Gabby Brown, gabby.brown@sierraclub.org, 914-261-4626
Blanco County, TX -- Kinder Morgan CEO Steve Kean announced yesterday that the company plans to reroute the controversial Permian Highway fracked gas pipeline to go around the Blanco River, in response to public outrage over a spill during pipeline construction, the impacts of which Kinder Morgan has repeatedly downplayed, that left Blanco County residents without clean drinking water.
The pipeline’s new route will threaten new wildlife habitat and water crossings, compounding the damage already done by construction along the current route. Landowners along the new route who were given little time to negotiate and threatened with eminent domain have already been notified that Kinder Morgan plans to break ground on their property as soon as this month.
Permian Highway is currently facing multiple lawsuits over its threat to vulnerable water resources and the failure of state and federal agencies to adequately review the pipeline’s impacts or allow for public input.
In response, Sierra Club Senior Campaign Representative Roddy Hughes released the following statement:
“After multiple accidents and spills, Kinder Morgan is picking up and trying to build along a new route, leaving an enormous amount of damage in its wake and putting a whole new group of landowners at risk. Kinder Morgan has made it clear that, regardless of the route it takes, it cannot be trusted to safely build the Permian Highway Pipeline through Hill Country. The only responsible path forward is for Kinder Morgan to shut down construction of this destructive pipeline once and for all.”
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with more than 3.5 million members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.