Hyperion pledges 'clean' refinery
Opponents say there's 'no such thing'
By Michele Linck Journal staff writer | Posted: Wednesday, December 05, 2007
ELK POINT, S.D. -- Hyperion Resources officials told a packed room at the Union County Courthouse on Tuesday that the company is committed to building the "cleanest, lowest (pollution) emitting" oil refinery in the United States and hopes it will be in Union County.
Project executive Corky Frank told the crowd of more than 150 it would be "a showplace," a boon to the economies of all the surrounding areas, and "be a place people would want to visit."
Hyperion, a Dallas-based company, made its presentation to the Union County Board of Commissioners ahead of filing a formal application today to change the zoning on about 3,800 acres from agricultural to planned development. The proposed $8 billion project would consist of a 400,000-barrel-per-day oil refinery and an associated utilities plant.
The company claims to have purchase options on about 10,000 acres in southern Union County. Bob Frieberg, a Beresford, S.D., attorney who represents the company, said it will apply to rezone other land for various other uses as it becomes necessary.
Four members of Save Union County, an opposition group, were also on the commissioners' meeting agenda and followed the Hyperion speakers, detailing their objections to the project.
The audience was liberally sprinkled throughout with people wearing "Save Union County" buttons or the organization's orange "Stop Gorilla" T-shirts. "Gorilla" was the name residents gave the mysterious company that was buying up land purchase options, until Hyperion identified itself in June.
When Frieberg said Hyperion is committed to "transparency," many in the crowd laughed out loud. Commission Chairman Doyle Karpen warned them against outbursts, and the meeting, which was moved from the commission chamber to a courtroom because of the overflow crowd, remained orderly.
Frieberg also said Hyperion CEO Albert Huddleston wants to put the rezoning issue to the voters. "Mr. Huddleston is committed to a countywide election because he doesn't want to come to a place where he would not be welcomed," Frieberg said. The company says it is also pursuing "several" other Midwestern sites.
Frieberg also said Huddleston wants the public to have its questions answered. Three public forums with company experts are planned. (See schedule below.)
Frank, a retired Marathon Oil executive, said engineering and details will take two years and would be followed by 48 months of construction. A pipeline would also be built to carry Canadian tar sands oil to the site. The refinery would become operational in 2013 and would employ about 1,800 people.
'No such thing'
Save Union County speakers Dale Harkness, Burdette Hanson, Arden Hanson and Ed Cable painted a bleak picture of the refinery.
They warned the refinery would result in hundreds of millions of dollars in infrastructure costs being heaped on county taxpayers, would contaminate the soil and aquifers, endanger the area's wildlife and threaten the Missouri River.
Harkness said he was born in 1947 in a Union County of "safety and quality of life. Are we the group that would ruin that?" he asked.
"There's no such thing as a green refinery," Arden Hanson said. And, he said, the project "could not be more contrary" to present Union County planning and zoning. "We are not opposed to development in general, but this project is in the wrong place at the wrong time." He also accused Hyperion of abandoning its stated intention of having a one- or two-mile buffer of land around the refinery.
A news release issued Tuesday afternoon by Hyperion spokesman Eric Williams says the buffer would be "at least one-eighth a mile along the entire perimeter of the property."
The Save Union County group maintained that the county's development should be for renewable energy such as biodiesel and wind.
Cable called on the board of commissioners to insist on the buffer, insist on a complete draft of the environmental impact report, keep a list of all the permits Hyperion applies for and to "do the proper economic and social planning."
The board took no action on the matter Tuesday.
Meetings with Hyperion's experts:
Hyperion Resources will host three public forums next week in Union County to address questions from the public:
Monday -- 6 p.m. Beresford Community Center, 601 S. Seventh St., Beresford.
Tuesday -- 6 p.m. Dakota Valley Elementary School, 80 Northshore Drive, North Sioux City.
Wednesday -- 6 p.m. Elk Point Jefferson High School, 402 S. Douglas St., Elk Point.
Project executive Corky Frank told the crowd of more than 150 it would be "a showplace," a boon to the economies of all the surrounding areas, and "be a place people would want to visit."
Hyperion, a Dallas-based company, made its presentation to the Union County Board of Commissioners ahead of filing a formal application today to change the zoning on about 3,800 acres from agricultural to planned development. The proposed $8 billion project would consist of a 400,000-barrel-per-day oil refinery and an associated utilities plant.
The company claims to have purchase options on about 10,000 acres in southern Union County. Bob Frieberg, a Beresford, S.D., attorney who represents the company, said it will apply to rezone other land for various other uses as it becomes necessary.
Four members of Save Union County, an opposition group, were also on the commissioners' meeting agenda and followed the Hyperion speakers, detailing their objections to the project.
The audience was liberally sprinkled throughout with people wearing "Save Union County" buttons or the organization's orange "Stop Gorilla" T-shirts. "Gorilla" was the name residents gave the mysterious company that was buying up land purchase options, until Hyperion identified itself in June.
When Frieberg said Hyperion is committed to "transparency," many in the crowd laughed out loud. Commission Chairman Doyle Karpen warned them against outbursts, and the meeting, which was moved from the commission chamber to a courtroom because of the overflow crowd, remained orderly.
Frieberg also said Hyperion CEO Albert Huddleston wants to put the rezoning issue to the voters. "Mr. Huddleston is committed to a countywide election because he doesn't want to come to a place where he would not be welcomed," Frieberg said. The company says it is also pursuing "several" other Midwestern sites.
Frieberg also said Huddleston wants the public to have its questions answered. Three public forums with company experts are planned. (See schedule below.)
Frank, a retired Marathon Oil executive, said engineering and details will take two years and would be followed by 48 months of construction. A pipeline would also be built to carry Canadian tar sands oil to the site. The refinery would become operational in 2013 and would employ about 1,800 people.
'No such thing'
Save Union County speakers Dale Harkness, Burdette Hanson, Arden Hanson and Ed Cable painted a bleak picture of the refinery.
They warned the refinery would result in hundreds of millions of dollars in infrastructure costs being heaped on county taxpayers, would contaminate the soil and aquifers, endanger the area's wildlife and threaten the Missouri River.
Harkness said he was born in 1947 in a Union County of "safety and quality of life. Are we the group that would ruin that?" he asked.
"There's no such thing as a green refinery," Arden Hanson said. And, he said, the project "could not be more contrary" to present Union County planning and zoning. "We are not opposed to development in general, but this project is in the wrong place at the wrong time." He also accused Hyperion of abandoning its stated intention of having a one- or two-mile buffer of land around the refinery.
A news release issued Tuesday afternoon by Hyperion spokesman Eric Williams says the buffer would be "at least one-eighth a mile along the entire perimeter of the property."
The Save Union County group maintained that the county's development should be for renewable energy such as biodiesel and wind.
Cable called on the board of commissioners to insist on the buffer, insist on a complete draft of the environmental impact report, keep a list of all the permits Hyperion applies for and to "do the proper economic and social planning."
The board took no action on the matter Tuesday.
Meetings with Hyperion's experts:
Hyperion Resources will host three public forums next week in Union County to address questions from the public:
Monday -- 6 p.m. Beresford Community Center, 601 S. Seventh St., Beresford.
Tuesday -- 6 p.m. Dakota Valley Elementary School, 80 Northshore Drive, North Sioux City.
Wednesday -- 6 p.m. Elk Point Jefferson High School, 402 S. Douglas St., Elk Point.
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laughingatconspirators wrote on Jan 9, 2008 7:16 PM:
What details do you want? wrote on Dec 10, 2007 11:25 AM:
long time resident wrote on Dec 10, 2007 10:53 AM:
long time resident wrote on Dec 10, 2007 10:46 AM:
Union Co. wrote on Dec 10, 2007 8:54 AM: