News - Local

Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2009

Obama signs bill that includes money for Salt Dome

$25 million will go toward preparations

U.S. Sen. Thad Cochran’s office announced Wednesday that a bill with $25 million for engineering and other preparations for the much-talked-about Richton Salt Dome petroleum reserve plan has been signed by President Obama.

Cochran, who is ranking Republican on the Senate Appropriations Committee and a member of the Energy and Water Development Appropriations Subcommittee, helped craft the bill.

In addition to the Salt Dome money, the bill, House Resolution 3183, includes funds for construction and maintenance of levees and flood control on the Mississippi River, among others.

Cochran supports the Salt Dome plan, which has been the focus of some environmental concerns from South Mississippians and is still going through its approval process.

“I am pleased this legislation has been signed into law so that these resources can be put to work in Mississippi,” Cochran said Wednesday. “The funding in this bill will ensure more progress on the levee system that protects Mississippians. Through the Department of Energy, continued funding will be invested in our universities to develop new approaches to energy production and conservation.”

The Richton plan would use fresh water to flush out a large underground dome formation in Perry County so it can be used to store petroleum.

Plans have included using water from the Pascagoula River to flush out the dome, while others have said water from the Gulf of Mexico or the Pearl or Mississippi rivers should be considered, citing concerns about the plan’s potential effects on the Pascagoula.

The plan might take millions of gallons a day from the Pascagoula River for years and pipe the brine to the Gulf under the Department of Energy’s plan.

A spokesman in Cochran’s office said the senator supports the Richton plan and he believes environmental concerns will be addressed through the approval process.

“What he is doing is letting the DOE process move forward and through that they address all those concerns, including environmental, and they allow time for public comment,” Chris Gallegos said.