Earlier this year a poll of Virginians found 62% of them support building the Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) project in the state (see New Poll: 62% of Virginians Support Mountain Valley Pipeline). MVP is a $3.5 billion, 301-mile pipeline that will run from Wetzel County, WV to the Transco Pipeline in Pittsylvania County, VA. The project, which filed an official application with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in October 2015, will be built by EQT, NextEra Energy and several other partners including WGL. Even though the vast majority of Virginians want the pipeline, there are always a few, typically from Big Green groups like the Sierra Club, who oppose it. Opponents of MVP, and another project, Dominion’s Atlantic Coast Pipeline, held rallies on Wednesday at seven Virginia Dept. of Environmental Quality locations scattered across the state. About 50 people gathered at the Roanoke location. The rally was instructive. Given the safety record of pipelines, we always wonder what excuses these people can possibly have to oppose these projects? The answer always comes back to one, core motivation: they irrationally hate all fossil fuels. We know! You’re tired of us repeating this like a broken record. But it’s so true, as was perfectly illustrated at the Roanoke rally…
