NC pipeline permit for MVP Southgate denied!

On Tuesday, the N.C. DEQ denied the 401 water quality permit for the MVP Southgate extension on the grounds that the MVP mainline is not yet completed.

The decision comes in the same month that the Atlantic Coast Pipeline was cancelled by developers Duke Energy and Dominion Energy due to ever-increasing costs and legal battles

• >> Read our story on the end of the Atlantic Coast pipeline

At a DEQ 401 hearing. Photo by Caroline Hansley Sierra Club

Here is what the Secretary of the N.C. DEQ had to say about the decision:

“Today’s decision to deny the MVP Southgate certification protects North Carolina’s water quality, our natural resources and our communities. DEQ has questioned the need for the MVP Southgate project since our initial comments to FERC. This has always been an unnecessary project that poses unnecessary risks to our environment and given the uncertain future of the MVP Mainline, North Carolinians should not be exposed to the risk of another incomplete pipeline project.

North Carolina’s clean energy future is not dependent on adding more natural gas infrastructure. Projects like this slow down the state’s goal to reduce greenhouse gases under North Carolina’s Clean Energy Plan and our efforts to address climate change under Executive Order 80. We should invest in clean, renewable energy sources and the economic benefits of energy innovation.”

Please help us thank the leadership of N.C. DEQ for defending the people and environment of North Carolina.

CONTACT:
Michael S. Regan, Secretary
NC Department of Environmental Quality (NCDEQ)

email: Michael.Regan@ncdenr.gov
phone #: (919) 707-8661
Twitter: @Michael_S_Regan
Facebook and Instagram: @NC Department of Environmental Quality

This decision makes it even more crucial that we stop the Mountain Valley Pipeline Mainline in Virginia and West Virginia in order to ensure that Southgate is never constructed. The developers of the MVP tout that the mainline is over 90% complete, but this is not true. Only 15 miles of pipeline have been built in Virginia, and the most difficult construction of the route is still ahead! The project is also missing three crucial permits it needs to begin construction and it still has to reapply for a two-year extension on its Certificate for Public Convenience and Necessity with FERC.

Stay tuned for our continued work on the Mountain Valley Pipeline, and consider making a donation to help fund our work to end this unnecessary project for good!

About Ridge Graham

A graduate of Appalachian State University with a B.S. in ecology and evolutionary biology, Ridge served as our AmeriCorps Outreach Associate from 2015-17 and is now on staff as the Field Coordinator for our North Carolina program.