KNOX, N.Y. -- Opponents of the proposed Kinder Morgan pipeline gathered yesterday in Knox to warn people about the dangers the project could bring to the area.
"There isn't an easy way to stop this, " said Becky Meier, Stop NY Fracked Gas Pipeline Co-Founder. "The basic thing is to educate people to talk to every elected official, local, state and federal."
For two years, Meier has been fighting against the North East Direct Pipeline.
In 2014, the Columbia County resident watched as energy company Kinder Morgan moved its natural gas pipeline project out of her hometown.
Now, Meier is continuing the momentum and trying to stop the pipeline altogether.
"The first few Town Boards we went to, they didn't want to hear us," Meier said.
But that has changed. If completed, the pipeline would run down the eastern edge of the state.
Now, Meier's group has gotten several town boards along the pipeline's path to vote against it. Senators Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand are also opposed. Meier says there more people need to know about potential dangers the pipeline presents.
"The leaks and the chemicals that come out of the compressor station that are causing nausea and dizziness and skin rashes in people living near them," Meier said.
Meier's group held a forum Saturday in Knox, one of dozens of towns the pipeline is plotted to run through.
Leslie Carey of Nassau, spoke about her experience with a Kinder Morgan employee who came and surveyed her land, without permission.
"He contradicted me several times, suggested that maybe I was a renter of the property or that I was misinformed about whether I had given permission," Carey said. "It was very intimidating. I'm on my own property being told that I don't belong there and they do."
The message resonated with Knox Town Councilman Eric Kuck. He says the town's attorney has already drafted a proposal, to block the pipeline.
"People need to be educated about this, because this can be a very dangerous issue if allowed to go through," Kuck said.