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Mountain Valley Pipeline to pay Virginia $2.15M to settle environmental suit

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Mountain Valley Pipeline to pay Virginia $2.15M to settle environmental suit

Mountain Valley Pipeline LLC agreed to pay a $2.15 million fine and submit to court-supervised compliance with environmental protections to settle a lawsuit brought by Virginia's attorney general over the developer's alleged environmental violations.

Under the consent decree, Mountain Valley will also pay for additional monitoring of erosion control measures, as well as for closer watch over the well-being of fisheries and wildlife in the work area, according to an Oct. 11 release from the attorney general's office. The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality will approve the independent, third-party auditors, which will look into the 2-Bcf/d natural gas transportation project on a biweekly basis.

The settlement also allows for the state to impose further penalties against Mountain Valley for future violations through an "expedited process," according to the release.

"This is one of the most significant financial penalties ever imposed in Virginia for this kind of case, and more importantly, we have secured significant new monitoring, supervision, and enhanced standards for the duration of the project," Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring said. The settlement sets a new standard to resolve environmental damages cases in the state, he added.

In an emailed statement, Mountain Valley said it will make sure to comply with the state's environmental protections. It noted that it will "continue to work closely with project inspectors to maintain its high standards of safety and environmental stewardship."

Herring, Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam and David Paylor, the director of Virginia's Department of Environmental Quality, or DEQ, approved the settlement, which will be open to public comment for 30 days.

In December 2018, Herring, on behalf of the Virginia DEQ and the State Water Control Board, filed a suit against Mountain Valley, alleging that the developer failed to control sediment and stormwater runoff during construction of the project that affected waterways and roads.

The Mountain Valley pipeline, which would move gas from Appalachia to East Coast markets and pipeline connections, is a joint venture of EQM Midstream Partners LP, NextEra Energy Inc., Consolidated Edison Inc., AltaGas Ltd. and RGC Resources Inc.