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The Tennessee Conservative Staff –
A federal court has halted the construction of a 32-mile natural gas pipeline proposed to go through Middle Tennessee. That construction could have begun as early as Tuesday.
On Friday, the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals issued a hold on two permits necessary for the pipeline’s installation as they await continued action on a lawsuit filed in May by two environmental conservationist groups.
The Sierra Club and Appalachian Voices contend that the Tennessee Gas Pipeline Company, a subsidiary of Kinder Morgan, plans to use construction methods that could cause extreme long-term damage to numerous waterways in Dickson, Houston, and Stewart counties.
The company argues that the pipeline is essential for transitioning the TVA’s Cumberland City plant from coal to cleaner-burning natural gas.
In their ruling, two of the three judges on the panel expressed concerns about the risk of “irreparable harm” if construction proceeded without a thorough review of the case.
“Accordingly, to provide sufficient time for this Court to consider the merits of these petitions, we grant Petitioners’ motions for stay pending review,” wrote Judges Karen Nelson Moore and Eric L. Clay. Judge Amul R. Thapar, known as one of the circuit’s most conservative judges, dissented.
This decision temporarily invalidates the two permits needed for the pipeline’s construction, which a senior attorney at the Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC) described as having been “rubberstamped.”
Jamie Whitlock, a senior attorney at SELC representing the environmental groups, expressed satisfaction with the court’s recognition of the potential damage the Cumberland Pipeline poses to Tennessee waterways: “We are glad the court recognizes the irreparable damage the Cumberland Pipeline threatens to do to Tennessee waterways and has paused construction until these appeals are resolved. These water permits for the pipeline were rubberstamped and ignore the long-lasting harm construction of this pipeline will cause.”
The ruling complicates the company’s plans, which aimed to start construction on October 15 at the earliest. A Kinder Morgan spokesperson noted that the company is looking into its options to keep the project on schedule but did not specify what those options might entail.
“We do not agree with the court’s temporary stay and are evaluating our options to ensure this project can be constructed in a timely manner,” the spokesperson said. “TGP’s project is critical to support the retirement and conversion of coal-fired power generation in Tennessee to natural gas-fired power generation, which the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission concluded will result in a net reduction of greenhouse gas emissions at the state and national levels.”
The case is ongoing, with arguments scheduled for December 10.
The two-judge majority noted, “In granting these stay requests, we are mindful that further consideration by the Court may yield additional insights which cast doubt on our initial view.”
