[Vision2020] how"real" eminent domain works in Idaho

[david sarff]

Could this be a purposeful diversion confuser to persuade fence walkers to 
vote for Prop 2?

D Sarff

>
>This in from the Idaho State Journal in Pocatello. A clause in the Idaho 
>Constitution allows timber and mining companies to take your private land 
>for access purposes to theirs.
>
>Mark
>
>Aug 14, 3:33 AM EDT
>
>Simplot suggests condemning land for mine access
>
>POCATELLO, Idaho (AP) -- Agribusiness conglomerate J.R. Simplot Co. may try 
>to get a judge to condemn part of an eastern Idaho couple's 467-acre 
>property so the company can build a road for a proposed expansion of its 
>phosphate mine near here.
>
>So far, Peter and Judy Riede have refused to sell rights-of-way to any 
>portion of their land in rural Caribou County to Simplot. They say a haul 
>road for ore from the Smoky Canyon Mine would damage their land, which has 
>two creeks featuring 20-inch Yellowstone cutthroat trout.
>
>After the Riedes declined an offer of $2.1 million from Simplot, the 
>company suggested in public documents filed with the U.S. Forest Service 
>that it could simply use 110-year-old provisions in the Idaho Constitution 
>that give mining companies the right to cross private lands to reach their 
>properties.
>
>Simplot, which has $3 billion in annual revenue, also broached eminent 
>domain in a June 9 letter to the couple. It asked them to reconsider the 
>offer, and said if they didn't the company would "move forward with 
>pursuing alternatives that allow Simplot to appropriately develop our 
>phosphate mineral leases."
>
>"We were sick. We were literally in shock," said Peter Riede, while casting 
>a homemade fishing fly into Crow Creek. "We had no idea this was allowable 
>under Idaho law."
>
>In its review of Simplot's mine-expansion proposal, the U.S. Forest Service 
>- which leases the mining land to the company - will likely pick the most 
>cost-effective, least-destructive route allowing Simplot to reach its 
>operation.
>
>Since the agency is considering four proposed transportation routes, 
>Simplot officials say the discussion of eminent domain is premature. Access 
>through the Riede property is just one of several options, spokesman Rick 
>Phillips said.
>
>"In draft comments it was pointed out that eminent domain is a recognized 
>Idaho constitutional vehicle that can be used," said Phillips. "Does that 
>mean we're gearing up for eminent domain? Heavens no. The final draft has 
>not been released yet."
>
>Don Copple, a Boise-based lawyer, said eminent domain was likely used often 
>by mining outfits in Idaho's early history, when the state was pushing 
>development of its natural resources and lawmakers gave companies rights to 
>help them extract minerals. Today, other private industries, including 
>utilities, rely on eminent domain.
>
>"Look at Idaho Power," Copple said. "They condemn for power lines all the 
>time."
>
>Conservation groups contend that Simplot would be subverting the law if it 
>applied eminent domain in this case.
>
>Marv Hoyt, Idaho director of the Greater Yellowstone Coalition, said the 
>provision was added to the state constitution in the 1890s to protect small 
>miners from larger operations that staked claims just to block access.
>
>Now, he said, "The big Goliath is beating up on David."
>
>The road would run from the mine to an existing milling site, where Simplot 
>mixes phosphate ore with water and pipes it to a plant in Pocatello. The 
>route at issue would cut through about 11 acres of the Riedes property.
>
>"This alternative would have the least amount of impact," Phillips said.
>
>The Riedes say the impact will be significant. They hope to build a 
>3,000-square-foot home near the proposed road site.
>
>"We had a lot of trouble finding the place we wanted," Peter Riede said. 
>"Places like this are pretty hard to come by."
>
>---
>