Justin Timberlake Raises Concern Over Plans to Build Byhalia Oil Pipeline in Memphis
Celebrity
Coinciding with Earth Day, the Suit and Tie hitmaker tries to gather people s support in the fight against the building of the 49-mile pipe since it will place the world s cleanest drinking water at risk. Apr 23, 2021
AceShowbiz -
Justin Timberlake is using his huge social media platform for a positive purpose. Fighting against the plans to build Byhalia oil pipeline potentially in his hometown Memphis, the Suit & Tie hitmaker tried to raise people s awareness of the issue.
On Thursday, April 22, the 40-year-old took to Instagram to spread an informative video explaining why the pipeline would be bad for the city. In it, it was explained that the city sits on top of the Memphis Sand Aquifer, which supplies trillions of gallons of the world s finest drinking water to one million locals.
Newspaper Icon with News Title - Blue Arrow on a Grey Background. Mass Media Concept. arhon
Facing resistance to its plans to build an oil pipeline over an aquifer that provides drinking water to 1 million people, Plains All American Pipeline has asked for a âmutual pauseâ in its dispute with city officials in Memphis, according to the Associated Press.
The company sent a letter to the Memphis City Council about a proposed city law that could make it harder to construct the pipeline through neighborhoods in south Memphis, which would then extend more than 40 miles across north Mississippi.
Plains is part of a joint venture with Valero Energy to build the Byhalia Connection, which would link the Valero refinery in Memphis with another larger pipeline in Byhalia, Miss.
Since February 2020, the Byhalia Pipeline, a joint venture of Valero and Plains All American Pipeline, has been trying to gain control of part of Johnson-Tutwiler’s land, which is along the route of the proposed 49-mile Byhalia Connection oil pipeline. The route would run through multiple majority-Black neighborhoods in south-west Memphis, and researchers and activists say a spill could threaten the city’s public water source: an aquifer the size of Lake Michigan.
Johnson-Tutwiler does not currently reside on the stretch of land the company wants – .08 of an acre temporarily and .11 of an acre permanently – but it would prevent her or other family members from ever building a house. “That was the only thing that I had that my mom left with us that we could pass down through the lines of the family,” she said.
Company Asks for Pause in Memphis Oil Pipeline Dispute
A company facing resistance to its plans to build an oil pipeline over an aquifer that provides drinking water to 1 million people has asked for a “mutual pause” in its dispute with city officials in Memphis, Tennessee.
Plains All American Pipeline sent a letter to the Memphis City Council about a proposed city law that could make it harder to construct an underground oil pipeline through wetlands and neighborhoods in south Memphis and north Mississippi. Plains is part of a joint venture with Valero Energy to build the Byhalia Connection, which would link the Valero refinery in Memphis with another larger pipeline in north Mississippi.
As an unacceptable risk to the Memphis Sand aquifer, Mayor Jim Strickland said Tuesday he will support local efforts to regulate the proposed Byhalia pipeline, after careful review and detailed conversations with environmental scientists by his administration.
The statement also urges state and federal agencies to thoroughly evaluate the Byhalia Pipeline proposal with more scrutiny. I have great concerns that the Byhalia Pipeline would pose an unacceptable risk to our Aquifer. The risk of a leak in the pipeline is real, and any leak is likely to cause harm to the Aquifer. It’s a risk we should not take, Strickland wrote in a statement a city official said Memphis City Council received Tuesday.