Comanche Trail Pipeline has questionable future

Questions loom over the future of pipeline construction in San Elizario. Representatives of El Paso County Water Improvement District 1 (EPCWID) and the Comanche Trail Pipeline are scheduled to meet on Tuesday in federal court, one day before a temporary restraining order that halted construction is set to expire. Both parties were given more than two weeks to address concerns about the pipeline before presenting their findings to U.S. District Judge Frank Montalvo on Tuesday. The defendant, EPCWID, was ordered to complete several tasks before Tuesday’s conference. The order instructed EPCWID to visit the site of its San Elizario canals to report any specific concerns about safety or engineering. Representatives were told to relay the information to Comanche. Comanche must then address the concerns in an attempt to reach a solution. Representatives of EPCWID and Comanche met last week to discuss the engineering specifications and any concerns about Comanche’s plans to cross irrigation structures. Montalvo will review all the documents and information on Tuesday and will make a decision on the future of the project. Construction work on the pipeline has been halted since Nov. 8 after Montalvo’s order to cease work immediately. The order came after the United States filed a motion to prevent further construction, prohibiting “Comanche Trail Pipeline LLC, its officers, directors, agents, servants, employees and contractors from entering upon any right-of-way, irrigation structure, real estate or other property interest of the United States of America or El Paso Water Improvement District No. 1 for the purpose of commencing the construction or installation of its natural gas pipeline under the Franklin Canal in El Paso, Texas.” The government feared that the installation of the pipeline at a depth of 10 feet under the Franklin Canal could result in the collapse of the canal or damage to the pipeline, the El Paso water supply or residents in the vicinity of the pipeline. “Such damage would be irreparable as the water could not be recovered and loss of life cannot be restored” the order said. Comanche Trail Pipeline LLC filed an emergency motion on Nov. 9 to dissolve the temporary restraining order and request an immediate hearing on the motion to dissolve. The company met with the court on Nov. 10 but did not take up the motion to dissolve the order. The court recessed to allow the parties to discuss a settlement and, after the recess, reset the preliminary injunction hearing from Nov. 14 to Nov. 18 so both parties could work out a potential settlement. The United States responded to the company’s motion to dissolve the restraining order. The response said, “The plaintiff (Comanche Trail Pipeline, LLC) and its affiliates have quickly moved through the state courts to condemn real property to complete its pipeline with little, if any, oversight.” “The Government had previously sought to stay deadlines to ‘move, plead or otherwise respond’ pending its review of the pipeline project. Given that the parties had been litigating for almost a year; that the government’s property rights could be affected; and that the county’s water supply is critical, the request was reasonable.” Montalvo signed off on an agreement between the pipeline company and the water district that will extend the temporary restraining order until Dec. 6.