Ohio family fought against plans for a Meta pipeline through their property — and won a route around their farm

A farming family in Ohio says a pipeline developer has, at least for now, backed off pressure on them to sell a property the family has held for generations.

The dispute centers on a natural gas pipeline tied to Meta's new data center and on how large corporate developments can come into conflict with the people who already live and work on the land.

What happened?

According to BG Independent News, Will-Power sought to purchase some of the Luidhardt family's land north of Bowling Green, Ohio, for a natural gas line linked to Meta's Middleton Township data center. Jon Luidhardt said the family declined, after which the family's attorney said he got the impression the company would pursue eminent domain to force a sale.

After that, Jon Luidhardt and his father, Ken Luidhardt, turned to Maurice Thompson, executive director of the 1851 Center for Constitutional Law. Thompson asked for an intervention from the Ohio Power Siting Board, saying a project built for the benefit of a single company should not justify taking private property.

"It's land that's been in my family for at least three generations," Jon Luidhardt said, per BG Independent News. "We want to continue a fourth and fifth generation of farming."

Thompson said Will-Power later informed regulators that the line would be redirected around Luidhardt Farms and taken off the family's property, although a revised map still had not been seen by the Luidhardt family at the time of publish.

"We filed a motion to intervene in this case because we oppose any private business using the power of the state to forcibly seize another's property, through eminent domain. And that's exactly what Meta's pipeline company was attempting to do to the Luidhardts here by putting them on the route despite their opposition," Thompson wrote in an email to BG Independent News.

A representative for Williams, the parent company of Will-Power, disputed that eminent domain was used in an email to The Cool Down and noted that the company eventually moved on to a different route through other property acquisitions.

"Williams did not use eminent domain to secure the property interests associated with this project," the representative wrote. "In fact, we already had 100% acquisition before this farmer filed an intervention, and the Luidhart property was not on the pipeline route submitted for review."

In years past, Williams has categorized eminent domain as a last resort for pipeline plans, which may help to explain Thompson's impression but also why Will-Power made plans for the pipeline route that did not require the Luidhardt property.

Why does it matter?

The dispute extends beyond one Ohio farm. It raises questions about whether state authority should be used to help a private corporation secure land for infrastructure that mainly benefits its own operations.

Thompson said eminent domain is generally meant to serve a public use, not the needs of one private company. He argued the proposed Apollo pipeline was "solely to fuel a single private business, rather than to heat Ohioans' homes or fuel their cars."

Jon Luidhardt said offers to some landowners have gone as high as $200,000 per acre. "They offer an insane amount of money, and a lot of people have sold out," he said. "Money isn't an object to them, and they don't care about family history."

There is also an environmental concern. The pipeline would support a natural gas-powered facility for the data center, locking in additional polluting infrastructure as communities weigh the costs of rapid industrial expansion.

What's being done?

So far, the main challenge to the project has come from legal opposition. Thompson's intervention did not produce a court ruling, but it appears to have pushed the company to change the route.

The family had previously worked with Thompson to stop another pipeline from crossing its land. Jon Luidhardt said the possible reroute offers some reassurance, but he wants to see the updated filing before treating the issue as resolved. He also said he wanted the case tested in court. "They finally had someone stand up to them," Luidhardt said.

Thompson was more direct, according to BG Independent News: "When we shine a light on that issue, the takers tend to scatter like cockroaches and suddenly find another way that they previously declared to be impossible."

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