CHEROKEE COUNTY (KYTX) - Three Cherokee County cities' bid to halt construction of the International Pipeline through their primary water source could get a boost Friday, or be halted altogether, in a federal court in Oklahoma.
About three weeks ago, the cities of Alto, Reklaw and Gallatin joined the Sierra Club in a federal lawsuit against the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. They assert that plans to build the pipeline, formerly known as the Keystone XL, skirt rigorous environmental impact analysis at more than 1,000 water crossings. The cities want to protect the Carrizo-Wilcox Aquifer - which supplies water to those cities and at least 10 million people - from possible pipeline spills.
The pipeline would transport diluted bitumen from Canada to refineries on the Gulf Coast, and would also pass near at least three water sources - Marvin Nichols Reservoir, Lake Columbia and George Parkhouse Reservoir - that serve the City of Dallas.
Reklaw City Secretary Judy Ritter confirmed that the cities are in the suit and are awaiting a decision expected Friday from an Oklahoma City federal judge, who could issue a preliminary injunction against the corps.
"I can not give you any information because of litigation going on," Reklaw Mayor Harlan Crawford said today. He referred all questions to Rita Breving, a consultant in the lawsuit.
Breving told the Dallas Observer blog that, if the judge declines to issue an injunction, it will leave Alto, Reklaw and Gallatin with few options.
