DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) - A group of organizations from Illinois, Iowa, North Dakota and South Dakota are speaking out as a unified coalition against the proposed Bakken Oil Pipeline project. The organizations include environmental groups Food and Water Watch and Shawnee Forest Sentinels and social action groups Dakota Rural Action and Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement. They want each state's utility regulators to consider testimony and evidence from the other affected states and to look at the financial status of Energy Transfer Partners, the parent company behind the pipeline project. The coalition points out that the company self-insures against accidents and declares in its recent annual report it may not have adequate reserves to cover all future liabilities including known contamination. A spokeswoman for Energy Transfer Partners did not immediately respond to messages.
