Tag Archives: Spectra Energy

Sabal Trail not a common carrier with open access in Georgia –Mindy Bland @ LCC 2013-12-10

A local landowner said that with no open access in Georgia, Sabal Trail Transmission should have no standing to use Georgia eminent domain law. And Sabal Trail must comply with local, state, and federal laws and ordinances, including ones that could be passed by the Lowndes County Commission, she said at their 10 December 2013 Regular Session.

For example, a depth ordinance, or an ordinance requiring a minimum distance from homes or schools. Or a tax on the pipeline easement. She recommended PipelineSafetyInfo.com. She asked for the Commissioners to use their voice.

As WCTV quoted her in their coverage, she said,

I don’t want to have to fear for my children as they sleep at night.

County Manager Joe Pritchard shuffled papers and alleged County Attorney Walter G. Elliott yawned during these citizen presentations.

Mindy Bland noted Commissioner Powell had asked for Continue reading →

The supposed pipeline economic benefits –Thomas Hochschild @ LCC 2013-12-10

How about a profit-sharing venture the pipeline partners and the County? A VSU professor asked that at the 10 December 2013 Regular Session of the Lowndes County Commission.

Dr. Hochschild listed a few benefits Spectra rep. Brian Fahrenthold had claimed the previous morning.

Considering the vast profits Florida Power and Light and Sabal Trail stand to make from the use of our land, I know they can do a lot better than hotel stays, Big Macs, and temporary jobs. Mr. Fahrenthold claimed the pipeline would be economically beneficial because it will supposedly bring in $460 million in property taxes over the next sixty years.

First I’d like to know if an independent agency came up with that projection, or if Continue reading →

Nash County, NC has agendas and minutes for many local boards online

A county no bigger than Lowndes County has agendas and minutes online for its Board of Commissioners, Board of Health, Local Emergency Planning Committee, Board of Adjustment, Board of Elections, Social Services Board, and yes, its Planning Board. Why can Nash County, NC afford this yet Lowndes County Chairman Bill Slaughter says Lowndes County can’t afford to put agendas and minutes online for the Greater Lowndes Planning Commission? And if a county can require a solar farm to follow stormwater management and numerous other regulations, why can’t a county require a natural gas pipeline to follow local regulations? It can, if its elected officials actually stand up for their citizens. And why can Nash County, quite a bit north of Lowndes County, install solar farm after solar farm while there are none in Lowndes County?

The Nash County online documents also include the details of what the various boards were considering, such as in the Agenda and Minutes of the Nash County Planning Board 21 October 2013, which include this item:

  1. Conditional Use Permit Request CU-130901 (Previously Tabled Item).
    Made by Chris Killenberg With Community Energy Solar on Behalf of Castalia Solar LLC to Develop a Solar Farm on an Approximately 22.91 Acre Portion of Two Tracts Located on the West Side of N NC Highway 58 and South of NC Highway 56 in the A1 Agricultural Zoning District.

And not just the agenda item, also extended discussion in the meeting, including: Continue reading →

Ask your Congress members to oppose TPP today

Here’s a handy form by EFF to oppose the secretly-negotiated privacy-deleting corporate-greed-defending natural gas export pipeline-enabling Trans-Pacific Parternship treaty.

Parker Higgins and Maira Sutton wrote for the Electronic Frontier Foundation 28 December 2013, 2013 in Review: The Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement,

Stop Secret Copyright Treaties The biggest TPP story this year was the publication by WikiLeaks in November of the chapter titled “Intellectual Property.” Unfortunately, its contents confirmed many of our worst fears: from ratcheting up copyright term lengths around the world, to boxing in fair use, to mandating a draconian legal regime around DRM software, section after section contained clauses plucked from corporate wishlists and snubbed the public interest altogether.

And then there’s Ted Poe’s House Subcommittee pushing TPP for LNG exports that would propel “natural” fracked gas pipelines such as Spectra Energy’s Sabal Transmission gas pipe through private property and public rivers and watersheds and aquifers.

Here’s what’s up next: Continue reading →

Spectra opens Valdosta office next to Industrial Authority, scene of 2011 anti-biomass protests

VP of Stakeholder Outreach Susan Waller doesn’t want visitors at Spectra’s new office in Valdosta. Which is in the same building as the Industrial Authority, which also didn’t really want some visitors it got during the biomass controversy.

Matthew Woody wrote for the VDT yesterday, Sabal Trail opens Valdosta office,

Susan Waller, vice president of stakeholder outreach and sustainability said, “That is our right-of-way office. It has about 30 right-of-way agents, survey crews, our files and documents, and a few meeting rooms.”

The office houses agents for three counties and will be open in Valdosta for approximately five years, Waller said.

Sabal Trail has eight offices along the pipeline’s route, she said.

“These are not really the facilities for residents to drop by to express concerns because all of the agents will be in and out of the office constantly; however, they could call and make an appointment.”

The VDT didn’t mention that Continue reading →

Susan Waller refusing to answer a question @ Sabal 2013-12-17

Here’s Susan Waller of Spectra refusing to even listen to a question that she had just asked for:


FERC-required Open House about the Sabal Trail natural gas pipeline
by Sabal Trail Transmission and Spectra Energy,
Video by Blake Clark, Madison, Madison County, Florida, 17 December 2013.

Blake Clark remarked on this video he took:

This short clip speaks for it’s self. Notice Susan Waller’s condescending tone through out the clips entirety. It is assumed, and I have witnessed her speaking to most landowners inquiring more information in the same tone here. Are the people at Sabal (Spectra) or “what ever they may be calling themselves this week” really concerned for you, your questions, or your property? You decide!

Visit Spectrabusters.org for more information on the Sabal Trail Pipeline, Thank you!

Earlier she complained that someone who presented her with evidence was “disruptive”.

What I wanted to ask her about was Continue reading →

Video of Spectra answering a question about Sabal Trail in Madison, FL @ Sabal 2013-12-17

When someone took Susan Waller up on her offer to answer questions about the Sabal Trail pipeline, she seemed to find the truth as reported by her own company to a federal pipeline oversight agency to be “disruptive”.

Disable Sabal – Sabal Trail (Spectra Energy) Open House Madison, FL,

We are a very genuine, safe, law-abiding company.
So said Spectra VP or Shareholder Outreach Susan Waller. She then complained that “your group” was “disruptive” and “you don’t want to hear the truth”.

So Ben Vieth showed Waller lists of incidents of corrosion reported by Spectra to PHMSA. To which another Sabal Trail rep. said, “We have a safe operation”.

Here’s the video:


Video of Spectra answering a question about Sabal Trail in Madison, FL
Sabal Trail natural gas pipeline,
FERC-required Open House, Sabal Trail Transmission and Spectra Energy (Sabal),
Video by Blake Clark, Madison, Madison County, Florida, 17 December 2013.

It’s interesting that even after Continue reading →

Larry Rodgers and Mindy Bland on Chris Beckham radio show right now

Lowndes County landowners Larry Rodgers and Mindy Bland on the Chris Beckham radio show right now. “Veiled threats” –Mindy Bland. Larry Rodgers said:

These people do not have a customer in Georgia, so eminent domain does not apply in Georgia.

His attorney (Bill Langdale) responded to a Sabal Trail lawyer letter saying that, and as yet there is no response.

You continue paying taxes on that property forever. They continue making profits on that property forever.

Chris Beckham remarked that there’s no other 36 inch pipeline in Georgia, and Mindy is explaining Continue reading →

Coal tax and a gas pipeline for Christmas?

This was an op-ed submission to the VDT, which didn’t respond. Today’s the GA PSC vote, so I’m blogging it now.

On Tuesday, the Georgia Public Service Commission (PSC) wants to do for coal what the Florida PSC already did for that gas pipeline Sabal Trail wants to gash through here: raise utility customer rates!

Who wants a Christmas present of higher electricity rates and continued coal smoke, plus increased guaranteed profit for Georgia Power of 11.5%? They already raised rates each of the last three years for gas and nuclear plants not yet even built; why should we permit more rate hikes when the PSC votes December 17th? Last week’s Public Policy poll found 69% of Georgia voters oppose that rate hike.

Is a one-time payment enough to let a huge 36 inch fracked methane pipeline gash through our communities while Spectra Energy of Houston and FPL of Juno Beach, Florida profit forever, and your property values go down and your hazards go up?

Those FPL profits come from rate hikes on your cousins the Florida ratepayers. AARP opposes that, saying: Continue reading →

Take a stand against the the pipeline –Karen Noll

Received today on Spectra reps unfamiliar with Spectra fines @ LCC 2013-12-09. -jsq

Take a stand against the the pipeline by sending in your comment to FERC.gov. At the website you eRegister and they send you an email. Once registered you can submit a comment on docket # PF14-1. Find below an example of a comment, feel free to copy any or all as you please:

Sabal Trail pipeline proposal poses a significant safety threat to our community through accidents. Leaks from such pipelines in the US have caused explosions and have destroyed homes and killed people 29 times this year alone. Since the proposed pipeline is much larger than any of these recent explosions, a pipeline of 36 inch radius could do extreme damage if such an accident should occur in the Lowndes county area where it is proposed. Not only those living near the pipeline but Continue reading →