by Theodore Wiesehan

    TransCanada, the energy-infrastructure giant proposing to construct an 1,830-mile oil pipeline, hopes to meet soon with Seward County landowners along the proposed route and other interested residents to provide information and address questions and concerns, according to Jeff Rauh, public consultant for the project.
     The company will contact property owners along the proposed route of the Keystone pipeline project within the next couple of weeks and plans to hold a public informational meeting in Seward in early April, Rauh said.
     The meeting is tentatively scheduled for Tuesday, April 4 in the Seward Civic Center. A detailed map of the route will be available and experts in pipeline engineering, environmental impact, safety and construction will be on hand to answer questions. Meetings are also tentatively scheduled for Stanton on April 3, Odell on April 5 and Seneca, Kan., on April 6.
     The proposed route is based on publicly available databases and is not yet finalized, Rauh emphasized. TransCanada hopes the feedback generated from public meetings will help fine-tune the route if any problems arise, he added.
     "We really look forward to hearing from landowners and members of the community," he said. The company seeks to discover "how does this look to folks who know."
     Though the route originally bypassed Nebraska in favor of Iowa, ongoing discussion with shippers shifted the route west to leave open the option of an extension to Cushing, Okla., described by Rauh as a "Mecca" of crude oil transport.
     The Keystone project must meet the approval of a number of regulatory agencies from the local to federal level before construction, which is planned to begin in 2008, may get underway. TransCanada is currently involved in submitting the necessary applications and meeting requirements for these agencies.
     For example, the Nebraska State Historic Preservation Office requires a visual survey for objects of archaeological significance along the entire route before the project may begin.
     Other regulatory agencies whose approval is required include Canada's National Energy Board, the U.S. Department of State, Army Corp of Engineers, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, National Park Service and numerous regional, state and local commissions.
     Though TransCanada may need to obtain local floodplain development permits depending on the route construction takes, Seward County does not currently require special-use permits for pipeline construction, according to Scott Stuhr, Seward County zoning administrator.
     All that could change within the next year, however.
     "They're (TransCanada) looking at doing this next year or at the end of next year and by then the county should have a new set of regulations and a new zoning plan," Stuhr said.
     Seward County's comprehensive plan has not been revised since 1995 and the county commissioners recently approved a total rewrite of the plan, Stuhr explained.
     "They would have to meet whatever requirements would be in place," he said.
     Constructed of 30-inch diameter steel pipe, the completed project would be capable of transporting as much as 435,000 barrels of molasses-like crude oil per day. The Canadian oil is of such a thick consistency, Rauh said, that the oil's 1,830-mile trip from the oil sands of Hardisty, Alberta, to a pipeline hub in Patoka, Ill. would last about a month.
     The crude's high viscosity will necessitate pumping stations approximately every 60 miles along the route, including 23 in the U.S. Each fully-automated station will require a constant load of electricity at 10 megawatts. The entire county of Seward had a load of 20 megawatts at its peak last year, according to Joel Navis, Seward County Public Power District manager.
     Navis said that the added usage will be a tremendous boon for county power districts in which the stations are located.
     Though the additional draw on electricity will increase the demand for power, "the good news is that with the Cooper Plant and the plant in Beatrice, NPPD is in good shape," Navis said.
     To Navis' disappointment, current pump station plans skip over Seward County, with stations in Butler and Saline Counties.
     "It's especially a good deal for NPPD," Navis said.
     Local power districts may have to build new substations to keep up with demand, he added, "but it would be a nice problem to have."
     An operations center will also be located along the route, as well as several other above ground stations such as shut-off valves and remotely operable monitoring and metering stations.
     TransCanada owns and operates a network of over 25,000 miles of pipe and has been in existence for more than 50 years.
     "They (TransCanada) have extensive experience in routing pipelines through sensitive areas," Rauh said of the company's environmental record. He said the company will focus on "how we can integrate the need of shippers while minimizing local impact."
     After the pipe is installed TransCanada will restore property to its pre-construction state and compensate landowners for crop losses and other construction-related damage, Rauh said. The land over the pipeline may be farmed after construction, though TransCanada will maintain permanent 50-foot easements.
     Rauh stressed that TransCanada implements a variety of pipeline safety measures, including regular aerial patrols, continuous pressure monitoring to detect leaks and in-line inspection using a "pigging" device. The pigging unit is pushed through the pipe by the oil and electronically maps the integrity of the pipe, alerting controllers to corrosion and potential trouble spots. The Keystone pipeline will also participate in the one-call system for buried material.
     At over a million dollars per mile, the project's $2.1 billion price tag stands as a testament to the escalating power of oil in the global economy.
     "With the increase in energy prices there is an increase in infrastructure projects," Rauh said.
     Indeed, TransCanada is not without competition for the pipeline, as other firms are pursuing similar routes. With crude oil production from the Alberta oil sands poised to expand by around a million-and-a-half barrels daily, Hal Kvisle, chief executive officer of TransCanada, said in a press release, the stakes are high for all involved.
     Rauh said that because of the company's head start and confirmed contracts - TransCanada has long-term commitments to ship 340,000 barrels of oil per day - he remains confident that TransCanada's multibillion-dollar foray will pay off.
     For more information about TransCanada's Keystone pipeline, visit the project web page at www.transcanada.com/keystone.