Mountain Valley Gas Pipeline (MVP)
| This article is part of the Global Fossil Infrastructure Tracker, a project of Global Energy Monitor and the Center for Media and Democracy. |
| Sub-articles: |
Mountain Valley Gas Pipeline (MVP) is a proposed natural gas pipeline running from West Virginia to Virginia.[1]
Contents
Location
The pipeline runs from Mobley, West Virginia, to Chatham, Virginia.
Project Details
- Operator: EQT Midstream Partners (45.5%), NextEra Energy (31%), Con Edison (12.5%), WGL Midstream (10%), RGC Midstream (1%)
- Proposed capacity: 2000 Million cubic feet per day
- Length: 303 miles / 488 km
- Status: Construction
Background
As proposed, the Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) project is a natural gas pipeline system that spans approximately 303 miles from northwestern West Virginia to southern Virginia. The MVP will be constructed and owned by Mountain Valley Pipeline, LLC, which is a joint venture of EQT Midstream Partners, LP; NextEra US Gas Assets, LLC; Con Edison Transmission, Inc.; WGL Midstream; and RGC Midstream, LLC. EQT Midstream Partners will operate the pipeline and own a significant interest in the joint venture. [1]
The gas is supplied from Marcellus and Utica shale production. The Mountain Valley Pipeline is expected to provide up to two million dekatherms per day of firm transmission capacity to markets in the Mid- and South Atlantic regions of the United States. The MVP will extend the Equitrans Transmission System in Wetzel County, West Virginia, to Transcontinental Gas Pipeline Company’s (Transco) Zone 5 compressor station 165 in Pittsylvania County, Virginia. As currently planned, the pipeline will be up to 42 inches in diameter and will require three compressor stations, with identified locations in Wetzel, Braxton, and Fayette counties of West Virginia. Mountain Valley Pipeline, LLC has reported that Virginia landowners along MVP's proposed pipeline route received what they believe to be scam survey access letters from an alleged entity named Mountains to Sea Pipeline Corp. [1]
In January 2018 two federal agencies took actions to allow the pipeline to cross streams and wetlands more than 500 times in Southwest Virginia and burrow under the Blue Ridge Parkway. In a key step forward for the Mountain Valley Pipeline, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers issued a sweeping permit late last month that will allow the buried pipeline to make 383 stream crossings and 142 passes through wetlands in six Virginia counties. A separate decision by the National Park Service granted a right of way for the 42-inch diameter steel pipe to be laid under the Blue Ridge Parkway in Roanoke County. The latest approvals come near the end of a lengthy regulatory process. Opponents say the project will contaminate drinking water and destroy environmentally sensitive landscapes. Using the controversial process of eminent domain, Mountain Valley attempted to fource easements from about 300 property owners who object to the pipeline running through their land. A hearing is scheduled for Jan. 12 in U.S. District Court in Roanoke. Other landowners and conservation groups have filed two petitions with a federal appeals court, seeking to reverse a water quality certification issued by Virginia. Pipeline opponents contend that construction will dislodge sediment, perhaps containing harmful chemicals, that would then be washed downstream and make its way into public water supplies. The Army Corp of Engineers' permit is contingent on nine special conditions. Among them are requirements to limit to 75 feet the disturbance in a stream bed caused by construction and to restore the stream banks and wetlands to their original condition through re-seeding and stabilization. Plans call for the pipe to be buried 3 to 4 feet deep, using an open trench method as it approaches the parkway and conventional boring to pass under the scenic highway. [2]
The Appalachian Trail Conservancy reported that the proposed pipeline route would require the creation of a 125-foot swath up and down steep slopes in hazardous areas, which would destroy thousands of acres of pristine forest, visible for 60 miles away. Multiple iconic viewpoints in Virginia will be severely impacted, including Angels Rest, Kelly Knob, Rice Fields, and Dragons Tooth — some of the most visited and photographed locations on the entire Appalachian Trial. To accommodate the visual and environmental damage that would be caused by the Mountain Valley Pipeline, the U.S. Forest Service would also need to lower the Jefferson National Forest Management Plan standards for water quality, visual impacts and the removal of old-growth forest. Situated on land that is unstable, crossing over a known and active seismic zone, the risk of severe erosion, landslides and pipeline failure are extremely high. Such instability also poses a high likelihood of natural gas leaks, which could poison the surrounding environment and contaminate the drinking water used by nearby communities. The Appalachian Trail Conservancy also reported that many local communities benefit from tourism dollars provided by hikers and other visitors to the local wilderness areas which will be impacted by the pipeline route. Economic studies show the potential negative impacts the pipeline would have on the income and property values in the surrounding areas. [3]
In a letter to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), Kaine backed a position taken by more than 20 petitioners: that the commission should reconsider its decision allowing plans for the Mountain Valley Pipeline to go forward. When FERC voted 2-1 to approve both pipelines in October, there were just three members on what is normally a five-member commission. Calling the split votes “most unusual,” Kaine noted that 98 percent of FERC decisions in 2016 were unanimous. After FERC issues a final order on whether there is a public need for a proposed pipeline, anyone opposed to the decision has 30 days to file a petition seeking a rehearing and a stay of the order while the case is pending. More than 20 such petitions were filed by landowners. In December 2017 FERC issued a tolling order, which is neither a denial of the petitions nor a decision to promptly hold a rehearing. Instead, such an order continues the case indefinitely, often allowing construction to proceed but not providing an avenue for opponents to take legal action because there is no final order to appeal. [4]
As of May 2019, construction of the Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) has been suspended for all of the hundreds of proposed water crossings, but it has continued uninterrupted on land. MVP construction continues despite the fact that Attorney General Mark Herring has sued the developer and alleged more than 300 violations of Virginia’ environmental law, and despite the fact that the pipeline lacks the permits required by law.[5]
There is a proposed expansion project for the pipeline that would add 72 miles between Pittsylvania County, Virginia and Alamance County, North Carolina. It is expected to be complete by the fourth financial quarter of 2020.[6]
Articles and resources
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Mountain Valley Gas Pipeline (MVP), Mountain Valley Pipeline, accessed January 2018
- ↑ "Mountain Valley Pipeline moves forward after federal approvals" The Roanoke Times accessed January 2018
- ↑ "Mountain Valley PipelineA project that will have devastating impacts on the Appalachian Trail, the local drinking water, and the economy." Appalachian Trail Conservancy accessed January 2018
- ↑ "Sen. Kaine calls for rehearing of 2-1 decision approving Mountain Valley Pipeline" The Roanoke Times accessed January 2018
- ↑ Planned Pipelines, Pipeline News, accessed October 2018
- ↑ Yes Virginia, We Can Stop the Mountain Valley and Atlantic Coast Pipelines. Here’s How., Blue Virginia, accessed May 2019
