A proposed project that would build a natural gas pipeline from Indiana to Ohio is receiving pushback from residents and town officials.
Approximately 2.9 miles of the 12-mile interstate pipeline would be in Boone County, Kentucky. This could impact wells, groundwater, and Boone County's emergency response teams, should anything happen to the pipeline.
What's happening?
Texas Gas Transmission, an Owensboro-based subsidiary of Boardwalk Pipelines, is seeking to build the Dearborn County Lateral Project sometime in 2027 if approved, northern Kentucky newspaper LINK nky reported.
While most of the route would be in Indiana, those 2.9 miles would cross the Ohio River.
The 20-inch-diameter pipeline is intended to help supply the Miami Fort Power Plant in Hamilton County, Ohio, which is owned by Irving, Texas-based Vistra Corp. The project's web page says it could move up to 265,000 dekatherms of natural gas per day and would also include a new measurement and flow-control station, along with other support facilities.
Concern surfaced publicly at the July 14 Boone County Fiscal Court meeting, where Petersburg resident Penny Morris said neighbors are worried about water resources and community safety.
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"Although the pipeline may not cross my property, it has the potential to affect my community," Morris said, according to LINK nky. "Petersburg residents depend on the Ohio River and local groundwater resources, and many households rely on private wells for their drinking water."
Why does it matter?
Boone County residents have questioned if the line could negatively impact their community, especially since they are not directly using the pipeline.
"It doesn't benefit Boone County at all," Boone County Commissioner Chet Hand said at the Boone County meeting, according to LINK nky.
Beyond the local concerns, fossil fuel infrastructure can harm communities long before any accident occurs, Amnesty International reported. Coal and natural gas power plants contribute to air and water pollution.
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New gas infrastructure can also prolong dependence on fuels associated with health, environmental, and price-volatility risks.
What's being done?
Federal regulators are reviewing the proposal through an environmental analysis at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission under the National Environmental Policy Act.
The environmental scoping comment period stayed open until July 27, and even if the project wins approval, construction is not expected to start before spring 2027.
County staff has already filed comments about the route and its environmental effects, Boone County Engineer Rob Franxman told LINK nky, as well as objections to using eminent domain on private land.
The fiscal court also backed a motion to prepare a formal letter to federal representatives and regulators opposing the pipeline's expansion into Kentucky.
"We are prepared to take and put letters to the U.S. and put it to any representatives and districts that we have to go through to voice our concerns, because this directly affects us as residents," Morris said.
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