“No Fracked Gas Pipeline in Floyd County”

Why do we stand in opposition and resistance to the proposed  “Mountain-Valley” fracked gas pipeline running through Floyd County?

The proposed fracked gas pipeline project:

• would severely threaten our pure water, wells, rivers, wetlands, soil, and forests;
• would create a dangerous, interstate-sized construction and easement corridor;
• would not create many jobs – local clean energy projects could create more jobs;
• would put us at risk for explosions, fires, chemical leaks, and other disasters;
• would be likely to decrease property values and raise insurance rates; and
• would take away landowners’ rights.

We stand with farmers, loggers, local businesses, environmentalists, families, and citizens who say no to the pipeline. Preserving Floyd for our children and grandchildren means saying NO TO THE PIPELINE.

A National Issue

This is a national issue, and people are outraged by the damage and destruction caused by ‘Natural’ gas pipelines across the country.  This is a list of recent news articles culled from Environmental Health News, a non-profit organization based in Charlottesville, Va. that keeps track of environmental and safety issues.  Here’s an EHN search for “gas pipeline.” As of August, 2014, it brought up over 13,500 items, most involving damage to the environment or opposition to to pipelines.   A month’s worth of items follow:

• 

  Landowners speak out against pipeline project at Regulatory Commission hearing in Pennsylvania. Garry Gross said he almost did not attend Tuesday night’s meeting with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission because the project seemed like “a done deal.” Lebanon Daily News, Pennsylvania. 6 August 2014.

• In San Bruno gas blast case, cozy emails between judge and defendant. The release last week of possibly improper emails between a utility and the California Public Utilities Commission has caused further damage to the credibility of the state’s energy regulator and sparked a renewed push to oust the commission’s powerful longtime president. InsideClimate News. 6 August 2014.
• Natural gas: Massachusetts is ground zero for Northeast’s pipeline fight. Foes say the proposed 180-mile pipeline would harm Massachusetts’ pristine forests and scarce farmlands. Proponents say the natural gas would replace dirtier fuels and stabilize winter heating costs. Christian Science Monitor. 5 August 2014.
• Federal regulator calls public response to gas pipeline ‘unprecedented.’ Alisa Lykens has been with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission for 24 years and says she’s never seen such a big response to a project so early on in the process. StateImpact Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania. 5 August 2014.
• Lancaster County residents tell agency they oppose Williams pipeline plans. Pennsylvania’s former State Geologist, Jay Parrish, questioned why Williams would propose building a natural gas pipeline through what he described as “one of the most seismically active areas in the state,” during a public meeting of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Monday. Harrisburg Patriot-News, Pennsylvania. 5 August 2014. [Registration Required]
• Gas pipelines coming to county. Although the actual horizontal drilling, or fracking, has so far largely been limited to areas east of the Interstate 77 corridor, several pipelines slated to carry that natural gas to market are in the planning stages — and they will cross this area to get there. Marion Star, Ohio. 3 August 2014.
• Cars catapulted through air in Taiwan gas explosion. Hundreds of people who fled from gas pipeline explosions in Taiwan’s second-largest city returned to their homes Friday after authorities said there was no more risk of blasts like the series that ripped apart streets overnight, killing 26 people and injuring 267. Associated Press. 2 August 2014.
• Nearly 200 acres preserved as part of New Jersey gas line deal. Almost 200 acres of forest on the township’s western edge will be preserved under a deal that allowed a controversial natural gas pipeline to be built through the Highlands, state officials announced Thursday. Bergen County Record, New Jersey. 2 August 2014.
• Chief blasts Harper for pushing oil pipeline, blatantly ignoring climate change. The chief of the Lower Nicola Indian Band south of Kamloops, B.C., whose territory is crucial to the $5.4-billion Kinder Morgan expansion project, wrote a strongly worded letter to the Prime Minister today about his “serious reservations” about the project. Vancouver Observer, Canada. 1 August 2014.
• Questions about pipelines and private property. Amid an oil and gas boom that has increased demand for new pipelines, Texas regulators have proposed new rules that have renewed a clash between two major state interests: energy development and private property rights. Texas Tribune, Texas. 1 August 2014.
• Ruminating cattle and leaky gas pipelines. Shifting to gas is at the heart of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) proposed new rules for power plant emissions. But gas is only more environmentally friendly if it is produced, transported and burned carefully, without too much leaking into the atmosphere. Reuters. Opinion, 1 August 2014.
• DOE discloses first steps to curb leaks in natural gas systems. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz yesterday announced preliminary initiatives to combat leaks of the potent greenhouse gas methane from pipelines, compressors and other parts of the natural gas distribution infrastructure. ClimateWire. 31 July 2014.
• Protest against proposed gas pipeline draws more than 100 to Boston Common. The possibility that a natural gas pipeline could cut through her property, over nearby aquifers and other water sources, has sparked such fear in Lindsey Sundberg that she joined more than a hundred others who came to Boston Common on Wednesday. Boston Globe, Massachusetts. 31 July 2014.
• PG&E accused of obstructing justice in San Bruno blast probe. A federal grand jury indicted Pacific Gas and Electric Co. on Tuesday on a total of 28 counts stemming from the San Bruno natural-gas explosion, including a charge that the company lied when it denied it had an official policy of ignoring federal law requiring pipeline inspections. San Francisco Chronicle, California. 31 July 2014.
• PG&E, our indifferent regulators, and the 8 dead of San Bruno. Whatever legal technicalities govern communications between regulators and regulated companies in California, it’s hard to see how PUC officials overlooked the necessity of erecting an electrified fence between themselves and PG&E. Los Angeles Times. Opinion, 31 July 2014. [Registration Required]
• California Public Utilities Commission sweetly snuggles up to PG&E. We’ve all heard the warnings: the “e” in email stands for evidence. Never put anything into email that you expect to remain private. Apparently, the memo never found its way to the California Public Utilities Commission, Sacramento Bee, California. Editorial, 31 July 2014.
• US utility PG&E charged with obstructing justice over gas disaster. The utility firm responsible for one of the biggest gas disasters in Californian history has been indicted for obstructing a federal investigation into a pipeline explosion which killed eight people and destroyed or damaged more than 100 homes. The Guardian. 31 July 2014.
• .A public wiki shines light on North America’s 4 million oil & gas wells. When residents of fracking communities want to know if an oil or gas well has a good environmental track record, they face the cumbersome task of searching through state records. A new website called WellWiki is trying to eliminate that frustration by making data just a click away. InsideClimate News. 30 July 2014.
• Does the state really need a new pipeline to supply more power plants? As plans progress to put a natural gas pipeline through North Central Florida, there are a number of questions that must be answered about the project but one that stands out. Does the state really need a new pipeline to supply more power plants? Gainesville Sun, Florida. Editorial, 30 July 2014.
• Vermont gas ordered to halt digging pipeline near pollution. The Vermont Public Service Board ordered Vermont Gas Systems to stop digging for its pipeline near power lines owned by the Vermont Electric Cooperative, citing environmental and health concerns. Vermont Public Radio, Vermont. 29 July 2014.
• Unprecedented New England pipeline proposal. There’s much debate about how much more fossil fuel infrastructure is necessary, given concerns about global warming. There are fierce objections to the proposed expansion of a natural gas pipeline from Pennsylvania to Massachusetts that would cost consumers as much as $3 billion dollars. Living On Earth. 27 July 2014.
• Is Pennsylvania’s ‘energy revolution’ shaping up as you expected? Rather than take a cautious, scientific approach, Pennsylvania’s top officials saw dollar signs and essentially threw open the doors of the commonwealth several years ago to the natural gas industry. Wilkes-Barre Times Leader, Pennsylvania. Editorial, 27 July 2014.
• Pipelines safer than trains for moving oil, Canadians believe. Canadians think pipelines are safer than trains or ships for transporting oil and gas – but they have little confidence the government is prepared to cope with a potential spill, according to public opinion research commissioned by the federal government. CBC Canada. 25 July 2014.
• Pennsylvania’s auditor general faults oversight of natural gas industry. Pennsylvania’s auditor general said PA’s Dept. of Environmental Protection has been unable to keep up with the workload placed on it by a proliferation of shale gas wells and has failed to respond adequately to complaints about resulting water and air contamination. New York Times. 24 July 2014. [Registration Required]
• Gas facility plan divides New Sewickley residents. An overflow, equally divided crowd of more than 300 people attended Wednesday night’s New Sewickley township supervisors hearing on a proposal to build a Marcellus Shale gas compressor station in southeast Beaver County next to the Kretschmann Family Organic Farm. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Pennsylvania. 24 July 2014.
• Dominion gains another approval needed to move ahead with LNG facility in Calvert. Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley and members of the state Board of Public Works voted to give Dominion Resources a tidal wetlands license. The governor dashed the hopes of a small group of environmentalists who have been passionately fighting the proposed facility. Washington Post. 24 July 2014. [Registration Required]
• Pipeline is an energy reality. Pipelines play an important role in delivering the energy everyone uses. Oakland residents should express their concerns, but should not throw up unwarranted obstacles to the pipeline construction. Detroit News, Michigan. Editorial, 24 July 2014.
• Maine port city’s ban on crude exports prompts oil industry threats. The decision by a small coastal city in Maine to ban the export of crude oil from its harbor brought threats of lawsuits from the oil industry Tuesday and put South Portland on the front lines of a battle over development of Canada’s huge and controversial tar sands deposits. Los Angeles Times. 23 July 2014. [Registration Required]
• TransCanada spends big on K Street as pipeline fight heads for finish. TransCanada Corp. – the company behind the controversial Keystone XL pipeline project – has nearly doubled its lobbying spending compared to this point last year. Greenwire. 23 July 2014.
• Georgia faces challenge to pipeline facility over potential for methane leaks. Georgia environmental regulators have been asked to deny a natural gas facility, just like one planned for North Central Florida, that serves a proposed interstate natural gas pipeline. Ocala Star-Banner, Florida. 22 July 2014.
• Florida governor had stake in pipeline firm whose $3 billion venture he and his appointees backed. Review of financial records made public last month by Gov. Scott show his portfolio included several million dollars invested in more than two-dozen entities that produce and/or transport natural gas – including some with substantial Florida operations. Broward Bulldog, Florida. 22 July 2014.
• Vermont Gas customers among those signing petition to halt pipeline. The latest petition against Vermont Gas Systems’ proposed pipeline extension includes about 450 of the company’s own customers, an environmental group says. VTDigger, Vermont. 22 July 2014.
• Democrats joining Republicans in the war on the environment. Today’s Democrats are now almost indistinguishable from Republicans in their lust for fossil fuels, their new-found love of deforestation, and a twisted approach to endangered species restoration. This being an election year, now would be a good time for Democrats to ask their candidates what happened to their commitment to the environment. Missoulian, Montana. Opinion, 21 July 2014.
• Will federal agency give pipeline foes a fair hearing? Emotional appeals about explosions or falling property values will fall on deaf federal ears, says, a former FERC attorney who now represents citizens groups. Citizens can impact a pipeline’s route. But stopping it altogether? Good luck. Lancaster Intelligencer Journal, Pennsylvania. 20 July 2014.
• Concerns surround Virginia gas pipeline survey. Rocky hills are part of the farmland that John and Barbara Anderson have owned more than four decades, but a proposal to run a utility pipeline through it has them feeling a bit flattened. Staunton News Leader, Virginia. 20 July 2014.
• About 1,000 natural gas leaks found on Staten Island; first NYC area mapped in Google. Staten Island was the first place mapped in the New York City metropolitan area in a project that revealed about 1,000 natural gas pipeline leaks in our borough. Staten Island Advance, New York. 18 July 2014.
• How Google Street View could save us from climate change and gas explosions. The Environmental Defense Fund has been working with Google’s mapping division to place methane monitoring equipment on their camera cars, which are constantly driving all over. The Week. Opinion, 18 July 2014.
• Few in local towns support gas pipeline proposal. Residents across the northern portion of Middlesex County, Massachusetts, want to know why Kinder Morgan isn’t exploring other routes for its proposed natural gas pipeline. And many are growing more anxious by the day about the potential consequences if the pipeline is approved. Boston Globe, Massachusetts. 17 July 2014.
• New study finds thousands of natural gas leaks in Boston area. An online map published Wednesday by Google and the Environmental Defense Fund reveals thousands of natural gas leaks under the streets of Boston and surrounding cities. Most of the leaks do not pose immediate public safety threats, but an advocacy group is concerned about climate effects. Boston Globe, Massachusetts. 17 July 2014.
• Dominion’s hopes rise for ambitious natural gas exports. Not many ships dock these days at the gigantic Dominion Resources pier that sprouts out of the Chesapeake Bay here, about a mile off Maryland’s western shore. But the company hopes that huge LNG tankers once again will begin making regular stops here in a few years. Philadelphia Inquirer, Pennsylvania. 13 July 2014. [Registration Required]
• A pipeline threatens our family land. This spring a man with a clipboard knocked on my sister’s door. He wanted permission to survey her property for a natural gas pipeline. My sister asked what would happen if she didn’t sign. Williams Partners, an Oklahoma-based natural gas transporter, would prefer to negotiate, he cheerily said, but the company would invoke the federal right of eminent domain if she didn’t. New York Times. Opinion, 13 July 2014. [Registration Required]
• In the Northeast, it’s pipeline vs. pastures. Cattle rancher Walter Jaworski is just one of thousands of public and private property owners here in the Northeast wedged between the mammoth shale gas supply being unleashed in states to the west, like Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia, and the insatiable market for fuel in New England. New York Times. 11 July 2014. [Registration Required]
• Activists vow to fight oil pipeline crossing Iowa. Environmental activists vowed Thursday to fight plans for a proposed 1,100-mile crude oil pipeline that would slice diagonally through the heart of Iowa, but the state’s politicians are withholding judgment for now. Des Moines Register, Iowa. 11 July 2014.
• Tainted legacy: Wealthy and powerful vs. Big Oil. The 2010 legacy lawsuit Maryland Co. vs. Exxon is just one of about 360 lawsuits by landowners claiming contamination by oil and gas companies – and asking for multimillion dollar judgments to compensate for environmental damages. The owner of The Maryland Co.? Former Louisiana Gov. Mike Foster. New Orleans WWL TV, Louisiana. 11 July 2014.