The final permits for the Sabal Trail pipeline has been approved by the U.S Army Corps of Engineers. The completion of the pipeline is estimated to be a $3.2 billion endeavor. It’s a 3-foot wide pipeline that’s said to extend 516 miles, and estimated to move around 1 billion cubic feet of natural gas from Alabama through southern Georgia and Florida daily. However, the pipeline is said to go through parts of Georgia and north central Florida which have environmentally sensitive ecosystems. Recent articles in Counter Current News, Fusion, Green Law and Construction Equipment highlight the issues regarding the approval.
 
Sabal Trail Start-Up

The corporations behind the project are Spectra Energy Corp, NextEra Energy, Inc., and Duke Energy. Their intentions with the Sabal Trail is to supply natural gas to Florida Light and Power (also owned by NextEra and Duke). The spokeswoman of Spectra Energy, Andrea Grover, said that the route will be split into five segments which will start simultaneously. They’ve already began surveying, and trapping and relocating the government protected gopher tortoises living along the route. But the recent approval to begin construction has caused much uproar among residents and organizations against the environmental and human injustices the Sabal Trail Transmission poses.
 
Environmental and Human Impacts of the Pipeline
In north central Florida the pipeline route is said to go through dozens of springsheds (underground water bodies which feed springs) and underground limestone caverns prone to sinkholes. Although the pipeline route will be running through sensitive ecosystems, the Army Corps of Engineers did not want further environmental assessment done by the Madison County Commission in north Florida. According to the WWALS Watershed Coalition website, they did not want a site inspection completed to determine the proximity of the pipeline to the active sinkholes and aquifers in the cave systems. Unfortunately back in 2013, Florida governor Rick Scott had $53,000 in Spectra Energy stock and signed two laws which would help speed up the Sabal Trail Transmission permits.
 
In the state of Georgia, the pipeline would also be built through sensitive limestone karst prone to sinkholes. Collapsing sinkholes pose many risks such as pipeline explosion and groundwater contamination. Its route would be built across a well field which supplies drinking water to the city of Albany. The pipeline’s compressor station would also be built in one of the lowest-income minority residential neighborhoods of Albany. This would reduce air quality for residents because of the harmful pollutants which would be emitted. Some of the harmful pollutants include CO, formaldehyde, methane and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Not only that, but the compressor stations would be operated by two 21,000 horse powered natural gas turbines, causing noise pollution to the area. They would operate 24/7 and give off a constant Low-Frequency Noise (LFN). The construction of the pipeline and compressor station is also said to significantly reduce property values for residents living along the route.
 
Environmental Protection Agency’s Discrepancies
In the beginning the U.S Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said that about 1,200 acres of land would be destroyed or impacted from the construction of the pipeline. Later the EPA lowered their prediction to 900 acres. Then afterwards they changed their prediction again and said that the pipeline project did not have any significant environmental concerns. The EPA also claimed that the pipeline would cause only temporary damage to wetlands, but when they say temporary, what they really mean is a 50 year time frame for the wetland to revegetate.
 
Although a number of safer alternative routes were proposed, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission rejected the other options. However, this is not surprising for a case like this because the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) was made by a leading gas industry consultant who would benefit from another approved pipeline. It seems that the analysis of the pipeline’s environmental concerns has downplayed a number of factors. The Sabal Trail and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission seems to have forgotten about the potential for sinkholes and damage to aquifers. Not only that, but it seems that they have no remorse for homeowners and families being affected by the route.
 
Profits and energy “needs” seem to be controlling the way business is carried out. Pipelines are being built through sensitive ecosystems and negatively affecting people in various communities. They’re willing to sacrifice the health of wildlife, ecosystems and even their fellow human beings. Have companies no shame over their harmful business practices?
 
We must not turn a blind eye to the injustices energy corporations put on ecosystems and communities. We must raise awareness and not be afraid to speak out. Luckily there are organizations which consistently put up a fight and who always look for continued citizen support. Some of the organizations include the Sierra Club, SpectraBusters and Protect Florida Against Sabal Trail.