To the editor:

Landowners targeted for eminent domain by Summit Carbon Solutions won several substantial victories in recent weeks, but the fight is far from over. Our celebratory high-fives must wait. Summit remains a very real threat to the private property rights of Iowa landowners.

Navigator, another proposed CO2 pipeline company, cancelled its project last month after permits were denied in South Dakota and Illinois. The Illinois Commerce Commission has recommended that a third proposed CO2 pipeline, Wolf, also be denied a permit.

Summit has also suffered significant blows from regulatory agencies in multiple states. The North Dakota Public Service Commission (PSC) denied Summit’s permit, and Oliver County denied its injection well permit. However, the company was granted reconsideration by the PSC and plans to reapply.

In South Dakota, the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) upheld county ordinances requiring greater setbacks than Summit proposed and denied its permit. Summit has moved senior staff into five key counties to work with the people to find acceptable alternate routes. It will then reapply.

Because of permit denials in the Dakotas, Summit’s grandiose plan is a pipeline to nowhere. In the face of pushback, the company’s CEO, Bruce Rastetter was forced to announce that pipeline project’s launch has been delayed two years, until 2026, if approved.

Two weeks ago, the IUB concluded its eight-week evidentiary hearing on Summit’s permit application. Summit presented its case for the pipeline followed by intense cross-examination from landowners’ attorneys and other parties. Then came weeks of testimony from hundreds of Iowans with land targeted for eminent domain. Their stories were gripping, some moving grown men to tears. Videos of landowner testimonies can be viewed on Bold Nebraska’s YouTube postings.

Even though the hearing is finished, it will most likely be months before a decision is forthcoming. The Board must review thousands of pages of records. It could deny the permit or approve it with conditions. Even if the permit is approved, it will be appealed and tied up in court, possibly for years.

Meanwhile, Summit must obtain water permits for hundreds of millions of gallons from the DNR as well as county permits for wastewater disposal, air quality, road crossings, rover crossings, and conditional use permits. Several counties are working on set-back ordinances, and state legislators are gearing up to address eminent domain reform.

The IUB hearing on Summit’s permit has ended, but the fight is far from over. From the State House to county courthouses, impacted landowners and concerned Iowans will continue to rally against Summit’s unconstitutional land grab and its dangerous CO2 pipeline.

Bonnie Ewoldt

Milford