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Residents had a chance to learn more about the KinderMorgan Pipeline expansion project, which will affect as many as 51 landowners along a 21-mile segment along northern Dallas County.

Allen Fore, Vice President of public affairs for Kinder Morgan, said they are adding these looping projects along the entire pipeline to help increase capacity for the customers using the natural gas. The project is being developed by Southern Natural Gas Company, a Delaware-based company equally owned by subsidiaries of Kinder Morgan, Southern Company and Elba Express, which is a subsidiary of Kinder Morgan.

The project is expected to cost $3 million and will increase the capacity of the line by up to 1.3 billion cubic feet per day.

“The project is a market-driven response to increased demand for transportation of natural gas delivery points,” Fore said. “This serves not only our industrial customers, but it also will serve our residential customers as well to meet the energy demands.”

An open house was scheduled for Thursday at Selma High School.  Local residents were able to come and see where the pipeline will be located and see how their properties would be affected. They could also ask questions about appropriate compensation to get the easement for the pipeline. The pipeline currently runs from Louisiana to South Carolina. 

Specifically in Dallas County, Fore said there will be a 21-mile addition coming to the area. He said the pipe will be at least three feet below ground, deeper in many areas. They are notifying landowners on or within 300 feet of the proposed route.

In addition to the additional pipe loop, Kinder Morgan also showed that the Selma compressor station will also be upgraded to handle the additional capacity.

“The meetings at this stage are very informal. We do not make a formal statement or have a formal public hearing,” Fore said. “There isn’t necessarily a program. It is just a chance for local residents to engage our persons and persons with the Federal Energy Regulator Commission to ask any questions they have. Our purpose is to give the public as much information as they want so they are aware of what we’re doing and ask how they will be affected.”

Edwin Wilson, a resident from the Summerfield area, said he was one of the landowners in the area.

“I came out because I wanted to get some more information about this project,” Wilson said. “I wanted to make sure that I had all of the information because when the pipeline came through many years ago, some folks didn’t have the same information as others. So we want to make sure that we learn as much as we can so we can make an informed decision.”

Fore said the pipe originally came through in the 1960s and 1970s. They are hopeful expansion of the pipeline will last them at least another generation.

“This is likely a once in 30 years type project,” Fore said.