The Court of Common Pleas of Lebanon County has issued a decision upholding permits issued by the West Cornwall Township Zoning Hearing Board for a pump station that Sunoco built related to Mariner East passing through the municipality in southern Lebanon County.
The court ruled against the anti-pipeline group Concerned Citizens of Lebanon County, which had been fighting the Mariner East line since forming in 2014. You can read the court order HERE.
In July 2017, the local zoning board turned back attempts by pipeline opponents by voting unanimously to pass four motions: 1.) that Sunoco Pipeline LP is a public utility; 2.) that Sunoco Pipeline LP is entitled to seek permits under Section 27 of the West Cornwall Township Zoning Ordinance; 3.) that the permits were in fact issued properly; and 4.) that the Concerned Citizens of Lebanon County lack standing in this process. A transcript of the Zoning Hearing Board’s ruling can be found HERE.
The Lebanon County Court of Common Pleas upheld the zoning hearing board’s motions, finding as several lawsuits have that Sunoco’s public utility status is valid and lawful, and that the appellants have no standing, in part, because they live nowhere close to the project and there is no evidence of harm from placement of the structures.
If you are writing about this ongoing Lebanon County case or other legal issues surrounding Mariner East 2, please find a statement from the Pennsylvania Energy Infrastructure Alliance. You can quote me, Kurt Knaus, as PEIA spokesman:
Statement:
“This filing had nothing to do with questions about the rule of law, which was administered properly by public servants on the board after considerable public input. Rather, it was about one thing only — opponents’ efforts to halt the pipeline at any cost. The court has made clear that opponents’ approach is faulty and that Mariner East was legally permitted.”