Over with Rover - the Pipeline, that is!
Rover construction in your backyard?
FILE A VIOLATION COMPLAINT if you see something amiss to let the authorities know that something is wrong. Don't assume someone will take care of it... that's how 2,000,000+ gallons of drilling fluid were spilled destroying wetlands in Ohio.
Filing a violation complaint is simple, fast, and can be done anonymously. Not sure if what you see is a violation? Read the filing instructions and examples of violations and then fill out and send the one page PDF form.
ACEViolationformBuffalo-How2fileReport.pdfAlleged Violation Form Submission_distributed.pdfFiling a complaint may be done anonymously, and takes only a few minutes.
Photo taken by an observant resident August 2017 in Putnam Township, Livingston County, MI
Is the problem too urgent to send or email a form?
- Dial 911 if you see anything that immediately endangers human life!
- Let the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) who granted Rover's wetlands permit know immediately of any environmental concerns by email or by calling the Pollution Emergency Hotline 800-292-4706.
- Contact Kevin Bowman, FERC Environmental Projects Manager, 202-502-6287 to report Rover pipeline construction issues
- Call Rover's project hotline 888-844-3718 (no email address provided).
- Washtenaw County Emergency Manager Services Division 734-973-4900
- Livingston County Emergency Management 517-540-7926
- Please also cc overwithrover@gmail.com when filing complaints to help us remain current with documentation.
Photos from Rally To Protest ETP ROVER Pipeline
MICHIGAN RESIDENTS AGAINST ET ROVER walked a stretch of the Potawatomi Trail in the Pinckney Recreation Area where the Rover workers were about to trench and bury the pipeline on Saturday, August 26, 2017, as hikers and mountain bikers passed by.
17-0815 Energy Transfer's Rover Pipeline Happily Puts 2,000 Michigan Lives in Danger _ Earth First! Newswire.pdf2000+ MICHIGAN LIVES IN DANGER
How can this be safe?
- NO evacuation route
- NO early warning odorant
- NO flood water-flow studies
Read what one resident near the pipeline has to say about Rover as a neighbor in this recent article by Clifford Rowley published in Earth First! Newswire.
LETTERS FROM SENATORS TO FERC
071217 Stabenow-Peters Letter re Rover Pipeline.pdf072717 Cantwell-Pallone Letter to FERC.pdf
History of Silver Lake entrapment by Rover - timeline and narrative in ET Partner maps.pdf
Letter sent to FERC 6/29/17: Rover is requesting that FERC lift the ban on Horizontal Directional Drilling, the same procedure that caused an "inadvertent return" of more than 5.000.000 gallons of drilling fluid in Ohio. If the ban is lifted, the Portage River/Hell Creek site just north of Silver Lake, and on the misroute, will undergo HDD. If a similar spill occurs at Hell Creek, the potential is high that much of the Huron River Watershed could be affected, including the drinking water of the City of Ann Arbor.
#4 HDD potential contamination.pdfFERC continues HDD suspensn.pdf
UNANIMOUS RESOLUTION OPPOSING ROVER PIPELINE'S ENTRAPMENT OF SILVER LAKE
SPECIAL MEETING OF THE WASHTENAW COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
The Michigan Citizens against Rover Pipeline strongly urge an immediate halt to any further local construction in the Silver Lake area, and along this route to the immediate north until the return to ITC co-location, until the advantages of a superior alternative route and improved avoidance of risk to residents, children and property of have been fully, completely and publicly assessed and implemented.
The Silver Lake community including the YMCA Camp Birkett, Pinkney Recreation Area State Park beach, Crooked Lake campground, Post 46 Hunt/Fish Club, and more than 90 residences are inadvertently entrapped by an apparent misroute of the Rover pipeline. All three access roads to the residential neighborhoods and this popular recreation spot are cut off by the lake-hugging Rover pipeline route.
The new route does not allow for emergency access should there be a pipeline catastrophe. The route that was recommended by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in their Final Environmental Impact Statement in July 2016 did provide access. Further, there will be no odorant in this section of the pipeline.
Rover's mis-route leaves residents and visitors to Silver Lake with NO EVACUATION ROUTE and NO WARNING OF IMPENDING DISASTER if the pipeline fails.
Please take two minutes to fill out this form now: http://bit.ly/FERC-HALT-construction-NOW-pending-investigation
June 1, 2017 - Letter to Army Corps of Engineers
Urgent request is sent to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to shut down ET Rover horizontal directional drilling construction activity due to series of miscues and incidents.
The Army Corps of Engineers authorized Rover to proceed with horizontal directional drilling (HDD) under 45 water crossings with blanket authorization NWP 12.
- There is now ample evidence of "more than minimal adverse environmental effects" from HDD drilling.
- The courts have affirmed that the Corps retains jurisdiction to modify or revoke NWP authorization for a pipeline.
- Management of drilling to date reflects gross ignorance of the geology at the subject river and wetland crossings.
We urge the Corps to revoke the Rover pipeline’s NWP 12 authorization in favor of a regime of individual permits for each HDD crossing to avert further destruction of natural resources.
A Motion to Revoke Certificate was filed with FERC by the FreshWater Accountability Project and the Michigan Residents Against ET Rover Gas Pipeline on May 24, 2017.
May 24, 2017: Detroit Free Press - Activists ask feds to halt ET Rover pipeline over environmental concerns by Jennifer Eberbach
The hearing was held on Thursday, May 25, 2017 to consider the nominations of Mr. Dan R. Brouillette of Texas to be Deputy Secretary of Energy, and Mr. Neil Chatterjee of Kentucky and Mr. Robert F. Powelson of Pennsylvania to be Members of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. An archived video is available on the committee’s website.
"Neil Chatterjee is Sen. Mitch McConnell’s energy adviser, and Rob Powelson is a Pennsylvania utility commissioner. Expect fossil fuels to have their say in federal grid policy." , says Jeff St. John in GreenTechMedia.
Here are the Members the US Senate Committee on Energy & Natural Resources. Contact them today to let them know your concerns!
<-- Want a foot or two of this in your back yard??
Neither did the folks in Ohio who got 2,000,000 million gallons of it -- just a little "inadvertent return" coming this way soon.
Read the latest Rover mishap in this May 20th Columbus Dispatch article - Stormwater overflow from Rover pipeline construction affecting farms.
Stay vigilant, Michigan, Rover's creeping north toward you.
Read the original letter from FERC to Rover suspending horizontal directional drilling under the Portage River in Michigan, along with other locations in both Ohio and Michigan as a result of the 5,000,000+ gallon spill in Ohio.
Quoted from: "Oil and Gas Journal"
Ohio EPA concerns lead FERC to partially halt work on Rover Pipeline
WASHINGTON, DC, May 12, 2017 By Nick Snow , OGJ Washington Editor
"Letter to Rover Pipeline
In its May 5 letter to Rover Pipeline, Ohio EPA ordered the company to immediately implement a release prevention and emergency contingency plan which it submitted for review and the agency approved on Apr. 29.
It also required Rover to submit a wetland restoration plan for affected areas Ohio EPA identified within 30 days, submit a notice of intent to acquire coverage under an Ohio EPA stormwater construction permit within 7 days and submit a stormwater prevention plan for review and approval within 14 days, and pay $431,000 to settle Ohio EPA’s civil penalty claims within 30 days.
In his May 10 letter to Mahmoud, FERC Energy Projects Office Director Terry L. Turpin said that the federal energy transportation regulator was ordering Rover Pipeline to not commence new HDD activity after 2 million gal of bentonite slurry leaked onto Category 3 wetlands adjacent to the Tuscarawas River in Stark County, Ohio, on Apr. 13.
He said after FERC staff members reviewed information from the compliance monitor, drilling logs, geotechnical bore logs of the subsurface geology, and staff’s onsite inspection, they found returns of drilling mud were absent or intermittent during the nearly 3 weeks that the pilot drill, the 30-in. ream, and the 40-in. ream were completed.
“During this period of absent (or intermittent) returns to the drilling rig, Rover continued to advance the drilling activities,” Turpin said.
Based on this information—as well as the volume, extent, and condition of drilling mud in the wetland—FERC’s staff had serious concerns about the incident’s magnitude, which was several orders greater than other documented HDD inadvertent returns for the project; its environmental impacts; the lack of clarity regarding underlying reasons for its occurrence; and the possibility for future problems, he told Mahmoud.
“Given that the site of the release extended near, and extended over Rover’s approved centerline, a stoppage of additional drilling is warranted to facilitate a review of Rover’s efforts to search for and locate any potential releases,” Turpin said."
Michigan Residents Against the ET Rover Pipeline join 117 other groups requesting that FERC:
- "halt all construction of the Rover Pipeline in order to ensure the safety of communities and ecosystems along the pipeline route", and
- "initiate an immediate review of horizontal directional drilling plans and procedures on all open pipeline dockets."
Read the full document to the right -->
Read an article about the group action in Inside Climate News.
LettertoFERCRegardingtheRoverPipeline17May2017.pdf
ROVER PUTS THE ONUS ON US! Here's what Rover wants you to do:
Look at the letter they recently sent to Ohio homeowners, AFTER letting 2,000,000+ gallons of sludge destroy some of Ohio's best wetlands.
In other words, "Dear Homeowners, if we make a mess it's up to you to let us know, else we will ignore it until all the damage is done."
ROVER KNOWS THEY HAVE A PROBLEM...
But in the Ohio spill's case, they waited THREE WEEKS before stopping the spill.
Rover misbehaving? Let authorities know!
CALL 911 IMMEDIATELY IF YOU SEE SOMETHING THAT ENDANGERS HUMAN LIFE
(unattended fire, Rover equipment being used outside of easement, etc.)
Otherwise, contact the appropriate entity below to register your complaint. Keep this list handy: Click here to print pdf.
Click here for a watchlist of pipeline violations and here for the Army Corp of Engineers Violation Complaint Form.
To help us keep track of Rover’s violations, please also send a copy of your complaint to overwithrover@gmail.com .
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Rover – Senior Right of Way Agent (please note that different landowners may have different agents)
Mike Gray 231-392-2589 mike.gray@contractlandstaff.com 405 Little Lake Drive, Ann Arbor, MI 48103
Rover - Community Affairs representative
Gretchen Krueger Gretchen.krueger@energytransfer.com
FERC’s Office of Energy Projects
Terry Turpin, Director John Wood, Acting Deputy Director Telephone: 202-502-8700 FAX: 202-219-0205
888 First Street, NE, Washington, DC 20426
FERC’s Gas Environment and Engineering
Rich McGuire, Director Telephone: 202-502-6177 rich.mcguire@ferc.gov
Shannon Jones, Deputy Director Telephone: 202-502-6410 Email: shannon.jones@ferc.gov
Putnam Township Supervisor
Dennis Brennan 734-878-3131 ext. 113 supervisor@putnamtwp.us
Dexter Township Supervisor
Harley Rider 734-426-3767 supervisor@dextertownship.org
Michigan Department of Environmental Quality
Environmental Assistance Center 800-662-9278
Michigan DNR
Charles Dennison, Pinckney State Recreation Area Office 734-426-4913 DennisonC@michigan.gov
8555 Silver Hill Road, Pinckney, MI 49169
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
The most important advice is to document everything: pictures, video, written correspondence.
The Tuscawaras River experience in Ohio would indicate that Energy Transfer Partners is not diligent about following rules unless forced, and that FERC doesn't enforce the rules until the situation has become desperate. Our observations and reports may be needed to prevent the destruction of the Portage River/Hell Creek at the HDD site in the Huron River Watershed. After multiple legal filings imploring action, our only remaining recourse as citizens is our ability to shine a light on Rover's misdeeds.
Serious misdeeds include:
SPILLS If you see the following, or anything unusual, contact Rover’s project hotline at 1-888-844-3718
- Unusual seeping of non-toxic clay and water slurry on the surface of the ground
- Discoloration of surface water in any areas near to Rover activity
ROADS If you have reason to believe that a particular road will be used by Rover crews or machinery, we recommend photographing it now, in its original state. Then, if the crews do damage the road, it will be helpful to have these "before" and "after" photographs as proof of the damage. If you see trucks or heavy equipment damaging roads:
- "Get pictures, especially if they can be of license plates on vehicles. Damage and the wrongdoers, who could possibly be improperly using overweight vehicles for the roadways under assault, have to be identified before they disappear."
- Then report the damage to the county Road Commission. "They might not have been consulted and there may be permits that would have been required."
TREES For ecological reasons, Rover is prohibited from clearing trees anywhere along the pipeline route after March 31. If you observe Rover clearing trees after March 31:
- Document the incident in every way possible. (Photographs, get license plate #s, date and time).
- Contact us immediately. We will help you to report the incident to Rover and FERC, and also report it to our attorney.
BURNING BRUSH Rover has already been cited for burning without permission near homeower’s property. If you see burning activity contact the property owner to confirm permission has been given and proper permits obtained. If either has not, contact the authorities immediately.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Click here for an extended watchlist of pipeline violations and here for the Army Corp of Engineers Violation Complaint Form.
To help us keep track of Rover’s violations, please also send a copy of your complaint to overwithrover@gmail.com .
HERE IS WHAT YOU DO - other than helping shovel the spilled drilling clay...Call our elected representatives to make sure they understand what is at stake with FERC. Click here for Senator's phone #s and questions to ask. You can call up to 6x/day! And, while you're conversing with them, it wouldn't hurt to mention your personal experience with ET Rover.
WATCH FOR STORMWATER OVERFLOW
Farmers in Ohio are are wary of more Rover errors, and so is the Ohio EPA. They are updating their administrative order for Rover to pay $714,000 in response to damage caused in the first several weeks of construction.
MYTH: The Rover pipeline is a done deal and there is nothing you can do about it.
TRUTH: You have a voice, and your voice counts... when you use it!
- FERC (Federal Energy Regulatory Commission) is the agency that gives pipelines the go-ahead to declare eminent domain on private property. FERC can NOT do so without a quorum. There has been no quorum since their last action on February 3rd when they okay'd the Rover pipeline. Thus, if they continue with no quorum, other pipelines, including NEXUS, will not be built.
- So even though we can't undo their decision on Rover, we can affect future pipelines. We’re calling on communities across the nation to call key Senators to demand an investigation and reform of FERC before supporting any Trump nominations.
Road crews in your neighborhood removing trees?
Read the article to the right to learn more about Rover's hiring county deputies to protect themselves from whom... ? US, the landowners.
Get a view of Rover's road - after the trees come down and are dragged away.
Jennifer Eberbach, Livingston Daily
March 27, 2017 6:04 a.m.
Energy Transfer will be installing a 42" high pressure (1200 psi) underground natural gas pipeline through portions of our communities in western Washtenaw and Livingston Counties.
Sections of this pipeline will be routed under the Portage Creek, Various watersheds and private properties surrounding the Portage/Huron Watershed.
Citizens have not been made fully aware of this potentially hazardous pipeline and the dangers this could cause.
This site acts as an information exchange between residents and concerned citizens.
NEXT MEETING:
Friday, May 19, 4:30pm, Downtown Pinckney at the Gazebo
For more information about our group, ways you can help, and upcoming meetings:
https://www.facebook.com/ETRovergohome/
Contact us directly: overwithrover@gmail.com and etgohomepinckney@gmail.com
"What can I possibly do?"
There are three ways every citizen can make a difference:
First, and most important, *stay informed* about the progress of the pipeline and your rights as a citizen.
- Click on the form at the right to be on the mailing list for new information, updates on pipeline progress, and activities near you.
- We promise we will NEVER give your information to any other entity.
Second, *be vocal* about what is important to you.
- Click here to learn more about how to call your legislators and what sorts of questions you can ask them.
- The squeaky wheel gets the grease, and others (like the ET Rover company) won't speak for you.
Third, make a *tax-exempt donation* to our extraordinary legal team.
- We work with the Fresh Water Accountability Project (FWAP), a registered non-profit based in Ohio. FWAP is an official Intervenor in the Rover project, meaning they have legal standing to bring legal challenges to the project, which is very difficult (and expensive) for any of us individuals to do.
- 100% of donations go to pay "low-bono" attorney fees to file legal challenges to Rover.
- Every $1 that we donate to our legal assistance costs Rover about $50 in corporate attorney fees. Where else can you get a 50:1 return? Most importantly, we slow their progress until an equitable solution is achieved.
- Not everyone can be on the front lines of activism - but this is the next best thing: Click here to make your tax deductable donation today.
Five ways to stop that "I've been Rovered" helpless feeling:
- LIKE US ON FACEBOOK for info on upcoming meetings and events.
- Share OVER WITH ROVER on your own page, and with your elected officials.
- JOIN OUR LIST to get updates on ET Rover activities in Michigan.
- Contact us directly via email overwithrover@gmail.com or etgohomepinckney@gmail.com.
- No time to get involved? You can still make a TAX DEDUCTIBLE donation to our legal fund.