Update 163 – Allegheny-Blue Ridge Alliance

Law Suit Filed to Stop Mountain Valley Pipeline

A coalition of environmental groups took legal action on July 8 in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit to halt the start of construction of the fracked-gas Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP), challenging the “certificate of public convenience and necessity” issued by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

Sen. Kaine Requests FERC to Rehear ACP and MVP Decisions

Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine has written Kevin McIntyre, Chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, asking that the agency grant rehearings on the Mountain Valley Pipeline and the Atlantic Coast Pipeline. Kaine’s January 5 letter notes that the 2-1 votes on granting permits for the two projects “were most unusual – 98% of FERC orders in 2016 were unanimous.

Forest Service Seeks to Increase Efficiency in its Environmental Analysis

The Forest Service is proposing to revise its National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) procedures with the goal of increasing efficiency of environmental analysis, according to a January 3 Federal Register notice. The Notice states that among the reasons for seeking greater efficiency is the backlog of more than 6,000 special use permit requests.

Citizens groups applaud VA legislation regarding natural gas pipelines

Three legislators from southwest Virginia have introduced several bills in the 2018 Virginia 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,