The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has announced its schedule for issuing a Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for the Southgate Project, a proposed extension of the Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) into North Carolina. Specifically, the proposal is a 73-mile natural gas pipeline connecting with the MVP in Pittsylvania County, VA and extending to Rockingham and Alamance Counties in North Carolina. The Southgate Project would also include construction of a 29,000-horsepower compressor station in Pittsylvania County (about half the size of the proposed Buckingham compressor station for the Atlantic Coast Pipeline). The pipeline would transport 375 million cubic feet of natural gas per day.
FERC’s March 14 notice of the FEIS schedule is:
- Issuance of Notice of Availability of the final EIS: December 19, 2019
- 90-day Federal Authorization Decision Deadline: March 18, 2020
The Southgate Project has encountered stiff opposition since it was first proposed in mid-2018. In September, the Alamance County Commissioners adopted a resolution in opposition to the project. The March 15 FEIS notice acknowledges that “major issues raised during scoping include project need, water quality degradation, environmental impacts, and private property rights and valuation.”