北达科他州法官裁定：州管道选线规则不自动凌驾地方分区条例
北达科他州南中区地区法院法官杰克逊·洛夫格伦（Jackson Lofgren）10月9日作出裁定：州政府关于管道等基础设施选址的规则，并不自动凌驾于地方政府的分区条例之上。代表埃蒙斯县出庭的俾斯麦律师德里克·布拉滕（Derrick Braaten）称，这是地方政府权力的一次重大胜利——地方仍有权规定管道线路与住宅等建筑之间必须保持的距离，即所谓的"退让距离"（setback）。
本案源于一批土地所有者与埃蒙斯县（Emmons）、伯利县（Burleigh）对州公共服务委员会（PSC）及管道开发商 Summit Carbon Solutions 的诉讼。2024年11月，PSC 向 Summit 发放了二氧化碳管道线路许可。Summit 是爱荷华州一家公司，原计划从五个州的乙醇厂收集二氧化碳，通过管道网络运往北达科他州西部进行永久地下封存。
法官在裁定中指出，PSC 在发放许可时存在四处必须补正的问题：公共福利——PSC 须更好解释为何认为该线路不会损害公共福利。PSC 的律师曾在7月辩称安全不属其职责、管道安全标准由联邦机构执行，但法官明确，州机构在评估线路对公共福利的影响时可以也应当考量安全因素；备选线路——PSC 未充分论证为何南伯利县的一条备选线路已得到足够分析；泄漏扩散模型——Summit 为高压二氧化碳管道破裂情形制作了二氧化碳扩散模型，PSC 同意不公开，法官裁定应公开删节版本，或更好解释保密理由——有证据显示 Summit 曾向部分公众披露过该模型；地方条例——PSC 必须判定埃蒙斯县与伯利县设定的退让距离是否"不合理"，只有在认定不合理的情况下，州规则才取代地方条例。
布拉滕表示："这意义重大，因为法官的意思是，他认同地方政府的观点——法规保留了地方控制权，地方控制权仍然有一席之地。"他指出，裁定的影响超出管道本身：2025年州议会把原来适用于管道的同样措辞复制到了输电线路监管上，赋予 PSC 对输电线路的管辖权。在从詹姆斯敦至埃伦代尔的 JETx 输电线项目 PSC 听证会上，州法是否优先于地方分区同样是争议焦点。
裁定同时确认，PSC 于2024年11月发给 Summit 的线路许可继续有效，但 PSC 必须解决裁定指出的问题。PSC 发言人9日表示，法律团队正在审阅法官的裁决，需要时间确定下一步行动；Summit 未回复当日下午的置评邮件。
Summit 在北达科他州的项目前景依然不明。该公司一直未能获得穿越南达科他州的管道许可，无法把二氧化碳运入北达科他州。此外，洛夫格伦法官在另一起案件中裁定北达科他州允许地下封存的法律违宪（呼应了另一法院的裁定），保留部分封存通道的上诉目前正在州最高法院审理中。Summit 已制定备选方案，改用怀俄明州的地下封存点。
North Dakota Judge Rules State Pipeline Siting Rules Do Not Automatically Override Local Zoning
South Central District Court Judge Jackson Lofgren ruled on October 9 that North Dakota's rules on where infrastructure such as pipelines may be built do not automatically override local zoning ordinances. Bismarck attorney Derrick Braaten, who represented Emmons County, called it a major win for local government authority — including the power of local governments to set setback rules on how far a pipeline route must be from homes and other buildings.
The case grew out of a lawsuit by a group of landowners along with Emmons and Burleigh counties against the state Public Service Commission (PSC) and pipeline developer Summit Carbon Solutions. In November 2024, the PSC issued a pipeline route permit to Summit, an Iowa-based company whose original plan was to gather carbon dioxide from ethanol plants in five states and move it through a pipeline network to western North Dakota for permanent underground storage.
The judge identified four problems the PSC must address: public welfare — the PSC must better explain why it believes the route will not impair public welfare. A PSC attorney had argued in July that safety was not the agency's responsibility and that pipeline safety standards are enforced by a federal agency, but the judge made clear the state agency can and should consider safety when weighing a route's effect on public welfare; the alternate route — the PSC did not adequately explain why an alternate route through southern Burleigh County had been sufficiently analyzed; the plume model — Summit built a model of how carbon dioxide might disperse if its high-pressure pipeline ruptured, and the PSC agreed it should stay secret. The judge ruled a redacted version should be made public, or the PSC must better explain the secrecy, given evidence that Summit had shared the model with some members of the public; local ordinances — the PSC must determine whether the setbacks set by Emmons and Burleigh counties are unreasonable. Only if deemed unreasonable do state rules apply.
"It's really significant because what the judge is saying is that he agrees with the local government that the statute preserves local control and there's still a place for local control," Braaten said. He noted the ruling reaches beyond pipelines: in 2025 the Legislature copied the same statutory language that had applied to pipelines and used it to give the PSC authority over power lines as well. Preemption of local zoning was also an issue during PSC hearings on the JETx power line slated to run from Jamestown to Ellendale.
The order keeps in place the route permit the PSC issued to Summit in November 2024, but requires the agency to fix the problems identified. A PSC spokesperson said Friday its legal team was reviewing the findings and needed time to determine next steps; Summit did not return an email seeking comment that afternoon.
The future of Summit's project in North Dakota remains unclear. The company has been unable to obtain a permit for a pipeline through South Dakota to reach North Dakota. In addition, Lofgren has ruled in a separate case that the North Dakota law allowing underground storage is unconstitutional, echoing a ruling from a different court, and an appeal seeking to retain access to some of that storage is pending before the North Dakota Supreme Court. Summit has developed an alternative plan to use underground storage in Wyoming.
图片来源：Quintin Soloviev 摄，CC BY 4.0（Wikimedia Commons）
