(Red Oak) Jan Norris, of East Township in Montgomery County, appearing in front of the Montgomery County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday morning, asked the board to review the county ordinance in reference to Summit Carbon Solutions’ new filing submitted to the Iowa Utilities Commission last week for approval. The company indicated it intends to move segments of the pipeline’s proposed route, resulting in fewer miles of land and fewer landowners affected by the project.
The changes would remove previously planned routes through twelve counties, including Shelby, Pottawattamie, Montgomery, Adams, Page, and Fremont, and reduce the miles of pipeline running through Crawford, Floyd, Sioux, and Dickinson counties. As part of the proposed route restructuring, the company will no longer pursue routes to ethanol facilities tied to Absolute Energy, POET Corning, POET Hanlontown, or Green Plains Shenandoah.
Summit said last week that its pipeline project will remain tied to what it called “a strong core group of ethanol facilities,” including 27 in Iowa.
Norris says this pause in the project is an opportunity to re-evaluate ordinances, get them in place without company threats, and incorporate court rulings.
Montgomery County District #3 Supervisor Bryant Amos stated at the end of the meeting that, given what has happened with the pipeline, the rezoning board should review the current pipeline ordinance.
Overall, Summit said, the changes would reduce by more than 400 the number of different landowners affected by the pipeline, and would reduce the overall scope of the project by approximately 200 miles.
