Idaho’s highest court rules Judge John Bradbury lacked jurisdiction-
This is not an immediate go ahead for the oil companies to move up Highway 12, but hopes for a quick kill of the oil juggernaut are gone.
Update: I understand that this decision might allow the movement of 4 large coke drums up Highway 12. These are bound for Billings, not Alberta. Winter will soon be closing in, making movement soon before transportation becomes too difficult in the winter.
Idaho Court Tosses megaloads ruling. By JOHN MILLER – Associated Press.
Leading the fight against the international dirty oil consortium is the Idaho public interest law firm, Advocates for the West.
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There is a good update and analysis of the ruling in New West. Latest Ruling on Big Rigs and Highway 12 Not About Merits of the Case. The majority opinion for the Nov. 1 Idaho Supreme Court ruling cites jurisdiction questions in its overruling a lower-court decision in August that stopped the transport. By Steve Bunk, 11-02-10
Ralph Maughan
Dr. Ralph Maughan is professor emeritus of political science at Idaho State University. He was a Western Watersheds Project Board Member off and on for many years, and was also its President for several years. For a long time he produced Ralph Maughan's Wolf Report. He was a founder of the Greater Yellowstone Coalition. He and Jackie Johnson Maughan wrote three editions of "Hiking Idaho." He also wrote "Beyond the Tetons" and "Backpacking Wyoming's Teton and Washakie Wilderness." He created and is the administrator of The Wildlife News.
OK, I have absolutely no understanding of this situation other than the tidbits that I have read on this blog.
Everything that I have read by the posters here has stated that this is being done for the sake of ExxonMobil, but this Idaho Supreme Court article said it was for ConocoPhillips. So which is it, or is it both?
It is for both, Conoco has 4 tanks waiting for shipment to Billings, and Exxon has over 200 waiting for shipment to Alberta, so there is actually benefits to both companies if they prevail…
so, stopping the shipments forces the companies to spend more money to get them to Alberta ? … how much more money ? …
Brain with the size of these shipments, it will cost them in the hundreds of millions if they can’t transport though Idaho and Montana, this is really a big deal and very detrimental to the environment..
Unfortunately, with some of the things I have heard, I fear the fix is in.. and they are allowing people to vent, but the outcome will be the same..
sounds like it’d be easier to get a legislative work-around then to change route.