New Jersey Homeowners Fight Gas Pipeline in Federal Court

WNYC News | Apr 16, 2018

New Jersey landowners, environmental groups and the state's attorney general continue to fight a gas pipeline that would run from eastern Pennsylvania to Mercer County, threatening to derail the company's timeline to complete the $1 billion project.

"It's probably one of the most horrendous, stressful experiences that I've had in my entire life," said 73-year-old Vince DiBianca, of fighting the pipeline, which is being proposed by PennEast Pipeline Co.

DiBianca has owned land in Delaware Township since 1993, where he keeps a small farm with horses and llamas and lives in a stone-house from the 1770's. He also runs a corporate retreat there.

"It's a wonderful respite," DiBianca said. 

The pipeline would cut through his driveway, and DiBianca worries about the effects it could have on his property and water well. 

The proposed pipeline would cross under the Delaware River, cutting through more than 200 New Jersey properties and 20 parcels of state-protected conservation land. 

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approved construction of the roughly 120 mile pipeline in January. Shortly afterwards, PennEast filed eminent domain lawsuits against 149 New Jersey landowners.

FERC ruled the company could seize the properties under the Natural Gas Act, even though it has yet to prove the pipeline's benefits outweigh its potential harm. PennEast has had difficulty assessing the pipeline's effects because  many landowners have denied the company access to their properties, making eminent domain necessary.

One of the agency's commissioners dissented. Commissioner Richard Glick wrote "the question whether landowners should be required to provide pipeline developers with access to their property...is one that is and should be left to the states to decide."

The project is also waiting on several permits, including one from the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection and the Delaware River Basin Commission. 

On April 5, 60 of the 149 eminent domain cases were heard in federal court in Trenton. Another hearing is scheduled for April 19. 

Homeowner Jacqueline Evans will make her case before the court then. She lives in Delaware Township with her three children and has a small organic farm.

"We have goats, and sheep, and chickens, and honeybees," she said. "We have a pond with fish in it."

The projected pipeline would run about 100 feet from her children's bedroom. Her 13-year-old daughter has asked her what would happen if the pipeline exploded.

"All these things go through their head," Evans said. "I mean, no child should have to live through this." 

The New Jersey Conservation Foundation has said most of the landowners directly along the pipeline's path oppose the project, but PennEast spokeswoman Pat Kornick said they're a "vocal minority." 

"Whether it be construction of a highway, bridge or municipal water system, there always will be those who oppose infrastructure development," Kornick wrote in an email. 

She said pipeline should be operational by next year. 

 

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