(Red Oak) Jan Norris, of West Township, an opponent of Summit Solutions’ proposed Co2 pipeline project, appeared in front of the Montgomery County Board of Supervisors this morning. Norris stated that Summit suffered a huge defeat last week when the South Dakota Supreme Court ruled in favor of landowners.
Norris says the South Dakota Supreme Court made a landmark decision in favor of landowners fighting the proposed Summit carbon pipeline. The decision ruled against Summit, finding South Dakota’s survey law is limited to minimally invasive inspection to ensure landowners have a semblance of protection against unwanted surveys.
Norris says the Court found that Summit did not prove its standard carrier status, which prevents them from utilizing eminent domain. The SD Supreme Court also found that “SCS has also failed to establish that the CO2 featured in this case is a commodity,” and the case was remanded for further lower court proceedings.
Norris stated that Summit had 81 eminent domain cases against landowners last year, all of which have been dismissed and court costs returned to the landowners.
