What is the Mountain Valley pipeline?
The Mountain Valley Pipeline is a natural gas pipeline from southern Virginia to northwestern West Virginia. It is a joint venture project of Mountain Valley LLC partners and Equitrans LP, which merged with a wholly owned subsidiary of Equitrans to form Equitrans Midstream Corporation in June 2020. Their plan is to construct a pipeline that will transport natural gas. In total the project will consist of 304 miles of pipelines with an additional 8 miles as part of the Equitrans Expansion Project, which will help to connect new and existing pipelines throughout the region.
Where is the MVP pipeline?
The MVP project is a natural gas pipeline from southern Virginia to northwestern West Virginia retrieving its supply from the Marcellus and Utica shale sites. It is expectedly to provide two billion cubic feet of firm capacity per day that can be used in commercial buildings in the Mid to the South Atlantic areas of the United States. The pipeline is regulated by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission because it is an interstate obligation, and therefore must be overseen by the government, in accordance to the United States Natural Gas Act.
Why is the pipeline so controversial?
The pipeline is also controversial due to the fact that it will cut across the Appalachian Trail.
What are the environmental concerns of the pipeline?
The environmental concerns of the pipeline include threats to the streams, rivers, and drinking water along the route. This can include the forests, endangered species, fish nurseries, and the public lands that surround the pipeline.
What are the issues with the MVP?
Some of the issues raised by citizen groups include the right of eminent domain and the potential for negative impacts to the forests, waterways, and protected wildlife during construction. Concerns were raised because the route cuts across the Appalachian Trail. Activists have set up numerous blockades to prevent construction along the pipeline path including a month-long tree-sit near Peters Mountain, an aerial blockade in which a woman occupied a platform atop a pole for 57 days, other aerial blockades, and the 932 day yellow finch tree-sit from September 2018 to March 2021. Protestors have also blocked construction by parking junk cars on the pipeline route or locking themselves to machinery; in one case, a professor chained herself to construction equipment. Obstruction of pipeline construction has been ongoing in spite of significant criminal and civil penalties being levied against protestors.
What percentage of Mountain Valley pipeline capacity is required to deliver natural gas?
The evidence of a market demand and Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) Certificate policy requires at least 25 percent of the Mountain Valley Pipeline's capacity to deliver natural gas, be met by service contract agreements in order to justify the need for the project. Mountain Valley was able to secure these service contracts allowing ...
Who owns the MVP?
The MVP will be owned and operated by Mountain Valley LLC, which is a joint venture between the energy provider Consolidated Edison and various midstream partners, with EQT Midstream holding the most substantial stake. It is a joint venture project of Mountain Valley LLC partners and Equitrans LP, which merged with a wholly owned subsidiary of Equitrans to form Equitrans Midstream Corporation in June 2020. The MVP is overseen by the EQT Corporation, a utility company and drilling firm based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. EQT transports petroleum and natural gas and is one of the largest producers in the Appalachian Basin.
WHAT ARE WE DOING ABOUT THE MOUNTAIN VALLEY PIPELINE?
Still, we and thousands of allies have prevented the pipeline’s completion and continue the fight to stop it on all fronts.
Can MVP dig and blast through Virginia waters?
The Corps of Engineers is considering an application for a Clean Water Act permit to allow MVP to dig and blast through our waters. At the same time, the state of Virginia must certify that the proposal will meet all of our water quality standards before the Corps can allow construction.
When will the Jefferson National Forest be able to build the Mountain Valley pipeline?
Department of Agriculture (USDA) issued a Record of Decision (ROD) to amend the Jefferson National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan (Forest Plan) to allow for the Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) project on January 11, 2021.
Who is responsible for approving pipelines that cross federal lands?
The BLM is responsible for approving pipelines that cross federal lands under the jurisdiction of two or more federal agencies but must have the concurrence of the involved agencies. These actions are necessary steps in order for the MVP project to be built on National Forest System lands.
What happened to the MVP project?
Due to this ruling, all construction activity that was in progress on the Jefferson National Forest stopped. The Forest Service is continuing to implement stabilization measures as well as monitoring stabilized areas for potential soil erosion and sedimentation.
Overview
The Mountain Valley Pipeline is an under-construction natural gas pipeline in the United States from southern Virginia to northwestern West Virginia. The project will consist of 304 miles (489 km) of pipelines with an additional 8 miles (13 km) as part of the Equitrans Expansion Project, which will help to connect new and existing pipelines throughout the region. The completed pipeline would have the ability to ship 2 million dekatherms (Dts) of natural gas per day (approxim…
Project description
The MVP project is a natural gas pipeline from southern Virginia to northwestern West Virginia retrieving its supply from the Marcellus and Utica shale sites. It is expected to provide two billion cubic feet of firm capacity per day that can be used in commercial buildings in the Mid to the South Atlantic areas of the United States. The pipeline is projected to span approximately 303 miles (488 km), and will cut across the Appalachian Trail near Peters Mountain Wilderness in Virgi…
Opposition to the project
Opposition was met during the initial request to obtain a certificate of convenience and necessity from the FERC. Some of the issues raised by citizen groups include the right of eminent domain and the potential for negative impacts to the forests, waterways, and protected wildlife during construction. Concerns were raised because the route cuts across the Appalachian Trail. Activists have set up numerous blockades to prevent construction along the pipeline path including a mo…
Impacts
Local summaries from the Mountain Valley Pipeline Project website suggest it has the potential to bring in state and local tax revenue along with jobs and economic growth to Virginia and West Virginia, a region where the impacts from a decline in the coal industry has caused a ripple effect that spans across the entire coal industry ecosystem. The American Petroleum Institute claims that b…
Timeline
October 2014
• Project first proposed. MVP LLC began the voluntary pre-filing process with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC)
October 23, 2015
• MVP LLC filed formal application with FERC targeting an in-service date of late 2018
External links
• Mountain Valley Pipeline on Global Energy Monitor