What constitutes pipeline abandonment when the contract includes maintenance?
This is tough to answer without reviewing the entire easement and the laws of the state where you are located. This should be reviewed by an attorney. See the Directory button above.
The subjects of ROW maintenance and abandoned pipeline removal with land restoration and any needed environmental remediation must be plainly and specifically addressed in any pipeline ROW agreement negotiations. E.g.: Once a pipeline is deemed/classified abandoned by the TRRC then within a specified period of time after that classification the pipeline has to be removed, the land restored at the company’s expense and the ROW easement must revert back to the landowner.
Other items to consider during ROW negotiations are in the following article:
Here is the link to the home page of Pipeline Equities where other articles can be found.
Terri_Sargent,
I am sorry the first link took you to a sight that requires you to get a subscription to read the article. Here is a link that requires no subscription: Who Owns Abandoned Pipelines? - Pipeline Equities . You may have to copy and paste to get it to work.