The Saint Croix Courier

2008 Mar 18

Passamaquoddy object to
Downeast LNG pipeline plan

By BARB RAYNER

ST. ANDREWS — Downeast LNG seems to have run into more problems with their proposed pipeline route and their critics say it's time for the developers to pack up and go home.

The Passamaquoddy Tribe is objecting to the placement of the pipeline on native land and demanding that an alternate route be found.

In comments filed with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) they refer to the Treaty of 1794 between the Passamaquoddy Tribe and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, subsequently reasserted by the Land Claims Settlement Act of 1980 between the State of Maine and the Passamaquoddy Tribe. This states that all islands "lying and being in Schoodic River (renamed the St. Croix) between the falls at the head of the tide and the falls below the fork of said river where the north branch and west branch parts (near Baileyville) being fifteen in number, containing 100 acres or less.... The said islands, tracts of land and privileges to be confirmed by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to the said Indians and their heirs forever."

Some of these islands occur in the area of the proposed pipeline, and the tribe is objecting to its placement over, on, or under these islands.

LNG opponents Save Passamaquoddy Bay note on their website, the U.S. Department of Interior's Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) has filed a motion to intervene in the federal regulatory proceedings for the proposed Downeast LNG project.

In comments included with the motion, the BIA asserts that the Downeast LNG project may have an impact on the "cultural and religious interests" of the Passamaquoddy Tribe and "may also have an effect on wetland habitats and may impact the water quality and quantity in the surrounding area."