Energy + Environment
An asexual, swarming tick has invaded Virginia
The scene could be plucked from science fiction. Or maybe a horror movie. Picture hundreds of ticks swarming over a horse’s head in Virginia’s Warren County and thousands crawling up a New Jersey woman’s arm as she shears her sheep. The longhorned tick has been known to spread deadly disease in its native eastern Asia, […]
Federal agency halts Atlantic Coast Pipeline construction
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission ordered a halt Friday night to Dominion Energy’s 600-mile Atlantic Coast Pipeline. The order came four days after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit in Richmond vacated the pipeline’s authorization to drill under the Blue Ridge Parkway and gave a detailed explanation for its decision in May […]
State awards contract for electric-vehicle charging network
The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality has picked a Los Angeles company to build a $14 million electric vehicle charging network in the state. The money comes from Virginia’s nearly $94 million share of a $10 billion settlement with Volkswagen, which admitted to secretly installing devices to cheat emissions tests. EVgo, which says it operates […]
Another federal permit struck down? No big deal, Dominion says
Dominion Energy, the lead partner in the 600-mile Atlantic Coast Pipeline, says Monday’s decision by a federal appeals court stripping its authority to drill under the Blue Ridge Parkway isn’t that big a deal. The company expects that the National Park Service “will promptly re-issue the permit.” “Ample evidence to support the requisite finding that […]
Fourth Circuit strikes again: Atlantic Coast Pipeline permit vacated
In the latest in a string of decisions that have struck down key approvals for the Mountain Valley and Atlantic Coast pipelines, the Richmond-based U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit has thrown out Atlantic’s permit to cross the Blue Ridge Parkway. The court ruled that the National Park Service’s decision to allow the […]
On the heels of its big legislative win, what kind of grid does Dominion want to build for us?
Imagine that you have hired a builder to design and build you a three-story house. He brings you the plans for the first floor and proposes to start work right away. “These look okay,” you say, “but I need to see the plans for the whole house.” “Don’t you worry about that,” says the builder. […]
Mountain Valley Pipeline construction halted
A week after a federal appeals court in Richmond struck down a permit that allowed the Mountain Valley Pipeline to cross U.S. Forest Service land, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has ordered a halt to work on the entire project. “MVP is hereby notified that construction activity along all portions of the project and in […]
Dominion files for approval of offshore wind pilot project
Dominion Energy has filed an application with the State Corporation Commission for approval of a long-anticipated pilot offshore wind project. The company, which announced last summer that it would move forward with the project after letting a $40 million federal grant for offshore wind lapse the year before, seeks permission to build a two 6-megawatt […]
In Buckingham’s Union Hill, a center of resistance for the Atlantic Coast Pipeline, Dominion brings in a ringer
BUCKINGHAM — The sermon came from Ezekiel 33:7. “I have set thee a watchman unto the house of Israel; therefore thou shalt hear the word at my mouth, and warn them from me,” the verse reads. And, from the pulpit at Union Hill Baptist Church during a Sunday service last month, Pastor Paul Wilson was fully […]
Federal court upholds Virginia’s water-quality review for Mountain Valley Pipeline
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit in Richmond has upheld Virginia’s much-criticized water quality review for Mountain Valley Pipeline, one of two large natural gas pipeline projects proceeding in the state. The panel of judges rejected arguments from the Sierra Club and other organizations that the State Water Control Board incorrectly found […]
Photos: Mountain Valley Pipeline construction in full swing
Ongoing legal fights and permitting questions aside, construction of the Mountain Valley Pipeline in Virginia is in full swing. Hundreds of workers have flooded into the state to clear trees and install massive sections of 42-inch pipe. These photos show the state of construction in Montgomery County, where workers are still in the process of […]
Federal appeals court vacates Mountain Valley Pipeline approvals
In a significant victory for environmental groups and other opponents of the Mountain Valley Pipeline, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit in Richmond has vacated approvals that allowed the 300-mile natural gas pipeline, which is currently under construction, to cross the Jefferson National Forest near the Virginia-West Virginia border. In response to […]