TRUCK WITH A STOP THE PIPELINE SIGN DROVE BACK AND FORTH IN FRONT OF THE HALL “I don’t make the decision on the pipeline,” she [Senator Kelly Ayotte] said. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Monday’s meeting was scheduled before the December announcement that Houston-based energy company Kinder Morgan would shift its pipeline plans north through several New Hampshire towns, including Fitzwilliam, Richmond, Rindge, Troy and Winchester. The original proposal sent the pipeline through upstate New York and northern Massachusetts towns, but opposition from Bay State residents led Kinder Morgan to move the line north through 18 communities in southern New Hampshire. Since the change, residents in local communities have gathered to oppose the pipeline, which they say will cross town-owned and individual properties, affecting property values and causing environmental damage. On Monday, a majority of people in the crowd of approximately 200 wore stickers reading “No pipeline,” and some gathered outside Veterans’ Memorial Hall before the event with anti-pipeline signs. A truck carrying a large sign reading “Stop the pipeline” drove back and forth in front of the hall. Ayotte initially focused her presentation on the country’s fiscal health, showing PowerPoint slides on U.S. spending and the national debt.... Ayotte announced first that she had signed letters with U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., and U.S. Rep. Ann M. Kuster, D-N.H., outlining Granite State residents’ opposition to the pipeline and sent them to Kinder Morgan and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), which will need to approve the project before it goes forward. The letters were written in October, when Kinder Morgan’s original plan sent the pipeline through only three southeastern New Hampshire towns. Ultimately, she said, the regulatory commission and state government officials will have final say on whether they can block Kinder Morgan from moving forward. “I don’t make the decision on the pipeline,” she said. Kinder Morgan has begun scheduling meetings with local boards of selectmen and, according to some residents, sent letters to households with information about how the pipeline could affect their property. “As your elected representative, I will be supporting open, public transparent meetings,” Ayotte said. Al Lefebvre, a Rindge resident who wore a “no pipeline” sticker, said he wasn’t sure how much influence Ayotte could have on the federal approval process, but that he hoped she would support a delay allowing the Granite State to research the pipeline further. More than 1,600 people have signed an online petition started by the anti-pipeline group NH Pipeline Awareness asking state officials and members of Congress to slow down the process until Kinder Morgan releases more information. The group also put out the word to get people to Ayotte’s meeting Monday. “They should be out there for us — they should be out there getting FERC to delay,” Lefebvre said. Several people who spoke at the meeting, including one man who quoted climate change activist and author Bill McKibben, and another who criticized corporate influence in Congress, received enthusiastic applause. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ * PLEASE REMEMBER TO LIKE, THANK THE SENTINEL, AND SHARE!
Posted on: Tue, 06 Jan 2015 17:36:20 +0000
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