LETTER: It's time to run the ball, Gov. Noem

Rapid City woman says governor should back up pipeline talk with action

Gov. Kristi Noem missed an opportunity for greatness on July 6 when, according to the Capitol police, 560 people showed up at the Capitol rotunda to request a special session of the Legislature. The people gathered on all three floors and in the hallways represented a broad cross-section of our state — urban and rural; private and public; legislators, past and present; Republicans and Democrats; Libertarians and independents. Many who took time away from home and work to attend this rally had signed one of the 2000-plus petitions delivered that day to the Governor’s office. Gov. Noem was conspicuous by her absence. 

At issue is the abuse of South Dakota’s Eminent Domain laws by Summit Carbon Solutions (SCS), an out-of-state private corporation with powerful foreign investors. By definition, “eminent domain” is the right of the government or its agent to take private property for public use with or without the permission of the owner with “just compensation.” Our founders wisely restricted the practice in the Fifth Amendment because they believed property was not only a right, but a means by which to protect other rights. Use of eminent domain should be rare and used only for projects that benefit the public at large — like airports, public roads, bridges, utilities or schools. 

SCS has utilized condemnation of property under eminent domain to gobble up hundreds of miles of South Dakota’s heritage farmland to route a privately owned pipeline through our state. The 477-mile SCS pipeline does not benefit the public at large. It does not transport things for public use like water, gas or oil. On the contrary, this pipeline carries extremely hazardous liquified carbon dioxide (CO2) under extreme pressure, which poses a public safety risk. CO2 is an asphyxiant that is heavier than air. It hugs the ground and suffocates life in its path; even vehicles will not function without oxygen. The only “benefit” this pipeline will produce is to SCS, its investors and partners.

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There are landowners who sold their land willingly to SCS because they are struggling and believe that resisting the juggernaut is futile. Others capitulated to coercion or threats. But some will not bend to strong-arm tactics and are now facing condemnation. To repair their image and soften resistance, SCS has been “spreading the wealth” through sponsorships and generous donations in local communities. They have done the same with elected officials. SCS was a “Platinum Sponsor” of Gov. Noem’s Inaugural Ball in January and the company has cultivated a close relationship with the Senate and House leaders who have stymied efforts by legislators to initiate a special session themselves. 

The Governor has constitutional authority to bring lawmakers back to Pierre for critical issues. In fact, five special sessions have been called in the past seven years. Noem called a special session in 2020 to spend $1.4 billion in Covid stimulus money. Her predecessor, Gov. Daugaard, called a special session in 2018 to collect taxes from internet sales. In 2017, Daugaard convened the Legislature to develop a recreation plan for non-meandered waters in the state. Wait. What?

The South Dakota Bill of Rights mentions no “right to recreation,” yet Daugaard thought it so important he called a special session. Contrast that with the fact that the Bill of Rights does enumerate an inherent right to “acquire and protect property.” (Article VI, Section 1)

Aren’t inherent property rights at least as important as public recreation on non-meandered waters? Well, maybe not. The South Dakota governor’s webpage no longer includes “Protecting Property Rights” in her list of priorities. 

If a corporate Goliath like SCS can successfully use eminent domain to trample the property rights of farmers for private gain with only a wink and a nod from the government established to protect our rights, no one is secure in the right to acquire and protect property if a bigger entity decides to take it. 

So, the question is this: Will Gov. Noem just shrug it off and claim she is “with the farmers,” but can’t tell businesses what not to do? When faced with real opportunities to do the right thing, she often punts. It is time to run the ball, Gov. Noem. Call the special session. 

Tonchi Weaver
Rapid City