? Dakota Access LLC is not a public utility. We should not allow private corporations the ability to seize the use of property from Iowans without their consent.
If you feel that this pipeline could be a detriment to Iowa’s environment, or that the use of eminent domain for corporate profits makes a mockery of private land ownership, please do the one thing that might make a difference — contact the IUB at 515-725-7300 or go to its website and follow their instructions to file an objection (by mail or online) against them granting a permit for this project. Remember, it might be your property a corporation wants to abuse next time.