A district court judge has ruled in favor of a Clay County man in his battle against a carbon capture pipeline company.
On Wednesday, Judge John Sandy ruled that Navigator Heartland Greenway’s demand under Iowa law to survey the property of Martin Koenig is unconstitutional. The judge said the law that authorizes surveys without the consent of landowners violates both the Iowa and U.S. Constitutions. The Heartland company sued Koenig for access to his property to conduct a survey for their pipeline. The survey won’t proceed due to the judge’s ruling, which could turn out to a blow for getting the proposed pipeline constructed.
Heartland also sued a Moville couple over survey access. A ruling in that case hasn’t yet been made. Wednesday’s ruling was made in Clay County District Court, thus it isn’t binding on the judge in Woodbury County.
The Heartland pipeline, as well as another carbon capture pipeline proposed by Summit Carbon Solutions, would run through several area counties. Another pipeline is proposed to run through parts of eastern Iowa.
