New pipeline coming to far East El Paso County

County Commissioners unanimously approved a permit for a new pipeline to be built in far East El Paso earlier this week.

The pipeline will be built by Holly Energy Partners, a company from Dallas.

It was a decision the County wasn’t happy about.

“This is, again, one of those situations where our hands are tied,” county judge Veronica Escobar said. “Constitutionally, we don’t have the right to prevent it.”

The pipeline itself will be about 10 miles long, and will carry gasoline and diesel. The permit that County Commissioners approved is for a five-mile section (green in the map above) that will be built near the unpaved roads just south of Montana Vista.

While the County has no say in whether or not a pipeline can be built, they do have a say when it comes to the safety requirements.

“We’ve gone as far as legally we can go with the permitting process, by trying to regulate the depth and other safety issues on our right of way,” Escobar said.

The other five miles of the pipeline (yellow in the map above) would affect private property, and it’s unclear if or when Holly Energy will apply for a permit.

“Our permit doesn’t impact what they do when they’re not on our right of way,” Escobar said. “Unfortunately, due to State law, we are not able to object to the pipeline all together.”