February 20, 2014
A judge has ruled against a Nebraska law that allowed the construction of the Keystone XL pipeline through the state in order to transport crude tar sands oil from western Canada to the Gulf Coast.
Lancaster County Judge Stephanie Stacy struck down Nebraska Gov. Dave Heineman’s approval of the pipeline route on Wednesday. Stacy said that jurisdiction over such a decision belongs to the pertinent state regulator, the Nebraska Public Service Commission.
Gov. Heineman said later Wednesday he would appeal the state court ruling, Reuters reported.
Three Nebraska landowners opposed to the pipeline filed the lawsuit.
“Under the Court’s ruling, [pipeline owner] TransCanada has no approved route in Nebraska,” Dave Domina, the landowners’ attorney, said in a statement, according to AP. “TransCanada is not authorized to condemn the property against Nebraska landowners. The pipeline project is at standstill in this state.”
AP reported that TransCanada could not be reached for comment.
In January 2013, Heineman sent a letter to President Barack Obama confirming that he would allow the controversial pipeline through the state. The decision came amid much opposition from landowners and others warning that the pipeline could contaminate the Ogallala aquifer, a major groundwater supply. Opponents said the governor did not have the authority to approve the route.
Heineman had opposed the pipeline running through the state’s Sandhills region, which is full of grassy sand dunes that are at high risk for erosion. Yet he said in the letter to Obama that the 195-mile route through Nebraska would avoid the area. He said any spills of the crude tar sands would be localized, and that TranCanada would fulfill cleanup responsibilities.