The Public Service Board, which has yet to approve the company’s request to use eminent domain to take the Geprags parcel, will review the request next Thursday. In a widely criticized move, the PSB has decided to close that hearing to the public because protesters have repeatedly interrupted previous proceedings.
The 41-mile natural gas pipeline, which will run from Colchester to Middlebury, has spawned ongoing protests and encountered many setbacks, including major cost overruns.
The selectboard withdrew an earlier agreement with Vermont Gas after a public outcry. Under the new agreement, approved in a 3-2 vote Thursday evening, the board negotiated additional concessions from the company. Among them: Vermont Gas will use horizontal drilling to minimize the impact on the park’s wetland area, and it will pay the town $250,000 for easement rights. (Under the previous agreement, it would have paid $75,000.)
This is the last pending eminent domain case standing in the way of the pipeline, according to Vermont Gas, which hopes to complete its pipeline this year.
Spokesperson Beth Parent issued a press release Friday morning that stated, “This agreement brings important value to the town and allows the company to move forward with construction in Geprags. Hinesburg is the last remaining parcel needed to secure 100 percent access to the project’s right-of-way, and is an important step toward timely completion of the project.”
But the battle may not be over. A group of Hinesburg residents, represented by James Dumont, is still challenging the eminent domain request on the grounds that land already designated for a public use cannot be seized for another public use.
In a memo filed with the Public Service Board earlier this week, Dumont makes the case that the board should reject the selectboard’s agreement with Vermont Gas when reviewing the eminent domain request for Geprags. He cites a state statute on municipal parks that states: “Land, rights, or other property acquired by a municipality under this chapter shall not be sold or diverted to uses other than conservation or recreation except after approval by an affirmative vote of the voters of the town at the annual meeting.”
Meanwhile, activists with Rising Tide Vermont, a group that has long waged a campaign against the pipeline, announced early Friday yet another protest.
“Two people shut down construction at a Vermont Gas pipeline worksite today, citing growing concerns about public exclusion in the permitting process,” the group announced.
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I am confused! Why doesn’t the agreement with the selectboard make the eminent domain proceedings moot?
Good question. The land was given to the town by the Geprags sisters, and it came with a covenant requiring that it be used for recreation or education purposes. Eminent domain is necessary to overcome that covenant.
Another way of asking the question is why would the town agree to overriding the covenant that requires the property to be used only for recreational or educational purposes. I guess we’re all getting an education in how to shove bad projects through in violation of existing agreements.
In 2014 Vermont Gas did a presentation to the town and stated that HDD was “no silver bullet”, risky, unreliable, and not guaranteed. A couple weeks ago VT Gas came to Hinesburg to inform us that they would offer to use HDD, that it is the “gold standard” and would protect the park and wetlands from damage. Which is it? We know VGS has had a lot of problems with HDD along the route already. And there is also the question: if there is a problem with a pipe that was installed using HDD, how will they detect it, and how will it be repaired or mitigated? This is especially concerning in Hinesburg where we are hosting 6 miles of colocated pipeline with electric transmission lines. This results in induced voltage that causes the pipelines to corrode and is a major factor in pipeline explosions. The Interstate Natural Gas Agency of America – an industry agency – reported in 2015 that anything longer than 500 feet of colocation is “high risk”. That is less than a mile. We have 6. How dangerous is that? Especially now they are in a mad rush to “get er done”. There are many many reasons to oppose this pipeline in Hinesburg and elsewhere. VGS has totally mismanaged and cannot be trusted. Ratepayers are getting shafted. It doesn’t fit with the states renewable plans, it is destroying our lands, and people are having their beloved properties taken away via eminent domain. Shumlin should be held accountable for pushing this project forward against the interests of all. What a hideous mess.