Opponents of the EQT Midstream Partners LP-led Mountain Valley Pipeline LLC natural gas transportation project asked a federal court to halt construction on the pipe, saying a permit issued by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is illegal.
Appalachian Mountain Advocates, on behalf of the Sierra Club, Appalachian Voices, Chesapeake Climate Action Network and other groups, asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit to stay work on the 2-Bcf/d gas pipeline project. The coalition argued that Mountain Valley Pipeline's documents showed that the project cannot meet the required conditions for the permit for stream crossings issued by the Army Corps of Engineers.
The environmental groups said the project should not be able to use a nationwide permit issued under Clean Water Act Section 404. "We have repeatedly warned the Army Corps of Engineers that their one-size-fits-all approach to this dirty and dangerous project doesn't even come close to fulfilling their responsibility to protect the people and communities," said Sierra Club manager Bill Price.
The groups also said Mountain Valley cannot use the permit because the developer would fail a condition that limits construction time on river crossings to 72 hours. The developer has said 72 hours would not be enough to complete construction across four rivers. If the pipeline cannot use the permit for one water crossing, according to a condition of the permit, it cannot be used for any other crossings, according to the groups. (U.S. Appeals Court for the 4th Circuit docket 18-1173)
On May 22, the Army Corps of Engineers pulled the authorizations provided by the Nationwide Permit 12. The agency said the indefinite suspension will be in effect until it can determine compliance with a condition recommended by the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection. The corps ordered Mountain Valley to stop all construction activity at the Gauley River, Greenbrier River, Elk River and Meadow River until the agency makes a decision to reinstate, modify or revoke the permit.
In a short May 16 order, the U.S. Appeals Court for the D.C. Circuit denied a request by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to pause a lawsuit by environmental groups challenging the commission's approval of the pipeline.
In a separate letter May 22, the Sierra Club asked the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to order a stop to construction of the project over vague language in its incidental-take statement and to reopen consultations with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to fix the permit.
The request came after the 4th Circuit on May 15 ruled that the Fish and Wildlife Service did not appropriately limit the authority granted by the permit for the Atlantic Coast gas pipeline. After the court's decision, the Sierra Club asked FERC to halt construction work on that line. (U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit docket 18-1082)
The Sierra Club contended May 22 that the incidental-take statement for Mountain Valley is similarly flawed.
The approximately $3.7 billion Mountain Valley pipeline project is a joint venture of EQT Midstream, NextEra Energy Inc., Con Edison Transmission Inc., WGL Midstream Inc. and RGC Midstream LLC. FERC approved the 301-mile project in October 2017 and approved tree felling earlier in 2018. The pipeline would run from West Virginia to Virginia to connect Appalachian gas production with downstream markets. (FERC docket CP16-10)
