Landowners meet to discuss next steps in face of eminent domain lawsuits

NORFOLK -  Several people facing eminent domain lawsuits regarding the Keystone XL pipeline were in Norfolk Saturday looking for more information about what the next step is.

"The biggest overarching concern is how can a foreign for-profit company come in and take their land for a private purpose which is to make a profit in Canada," Brian Jorde, who represents many landowners said. 

Since late September, TransCanada, now known as TC Energy, has been filing eminent domain lawsuits against several landowners in Nebraska. The company has said they have tried to reach agreements with landowners in the past. Many of those now being sued turned down those offers because they didn’t think they were offered a good deal or don’t want the pipeline built.

"It's shocking when Nebraskans hear that because you have a foreign company, TransCanada, that is actually using eminent domain against American landowners for a pipeline that over 100 of them don't want," Bold Nebraska found Jane Kleeb said. 

Bold Nebraska, who organized the meeting, say they will continue to fight the lawsuits and pipeline. Jorde says eminent domain should be reserved for the government, not for private companies. He referenced a statute passed by the Nebraska legislature that allows oil companies to use eminent domain in the state. 

"Oil companies that can act like the government, that's the number one problem," Jorde said. "It has to be fixed. It's completely unfair. They need to be treated similar to wind and solar companies and pay a fair price."

For many landowners, fighting the eminent domain lawsuit is their biggest concern. Another one is preventing the pipeline because of potential negative environmental affects.

"This is something that we're never going to give up on," Kleeb said. "Our state legislators should be, clearly, changing eminent domain laws in our state and that this is about protecting our water." 

The Keystone XL pipeline has been in the works for about a decade. Any construction is still a long way off, but the eminent domain action taken by TC energy brings it another step closer.