Water board stops short of revoking pipeline water permits, orders stronger enforcement [View all]

[mahatmakanejeeves]

Water board stops short of revoking pipeline water permits, orders stronger enforcement

By MICHAEL MARTZ Richmond Times-Dispatch 13 hrs ago

The State Water Control Board, alarmed by a flood of mud from partial construction of a natural gas pipeline in Southwest Virginia, on Tuesday ordered state regulators to step up enforcement of state water quality standards but stopped short of revoking permits for the project and another pipeline planned through the heart of Virginia.

The water board narrowly defeated, 4-3, a motion to modify or revoke the state’s certification of a nationwide permit to oversee more than 1,000 water crossings by the Mountain Valley and Atlantic Coast pipelines, but agreed unanimously to require more rigorous enforcement of state standards to protect water quality. ... “I think the enforcement needs to be as aggressive as it can possibly be,” said Timothy G. Hayes, a retired environmental attorney who made the final motion.

The water board’s action still dismayed a capacity crowd of pipeline opponents who expressed their distrust of the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality throughout a tense, nearly four-hour meeting that they interrupted repeatedly to challenge statements by regulatory staff.

“It’s not working!” someone shouted after a DEQ enforcement official acknowledged that a photo of the muddy overflow from work on the Mountain Valley Pipeline at Boones Mill in Franklin County was taken after actions to correct the problem.
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