Northwest Landowners Meeting | Video

Joel Porter | 12/8/2012

Landowners in North Dakota are making their voices heard before lawmakers head to the capitol next month. On Saturday, the Northwest Land Owners Association gathered in Stanley. The group meets every year to discuss oil related issues that land owners are experiencing.

Soil scientists were on hand to talk about how salt water run-off and oil spills can affect their land far into the future. The meeting is about keeping landowners informed and educated to work towards fair and equitable discussion between themselves and oil companies.

"Well, most of the things that are happening now are going to have a very long term effect. They`re not something you can back up from, it`s going to be lasting for 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 years. The public is not used to this, it`s new, it`s hard for them to say abreast of everything, so it takes a unified front," NW Landowners Vice Chair Troy Coons said.

"We have people down from Dunn County, all the way to Westhope. We`re all impacted a little differently. What do we know from each others experiences? So we need to learn those experiences from each other, and we can grow together and try to make decisions that are really workable," Rep. Kenton Onstad from Parshall said.

The Northwest Land Owners Association will be bringing up their issues and concerns Tuesday January 8, when the Legislative Session begins.

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