You’re on your own if that pipeline company wants your property;
the county government chooses to stay completely out of it,
so said Lowndes County Chairman Bill Slaughter
at

the 25 June Regular Session of the Lowndes County Commission.

He read a prepared statement about a proposed natural gas pipeline.
Why the county couldn’t put it on their
website as a press release is mysterious.
I’ve added the links:

Lowndes County has been
contacted by representatives of

McKenna, Long, Aldridge law firm
of Atlanta
regarding a proposed project expected to impact property owners
of Lowndes County.



Spectra Energy Company and its subsidiary,

Sabal Trail Transmissions LLC anticipates construction
of a 465 mile interstate natural gas pipeline from Anniston, Alabama
extending through Georgia and coming through Lowndes County,
terminating in Orlando, Florida.

This project is for the benefit of and is the responsibility of
Florida Power and Light.
Lowndes County has been notified as well as all the
governmental entities impacted by this project and
Lowndes County does not benefit from this proposal
and has no responsibility for the approval
other than that of a property owner potentially impacted by the
proposed route as any other property owner in Lowndes County would be.

Then he ad libbed:

I just want to clarify that Lowndes County has no interest in the
pipeline.
If Lowndes County has any property that this pipeline will be
coming through, we will be addressed as well as any private property owners
as well.
That question has come up and I hope that clarifies that.

Well, no, it doesn’t clarify why the county government is acting
like a private business instead of like a local government.
Sure if your the CEO of a company and your land isn’t affected,
you have no responsibility for anybody else who is affected.
But if you’re the Chairman of the county government, you do
have responsibility, for example to determine whether the
pipeline is beneficial to the county,
has safety implications, or for that matter where it would go.

The county didn’t even provide a map of the route,
and the one on

Sabal Trail’s website is not linkable.
Here’s one from

the Suwannee Democrat:

Can you tell from that map if it is aimed at your property?
Nope.

Here’s

the video:

Lowndes County takes no responsibility for the pipeline –Bill Slaughter

Regular Session, Lowndes County Commission (LCC),

Video by Gretchen Quarterman for Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange (LAKE), Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 25 June 2013.

-jsq