Georgia judge rejects appeal of Palmetto Pipeline builder

ATLANTA (AP) A Georgia judge has rejected the appeal of an energy company seeking to build a 360-mile pipeline to carry gasoline, diesel and ethanol from South Carolina through Georgia and into Florida.

Texas-based Kinder Morgan Inc. last May was denied approval by the Georgia Department of Transportation to use eminent domain laws to build the Palmetto Pipeline on land owned by others. Fulton County Superior Court Judge Kimberly Adams sided with the DOT in a ruling Monday.

The pipeline would link to an existing network carrying refined petroleum from points in Louisiana, Mississippi and South Carolina to markets in Savannah and Jacksonville, Florida. Kinder Morgan estimates construction would cost roughly $1 billion.

Opponents have warned the project could harm environmentally sensitive wetlands.