Bath County ACP Camping Trip

On Saturday, August 24th, Wild Virginia hosted a camping trip in the mountains of Bath County, Virginia. While all 13 attendees enjoyed the beauty and serenity that one would expect from a weekend of camping, the trip was about much more than a weekend escape. The primary purpose of this excursion was to see and explore an area along the 550 mile proposed route for the Atlantic Coast Pipeline (ACP), a project headed by Dominion Energy, while learning about the effects that construction will have on the area.

The whole group, myself included, congregated at a 120 acre piece of land, owned by Bill and Lynn Limpert, which is directly in the current path of the ACP. The couple regularly invites campers of all ages to come and listen to their personal experience and extensive knowledge of the area while enjoying the land. The Limperts act as an advocate for the land and people alike as they emphasize the multitude of ways in which the ACP will negatively impact their community and the surrounding ecosystem if completed.

Not long after our arrival, Mr. Limpert led a tour around a portion of the forest and educated all of us about his land and how it will be affected by Dominion’s pipeline. His knowledge about seemingly every aspect of the land and how it would be affected by this project-from the water quality to soil composition to species in the area-made his passion for this cause evident.  His love and concern for the land was truly inspiring as it was not rooted solely in the way it would affect him, but the cumulative effect this would have on myriad communities, ecosystems, and future generations.

After a day full of discussions and explorations as well as a night spent under the stars, we departed from the Limpert’s special spot and headed to Fort Lewis Lodge in Millboro, Virginia. The devoted owner and lover of the outdoors, John Cowden, explained how the proposed pipeline route will affect both his business and the land. He was especially concerned about the creek, depicted below, as its scenic value and water quality (and therefore the lives of all of the aquatic species that live within it) would be greatly degraded by this project. Unfortunately, John’s situation is not the only one of its kind. Thousands of home and business owners are facing uncertainty in regard to the land they love and value for the sake of the Atlantic Coast Pipeline.  The good news is that this fight is far from over. There are various ways that we as individuals can help this cause and influence real change. This trip opened my eyes in many ways, but more than anything empowered me to believe that we can make a difference through our actions.

This weekend long adventure was truly unlike any trip that I have ever been on. I received an immense amount of insight into the activity surrounding the Atlantic Coast Pipeline from a variety of people including scientists, lawyers, passionate citizens and homeowners who will be affected, all while observing the beautiful mountains of Virginia. It was an extremely special experience that shed light on the reality of the ACP and has inspired me to take action against environmental injustices of all kinds since returning. To learn more about the pipeline and how to get involved, click the link below!

CLICK HERE TO LEARN WHAT YOU CAN DO TO HELP

DEQ’S STOP WORK ORDER TO MVP IS APPROPRIATE BUT IT’S NOT ENOUGH

The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality’s announcement yessterday, that the agency is issuing a stop work “instruction” for a section of the Mountain Valley Pipeline, is welcome news. However, DEQ inspector’s own reports, supplemented by hundreds of citizen complaints, show that in 2019 MVP has continued the pattern of repeated and frequent violations and infliction of damages documented in Virginia’s lawsuit against MVP last year. These problems are found along the entire pipeline route, have polluted numerous waterbodies, and have violated the property rights of dozens of private landowners.

Action by DEQ to address individual or small sets of violations are necessary and appropriate but they will not force MVP to solve the systemic problems that have existed since the day tree cutting began. We call on DEQ to go further.

The hundreds of new violations committed since Virginia filed suit against MVP in 2018 must be added to that complaint and all appropriate remedies must be pursued in that state court action to stop the violations. Further, the State of Virginia must tell FERC to issue a project-wide stop work order and to either suspend or revoke the Commission’s approval for MVP. Mountain Valley has clearly shown that it is not able or willing to meet all of the requirements established by FERC and other regulatory agencies and it must be stopped.

David Sligh, Wild Virginia’s Conservation Director stated: “Responding to damage after it has occurred is simply not good enough. DEQ and the State Water Control Board have a duty to protect Virginia’s waters and its people – not just to document the damages and seek penalties that can never adequately compensate for the losses imposed.”

Wild Virginia agrees with DEQ Director Paylor that it is appalling that “construction priorities and deadline pressures would ever rise above the proper and appropriate use of erosion control measures.” But that appalling condition has not just been present in the limited area targeted by DEQ’s order today. MVP has simply refused to meet its legal requirements and clearly believes it can continue to push this project through with only minor interference by regulators.

Wild Virginia has reviewed 115 DEQ inspection reports for the period between January 1 and June 20, 2019. On each of these inspection reports, inspectors judge whether “all control measures [have been] properly maintained in effective operating condition in accordance with good engineering practices and, where applicable, manufacturer specifications.” On an astounding 60% of those inspection reports, DEQ inspectors had to answer “no” on this item, meaning that pollution controls were not properly maintained to protect our resources. For 17% of the reports, DEQ inspectors indicated that pollution controls had not been even been “installed or implemented” in accordance with approved plans.

In addition to these overall ratings from each inspection, DEQ personnel looked at many individual sites and, in many cases, document multiple problems on each report. Overall, we counted 302 separate problems cited on the DEQ reports for 2019. According to DEQ sediment was deposited off the MVP right of way 32 times and in nearly a dozen cases waterbodies were directly affected. This does not account for the many additional instances when sediment-laden water muddied our streams and wetlands.

Sligh stated: “We support DEQ’s action today and we acknowledge that DEQ inspectors are documenting many problems on the pipeline. Members of the public are also documenting the horrible damages occurring out there. Now what we need is action that is forceful enough and comprehensive enough to stop the destruction of our resources before more damage is done.” 

WILD VIRGINIA AIDS THE COMMON AGENDA

What is the Common Agenda?

Every year the Virginia Conservation Network (VCN) releases a briefing book entitled Our Common Agenda. The briefing combines the policy agendas of over 100 organizations across Virginia to form one, concise compilation of conservation goals. The agenda aims to address the most pressing conversation issues with realistic statewide policies. The VCN recently released the 2020 edition of Our Common Agenda, which includes input directly from Wild Virginia

How is Wild Virginia Involved?

This year Wild Virginia helped write a paper with for the briefing book about habitat connectivity. We were honored to help work on this paper because habitat connectivity is a core focus at Wild Virginia. The paper explains the need for increased connectivity in our Commonwealth, outlines the negative effects of fragmented habitats, and shows the benefits of more connected areas. Then, a solution is proposed. The paper suggests establishing a group of experts to analyze potential wildlife corridors in Virginia and creating a strategy that would best protect those wildlife corridors.

How Can You Support Our Common Agenda?

If you are interested in looking further into the briefing book, it is available to download here.  Many of the papers outline specific ways you can help contribute to conservation in Virginia.