Democracy missing from pipeline debate

Growing up in Temple, there were few things we valued more than our land, our voice and our independence from outside interests. When it came time to repave a road or buy a new fire engine, our duly elected selectmen would gather proposals and make their case to the town. Come Town Meeting in the spring, we all got to have our say.
That’s the New Hampshire way.

Now, Temple and neighboring towns are facing the biggest threat to land and self-determination I have ever seen.

In 2014, Texas-based energy giant Kinder Morgan announced plans to build a natural gas pipeline through Temple and 16 other New Hampshire towns, complete with a 41,000-horsepower compressor station in nearby New Ipswich. The Northeast Energy Direct Pipeline would originate in Western Pennsylvania and deliver 1.3 billion cubic feet per day of fracked natural gas to New England — more than twice the projected need for the region.

In order to install the 77 miles of pipeline through southern New Hampshire, Kinder Morgan would cut a 125-foot path and maintain a permanent 50-foot easement through private lands, as well as the existing right-of-way.

Some Granite Staters support the pipeline, arguing it will bring construction jobs and reduced energy prices to meet consumer demand. Others oppose the project, citing devalued property, eminent domain seizures, and a range of safety and environmental concerns from leaks and occasional explosions to expanded reliance on fracking.

Regardless of whether you support or oppose the project, every Granite Stater can agree that it is fundamentally a local concern. The decision must be based on a careful weighing of the costs and benefits to the affected towns and the region — not Kinder Morgan’s bottom line. Yet most of us in New Hampshire do not have the means to buy a seat at the debate table.

Consider the investments Kinder Morgan has made in politics. Over the last two years, the company has spent more than $100,000 lobbying in New Hampshire. The $50,000 it spent on lobbying in 2014 was more than any public interest, nonprofit or labor organization spent that year, and it is expected to rise even higher in 2015. (So far, the New Hampshire secretary of state has failed to publish the mandatory lobbying disclosures for the second half of the year).

Grassroots groups opposing the pipeline did not report any lobbying expenditures of their own.

That means that long before state leaders heard a word from their constituents about the proposed pipeline, they had already been contacted by well-paid lobbyist arguing in support of the project. What’s more, those lobbyists frequently help fund state lawmakers’ campaigns.

Nor has Kinder Morgan restricted its lobbying activity to New Hampshire. Over the same period, the company has spent nearly $450,000 lobbying in Massachusetts and another $260,000 lobbying the federal government for a combined $1,000 per day. Over $100,000 of its federal lobbying expenditures were specifically targeted at influencing the FERC process to ratify the NED Pipeline. That’s money a Texas-based company is sending directly to Washington, D.C., to influence whether or not a pipeline gets built in our backyard.

And while Kinder Morgan touts its policy of political neutrality by saying the company does not make any campaign contributions, many of its top executives do precisely that. Since 2012, Kinder Morgan employees and their families have invested millions of dollars in state and federal races, including presidential candidates Jeb Bush and Ted Cruz. In 2015 alone, Chairman Richard Kinder and his wife have already spent $2.2 million to influence the presidential election (a small fraction of their $9 billion fortune), thanks to the Supreme Court ruling in Citizens United allowing unlimited super PAC spending on behalf of candidates.

In a political system where elected officials set energy policy — directly and via appointments to the FERC — while simultaneously raising millions of dollars from special interests to get elected, Kinder Morgan’s investments make perfect business sense. But what about the vast majority of Granite Staters who cannot afford to hire lobbyists or fund state and federal candidates of our own?

As Kinder Morgan holds its obligatory public hearings across southern New Hampshire, complete with slideshows and dozens of company representatives, I can’t help wondering if it isn’t just a charade. Why would a company spend millions of dollars to influence the political process if the voices of affected citizens are the central concern? And how can a democratic republic allow unlimited spending by special interests in the first place?

For the sake of my old town and the values we hold dear, I hope citizens across New Hampshire will make their voices heard in the current pipeline debate and put an end to endless spending in elections.

Daniel Weeks
Nashua
executive director of Open Democracy.

We need to stop the pipeline in New Hampshire

Sign our petition opposing the Kinder Morgan Northeast Direct Pipeline. We Must Oppose the Northeast Energy Direct Pipeline to Fight Climate Change go.berniesanders.com Add your name if you agree that we cannot move forward with the Northeast Energy Direct Pipeline if we’re serious about fighting climate change When I visited New Hampshire for the annual Democratic Party dinner, I made a choice to be the first presidential candidate to oppose the Kinder Morgan Northeast Energy Direct Pipeline. I took this position because as I've said many, many times: climate change is an unprecedented planetary emergency. Fracking natural gas and sending it across the Northeast does nothing to prevent climate change. If anything, it hastens the onset of more climate disasters. We can take one simple, basic step right now that helps us to get on the path to 100 percent renewable energy: keep fossil fuels in the ground. Here in New Hampshire, that means standing up to Kinder Morgan and their plan to send fracked gas across the northeast and through the Granite State. I need you to join me in opposing the pipeline. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is closing out its comment period on January 6th, and we want regulators to know people are opposed. We want our movement's commitment to keeping it the ground on the record--no Northeast Energy Direct Pipeline. Sign our petition to keep fossil fuels in the ground and stop the Northeast Energy Direct pipeline. I've said this many times: I can't accomplish big victories like stopping the Northeast Energy Direct Pipeline on my own. I need you to be involved and work together with all of us to demand a fossil fuel free future. That's why we are building a strong team in New Hampshire: knocking doors, making phone calls, and holding meetings. We're going to stay focused on winning the New Hampshire primary. And, we're going to stay focused on the issues that matter, too. I'm proud to be running for President to win both the campaign and advocate for real issues in the process. But, we only win when you are involved and active. Sign here to stop the Northeast Energy Direct Pipeline. Together, we can stop the Northeast Energy Direct Pipeline, and help bring us closer to a clean energy economy. In solidarity, Bernie Sanders SIGN THE PETITION Paid for by Bernie 2016 PO Box 905 - Burlington VT 05402 United States - (855) 4-BERNIE

An open letter to: Representative Henry Parkhurst

An open letter to:

Representative Henry Parkhurst

One Parkhurst Place

Winchester, NH  03470-2460

Representative Parkhurst

I called you from the Northeast Energy Direct (NED) pipeline opposition rally at the State House in Concord on Friday to ask why you were not present.  By my reckoning, Winchester was the only affected town whose state representative was not there to speak out against the pipeline.

I recall your excuse was not having knowledge of the rally.

I asked you to oppose the pipeline on our behalf. To the best of my recollection you said, basically, that you had done a great deal of research on the project and did not make a statement in opposition because you did not want to be making a fool of yourself.

I should think you'd be more worried over making a fool of yourself by being silent for this long on an issue that will so negatively affect your constituency.

Are you aware that last March Winchester citizens voted in favor of three warrant articles that were in opposition to the pipeline?

Did you know the Winchester Select Board voted on September 30, 2015 to join the New Hampshire Municipal Pipeline Coalition (NHMPC) in order to stand together against the pipeline with other affected towns?

Have you read the studies done in Minisink, New York, or the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) comment of Drs. Martin, Nordgard and Potee; which detail health effects of living near a compressor station such as the one which will be built just upwind of us in Northfield, Massachusetts?

Did you know Kinder Morgan falls far short of promised tax revenues when actual payments are due? You can check with the Chair of the Winchester Select Board for confirmation on that point, as she has personally done the research.

I write on behalf of the concerned citizens of Winchester who are members of Winchester Pipeline Awareness. We ask you to step forward to represent our interests in Concord.

Respectfully,

Susan L Durling

Scotland Road

Wincheser,NH

The pipeline boondoggle

For more than a year New Hampshire residents have been asking for straight answers from Kinder Morgan, a Tennessee-based corporation, about its plan to build a $5 billion natural gas pipeline that would head north from Massachusetts into New Hampshire, passing through 17 of our towns in a 70-mile swath.
During this time our questions about the pipeline’s benefits to and environmental impacts on New Hampshire’s residents and businesses have been met with corporate obfuscation, misdirection and outright lies. Finally, on Nov. 20, the company filed a 20,000-page report with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission asking its approval to build the pipeline. One would expect that answers to residents’ questions would be directly addressed in this voluminous report. Yet hidden in this latest wall of words are four fundamental lies that Kinder Morgan tries to keep hidden. Let me shed some light on them.

Lie 1: Fracked gas that this pipeline will carry is intended to meet N.H.’s energy needs. The truth: Most of the natural gas that the pipeline will carry through the state will wind up in Dracut, Mass., where it will continue on to the seacoast to be shipped to foreign markets.

Lie 2: The pipeline will lower N.H.’s energy bills, the underlying claim in KM’s huge advertising campaign carried in newspapers and on radio, TV and lawn signs. The simple truth: Most of the gas won’t even reach N.H. Furthermore, there is evidence that the average N.H. gas customer (via locally based distributor, Liberty Utilities) will incur a cost of about $600 per year — for 20 years — should the pipeline be approved. That number stems from testimony submitted to the state commission from Francisco C. DaFonte, vice president for energy procurement for Liberty Utilities.

Lie 3: Building the pipeline will create N.H. jobs. The truth: Not only will those jobs be temporary, for pipeline construction only, they will be filled by out-of-state union workers hired by Kinder Morgan.

Lie 4: As a good corporate citizen, Kinder Morgan will keep N.H. communities and residents informed of their plans every step of the way. The truth: Despite a few well-orchestrated “town meetings” replete with well-rehearsed and uniformed company representatives providing canned PR materials and free food, drinks and snacks for attendees, town officials and residents, especially those directly in the pipeline’s path, have been kept in the dark. What it couldn’t hide in its report, however, are the severe environmental impacts that building the pipeline will have on communities.

Now the truth about the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, whose job it is to decide whether the pipeline will be built. It’s about as “federal” as I am. FERC is totally funded by the energy industry, Kinder Morgan’s friends. Yet it has been given the power not only to approve this pipeline but if it does, to invoke its powers of eminent domain to seize the homes and lands of N.H. residents whose properties stand in the way. We have to ask ourselves, can this really happen in America?
The truth: Yes!

Massachusetts recognized these truths over a year ago. Their governor and legislators strongly opposed the pipeline, fought hard and won. Kinder Morgan’s response: Reroute the pipeline through N.H.. Now, after a year of sitting on the fence, Gov. Hassan, Sen. Ayotte and Rep. Kuster finally came out against the pipeline on Dec. 2. All three did so the same day, after Bernie Sanders and Susan Sarandon publicly denounced it. Were they thinking about facing reelection next year or the interests of N.H. residents? Only time will tell.

With Kinder Morgan, New Hampshire residents are facing a well-financed Trojan Horse, unabashed corporate greed masquerading as a public gift. We have to wonder how Kinder Morgan executives and shareholders, seemingly concerned only with finding more markets for their fracked gas, can sleep at night. In our quiet Currier & Ives corner of New Hampshire, we can only hope FERC will see the light and tell Kinder Morgan to take its rhetoric and its pipeline back to Tennessee.

Bob Weekes

 

Richmond

Beware pipeline propaganda

This afternoon I saw a message from a guy in Milford who wanted to let pipeline opponents know that if they respect “free speech” they shouldn’t remove the “Build the Pipeline” signs he is putting up or he will start taking down every “No Pipeline” sign he sees. Everyone should know that signs have monetary value and should not be removed unless you are the code enforcement officer or a property owner who doesn’t want the sign on your property. If someone posts a sign or removes a sign from your property without your permission, you should take a picture and report it to the police.

I suspect that this guy is a LiUNA union member who is being pressured to put out these signs.

To me, there is a big difference between the “No Pipeline” signs that people buy with their own money and the signs being provided by the pipeline and utility companies. Rather than free speech, these signs promoting the pipelines are more like advertisements for a corporation. The pipeline opposition relies on fundraisers to hire one attorney to defend us against an army of Kinder Morgan and utility lawyers. We buy our own signs and T-shirts. Kinder Morgan and their front group, the Coalition to Lower Energy Costs, spend millions of dollars on television, radio and print advertising. Posting these signs in an effort to fake grassroots support shows just how desperate they are.

I guess it isn’t enough that they successfully managed to remove the Office of Consumer Advocate litigator, attorney Susan Chamberlin, who looked out for ratepayer interests and agreed with us on the pipeline projects?

Don’t let them paint themselves as martyrs.  
Please leave the “Build the Pipeline” signs alone.

Patricia Martin

Rindge

Winchester police officer scheduled to appear in court

By Matt Nanci Sentinel Staff
 

A Winchester police officer who stands accused of pointing a loaded gun out a car window at another man will face a judge Wednesday in Keene. Kevin W. Martel, 25, who is a resident of Walpole, waived his right to an arraignment Dec. 2 in 8th Circuit Court District Division in Keene, where he was released on $5,000 personal recognizance. He’s scheduled to appear for a probable cause hearing Wednesday.

Martel faces charges of criminal threatening with a deadly weapon and reckless conduct with a deadly weapon, class B felonies.

He has been on administrative leave since the Winchester Police Department learned from N.H. State Police he would be facing charges from the August incident, according to Police Chief Gary A. Phillips.

Prosecution of the Cheshire County case will be handled by the Hillsborough County Attorney’s Office to avoid the appearance of a conflict of interest, according to Cheshire County Attorney D. Chris McLaughlin. Court hearings will continue to be held in Keene.

On Aug. 21, Martel was driving on Main Street in Ashuelot when he pointed a loaded firearm out of the drivers’ side window at Joshua Parda, 30, as well as at potentially occupied homes, according to court documents.

Martel is required to have no contact with Parda and Sarah Payne. The relationship between Martel, Parda and Payne is not clear in court documents.

Martel has worked for the police department for 18 months, court documents show.

In August 2011, he was convicted of reckless conduct in Northfield, Vt., according to the documents.

He’s also a former member of the U.S. Army and was seen this summer standing with a gun outside the Keene armed forces recruitment center on West Street in the wake of the July 16 shooting at a recruitment center in Chattanooga, Tenn.

Matt Nanci can be reached at 352-1234, extension 1439, or mnanci@keenesentinel.com. Follow him on Twitter @MNanciKS.

Kinder Morgan Pipeline is a bad deal for New Hampshire

Dear Friends,
As the Representative for New Hampshire’s Second District, it is my responsibility to look out for the best interests of my constituents.  This is a responsibility that I do not take lightly.  Over the past year and a half, I have been engaging in a deliberative process regarding the Northeast Energy Direct Pipeline (NED), a natural gas project that proposes to build a 70-mile pipeline that would cut through 17 New Hampshire towns.
As I have assessed the project, I have met and spoken on countless occasions with Kinder Morgan officials, representatives from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), local business and community leaders, energy policy experts,  constituent stakeholders, and residents from affected communities.  It is important to me that I hear directly from my constituents, and that is why I chose to visit many of the critical sites along the proposed route of the NED Pipeline.  Based on what I have seen, heard and learned about the proposed pipeline, I do not believe this project serves the best interests of the Granite State and its residents.
My extensive research on NED has led me to find ways to leverage the voices of my constituents to impact Kinder Morgan’s pre-filing process with FERC.  I have signed onto eight letters with the full New Hampshire delegation to extend the comment period, hold additional open houses in the impacted communities, and voice other concerns from our constituents.
Additionally, I have sent several letters of my own to express my concerns about the proposed NED route.  Most recently, I led colleagues representing four New England states in signing a letter to FERC requesting a regional assessment of energy projects to analyze regional need and prevent overbuild given other proposed energy infrastructure projects currently under consideration in New England.
This regional assessment has been important to me because New England shares an electricity grid, and we all feel the impact of losing energy sources and adding new ones.  Furthermore, the cost of these projects is typically borne by all New England ratepayers. 
Throughout this process, I have made it clear that I am in favor of bringing additional clean energy sources to our region while preserving the rural character and safety of our communities. However, it is critical that we are intentional and thoughtful about every project that is proposed and how it impacts our state’s future.  I believe that every project must prove beyond a doubt that it will lower energy prices for New Hampshire businesses and families while minimizing the detrimental impacts and risks to our citizens.
NED crosses crucial public water supplies, cuts across rivers, puts at risk the many private wells that are ubiquitous across southern New Hampshire, and impacts pristine conservation lands and state parks.  In addition to these concerns, the NED project creates a safety and security burden on small towns along the proposed route - many of which possess limited emergency response resources in the event of an incident with the pipeline or compressor station.  Furthermore, Granite Staters understand that the overwhelming majority of gas moved through the pipeline will go to other states.
Recently, Tennessee Gas Pipeline Company, a subsidiary of Kinder Morgan, filed a “certificate of public convenience and necessity” with FERC that will trigger a year-long environmental review by the agency.  As the sole agency in charge of citing natural gas pipelines in the United States, it is the FERC Commissioners who will ultimately decide if the NED project is in the best interest of the public. 
As the Federal representative for 15 of the 17 New Hampshire towns located along the route of the NED pipeline, I have concluded that this project does not provide sufficient benefits to New Hampshire families and businesses to justify the disruption and long-term negative impacts to our communities. In the coming weeks, I will be filing my opposition to the project with FERC, and I will urge the agency to deny the issuance of a permit for the NED project.
Throughout the evaluation process, I have aimed to be fair, open and accessible when listening to both supporters and opponents of the NED project. However, without tangible evidence of substantial economic gains to the communities that are affected, I have not seen enough evidence to justify the potential damage. Given that there are less invasive projects being proposed in New England, I believe that the NED Pipeline, as it is proposed, is the wrong vehicle for bringing meaningful reductions in wholesale electricity costs in New Hampshire.
I am adding my voice to the thousands of citizens who have filed their opposition to the NED Pipeline with FERC. I implore FERC to take into account the potential damage to our water resources, our conservation lands and our environment when making a final decision on this project.   I believe that when taking these factors into consideration, FERC should see that the NED project is not in the best interest of New Hampshire families.
 
                                
   

Reasons to reject pipeline are many

This weekend I shopped in Athol and Orange, Mass., buying items that could have just as easily been purchased in Keene or surrounding towns. Why would I pay more to shop in Massachusetts? Last summer Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey commissioned a study on whether there was a legitimate need for Kinder Morgan’s NED pipeline. That report was released recently. It concluded that the project was unnecessary and that there were other, less environmentally devastating ways to provide energy needs at peak demand times.

Wow, imagine that. A government official actually looking out for the best interests of the people. Paying 6.25 percent extra on my purchases seemed like a small way to say “thank you” to the Commonwealth. If the pipeline isn’t allowed to be built there, it won’t be built here in New Hampshire.

With our governor willing to give away a 70-mile strip of land belonging to my family, friends, and fellow Granite Staters, our hope that this project will be stopped has to come from our neighbors to the south.

Gov. Maggie Hassan’s idea of protecting the people’s interests is to fire the one person on the Public Utilities Commission who had questions concerning the project. Maybe she thinks it is those “corporations are people too” people that she represents. Word must have gotten around Concord that if you want to keep your appointed job, you better fall in step behind the governor on this issue.

A Canadian lynx has been seen in the vicinity of the proposed route in four different towns since the first of the year. Someone who had seen the lynx on several occasions said that a New Hampshire Fish & Game officer informally confirmed that there was a lynx living in the area. Prior to the close of FERC’s public comment period in a letter to the Fish & Game Commissioner, I asked that they submit this information to FERC, being that Canadian lynx are considered a threatened species protected by the Federal Endangered Species Act.

Less than a week later, Fish and Game announced a proposal to reinstate a bobcat hunting season. Perhaps a coincidence, but it looked for all the world like a state-sponsored “shoot, shovel and shut up” solution to the presence of an animal that could hinder the pipeline from being built. Speaking to Evan Mulholland at Fish and Game in Concord did little to reassure me with these answers to my concerns. None of their officers had reported seeing a lynx. No, hunters wouldn’t mistake a bobcat for a lynx. If they did accidently shoot it, of course they’d report it. And if the lynx were dead, at least we’d know that there had been one there.

The presence of a protected species is only one of the many reasons why not one blade of grass should be disturbed, nor even one tree cut down, nor one square inch of land stolen from private citizens to build this environmental nightmare. The majority of the product to be transmitted through this pipeline is for export. Construction costs will be paid by us through a surcharge on our electric bills.

Gov. Hassan, it is time you considered the interests of the people who have Homo sapiens DNA, not a corporation “people” with fat wallets loaded with campaign contributions.

Jennie L. Hill

Richmond

Another reason to distrust Kinder Morgan

Regarding Kinder Morgan’s route change through Richmond — rerouting miles of pipeline closer to residential homes where as before it went through vacant logging land:
Kinder Morgan states that the changes in the proposed route through Richmond were made to “accommodate town and regulatory agency requests.”

We town officials in Richmond objected to Kinder Morgan’s proposed change and asked that this part of the proposed route NOT be changed. The new route goes through a residential and historic area that should not be disturbed. It now parallels very close to the major road out of Richmond if we have to evacuate because of a pipeline accident. It impacts a stream, Brickyard Brook, that was previously minimally touched. In contrast, the original proposed route went through vacant logging land, a much less invasive proposal.

The representative from Kinder Morgan told town officials that the change in route was at the request of the landowner of the logging parcel that was on the original route, a private deal negotiated between Kinder Morgan and the private land owner without input from town officials.

Is it any wonder that town officials are so mistrustful of Kinder Morgan when they tell different stories to different officials, as in this case?

Carol Jameson

Chairman, Richmond Board of Selectmen

Sanders aligns against proposed natural gas pipeline

By Meghan Foley Sentinel Staff
 

MANCHESTER — U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., is the first presidential candidate to publicly take a position on the proposed Northeast Energy Direct pipeline. And the Democratic hopeful’s opposition to the project has many Northeast Energy Direct pipeline opponents praising him.

In prepared remarks given during the New Hampshire Democratic Party’s annual Jefferson-Jackson Dinner Sunday night, Sanders said he’s against the proposed natural gas transmission pipeline because “climate change is the greatest environmental challenge of our time.

“And that is why — right here in New Hampshire — I believe the Northeast Energy Direct pipeline that would carry fracked natural gas for 400 miles through 17 communities is a bad idea — and should be opposed,” he said.

The pipeline route is planned to run through southern New Hampshire communities including Fitzwilliam, Richmond, Rindge, Troy and Winchester, and continues to meet strong resistance from residents and local officials in towns along the proposed path. Among their concerns for the pipeline are its potential environmental and health effects, and the federal government possibly taking property by eminent domain for the project.

“God bless the Brooklyn-born Senator from Vermont for taking a position that our very own local elected officials have been too cowardly to do till now,” Richmond resident Seth Reece said this morning in a Facebook message.

Susan L. Durling, co-founder of the pipeline opposition group Winchester Pipeline Awareness, likewise praised Sanders, saying, “Here’s a politician out there brave enough to say what needs to be said.”

She said in a Facebook message that elected officials need to “start worrying about the planet they will leave their kids and grandchildren, and not about the campaign contributions they get.”

Besides Sanders, Democratic presidential candidates Martin O’Malley and Hillary Clinton gave their pitch for the Oval Office at the Radisson Hotel in Manchester. But neither O’Malley nor Clinton referenced the pipeline in their prepared remarks.

Matt Sheaff, O’Malley’s N.H. deputy state director, said after the former Maryland governor gave his remarks, he met with reporters, one of whom asked about his position on the pipeline.

O’Malley responded that he’d “be inclined to be against it,” Sheaff said.

“We use our eminent domain power for things that serve the public’s interest. And pipelines for fossil fuel extraction generally do not support our public interest,” O’Malley said in response to the question, according to Sheaff. “Lines that actually allow us to bring in clean energy do support our public interest.”

Harrell Kirstein, spokesman for Hillary for New Hampshire, said in a email this morning that Clinton addressed the topic during a town hall meeting in Keene last month.

Clinton said the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission process doesn’t give “enough weight to public opinion in the locations where pipelines are going through,” according to Kirstein.

It also doesn’t pay enough attention to other issues including health and safety, Clinton said, and therefore, she is going to do what she can to make sure the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has to pay much more attention to local communities, according to Kirstein.

Tennessee Gas Pipeline, a subsidiary of Kinder Morgan, has proposed building the high-pressure pipeline to carry fracked natural gas from shale gas fields in Pennsylvania through upstate New York, parts of northern Massachusetts and into southern New Hampshire before going to a distribution hub in eastern Massachusetts. The route would cross about 70 miles of southern New Hampshire.

The project had been in the pre-filing stages with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission for the past year.

On Nov. 20, Tennessee Gas Pipeline officials filed the project’s application with the FERC, putting the federal agency in a position to decide whether the pipeline is approved, which it has the power to do.

Tennessee Gas Pipeline officials are asking the commission to approve the pipeline by the fourth quarter of 2016.

In the filing, company officials described the pipeline as “transformative,” saying the influx of natural gas into the Northeast, specifically New England, would drive down high winter energy costs, and help prevent an energy shortage in the region.

Sanders also cited climate change in why he’s opposed to the Keystone XL pipeline, which would carry oil from the tar sands of Canada to the United States.

President Barack Obama vetoed the project earlier this year.

The four members of the N.H. Congressional Delegation and Gov. Maggie Hassan have sent letters to FERC calling for transparency in the pipeline approval process, but have yet to take positions on the proposed Northeast Energy Direct pipeline.

Karthik Ganapathy, Sanders’ N.H. communications director, said in an email this morning that Sanders has known about the Northeast Energy Direct project for a “long time, and after studying it, decided that its impact on climate change would betray the responsibility we have to future generations.”

In addition to climate change, Ganapathy said, there are “justified concerns” about eminent domain being abused to seize private property, the route going through historic towns and conservation sites, and, as with all pipelines, the potential for leaks or spills.

“Now that the review process with FERC is officially under way, Senator Sanders wanted to ensure all of that was taken into consideration,” Ganapathy said.

Meghan Foley can be reached at 352-1234, extension 1436, or mfoley@keenesentinel.com. Follow her on Twitter @MFoleyKS.

Select Board Meeting tonight, Wed 11/18

Stay up to date on the latest issues and support our Selectboard in their decisions on the pipeline.

Christopher Steadman, Winchester's representative to New Hampshire Municipal Pipeline Coalition, will bring information from the today's meeting (11/17) to the board at tomorrow night's meeting.

Winchester has an opportunity to file for intervenor status regarding Liberty Utilities' proposal to install residential gas lines. The deadline is December 1st.

More information about Winchester's contribution to NHMPC legal fees will be presented.

Sue Durling will attend the NH PUC meeting in Concord at 1pm Wednesday, and update Christopher prior to the BOS meeting. The PUC rulemaking committee is considering relaxing rules so that projects like NED can disregard local ordinances.

 

NEWSLETTER COMING SOON
Save the dates:
-December 1st 5 p.m. to 10 p.m.
Kinder Morgan public information session
-December 11th 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
March on State House to present 10,000 signatures to Governor Hassan

Board of Selectmen Minutes 10-28-15

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Board of Selectmen Minutes 10-21-15

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Winchester residents skeptical of plan to expand natural gas

By Meghan Foley Sentinel Staff
 

WINCHESTER — Some Winchester residents and opponents of a proposed natural gas pipeline sought to depict a not-so-rosy picture of insider knowledge, back-door dealing and corporations teaming together to profit on the backs of rural communities during a hearing Wednesday. Liberty Utilities officials were in Winchester Wednesday to present a plan to selectmen to bring natural gas service to the town via the proposed and controversial Northeast Energy Direct pipeline.

In December, Liberty Utilities filed a petition with the N.H. Public Utilities Commission seeking approval of an agreement to buy natural gas off the proposed pipeline.

A month later, in January, the company signed a deal to purchase N.H. Gas Corp. in Keene, with plans to convert its more than 100-year-old propane-air mixture distribution system to carry compressed or liquefied natural gas.

Nine months later, Liberty Utilities filed a petition with the state Public Utilities Commission for rights to own and operate natural gas distribution systems in Winchester, Swanzey, Jaffrey and Rindge.

Two of the four towns — Rindge and Winchester — are along the proposed route of the Northeast Energy Direct pipeline, while the other two are nearby. None of the towns have natural gas distribution systems.

According to the petition, Liberty plans to tap into the pipeline to supply natural gas to the towns, but would look at other options if the pipeline project is delayed or doesn’t happen.

Liberty Utilities is a subsidiary of Algonquin Power and Utilities Corp. And Algonquin, which has its headquarters in Ontario, Canada, is participating in the development of the Northeast Energy Direct pipeline with Kinder Morgan through that company’s subsidiary, Tennessee Gas Pipeline Co.

Liberty officials repeatedly said Wednesday the series of events leading up to the company’s filing this fall to expand natural gas service was a coincidence.

However, Michael Licata, director of government and community relations for Liberty Utilities, acknowledged — when put on the spot by Winchester Conservation Commission member John H. Hann — that a diagram being circulated by anti-pipeline activists showing Liberty Utilities having a relationship to the project was “essentially accurate that we have an unregulated affiliate with investment in the Northeast Energy Direct pipeline.”

The document, created by Susan L. Durling of the activist group Winchester Pipeline Awareness, shows Kinder Morgan and Algonquin partnering to form Northeast Expansion LLC to build and own the Northeast Energy Direct pipeline, with Tennessee Gas Pipeline Co. being brought in as Kinder Morgan’s subsidiary to operate it.

The diagram then shows Algonquin’s connection to Liberty Utilities, which is also known in New Hampshire as EnergyNorth Natural Gas Inc.

Liberty Utilities signed an agreement with Tennessee Gas Pipeline to purchase 115,000 dekatherms of natural gas per day at a fixed rate from the pipeline.

The N.H. Public Utilities Commission approved that agreement last month. The decision has since been appealed.

Hann noted to Licata and two other Liberty Utilities officials in attendance Wednesday that for Kinder Morgan to have its application for the pipeline approved by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the company must show there is a need.

“So by you contracting with Kinder Morgan, you’re enabling them to prove the need even though (Richard G. MacDonald) pointed out that there are no customers here,” he said, referencing Liberty Utilities’ director of gas operations.

Licata responded that Liberty officials would send out mailings to potential customers to gauge interest, and they understand there has to be customer interest for the N.H. Public Utilities Commission to award gas franchise rights to an area.

“We’re not coming forward with this proposal as part of a way to validate Kinder Morgan or the Northeast Energy District pipeline. It’s not about us or creating a need for a pipeline,” Licata said.

He said Liberty Utilities officials understand there is local concern and opposition to the pipeline project, and they weren’t asking selectmen, or anyone else at the meeting, to change their view on the project because of Liberty’s proposal.

“What we’re proposing here is the town get some direct benefit from the pipeline,” he said.

That would be done by installing a station where the Northeast Energy Direct pipeline intersects Richmond Road (Route 119) to depressurize the natural gas and feed it into the smaller pipe that will be part of the local distribution system, he said.

The system’s route would follow Richmond Road west to Main Street (Route 10), where it would then turn south to the intersection of Main Street, General James Reed Highway (Route 119) and Warwick Road (Route 78). Along the way, a line would branch off on Parker Street to serve that neighborhood and the school, according to a map Licata presented.

At the intersection of Routes 10, 119 and 78, the distribution pipeline would follow Warwick Road southeast and then turn onto Snow Road, ending at Applewood Rehabilitation Center, according to the map.

William J. Clark, business development professional for Liberty Utilities, said there are breaks in the map to show that it would take more than one construction season to build the local distribution system. Residents and businesses connected to the system would pay the same rates as Liberty Utilities’ natural gas customers in other parts of the state, he said.

Multiple construction seasons would also be needed to build the portion of pipeline proposed to run north along Route 10 in the N.H. Department of Transportation right-of-way from the intersection of Richmond Road and Main Street to bring natural gas to Swanzey and Keene, he said. The line, which is also being referred to as the Keene lateral, would then tie into Keene’s gas infrastructure.

The proposed Northeast Energy Direct pipeline is a 30-inch diameter, high-pressure line bringing natural gas from shale fields in Pennsylvania through upstate New York, parts of northern Massachusetts and into southern New Hampshire before going to a distribution hub in eastern Massachusetts.

The route would cross about 70 miles of southern New Hampshire, including Fitzwilliam, Richmond, Rindge, Troy and Winchester and would carry up to 1.3 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day. The amount could provide electricity to 886,162 households.

Tennessee Gas Pipeline Co. is in the pre-filing stages with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, which has the power to approve or deny the Northeast Energy Direct pipeline.

Tennessee Gas Pipeline officials plan to file the full application for the project with FERC this fall. Company officials anticipate it will take a year for the pipeline to receive federal approval, if it does.

Many people attending Wednesday’s meeting were quick to pepper Liberty Utilities officials with questions about its proposal to build a natural gas distribution system in town, including how it would affect the town’s existing water and sewer infrastructure — some of which isn’t mapped — who would pay for the build-out of the system, and if town residents and business owners really want the option to tie into natural gas.

“Does Winchester or any other town have the ability to say ‘no?’ “ Conservation Commission member Bonnie G. Leveille asked.

Licata said Winchester officials and residents can voice their opposition to Liberty Utilities’ proposal to the N.H. Public Utilities Commission, but company officials would like to partner with the town on the project.

“We want to work with municipal officials on the location of the system and identify and address any concerns on the build-out,” he said.

After the presentation concluded, the four Winchester selectmen present voted unanimously to send a letter to the N.H. Public Utilities Commission about their concerns with Liberty Utilities’ proposal.

Selectman Theresa G. Sepe was absent.

Besides Winchester, Liberty Utilities officials have scheduled a presentation for next week about the expansion plans in Swanzey. That meeting will be held Tuesday at Swanzey Town Hall during the selectmen’s meeting, which begins at 6 p.m.

Licata said Wednesday that presentation dates in Jaffrey and Rindge have yet to be finalized.

Meghan Foley can be reached at 352-1234, extension 1436, or mfoley@keenesentinel.com. Follow her on Twitter @MFoleyKS.

STOP THE NH PIPELINE / ECHO ACTION NEWS

IMPORTANT MEETING TONIGHT IN WINCHESTER

All area residents encouraged to attend in a show of opposition to the pipeline

BOARD OF SELECTMEN MEETING

Winchester Town Hall

Wednesday, November 4th, 7:00 (TONIGHT!)

LIBERTY UTILITIES PRESENTATION

Liberty Utilities (close, close buddies of Eversource and Kinder Morgan) will be making a presentation to the Board about the option to provide natural (fracked) gas service to parts of town. This will cost those who convert $7,000-$9,000 to convert. On top of that will be the increase to your monthly electric bill to pay for the pipeline through NH!  If completed, the price of gas will INCREASE once the gas is exported, not decrease - that’s their dirty little plan to get you hooked.

Why would you convert to toxic gas in an industry that grows closer to being shut down with each passing day? Have you considered what will happen if fracking is banned and Kinder Morgan shuts down? Their stock keeps falling and their rating is now BBB-, just above junk bonds. Where will we be if their project is left half complete with environmental degradation all around us and no company to hold accountable? 

Come on our tonight! Learn more, know more, share more, educate more so we can STOP THE NED PIPELINE! 

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