Town of Owego

UNPOPULAR PIPELINE: SOME LAND OWNERS WANT NO PART OF IT:

A proposed 9.5-mile natural gas pipeline that would run underneath the Susquehanna River, through private properties and a wetlands preserve has triggered objections from land owners and concerns from environmentalists.

The $15 million to $20 million pipeline, proposed by Central New York Oil and Gas, would start at the Stagecoach Natural Gas Storage Facility on Robinson Road in the Town of Owego and travel underground to the planned Millennium Pipeline near McLean Road, also in the town.

The pipeline, 24 inches in diameter, would add infrastructure that will help meet the increased demand for natural gas in the Northeast, said Barry Cigich, director of storage operations for CNYOG.

His company has approached private land owners in recent months, hoping to obtain right-of-way contracts.

Charles and Beatrice Struppler, who own 1.1 acres on Route 17C, refused to sign a contract.

"It's going to kill the property," Charles Struppler said. "You won't be able to build anything."

This is slightly off-topic, but the contrast between the headline and the substance here is stark: two familes opposing a project doesn't render it "unpopular", particularly when you don't know how many others support it. The article doesn't even discuss that possibility, except to relay the following:

Cigich said a "significant" number of property owners have signed right-of-way easements, but he was unable to provide a number.