New round of pipeline proceedings starting in North Dakota

Summit to argue it can supersede county setback ordinances

Summit Carbon Solutions will again be in front of the North Dakota government body that earlier this year rejected its permit to build a pipeline in the Peace Garden State. 

The North Dakota Public Service Commission next week will hold a hearing to discuss whether it has the authority to ignore local ordinances when considering permits for projects like the pipeline that the Iowa-based company plans to use to move ethanol plant emissions to underground sequestration facilities.

The hearing, requested by Summit, specifically targets the ordinances of Burleigh and Emmons Counties that limit where carbon pipelines could be built in relation to cities, homes and farms. It comes after the three-member PSC, akin to the South Dakota Public Utilities Commission (PUC), unanimously rejected a route permit application by Summit in August.

Summit has since altered its proposed route in North Dakota to help cull the concerns of state regulators, adding about 13 miles to its route to avoid a cluster of properties owned by staunch pipeline opponents. The new route also goes around the city of Bismarck, which has intervened in the hearings as an opponent. 

The summer denial in North Dakota preceded a series of hearings in South Dakota where a pair of pipeline projects suffered similar setbacks.  

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