The Mountain Valley Pipeline, LLC submitted a new amendment to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) for the methane gas pipeline “Southgate” on Monday.
Proposed for Virginia and North Carolina, Southgate would extend the controversial Mountain Valley Pipeline, and has faced significant opposition since was proposed in 2018.
“This new project proposed by Southgate developers, shielded in a FERC amendment, is unnecessary and dangerous to the communities, air, water and species along its intended route. We’ve seen the abject misery that Southgate’s developers inflicted with their Mountain Valley Pipeline, and that history should not be repeated — FERC should deny this amendment,” Virginia Field Coordinator at Appalachian Voices Jessica Sims said.
MVP made an amendment request instead of a new application and asked that FERC issue an order by December 31, 2025. Project opponents contend a new application should be required because the route and impact of the project are distinct from the original 2020 Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity issued by FERC.
“For years MVP Southgate has never moved forward and has been denied multiple permits,” said Dr. Crystal Cavalier-Keck, Co-Founder of 7 Directions of Service. “As a result, developers have abandoned their original plans, and proposed what can only be considered a totally new project. The route has been cut in half and the size of the pipe has increased significantly. Meanwhile, an additional high-pressure methane gas pipeline has just been proposed to run directly alongside it. Our regulators must reject Southgate’s attempts to downplay these developments as minor, and ensure the project follows procedures from square one, where community concerns can be fully heard.”
Just 10 days after receiving a three-year extension on its federal certificate, MVP announced it had radically altered its plans for Southgate, changing the route, length and pipe diameter. As described in the amendment, Southgate would include 31 miles of 30-inch diameter pipeline in Virginia and North Carolina and had “entered into precedent agreements with Duke Energy Carolinas, LLC (‘Duke’) and Public Service Company of North Carolina, Inc, d/b/a Enbridge Gas North Carolina (‘PSNC’), both as Foundation Shippers.” The similarly routed proposed Southeast Supply Enhancement Project from Williams Companies’ expansion of the Transco pipelines also claims Duke will be a major customer. The co-location of two high-pressure, large diameter pipelines is of significant concern for local residents.
The MVP has created protests, concerns and legal challenges throughout Virginia and North Carolina since first proposed in 2014.
In August 2023, citing potential climate and environmental justice risks from the pipeline, as well as risks to drinking water quality, a group of lawmakers pushed FERC to deny MVP’s extension request for Southgate.
Residents in Giles County, Virginia became concerned for water quality in their homes in February 2024 with a construction site for the MVP.
In May 2024, a landowner in Roanoke County reported to the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality sediment-laden water on her property during testing after a pipe ruptured.
“When constructing the Mainline, Mountain Valley Pipeline consistently disregarded community concerns and environmental safeguards. Now the company’s new proposal for the MVP-Southgate extension is drastically different from its original proposal, and FERC should treat it as such. A new application is the only way to ensure transparency, accountability, and a meaningful opportunity for impacted communities to have their voices heard. We cannot allow yet another harmful pipeline to jeopardize our environment, public health, and climate progress,” Caroline Hansley, Campaign Organizing Strategist with the Sierra Club, said.
According to Victoria Higgins, Virginia Director for Chesapeake Climate Action Network, the MVP has spent more than a decade attempting to break and bend rules “to rush through unnecessary, dangerous methane gas pipelines that put communities and vulnerable ecosystems at risk. It is incumbent upon regulators like FERC to ensure MVP Southgate is subject to the same rules as every other project and recognize the amendment for what it is: a completely new proposal.”
Related stories:
Virginia, North Carolina lawmakers urge FERC to deny Mountain Valley Pipeline permit
Redesign of Mountain Valley Pipeline extension project goes ‘to the heart’ of prior public interest
Virginia community concerned about water quality near Mountain Valley Pipeline
Group of 29 demands Virginia DEQ issue stop work order on Mountain Valley Pipeline
Local, state officials pressure feds over Mountain Valley Pipeline start date
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Rebecca Barnabi
