Transportation officials to fight megaload ruling
The Associated Press | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 13 years, 11 months AGO
MISSOULA, Mont. — Montana Department of Transportation officials said they will continue to fight a lawsuit filed by Missoula County
and three conservation groups that seeks to block huge loads of
oilfield equipment from being transported on two-lane roads through
the northwestern part of the state and into Canada.
On Tuesday, District Judge Ray Dayton granted a preliminary injunction
blocking the agency from issuing permits to transport the Imperial Oil
loads over Montana roadways into Canada. The judge said the department
didn't assess wetlands or floodplain information and didn't seem to
adequately consider the impacts of new turnouts along the route. He
also said the environmental assessment wasn't clear on how the agency
concluded an interstate route wasn't feasible.
"MDT has reviewed the judge's order and is preparing to move forward
when a trial date is set by the court," Lori Ryan, the department's
public information officer, told the Missoulian in an email Wednesday.
Missoula County was joined in the lawsuit by the National Wildlife
Federation, the Montana Environmental Information Center and the
Montana chapter of the Sierra Club.
"The case is probably ripe for summary judgment, because we've already
got in the evidence that is probably going to be ultimately
considered," said deputy county attorney James McCubbin. "So that's
likely the next step."
Imperial Oil, a Canadian subsidiary of Exxon Mobil, applied for
permits to haul 207 huge loads of equipment from the port of Lewiston
in Idaho over U.S. Highway 12 and state Highway 200 in western Montana
to an oil sands project in northeastern Alberta. It was an intervener
in the lawsuit filed by the county.
Company spokesman Pius Rolheiser said Wednesday it was too early to
determine if the company will continue to fight the case.
Imperial Oil already has sent one downsized module on the interstate
route, and is preparing dozens of others at the Port of Lewiston.
"One thing to point out is that this ruling ... doesn't have a bearing
on the alternative route for the modules that we're disassembling at
the Port of Lewiston and that would be moved on U.S. 95 to Interstate
90," Rolheiser said.
John Wolverton with the Sierra Club's Montana Chapter said:
"Hopefully, Exxon Mobil is rethinking its options and realizing that
Montana is not going to be a pushover for anything a big oil
corporation wants."
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Imperial Oil seeks to ship megaloads over interstate
Coeur d'Alene Press | Updated 13 years, 8 months ago
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