Construction halted on Mountain Valley Pipeline

Courts have issued two stays on construction of the Mountain Valley Pipeline this week. The controversial project was fast tracked as a part of the national debt ceiling deal in June. 

The first stay stopped construction in a stretch of the project that cuts through Jefferson National Forest. The second was far more sweeping and halted construction on the pipeline completely. 

The deal struck in June to raise the debt ceiling included special provisions which would allow the Mountain Valley Pipeline to complete construction with streamlined permitting and no judicial review. The Mountain Valley Pipeline cuts through some of America’s most iconic terrain and waterways, including the Appalachian Trail and the New River watershed. Dirty, fossil fuel projects have no place in Virginia where we have committed to generating 100% of our electricity from clean energy in the coming decades. 

The pipeline repeatedly has failed to demonstrate safety and compliance with the law. Fast tracking this project is bad for Virginia and Appalachia as a whole and we are hopeful these stays will result in putting the project to bed for good.