ROCKWELL CITY – Calhoun County residents aired concerns about how drainage districts would be affected by a the proposed Dakota Access Pipeline during an informational meeting drawing 300 people Monday night in Rockwell City.

Earlier, safety and the environment were the top issues voiced by the approximately 80 attendees of a similar meeting in Sac City. The pipeline is being proposed by Energy Transfer Partners LP, and would carry oil from North Dakota to Illinois, going through one corner of Sac, across Calhoun and part of Webster County along the way.

Only about 0.31 miles of pipeline will go through Sac County, in the northeast corner. It would stretch across Calhoun about 30.77 miles.

David Wollenziene, Calhoun County drainage attorney, asked if the company would show deference to local drainage needs.

“Our drainage system is pretty inadequate for modern farming,” Wollenziene said, adding that many ditches may need to be made deeper in the future.

Adam Broad, one of the senior project managers for Energy Transfer Partners, said the company would defer to the board’s needs to “get something that works for everybody.”

The pipeline has to be separated from drainage tiles by at least 24 inches, he said. In some fields with deeper tiles, this means the oil pipe may be buried 6 feet deep.

The company would also work with landowners with their private tiles, he said, in answer to another question. It wants to return all drainage to the working state it was found in.

“We’re committed to, whatever drainage looks like today, that’s what will look like in the future,” Broad said.

This concern was shared by Bill Courter, who owns land just 300 feet away from the proposed path of the pipeline.

“If it’s going to restrict the flow of water and cause crop damage later on is my biggest concern,” Courter said. “The people who are not landowners where the pipeline is actually going, they may be two or three miles away, but there are county tiles that drain that ground. What their recourse is when there’s a problem?”

On the other hand, “I know the pipeline is a lot safer way to move the oil, over rail or truck,” Courter said.

Condemnation

If the company is not able to get voluntary easements, it will be eligible to ask the Iowa Utilities Board for condemnation under the eminent domain system. This would require them to show how the pipeline was needed to serve a public use, said Cynthia Munyon, with the IUB.

Thomas Burkhead, whose parents own land just east of Rockwell City, wanted to know what criteria the board use to determine this.

“The oil isn’t coming from Iowa, or going to Iowa,” he said.

“It’s a public convenience and necessity test, plus supporting record evidence is what they look at as a whole, when they make their decision,” Munyon said.

Asked for clarification, she said, “I’m not qualified to answer that as far as a legal process. It’s a legal test based on case law.”

The board will review every single parcel on an individual basis, said Keri Johannsen, legislative liaison for IUB, and can tell the company to alter its path through property. Eminent domain would not be granted until the end of the process.

The process now

The purpose of the meeting was to provide information, and answer basic questions – not to raise objections or speak in favor of the project, said Munyon.

“This is not a public comment meeting,” she said.

Still, one man in Calhoun County drew applause when he used the time for questions to read a speech on the dangers of oil spills, urging the IUB to not issue the permit at all.

The company is required to hold these informational meetings in all affected counties before it can apply for a permit. With the meeting completed, the company will begin immediately on negotiations with landowners to try to obtain easements, said Munyon. It must wait 30 days before applying for a permit.

Before the IUB would approve the permit, a public hearing must be held.

Broad said the company hopes to file for its permit in January, and to get the pipeline in service by late 2016.

A time for the public hearing has not been set yet, said Johannsen. It will be held at a location near the center of the pipeline in Iowa.

Comments or objections to the pipeline can be sent in now, she said. An electric filing system is available for comments on the department’s website, IUB.iowa.gov, which Munyon said is the best way to reach them. Comments sent by mail will also be read.

The project’s docket number is HLP20140001.

Environmental issues

Eileen Miller, of Calhoun County, asked how long the pipeline would last.

“Environmentally, we’re worried about the long term,” Miller said.

Greg Ochs, operations supervisor/senior engineer with the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, said with modern grades of steel, pipelines should last at least 50 years. Some pipelines installed 80 years ago are still running safely, he added.

“We see them lasting indefinitely if you keep them well-maintained,” Ochs said.

Asked about safety around rivers, Broad said the pipeline will be buried at least 5 feet deep under rivers – but for large crossings, it would be closer to 20 or 30 feet.

There will be valves on each side of a river crossing to enable emergency shutoff.

Broad also said Dakota Access would be responsible for any type of spill. Energy Transfer has a policy of about $700 million to cover any type of spill that would occur.

Phillip Wallace, who said he represents Pipeliners Local 798, the welders who will work on the project, said the steel in the pipeline is rated to hold in 35,000 pounds per square inch, and the pipeline’s operating pressure will be about 1,440 psi.

“This pipeline is not going to leak. The only time this pipeline is going to leak is if somebody digs into it,” he said. “I think this will be a great project. This county – we need to use our own energy. I’d love to have a windmill, electric car, but that’s in the future.”

Federally regulated safety

Safety inspections on the pipeline during construction and while it’s in use are handled by the PHMSA, not the IUB, said Ochs. This group is part of the U.S. Department of Transportation.

Once the pipeline’s running, regular inspections are required, and inline inspection tools will be used.

“These are tools that are put into the pipeline that can assess anything that is happening – it checks wall thickness, damage, it looks at seams of the pipelines. These inline inspections are very smart,” Ochs said.

There are 6,382 miles of interstate natural gas pipelines going through Iowa, Ochs said, and 4,534 miles of interstate liquid pipelines carrying products like oil, gas or diesel.

Even with recent budget cuts and political turmoil, PHMSA will still continue to operate, he said.

“When the government shut down last year, we still had our personnel working all the time. That’s how critical they see our nature,” Ochs said. “Basically you’d have to have the government go bunk for PHMSA to not be in operation.”

The advantages

Building the pipeline will provide a safer way to transport the crude oil than by truck or train, said Broad.

“Pipelines are the safest and most efficient means to transport crude oil, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation,” he said.

Less oil shipped by rail means more rail cars able to carry crops, he said. The pipeline should carry enough oil to free up four to seven train units per day.

The pipeline should create 4,000 construction jobs, which will “largely be filled with local labor,” he said. It should also create approximately 15 permanent jobs in Iowa.

It should also generate $9.9 million in Iowa sales and income tax during construction and $27.4 million per year in Iowa property taxes over the long term.

Dakota Access estimates it would spend $200 million to acquire permanent easements for about 2,000 tracts of land. The company also would compensate farmers for 100 percent of crop losses during the first year, 80 percent the second year, and 60 percent the third year after the construction is complete.

“We know your land is a valuable natural resource, and the care with which your land is treated is our utmost priority,” Broad said.

Every weld will be examined by X-ray to ensure safety, he said. The line will be tested with water to a pressure 25 percent higher than the maximum allowed operating pressure, and automatic controls will be installed to monitor the pressure. There will also be remotely activated emergency shutoff valves, and a full-time staff to monitor the pipeline 24 hours a day, seven days a week.