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Make pipeline builder pay up as a show of faith
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Dear Editor,

In a recent conversation about the Palmetto Pipeline, someone made the statement that we might not be able to stop the pipeline, but we could make it very expensive for them.

One of the largest pipeline corporations in America, Kinder Morgan, wants to plow through Georgia’s public and private properties to build a transport system for petroleum, and they say it is to serve the people of the Coastal Empire by creating competition and lowering prices.  But what if it doesn’t?

What if they end up selling most of this product to the highest global bidder? And they use the Savannah and Jacksonville ports to do it?  And they risk spills and leaks that could pollute nearby rivers, mainly the Savannah River, which many of us depend for our water supply?

How can we make sure that this company is not simply taking advantage of Georgia’s lax laws, inept government officials, and asleep-at-the-wheel legislators who fall all over themselves kissing the rings of rich corporate CEOs?

We can demand we get our fair share, each and every one of us. Our state legislature is looking for money for transportation — here’s a place to get it. It was suggested at the first “hearing” that Kinder Morgan put up $100 million payable to the state of Georgia if they enter into export agreements. Why not more? 

Lower taxes and money for transportation — if this is a “done deal,” let’s not get suckered. Let’s make ’em pay.

Claudia Collier