Summerlin HOA draws lawsuit over pipeline pressure

By Steve Green

Monday, Aug. 31, 2009 | 9:49 a.m.

The owner of a natural gas pipeline running through Las Vegas is suing a Summerlin homeowners association, charging the HOA is refusing to cooperate with a plan to boost pressure in the line.

Kern River Gas Transmission Co. of Salt Lake City has proposed to increase the pressure in its existing regional natural gas pipeline by 11 percent. The increase would be for the entire length of the pipe, which runs 1,680 miles from Wyoming to Southern California.

Kern River filed a lawsuit Friday in U.S. District Court for Nevada against the Summerlin North Community Association and 4.6 acres of property it says is owned by the HOA.

This is the second such lawsuit pending over the plan to boost pressure in the line through Summerlin.

On April 13, Summerlin developer Howard Hughes Corp. sued Kern River, charging the plan violated a 1993 easement.

Hughes, owned by General Growth Properties Inc. of Chicago, complained the plan may raise safety concerns, "the mere perception of which could have an immeasurable negative impact on Summerlin's viability and appeal as a residential community."

After General Growth filed for bankruptcy protection, a judge allowed Kern River to litigate that suit outside of the bankruptcy process and that case is pending in federal court in Las Vegas.

In Friday's lawsuit, Kern River noted it received approval from the U.S. Transportation Department's Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to boost pressure in the pipeline.

In its applications, Kern River says the increase doesn't pose safety or environmental risks because the higher pressure is well within the capacity of the 36-inch steel pipeline.

But the Summerlin North HOA has refused to cooperate with Kern River in granting necessary easements to boost pressure in the line, Kern River charges.

Attached to the lawsuit is a June letter from the HOA to Kern River indicating the HOA wouldn't sign off on the plan.

"Based on the facts you presented to us, you have in hand permits from the necessary government agencies to allow the increase in MAOP (maximum allowable operating pressure) without the Summerlin North Board needing to execute the previously referenced easement," the letter says.

"The board realizes that an increase in MAOP carries with it a decrease in line safety factor. Inasmuch as the board has no technical competence, it does not want to in any way countenance the proposed increase in MAOP. The board will rely on government oversight in the permitting process to ensure that best practices regarding pipeline operation (and most particularly safety) are adhered to," the letter says.

After receipt of that letter, Kern River tried again but failed to gain the cooperation of the board.

The lawsuit says the HOA board told Kern River on Thursday that the board was rejecting Kern River's plan to amend the easement because the easement prohibits an increase in the pressure in the line.

"Summerlin North will not suffer any harm from the increased MAOP, but Kern River, and particularly its customers and end users of the natural gas it transports, will suffer tremendous harm from any delays," the lawsuit charges.

The lawsuit asserts an eminent domain claim over the land at issue and asks the court for a declaration that Kern River can increase pressure in the line through the Summerlin North property.