What two (or more) quotes capture the message of the article?
"In the suit, filed Thursday, the plaintiffs argue that the proposed Mariner East 2 pipeline that would run across the state to Marcus Hook near Philadelphia is an interstate entity because it would extend to Ohio, West Virginia and Delaware, and therefore is regulated by the federal government which does not confer public utility status."
"Asked whether the suit’s underlying aim was to prevent the pipeline from being built, Bomstein said the company might have to rethink the project if it was unable to use eminent domain to obtain land."
What is the main point of the article, and how is it supported?
The Clean Air Council is suing Sunoco for attempting to use eminent domain to create Mariner East 2 Pipeline. The plan calls for the pipeline to run through the state to Marcus Hook (close to Philadelphia), a part of the expansion of the oil industry in Pennsylvania, to form a connection with Ohio, W. Virginia, and Delaware.
"Not a public utility corporation" so Sunoco should not be able to claim land from those that are not cooperative.
Interstate Commerce Act administers the natural gas that travels through this pipeline, which doesn't grant eminent domain freedom.
If it weren't interstate, Sunoco would still have to quality by the PA Public Utility Commission (PUC) for a certificate of public convenience to gain rights for eminent domain.
This was an action by the CAA meant to slow and complicate the process of building the Marcus Hook section of the pipeline.
What actors (individuals or organizations) are referred to? (Provide names and short descriptions.)
Jeff Shields
spokesperson for Sunoco
Sunoco will fight this lawsuit, "plan to stridently defend our previously confirmed status as a public utility corporation
Nils Hagen-Frederiksen
Spokesperson for PUC
Sunoco is not a public utility corporation
Alex Bornstein
Senior litigation attorney for CAA
Wants to prevent Sunoco from using eminent domain
What kind of causation or responsibility is argued or implied in the article?
Pipelines cause even more friction between natural gas companies and environmental groups than is already present. They represent growth of non-renewable energy use as well as increased possibility for environmental damage via oil transport.
How (if at all) are health disparities or other equity issues addressed in the article or report?
The idea of eminent domain implies that those who do not agree to have the pipeline production impact their home or land will be forced into complying. Inequities exist if Sunoco wins the lawsuit and uses eminent domain to build the pipeline, allowing them to build on the properties of those who do not agree to it.
What three points, details or references from the article did you follow up on to advance your understanding of the issued and actors described in the article?
Definition of Eminent Domain: the power of a state or a national government to take private property for public use. However, it can be legislatively delegated by the state to municipalities, government subdivisions, or even to private persons or corporations, when they are authorized to exercise the functions of public character
I looked into the public utility corporations in Pennsylvania
"In recommending that Sunoco’s petition be denied, the administrative judges noted that Sunoco is regulated by FERC not as a public utility, but as a common carrier of NGLs, which was inconsistent with Sunoco’s petition. The administrative judges also rejected Sunoco’s argument that repurposing the pipeline would serve the public. Specifically, Sunoco failed to show which members of the public would be the end-user customers of the pipeline services, and, in fact, according to the judges, the pipeline appeared to be private in nature, benefiting primarily the third-party storage facilities or distribution terminals to which the NGLs would be shipped after reaching the pipeline’s terminus in Delaware. As such, the judges determined that the buildings that Sunoco intends to construct along the pipeline’s route will not provide a public utility service, and are thus not exempt from local zoning ordinances."
Sunoco was claimed private and not a public utility company because the court did not see the pipeline as "serv[ing] the public," and it was unclear how the company itself was benefiting the people of Pennsylvania.
Does the article provide information or perspective on any of the thematics already identified as important for the 6Cities project?
Air pollution has been at the center of increasing NGO activities in many contexts, with NGOs playing increasingly significant roles in governance (Francesch-Huidobro 2007; Mai and Francesch-Huidobro 2014).
The Clean Air Council is suing Sunoco for attempting to use eminent domain to create Mariner East 2 Pipeline. The plan calls for the pipeline to run through the state to Marcus Hook (close to Philadelphia), a part of the expansion of the oil industry in Pennsylvania, to form a connection with Ohio, W. Virginia, and Delaware. "Not a public utility corporation," Sunoco should not be able to claim land from those that are not cooperative. This was an action by the CAA meant to slow and complicate the process of building the Marcus Hook section of the pipeline. Preventing eminent domain in the development of pipelines through legal action and cooperation with the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission is how Clean Air Council is acting against the growth of the natural gas industry in Pennsylvania.
Jon Hurdle, "Clean Air Council sues Sunoco over Mariner East 2 Pipeline Plan," NPR State Impact Pennsylvania, August 28, 2015, Accessed November 1, 2015,
https://stateimpact.npr.org/pennsylvania/2015/08/28/clean-air-council-sues-sunoco-over-mariner-east-2-pipeline-plan/.
What two (or more) quotes capture the message of the article?
- "In the suit, filed Thursday, the plaintiffs argue that the proposed Mariner East 2 pipeline that would run across the state to Marcus Hook near Philadelphia is an interstate entity because it would extend to Ohio, West Virginia and Delaware, and therefore is regulated by the federal government which does not confer public utility status."
- "Asked whether the suit’s underlying aim was to prevent the pipeline from being built, Bomstein said the company might have to rethink the project if it was unable to use eminent domain to obtain land."
What is the main point of the article, and how is it supported?- The Clean Air Council is suing Sunoco for attempting to use eminent domain to create Mariner East 2 Pipeline. The plan calls for the pipeline to run through the state to Marcus Hook (close to Philadelphia), a part of the expansion of the oil industry in Pennsylvania, to form a connection with Ohio, W. Virginia, and Delaware.
- "Not a public utility corporation" so Sunoco should not be able to claim land from those that are not cooperative.
- Interstate Commerce Act administers the natural gas that travels through this pipeline, which doesn't grant eminent domain freedom.
- If it weren't interstate, Sunoco would still have to quality by the PA Public Utility Commission (PUC) for a certificate of public convenience to gain rights for eminent domain.
- This was an action by the CAA meant to slow and complicate the process of building the Marcus Hook section of the pipeline.
What actors (individuals or organizations) are referred to? (Provide names and short descriptions.)- Jeff Shields
- spokesperson for Sunoco
- Sunoco will fight this lawsuit, "plan to stridently defend our previously confirmed status as a public utility corporation
- Nils Hagen-Frederiksen
- Spokesperson for PUC
- Sunoco is not a public utility corporation
- Alex Bornstein
- Senior litigation attorney for CAA
- Wants to prevent Sunoco from using eminent domain
What kind of causation or responsibility is argued or implied in the article?- Pipelines cause even more friction between natural gas companies and environmental groups than is already present. They represent growth of non-renewable energy use as well as increased possibility for environmental damage via oil transport.
How (if at all) are health disparities or other equity issues addressed in the article or report?- The idea of eminent domain implies that those who do not agree to have the pipeline production impact their home or land will be forced into complying. Inequities exist if Sunoco wins the lawsuit and uses eminent domain to build the pipeline, allowing them to build on the properties of those who do not agree to it.
What three points, details or references from the article did you follow up on to advance your understanding of the issued and actors described in the article?- Definition of Eminent Domain: the power of a state or a national government to take private property for public use. However, it can be legislatively delegated by the state to municipalities, government subdivisions, or even to private persons or corporations, when they are authorized to exercise the functions of public character
- I looked into the public utility corporations in Pennsylvania
- Direct Energy, EQT Corporation, National Fuel Gas, UGI, Philadelphia Gas Works (Largest municipally owned public utility in US)
- I tried to look into why Sunoco was not classified as a public utility company.
- "In recommending that Sunoco’s petition be denied, the administrative judges noted that Sunoco is regulated by FERC not as a public utility, but as a common carrier of NGLs, which was inconsistent with Sunoco’s petition. The administrative judges also rejected Sunoco’s argument that repurposing the pipeline would serve the public. Specifically, Sunoco failed to show which members of the public would be the end-user customers of the pipeline services, and, in fact, according to the judges, the pipeline appeared to be private in nature, benefiting primarily the third-party storage facilities or distribution terminals to which the NGLs would be shipped after reaching the pipeline’s terminus in Delaware. As such, the judges determined that the buildings that Sunoco intends to construct along the pipeline’s route will not provide a public utility service, and are thus not exempt from local zoning ordinances."
- Sunoco was claimed private and not a public utility company because the court did not see the pipeline as "serv[ing] the public," and it was unclear how the company itself was benefiting the people of Pennsylvania.
Does the article provide information or perspective on any of the thematics already identified as important for the 6Cities project?