The Sandpiper pipeline was a proposed underground oil pipeline project in the United States. It would have carried light crude oil from the Bakken oil fields in Northwest

North Dakota North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the indigenous Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north and by the U.S. states of Minnesota to the east, So ...

, through

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

, to end in Superior, Wisconsin. Enbridge Energy Partners, and Williston Basin Pipe Line LLC, an indirect subsidiary of Marathon Petroleum Corporation had planned the project since 2013. In 2015 Enbridge estimated the pipeline will cost about $2.6 billion. In 2016, Enbridge announced the cancellation of the pipeline, their withdrawal of their state application and their request to end an environmental impact statement and regulatory proceedings.

History

The Sandpiper pipeline project was made public by the media in 2013, and informational hearings for landowners took place in three North Dakota towns in March 2014. The

North Dakota Public Service Commission The North Dakota Public Service Commission is a constitutional agency that maintains various degrees of statutory authority over utilities, telecommunications, railroads, grain elevators, pipeline safety, and other functions in North Dakota. Establ ...

approved the pipeline in June 2014.Case #: PU-13-848
North Dakota Public Service Commission, retrieved 23 December 2015 The

Minnesota Public Utilities Commission The Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (PUC) is the consumer protection agency in the U.S. state of Minnesota charged with the regulation of public utilities such as electric Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated wi ...

unanimously approved the Sandpiper pipeline, but its decision was overturned in September 2015. In September 2016, Enbridge Energy Partners announced that due to "extensive and unprecedented egulatorydelays

hich Ij ( fa, ايج, also Romanized as Īj; also known as Hich and Īch) is a village in Golabar Rural District, in the Central District of Ijrud County, Zanjan Province, Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also ...

have plagued the Sandpiper pipeline," they were withdrawing their state application and asking for an end to regulatory proceedings, including work on an environmental-impact statement. An Enbridge spokesperson said that the pipeline may be reconsidered once the oil market rebounds but it was then "outside the company’s current five-year planning horizon".

Purpose

In 2015, Enbridge stated that "The Sandpiper Pipeline serves the oil conducting needs of North Dakota residents, which constitutes a public benefit". Per Enbridge, the Sandpiper pipeline would have represented a "public use" as a "statutorily defined public utility". According to Enbridge, its route was chosen with the "greatest public benefit and the least private injury" and that "as long as the public benefit can be demonstrated, it is immaterial that private interests are also served." Per Enbridge, the pipeline was necessary "to meet demand for Bakken oil". The corporation projects economic benefits of $69 million in property tax revenue for the 3 states, and 3000 construction jobs for workers in Minnesota and North Dakota.

Description

The pipeline would have entered Minnesota just south of Grand Forks, North Dakota, east to Clearbrook Enbridge's terminal and then south toward Park Rapids along an existing crude oil corridor. Afterwards, the pipeline would have run along a transmission line corridor to Superior, Wisconsin.Greg Vandegrif
Sandpiper oil pipeline divides Minnesota
Kare11, TEGNA, 10 February 2015 The route of the pipeline would have travelled through 28 rivers, including the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it fl ...

headwaters, and lakes and wetlands that couldn't be reached by nearby roads when a spill occurs.

North Dakota portion

Informational hearings for landowners took place in three North Dakota towns during March 2014. The

approved the pipeline on 25 June 2014. Enbridge sued a Grand Forks couple in 2014 after they refused to give the Canadian corporation an easement and right-of-way on their property. The couple quoted NDPL's abuse of eminent domain, continued reliance on fossil fuels, their effect on the environment, and the possibility for spills as arguments. In August 2015 the couple agreed to an easement and forfeited compensation, in order to file an appeal to the

North Dakota Supreme Court The North Dakota Supreme Court is the highest court of law in the state of North Dakota. The Court rules on questions of law in appeals from the state's district courts. Each of the five justices are elected on a no-party ballot for ten year te ...

Minnesota portion

In November 2013, Enbridge applied at the

(MPUC). The MPUC unanimously approved the project, allowing an environmental review to be conducted at a later date. In September 2015, the

Minnesota Court of Appeals The Minnesota Court of Appeals is the intermediate appellate court in the U.S. state of Minnesota. It began operating on November 1, 1983. Jurisdiction The Court of Appeals has jurisdiction over most appeals from the state trial courts, inclu ...

overruled the PUC decision as a violation of state law. In a November 2014 '' Star Tribune'' commentary a Polk County commissioner, a Clearwater County commissioner and a Red Lake County commissioner opined, that the Sandpiper pipeline was the "best choice for the state...better than trucks or rail and also offer ngeconomic benefits."Warren Strandell, Duane Hayes and John Leroh
Sandpiper pipeline is best choice for state
Star Tribune, November 23, 2014, retrieved 23 December 2015 In February 2015, the

White Earth Indian Reservation The White Earth Indian Reservation ( oj, Gaa-waabaabiganikaag, "Where there is an abundance of white clay") is the home to the White Earth Band, located in northwestern Minnesota. It is the largest Indian reservation in the state by land area. T ...

, represented by

Winona LaDuke Winona LaDuke (born August 18, 1959) is an American economist, environmentalist, writer and industrial hemp grower, known for her work on tribal land claims and preservation, as well as sustainable development. In 1996 and 2000, she ran for Vice ...

stated that the pipeline would cross a portion of its land, which Enbridge disputes. La Duke has been against the pipeline because it would violate Indian sovereignty and for environmental reasons.Justin Glaw
The Pipeline Fight Pitting Native Americans Against Big Oil
The Daily Beast, 2 February 2015, retrieved 23 December 2015 The President of

North America's Building Trades Unions North America's Building Trades Unions (NABTU) is a labor federation of 14 North American unions in the building trade, founded by the American Federation of Labor in 1907. History North America's Building Trades Unions was founded by the Americ ...

came out in a December 2015 commentary criticizing the Minnesota Court of Appeals decision, accused the court was "robbing hard-working Minnesotans of jobs" which would provide workers with a path to middle class.Sean McGarve
Labor's view: Sandpiper pipeline promises a bright future
''Duluth News Tribune''. 10 December 2015, retrieved 23 December 2015

References