The Shadow
The Jackson River Preservation Association announced recently it had received news that Virginia Attorney General Hark Herring had filed a friend of the court brief with the U.S. Supreme Court in support of the position of the JRPA, and others opposed to the Atlantic Coast Pipeline (ACP), in the case of United States Forest Service and others against Cowpasture River Preservation Association and others.
JRPA President Bill Wilson said “I could not be more pleased to have the commonwealth of Virginia weigh in on our side. This is big news and gives credence to the arguments we have been making in opposition to this unneeded and environmentally disastrous pipeline.
“The damage the ACP would do to the Alleghany Highlands and its rivers and streams is incalculable,” Wilson continued. “We owe a debt of gratitude to Attorney General Herring.
In Herring’s brief, he made the following statements to the court:
“This case impacts Virginia more than any other State. Three hundred and one miles of the proposed Atlantic Coast Pipeline – 50 percent of the pipeline’s total length – would be located in Virginia and carve a path directly through some of the commonwealth’s most valuable natural resources. One of those resources is the Appalachian Trail, which gently winds across Virginia for more than 500 of its 2,000 miles – a greater percentage than any other state.
“Virginia thus has a strong interest in the court’s consideration and resolution of this matter. Conserving natural resources and historical sites is critically important to Virginians and is enshrined in the state constitution. See Va. Const. art. XI, Section 1. But for Virginia’s natural resources to be adequately protected, federal agencies charged with administering federal lands within its borders must fulfill their statutory obligations. The Forest Service did not do so here, to the detriment of Virginians and others who enjoy the natural treasures in the pipeline’s path. The commonwealth likewise has an interest in ensuring the court is presented with an accurate picture of need for the pipeline, its (purported) benefits, and the burdens it would impose on Virginians and others.
“The pipeline company (Atlantic) claims the project is necessary to address an unmet and growing demand for natural gas in Virginia and North Carolina. But that claim does not withstand scrutiny. Indeed, recent analyses indicate that the demand for natural gas will remain flat or decease for the foreseeable future and can be met with existing infrastructure.
“Beyond offering dubious benefits, the pipeline unquestionably threatens some of Virginia’s most valued natural sites. The George Washington National Forest, the Blue Ridge Parkway and the Appalachian Trail are woven into the fabric of Virginia’s history, offering solitude and recreation to Virginians and visitors for generations, bringing tourism and its corresponding benefits to the neighboring communities.”
Wilson said that “within a few weeks, the lawyers for the Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC), which represents groups opposed to the ACP, will argue the case before the Supreme Court.”
