The Battle of Mariner East 2 rages on.
There are two important developments to note today.
First, earlier this week Delaware County Council found itself deadlocked 2-2 on a vote to perform a risk assessment study. Council Chairman John McBlain could not break the tie because he abstained from the vote. While McBlain himself has not done any legal work for Sunoco, which is building the massive project, his law firm has. McBlain abstained so as to avoid any appearance of a conflict of interest.
That means no risk assessment study, at least for now. The two new Democrats on council say they will continue working to try to satisfy the Republicans' concerns with the plan.
We talk about it on today's editorial page.
Then came Thursday afternoon's blockbuster.
Just a month after the flow of ethane, butane and propane was allowed to start again on Mariner East 1 after being shut down for more than a month, a Public Utility Commission administrative law judge shut it down again. Not only that, but the judge also halted all construction work in West Whiteland Township.v
This again stems from the sinkholes that have formed in a neighborhood there. They exposed the old Mariner East 1 pipeline. The judge said Sunoco has failed to take reasonable steps to warn people of the possible dangers of the Mariner East 2.
The judge's language certainly seemed in line with what opponents of the plan have been saying now for months, that it is insane to move this amount of highly volatile material through densely populated neighborhoods, right next to elementary schools and senior centers.
Of course, Sunoco, labor unions, and energy folks don't see it that way.
They see an activist judge overstepping her bounds.
All of this is a result of state Sen. Andy Dinniman, D-19 of West Whiteland, filing a complaint. Dinniman has been one of the loudest voices critical of the project and Sunoco.
The interesting thing is that Sunoco says the project is 98 percent complete and they were looking to bring it online this summer.
This latest delay likely means that will not happen. The company has to present evidence to the PUC indicating they have taken the necessary steps to ensure the safety of the public.
You can get all the details here.
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