Piedmont Natural Gas officials were in court Thursday seeking to condemn two dozen pieces of property the company says it needs to build a new pipeline.
Tom Peebles, an attorney for the company, said the new pipeline will boost safety and provide additional capacity for gas customers in Nashville.
In arguments before Davidson County Circuit Court Judge Thomas Brothers, Peebles said the land is needed for the company to meet its obligations under federal pipeline safety regulations.
"There is a clear public use for the pipeline project," he said.
But standing in the company's way are more than 20 property owners who don't want the pipeline cutting across their land. They are concerned about safety and feel Piedmont should instead upgrade its existing pipeline.
"They are as diverse as our city itself," said Jason Holleman, an attorney representing the landowners, who is also a Metro Council member. "They do not want to give up their property. They do not want the intrusion and the risk of this pipeline."
Piedmont's proposed pipeline would run east-west from Shire Drive in Antioch to a Piedmont facility near Chickering Road. In total, the pipeline would stretch about 14 miles.
The route would run for more than a mile across the southern portion of Radnor Lake State Natural Area, which for 40 years has been a wildlife and recreational haven in Nashville. It would follow an existing Tennessee Valley Authority power line and not go under the lake itself.
The new 14-mile pipeline would be a 20-inch diameter, high-pressure transmission line and would allow the company to convert nearly 60 miles of existing pipeline to a lower-pressure distribution line.
The existing pipeline, including stretches along Old Hickory Boulevard, cannot accommodate an inspection method that uses devices that travel inside to take measurements and gather data, Peebles said.
The Charlotte, N.C.-based Piedmont needs 214 parcels — acquired either through the purchase of easements or condemnation — in order to assemble the pipeline route, Peebles said.
Piedmont has secured 175 of them so far, Peebles said, and Thursday's court hearing was set to decide the fate of 24 others. The two dozen parcels are owned by 22 people or companies. Piedmont initiated the court action to acquire the land.
Peebles said acquiring property through eminent domain can be a "very emotional thing."
"I certainly understand that there are people in this courtroom who do not want this project on their property," he said. "It is a serious thing."
But Peebles said that in addition to safety and capacity, the new pipeline allows for a greater diversity in gas shipments from suppliers.
Reducing the pressure on the existing line also reduces the risk of an accident, and the current pipeline will continue to get regular inspections, he said.
Upgrading the existing line to allow more modern, in-line inspection methods would have been expensive and a "tremendous inconvenience to people in Davidson County," Peebles said.
Holleman, representing the property owners, said the landowners are not challenging the fact that as a utility Piedmont has the power of eminent domain.
Rather, the pipeline does not meet the definition of a public use, he said. Piedmont could upgrade its existing pipeline and still meet federal safety regulations, he argued.
In addition, Holleman said that federal law does not specify that an in-line inspection method must be used to ensure pipeline integrity. There are a host of other methods, he told the judge.
Piedmont also does not yet have all of the needed permits to build the pipeline, and Holleman argued that allowing the company to acquire the land is premature. If the company does not get the needed permits, the land would be condemned for no reason, he said.
"Let these citizens keep their land," Holleman said.
Piedmont has tentative permission from the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation to access the Radnor Lake property. The State Building Commission's executive committee has also signed off on the plan.
But Piedmont still lacks a needed TDEC permit to cross 32 streams and must get permission from the TVA to run the pipeline along its rights of way.
Piedmont spokesman David Trusty said earlier this week that discussions with TVA remain ongoing.
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