A Memphis movement fueled by People Power to stop the Byhalia Pipeline, a crude oil pipeline that would have cut through backyards and a drinking water well field in South Memphis.
The Byhalia Connection Pipeline was a 49-mile pipeline proposed in December 2019 by Plains All American Pipeline, L.P. and Valero Energy Corporation to transport crude oil. It would run from Memphis to Marshall County, MS and connect two pre-existing pipelines: the Diamond Pipeline that carries oil from Oklahoma to the Valero Memphis Refinery and the Capline Pipeline carrying oil from the Midwest to the Gulf of Mexico for export.
The proposed route started at the Valero Memphis Refinery in Southwest Memphis and traveled south through Boxtown, a black neighborhood named for the boxcar homes that Freedmen built in the 19th century. In preparation for the project, Plains All American began suing Black landowners in October 2020 for easements, claiming “eminent domain,” a governmental power being used by a private, powerful corporation.
Not only would the proposed pipeline claim backyards in Boxtown, but it would also pass through Davis Well Field, a public drinking water well field supplying water to Southwest Memphis and the rest of the city. This well field also has a known breach in our Aquifer’s protective clay layer, exposing the Memphis Sands to potential contamination from above.
Since we know that pipeline spills are common and that one pound of crude oil can contaminate 25,000,000 gallons of groundwater with cancer-causing chemicals like benzene, the route was a clear threat to human health. However, nobody from MLGW, the Shelby County Groundwater Quality Board, or any other local agencies took action to denounce the plan or request a new route.
In October 2020, a group of activists in Boxtown founded Memphis Community Against the Pipeline (MCAP) led by Justin J. Pearson. They were already protesting to stop the pipeline when we identified the threat to the Memphis Sand Aquifer. Alongside MCAP, the TN Sierra Club, and the Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC), we took legal and grassroots actions to stop the pipeline. Together, we showed that this pipeline not only would harm underserved communities like Boxtown, but all Memphians’ drinking water source. This elevated the movement to a whole new level.
POA targeted the permitting processes that allowed this pipeline, which did not consider our Aquifer and only reviewed surface water impacts. In September 2020, we submitted comments to Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC), urging them to revoke the pipeline’s Aquatic Resource Alteration Permit (ARAP).
In November 2020, we wrote to the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and asked they deny the Nationwide Permit #12 needed for the pipeline to move forward. Despite our efforts, both permits were issued by early 2021 and we turned to legal action.
In April 2021, we partnered with MCAP, the TN Sierra Club, and SELC to file suit against USACE’s decision to issue their permit. As the permit was fast-tracked, we argued that the Army Corps did not fulfill their requirements under the Clean Water Act and the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) to assess potential impacts of the pipeline to our drinking water supply and the 130 streams and wetlands it would cross. We also argued that they did not meet the public input requirements for crude oil pipeline projects.
The real engine of the movement to Stop the Byhalia Pipeline was people power. Our coalition led several protests, rallying neighbors to show Plains All American that Boxtown was not the “path of least resistance” that a pipeline spokesperson had called it. Representatives Steve Cohen and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Al Gore, Jane Fonda, Danny Glover, and other celebrities and activists spoke up in support. A petition with over 39,000 signatures was created. Rev. Dr. William Barber II of the Poor People’s Campaign came to town, leading a protest.
On July 2, 2021, Plains All American announced they would cancel the Byhalia Pipeline, giving up their state and federal permits. Our movement inspired Aquifer awareness across Memphis, including our Memphis City Council members and Shelby County Commissioners.
In September 2021, Memphis City Council passed Ordinance 5795 creating a Water Wellhead Protection Overlay to increase review of future development around our drinking water wells. The next month, they passed Ordinance 5807 requiring pipeline projects to apply for City Rights-of-Way Permits when they cross city streets. Meanwhile, the Shelby County Commission created a 1,500 foot setback requirement in our zoning laws, requiring space between pipelines and residential areas. These protections are a major step forward in strengthening Aquifer protections against threats like the Byhalia Pipeline – but we still have a long way to go.
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Check out our archive of resources related to the fight to stop the Byhalia Pipeline.
Our comments to TDEC in September 2020 and to the US Army Corps of Engineers in November 2020 are a great reference and resource.
You can also read SELC's excellent comments on Nationwide Permit 12, the permit that enabled the fast-tracking of this hazardous pipeline, and their full comment to the Army Corps sent in December 2020.
Congressman Steve Cohen also penned a letter to the Army Corps - you can read that letter here, as well as their response sent in early 2021.
And, you can dig in to the science behind the threat in this Evaluation of Risk to the Memphis Sand Aquifer, conducted by Adaptive Groundwater Solutions for SELC in February 2021.
Or, read the full court filing from April 2021 to understand our case in federal court.
Prefer to listen to your news rather than read? The Southern Environmental Law Center covered the story in Season 5 of their Broken Ground Podcast: How Memphians Defeated a Pipeline. Listen wherever you get your podcasts for some familiar Memphis voices!
