Jonathon Berman, jonathon.berman@sierraclub.org
Cat McCue, cat@appvoices.org
Charleston, WV -- Late yesterday, the Army Corps of Engineers and the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection (WV DEP) responded to requests made by the Sierra Club, West Virginia Rivers Coalition, Indian Creek Watershed Association, Appalachian Voices, and Chesapeake Climate Action Network concerning Mountain Valley Pipeline admitting it cannot meet the requirements of its stream crossing permits. Last week, it was discovered that Mountain Valley Pipeline had admitted it is unable to meet the WV DEP’s conditions that stream crossing construction be completed within 72 hours. In the response, WV DEP notes that it intends to either waive or adjust the permits because Mountain Valley Pipeline cannot comply with law as written.
“It’s been made clear that our Department of Environmental Protection is only concerned with protecting polluter profits and not West Virginians” said Sierra Club organizer Bill Price. “The people of West Virginia deserve to know that their health, their clean water, and their best interests are being put before a company’s profits.I am appalled and frustrated that WVDEP continues to bend over backwards for the corporate developers of MVP instead of taking its responsibility to project our water seriously ”
The Sierra Club, West Virginia Rivers Coalition, Indian Creek Watershed Association, Appalachian Voices, and Chesapeake Climate Action Network are represented by Appalachian Mountain Advocates.
Howdy Henritz, President, Indian Creek Watershed Association
"Instead of waiving and changing the rules, they should be enforcing and strengthening them. In June 2015 we called for the Army Corps to issue individual permits, not a nationwide permit for the MVP. In March 2017 we submitted extensive comments to DEP regarding the 401 Water Quality Certification making the case once again for the importance of individual evaluation. DEP's response was to abdicate their responsibility and waive the necessity for the 401 certificate. Now, as construction has begun, we're already seeing the results of one-size-fits-all permitting, as control measures fail, dumping mud into West Virginia streams."
The fracked-gas Mountain Valley Pipeline is in the earliest stages of its construction, but has already racked up a litany of problems and violations.
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with more than 3 million members and supporters. In addition to helping people from all backgrounds explore nature and our outdoor heritage, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.