Citizens groups applaud legislation on natural gas pipelines introduced by Southwest Virginia lawmakers

Three legislators from Southwest Virginia have introduced several bills in the 2018 General Assembly aimed at protecting water quality and landowner rights from the construction of fracked-gas pipelines, such as the proposed Mountain Valley and Atlantic Coast pipelines. The bills would require the Department of Environmental Quality to perform robust water permitting and impact review,…

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Appalachian Voices files suit to stop fracked-gas Mountain Valley Pipeline

WASHINGTON, DC — Late yesterday, a coalition of environmental groups took legal action in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit to halt start of construction of the fracked-gas Mountain Valley Pipeline, challenging the “certificate of public convenience and necessity” issued by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Attorneys for Appalachian Mountain Advocates filed…

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Groups challenge Virginia’s unlawful approval of fracked-gas Mountain Valley Pipeline

Contact: Ben Luckett, 859.552.6979, bluckett@appalmad.org Derek Teaney, 304.793.9007, dteaney@appalmad.org Peter Anderson, 434-293-6373, peter@appvoices.org Doug Jackson, 202.495.3045 or doug.jackson@sierraclub.org Mike Tidwell, 240-460-5838, mtidwell@chesapeakeclimate.org RICHMOND, VA — A coalition of environmental groups today filed a petition for review with the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit to overturn Virginia’s unlawful approval yesterday of the…

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Groups blast FERC findings on Mountain Valley Pipeline for fracked gas

Contact information for those quoted provided below. A coalition of landowners and advocacy organizations today condemned the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) for disregarding the profound and long-lasting human and environmental trauma the proposed Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) would cause. In its final environmental review, released Friday morning, FERC ignores the most harmful impacts this…

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Atlantic Coast Pipeline backers head to North Carolina

While North Carolina is rightfully focused on the coal ash scandal, another environmental tug-of-war is strengthening in some of the state’s poorest areas. The Atlantic Coast Pipeline would cut 170 miles through eastern N.C. where a quarter to a third of people live in poverty. And this is precisely why these types of projects are placed in low-income communities: to reduce the chance of resistance.

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Groups force strong pollution controls on Virginia gas plant

Contact: Evan Johns, Appalachian Mountain Advocates, 434-738-186, ejohns@appalmad.org Hannah Wiegard, Appalachian Voices, 804-536-5598, hannah@appvoices.org Ben Weiner, Sierra Club Virginia Chapter, 804-225-9113 Ex. 1002, benjamin.weiner@sierraclub.org RICHMOND, Virginia – In response to extensive comments from citizens and conservation groups, the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) has imposed precedent-setting protections against greenhouse gases and other air pollutants…

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Re-route of fracked gas pipeline threatens new areas of Va., West Va.

Contact: Ben Luckett, Staff Attorney, Appalachian Mountain Advocates, 304-645-0125 Hannah Wiegard, Appalachian Voices, hannah@appvoices.org, 804-536-5598 Drew Gallagher, Chesapeake Climate Action Network, drew@chesapeakeclimate.org Kirk Bowers, Virginia Chapter of the Sierra Club, kirk.bowers@sierraclub.org Dominion Energy announced plans today to re-route the proposed Atlantic Coast Pipeline through Highland, Bath and Augusta counties. The new route comes in response…

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