THE GOVERNOR’S AUTHORITY

Congress explicitly reserved states’ authorities to veto federally-permitted projects, to protect state waters. That authority comes from section 401 of the Clean Water Act, which empowers states to grant or deny a “water quality certification” and forbids federal approval without that certification. The following op-ed by DPMC Regulatory System Investigator, Continue Reading →

DEFERRED ANALYSIS OF CRITICAL ISSUES

If permitted, both the ACP and the MVP will cross steep-sided, highly erodible and landslide-prone mountains, sensitive and complex karst hydrology, high-integrity forests, and high-quality streams and wetlands. The scale of the projects and the risks are unprecedented. Yet the companies propose to wait until after completion of environmental review, until after Continue Reading →

IS VIRGINIA ABDICATING ITS CLEAN WATER ACT RESPONSIBILITIES?

The DPMC has written to Governor McAuliffe asking him to act immediately to avoid forfeiting Virginia’s responsibilities under the Clean Water Act (CWA) and state laws for oversight of the proposed Atlantic Coast Pipeline. Despite promising that the ACP would be environmentally responsible, the Governor has repeatedly and wrongly claimed Continue Reading →

DERELICTION OF DUTY

Examination of the Columbia Gas of Virginia pipeline project over Peters Mountain in Giles County is informative with respect to both careless pipeline construction practices and regulatory system failure. It was thus surprising to see the recent op-ed piece by company spokesman, Robert Innes, who objects to our complaints about the project. Why Continue Reading →

ACP – ENVIRONMENTAL MAPPING SYSTEM

The ACP-EMS is an online interactive map depicting environmental risks and sensitivities associated with the proposed Atlantic Coast Pipeline. The purpose of the ACP-EMS is to organize and provide access to environmental information and to support engagement in ACP permitting and oversight. The geographic focus of the ACP-EMS includes approximately Continue Reading →

TIS THE SEASON

The Dominion Pipeline Monitoring Coalition has initiated the Twelve Days of Accountability. On each of 12 days beginning in mid-December we are submitting at least one Freedom of Information Act Request (FOIA) to Virginia state officials and agencies responsible for oversight of pipeline construction. With regulatory approvals for both the Atlantic Continue Reading →