Clarence Adams’ Landowner Story Added to OLOL Website
We are pleased to announce a new landowner story has been added to the Our Land ~ Our Lives website.
Clarence Adams is a Douglas County landowner who has been battling Jordan Cove/Pacific Connector for well over a decade. He and his wife Stephany live just outside of Tenmile, Oregon. The Pacific Connector pipeline route crosses their property just 165 horizontal feet from their home. Pembina also wants to locate a Temporary Work Area (TEWA) on their property during construction.
Clarence’s concerns are many: the proximity of the pipeline to his house and horse barn, the destruction of a beloved stand of oaks, and impacts to a seasonal creek, not to mention construction noise and the invasion of privacy. Underscoring all of these issues is outrage that a private company seemingly has the right to do what they want to his land in spite of his objections.
After 28 years, raising two kids and many animals, Clarence and Stephany have grown attached to the land, where they board their horses and maintain orchard trees and a garden. Clarence also keeps bees.
Clarence is an avid researcher and has submitted comments to FERC and Oregon’s agencies every step of the regulatory process. He has also helped organize fellow impacted landowners, first by forming Landowners United, then as an active member of the Landowners Advisory Committee. Clarence takes every opportunity to talk to folks about Jordan Cove and often tables at local events.
His concerns extend beyond just his own property. He worries about impacts of pipeline construction on water quality all along the route; he’s also concerned about the scope of dredging in Coos Bay and the storage of flammable by-product gases at the Jordan Cove terminal facility, which is close to the densely populated towns of Coos Bay and North Bend.
“I am currently 67, and I figured out that I have been fighting the pipeline for 19% of my life,” Clarence told me recently. “That’s too close to one-fifth for my liking.”
Despite the commitment of time and energy, Clarence has vowed to stay in the fight as long as necessary. He is one of several landowners being represented by the Niskanen Center, which recently filed suit against FERC.
“As a landowner who has the proposed pipeline within 165 feet of the family home, we will fight the Jordan Cove project by every means we can,” he says. “Anyone who values private property rights over corporate greed should be deeply offended that FERC would approve a project that will adversely affect Oregonians for decades to come, if built.”
Look for more stories in upcoming weeks. If you’re a landowner on or adjacent the pipeline route and would like to share your story, please email me at julietgrable@gmail.com