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Peterson has no complaints

By Joe Sutter 3 min read
Peterson has no complaints
-Submitted photo <br> Steve Peterson says this sign along his dredge ditch is the only visible indicator that a pipeline was installed beneath the dirt more than a year ago here on his land. Peterson said the land where heavy machinery worked is growing corn this spring just as well as the land that was untouched, and the pipeline company did an amazing job returning the soil to the state it was in. Peterson negotiated an agreement with the pipeline company allowing them use of his land.

SLIFER -- Most of the landowners along the route of the Dakota Access Pipeline ended up making a deal with Dakota Access, and did not go through the eminent domain process.

One of these farmers said the Texas-based pipeline company was excellent to work with, and responded to all his concerns promptly.

Steve Peterson, who owns land near Slifer, near the Webster/Calhoun County border, said he heard the company out, and approached the project with optimism.

Related story: Two tales of the pipeline; One negotiated a deal; another fought Dakota Access over right of way

"We heard a lot of skeptics," Peterson said. "Some things we heard--it will never freeze. The soil will never produce. Your tiles won't work.

"Of all those fear tactics, I don't know a single one that came true. The ground froze. The crops grew. Fifty years from now, it will be a story.

"During construction, they were great to work with. If we had concerns or questions, they were prompt. They answered them," he said. "During construction, I was out there almost every day."

Peterson was also able to pick his own tiling contractor, he said.

"We've had zero drainage issues," he said. "Our soil was amazingly returned to the state it was in."

Peterson had Landus Cooperative do a soil study, assuming the turned-over soil would be in a different state, but there was barely any difference, he said.

In 2017 the crop loss was so slight, he said, that he had to change the scale on his yield monitor to get it to show.

"I'm expecting zero this year," he said.

If there were ever any losses, Peterson said, Iowa law allows him to go back and seek compensation from Dakota Access. If the two can't agree, the decision will ultimately be made by a panel of Iowans.

"It would be judged by your peers, not people from Texas," Peterson said. "That's for life."

When the topsoil was being stripped off the construction right of way, Peterson said he was able to go out and watch them do it. In some cases, he asked them to take a little more, and the company did it, he said.

Peterson was also able to drive through the right of way in his Gator, and show work to his friends.

"If I knew then what I know now," he said, "I would do it again without hesitation.

"Every experience I had was good."

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