I would like to respond to Bruce Brown’s letter. We are friends from many years ago and lived as neighbors back then…..and actually, we are on the same side of the carbon issue. My husband and I farm, and also care about the climate and our natural resources. We have planted lots of trees that take CO2 out of the atmosphere. We have planted cover crops that put carbon back in the soil. We grow corn and beans that use CO2 to survive and grow and thereby remove it from the air. We soil test to replace only the nutrients we removed with the previous crops. We no till most of our ground so the carbon is not released back into the atmosphere. We sell corn to the ethanol plants, and buy back DDG (which is a byproduct they produce) to feed to our cattle.
The pipeline issue is not about the carbon. Let me share our story.
In December of 2021, we received a letter from the Navigator pipeline (also known as Heartland Greenway). It stated the purpose of the pipeline and that it would go through our land. It stated that they would like to make voluntary agreements with us, but if not, they would “seek the right of eminent domain.” Eminent domain means they would condemn the land and run the pipeline through it anyway.
A map of the pipeline’s path through Minnehaha County was included. Although it was difficult to see whose side of the fence the pipeline would run, it was easy to see where it would cross diagonally through 80 acres of our prime crop ground and perpendicular to an intricate drainage tile system that was installed 12 years ago. They use an excavator to dig through all the tile lines in the route of the pipeline. The tile drains low areas of the crop ground as well as prevents excess runoff and erosion. It works wonderfully and has improved the crop ground and yield.
The Navigator company invited the landowners to a meeting in Garretson on Jan 18. They gave a 20 minute presentation and refused to take any questions publicly from the group. If you had questions, you could ask their staff one on one. I asked for a detailed map of the route, but they did not have any. He did let me look over his shoulder at the map on his laptop. I also asked about the tile lines. He said they would cut through them with the excavator, but we could choose whoever we wanted to “fix” them. Due to the soil settling after the tile is covered, it is unlikely it will function as it originally has, no matter who fixes it. They promise to put the black dirt back on the top when they fill the trench, but will they? There are farmers who have had pipelines buried on their land and have lost significant yield for over the next ten years, possibly due to the disturbance of the dirt or the severe ground compaction by the equipment.
If we are forced to accept the pipeline, there are many other issues. At some point they will talk to us about signing an easement to cross our land. Easements usually include a one-time payment and maybe three years of crop damage. Easements usually last forever, even if the company sells them or abandons the project. Liability questions for the farmer are significant and any liability needs fall back on the pipeline company. Easement contracts proposed by the pipeline companies are always written in a way that the company is the one who determines fault in the event of an accidental rupture.
There are also questions about the depth of the pipeline and setbacks from houses. The federal regulation is only 50 feet from buildings. Many neighbors and friends have real concerns about the safety of these pipelines. What if they leak or rupture? We know they will fail at some time. I know it will bring lots of jobs - the survey crews that have been here have license plates from Texas and Oklahoma, and I presume the construction crews will not be from South Dakota either.
The driving force of these pipeline projects is the federal 45Q tax credit. Once the pipelines are in place, the privately owned companies that transport the CO2 will receive billions of dollars over at least the next twelve years and more likely 25 years. Is it fair that private companies can use eminent domain for their gain?
It is hard to express how emotional it is to have strangers from Texas say they have the right to dig a large trench through your farm and bury a pipeline carrying hazardous waste. We aren’t so sure they can be trusted when we visit with other landowners who have other pipelines on their farms.
At this point we have two choices: 1) We can accept that we have no rights as landowners or 2) We can try to negotiate a fairer outcome. To do that, we need to address these problems with the state PUC, the legislatures, and the county governments. I am so thankful I live in a country where I can express my grievances to the people I vote for. As farmers /landowners we are not skilled in organizing groups of people and communicating our needs.
Dakota Rural Action is a non-partisan and nonprofit South Dakota organization that helps organize the rural community to protect their farms and resources. Chase Jensen is employed by DRA and thus has been involved in helping the farmers in this area to present their case as a knowledgeable and unified group. He facilitated our first meeting in Valley Springs. He did not attack any political party, but he did explain that the Summit pipeline folks are pretty good friends with our governmental officials. They have made some very large contributions to both the governors of Iowa and South Dakota. The chair of the GOP in South Dakota is employed by Summit Carbon Solutions and the GOP state treasurer is one of Summit’s lobbyists in Pierre. Chase was trying to tell us that creating new legislation to protect landowners will be a challenge, but a challenge we must take on to protect our farms.
In conclusion, it is not about the carbon. There must be a way to help the climate and yet preserve our farm ground for food production.
Ironically, the Navigator pipeline is to be routed right past the acreage that Bruce owned so many years ago when we were neighbors.
Kay Burkhart
