Montana news about the environment, natural resources, wildlife, climate change and more.

Permit process for natural gas plant near Laurel restarts following residents' pushback

Nora Saks

A NorthWestern Energy contractor is reapplying for a floodplains permit for a planned pipeline in Laurel after Yellowstone County withdrew its permission amid opposition from residents there.

County commissioners called off a scheduled public hearing on the permit when they learned that the applicant is starting the process over.

NorthWestern is seeking to build a methane pipeline under the Yellowstone River in Laurel to support a future 175-megawatt natural gas plant. Laurel residents who oppose the construction say the plant and its infrastructure would affect property value, the environment and quality of life in their neighborhood.

Yellowstone County Chief counsel Jeana Lervick says the public works department received the new application and will open a 15-day public comment period later this week.

Copyright 2022 Yellowstone Public Radio. To see more, visit Yellowstone Public Radio.

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Kayla Desroches reports for Yellowstone Public Radio in Billings. She was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, and stayed in the city for college, where she hosted a radio show that featured serialized dramas like the Shadow and Suspense. In her pathway to full employment, she interned at WNYC in New York City and KTOO in Juneau, Alaska. She then spent a few years on the island of Kodiak, Alaska, where she transitioned from reporter to news director before moving to Montana.