The NEXUS pipeline saga continues in the city of Green, with a group of residents filing a petition for a referendum Thursday afternoon.
The petition contains more than 1,500 signatures from concerned citizens who hope the referendum makes it onto the ballot.
“Nobody wants a pipeline in their city, nobody wants it in their backyard,” said resident Erin Swartzwelder. “We don’t want to see our children play sports in a blast zone, we don’t want to see property values decrease. And that effects the entire city, not just individual homeowners, but everyone.”
In February, after years of fighting against it, Green city council voted 4-3 on a settlement with NEXUS — receiving roughly 20 acres of land and $7.5 million and selling easements for 2.5 acres.
Councilman Matt Shaughnessy voted against the settlement.
“I voted against the settlement because I didn’t think it was good for the city of Green,” he said, adding that he believes there are more legal options that can be exhausted.
“The first hope is to get it on the ballot and let the citizens choose whether or not they agree to what the council did,” Shaughnessy said.
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The petition was submitted to the finance director, who will hold onto it for 10 days before submitting it to the Board of Elections. The BOE ultimately decides if it goes onto the ballot.
Work on the pipeline has already begun in Green, with crews cutting down trees on the west side of town. Some residents lost power for several hours Wednesday when those trees took down power lines.
NEXUS will next dig trenches and hopes to have pipe laid by late summer. The 255-mile pipeline runs from Canada through Michigan and Ohio transporting natural gas.
