[private lands cannot be seized without compensation] [compensation is only market value (if even that). It does not take into account family farm legacy, the necessity for clean water (as mentioned below), or any nostalgia or memories]
> TransCanada's use of the "unconstitutional and void" eminent domain law, > which gives the government the right to seize private lands for public use > without compensation, is "another bullying move by the foreign corporation > that swears they are going to be a good neighbor," said Jim Tarnick, one of > the landowners who joined in the suit. Michele > On Jan 21, 2015, at 6:59 PM, Darryl McMahon <dar...@econogics.com> wrote: > > http://www.commondreams.org/news/2015/01/20/faced-land-seizures-defiant-nebraskans-vow-halt-keystone-xl > > Published on Tuesday, January 20, 2015 > by Common Dreams > Faced With Land Seizures, Defiant Nebraskans Vow to Halt Keystone XL > > 'Our land is not for sale and we will keep fighting TransCanada until we see > their tail lights go back across our border.' > by Nadia Prupis, staff writer > > As Canadian energy company TransCanada filed eminent domain claims against > Nebraska landowners on Tuesday for the construction of the controversial > Keystone XL tar sands pipeline, families whose properties are on the verge of > forced seizure say they will do whatever is necessary to shut down the > project. > > Landowners from Nebraska's York and Holt counties last week filed suit > against TransCanada to stall or even stop construction of the Keystone XL > pipeline through their state. On Tuesday, they continued to call on President > Barack Obama to veto the project altogether. > > "Today, Nebraska families are facing an inconceivable moment when land that > has been in their hands for generations is being taken away from them by a > foreign oil company," Bold Nebraska director Jane Kleeb stated in a press > release. "Landowners will match TransCanada’s lawsuits in local courts and > continue to take our fight to the one person who can put an end to all of > this: President Obama." > > Obama has promised to veto legislation that would force the approval of the > Keystone XL pipeline; Senate Republicans have vowed to get the pipeline > approved as one of their first acts of 2015. > > TransCanada's use of the "unconstitutional and void" eminent domain law, > which gives the government the right to seize private lands for public use > without compensation, is "another bullying move by the foreign corporation > that swears they are going to be a good neighbor," said Jim Tarnick, one of > the landowners who joined in the suit. > > "From the Kalamazoo to the Yellowstone rivers and all across the United > States, tar sands are a horrible danger and threat that the President must > reject," Tarnick added. > > Bold Nebraska noted that public support for the Keystone XL pipeline has > waned over time, with only 41 percent approving of the project in a recent > poll. > > Yet while landowners, the president, and the public at large continue to > speak out against the pipeline, former Nebraska Governor Dave Heineman, who > approved Keystone construction in the state, "abus[ed] the powers of his > office" by taking authority away from the people of Nebraska and giving it to > himself "to approve a pipeline and give a foreign corporation the power of > eminent domain before they have all their permits in place," the lawsuit > states. > > "While we fight to ensure TransCanada and the state of Nebraska do not run > roughshod over farmers and ranchers, we also call upon President Obama to > reject Keystone XL now," Kleeb said last week. > > Meghan Hammond, a landowner whose clean energy project would have to be torn > down for the construction of the pipeline, stated on Tuesday: "We can not > survive as a family business without clean water. Our government has no > solution to clean up tar sands and benzene from our water. Our land is not > for sale and we will keep fighting TransCanada until we see their tail lights > go back across our border." > > _______________________________________________ > Sustainablelorgbiofuel mailing list > Sustainablelorgbiofuel@lists.sustainablelists.org > http://lists.eruditium.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/sustainablelorgbiofuel _______________________________________________ Sustainablelorgbiofuel mailing list Sustainablelorgbiofuel@lists.sustainablelists.org http://lists.eruditium.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/sustainablelorgbiofuel
